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dinasamimi's review against another edition
5.0
This spoke to my soul as a first generation Tunisian and Muslim American. This is deeply researched and so well written, bringing much needed context and nuance to American citizenship and belonging through the lenses of immigration, birthright citizenship and white supremacy. Really excellent.
doc_erinnicole's review against another edition
emotional
informative
medium-paced
3.75
I made almost 100 highlights while reading this so that should tell you its impact on me. The thesis of this text is very strong-- there are people in the United States who have conditional citizenship based on their identities, place of origin, etc. None of these ideas where particularly new to me but to package them in this way was well done. A couple of thoughts I had while reading:
-I really appreciated the focus of assimilation being based on power. Who is asked to conform is based on where one is located and if they are in seen (often globally) as powerful. Lalami gives great examples including settlers to the Americas didn't assimilate, similar to many expat communities around the world. Which is contrast to Black and brown folks coming to contemporary USA.
-The author shared a story about a White woman telling her and a shop owner to stop speaking in Spanish. She gives several hypotheses re: why this person might be mad about this and the one I thought was missing was policing and surveillance. That is, if you speak in another language she (and other monolingual folks) don't know what you're talking about, which is terrifying for a lot of (White) people.
This is a foundational text and my only criticism is that it could at times be a bit superficial. For example, the chapter on the disparities between men and women could have gone much deeper-- felt like we were just scratching the surface.
-I really appreciated the focus of assimilation being based on power. Who is asked to conform is based on where one is located and if they are in seen (often globally) as powerful. Lalami gives great examples including settlers to the Americas didn't assimilate, similar to many expat communities around the world. Which is contrast to Black and brown folks coming to contemporary USA.
-The author shared a story about a White woman telling her and a shop owner to stop speaking in Spanish. She gives several hypotheses re: why this person might be mad about this and the one I thought was missing was policing and surveillance. That is, if you speak in another language she (and other monolingual folks) don't know what you're talking about, which is terrifying for a lot of (White) people.
This is a foundational text and my only criticism is that it could at times be a bit superficial. For example, the chapter on the disparities between men and women could have gone much deeper-- felt like we were just scratching the surface.
melodys_library's review
3.0
“After I became a citizen I thought, somewhat naively I admit, that I would be treated no differently than other Americans. Since then, however, I have had ample opportunity to see all the ways in which this was not true.”
Through personal anecdotes and detailed research, Lalami explains how we who are the anomaly feel all the time: When you’re the one that’s not like the rest, you’re treated differently, and often unfairly. You’re kept at arm’s length, and your differences are categorized as threatening.
In this book, we see the United States - its policies, leaders, people - through the lens of a naturalized citizen. Lalami is passionate and honest, challenging the reader through examinations of history, national origin, race, faith, gender, class, and exposing this country’s enduring systems of inequality and exclusion.
Through personal anecdotes and detailed research, Lalami explains how we who are the anomaly feel all the time: When you’re the one that’s not like the rest, you’re treated differently, and often unfairly. You’re kept at arm’s length, and your differences are categorized as threatening.
In this book, we see the United States - its policies, leaders, people - through the lens of a naturalized citizen. Lalami is passionate and honest, challenging the reader through examinations of history, national origin, race, faith, gender, class, and exposing this country’s enduring systems of inequality and exclusion.
juliaarciga's review
4.0
Solid! Def got my thinking and highlighting! Points were made from an interesting perspective. Writing was clear and engaging.