Acclaimed Mexican-American author Reyna Grande discussed the power of storytelling and the immigrant experience on Tuesday, Feb. 11, at Claremont McKenna College’s Marian Miner Cook Athenaeum. Grande spoke on Trump’s mass deportation plans and the current state of U.S. immigration, among other things.
Grande’s work, which includes both memoirs and novels, focuses on the immigrant experience within the United States. She has received many accolades, including the American Book Award, the Premio Aztlán Literary Prize and the International Latino Book Award.
Grande opened her talk by discussing how storytelling can aid in processing trauma.
“For me, on a personal level, writing has been my lifeline,” Grande said. “I feel that my stories are part of a larger narrative of resilience and of hope, and my voice is stronger because it is part of a chorus of voices. We’re all working together collectively to advocate and to support and to encourage one another.”
She added that being on stage and discussing immigration as a formerly undocumented immigrant was both a privilege and a responsibility.
“I never take these opportunities lightly, because there aren’t that many of us who are handed a microphone and invited to come and tell our stories,” she said.
Grande highlighted the role of advocacy in storytelling and the importance of representation. She noted that a common misconception is the portrayal of all Mexican-Americans as immigrants.
“We’re constantly being portrayed as the outsiders, as the foreigners, as the invaders,” Grande said. “And this narrative ignores the fundamental truth that we are not all immigrants, that we are both the newest and also one of the oldest communities in this country.”
She then commented on the government’s plans for mass deportation. On Jan. 20, President Donald Trump issued “Protecting the American People Against Invasion,” an executive order that increases immigration enforcement measures and expands the use of detention facilities. To Grande, this is heartbreaking.
“Teachers across the country are attending training on what to do if ICE comes onto their campuses and learning how to best help their students,” Grande said. “Of course, we have gone through such times before in our history. But we survived then, and they will survive now.”
Grande also spoke about her upbringing and personal experience as a first-generation immigrant from Mexico.
“My hometown is surrounded by fields of poppies and also mass graves,” Grande said. “And it’s a very sad place, but also it’s a beautiful place too, and that is something that I try to capture in my books.”
With both her mother and father being forced to leave Mexico when she was young, Grande said she experienced the trauma of family separation, a theme that inspired some of her work. Grande said she was unaware of the long-term effects of the trauma she endured when she immigrated to the U.S. at age nine but found writing to be a creative outlet.
“I didn’t know how trauma can impact your mental health, your physical health, your emotional health, your social well-being, your spiritual well-being,” Grande said. “I didn’t know any of that, but I felt it in my body. And so writing was when I felt that I could breathe again, every time I wrote down in my journals.”
Ending the talk, Grande said storytelling has allowed her to redefine her path.
“My writing has paved the way for me to accomplish all the things that I set out for myself as a first-generation college student daring to dream beyond the circumstances I was born into,” Grande said. “My writing allowed me to write a different story for myself than the story that had been written before in my family.”
Maria Shishkina SC ’25, who attended the talk, said she appreciated Grande’s honesty with her personal story and experiences.
“Those are such personal accounts to share with the world, and I think it takes a lot of courage to be able to do so, especially with the political climate of today,” Shishkina said.
Similarly, Anna Mone SC ’28, who also attended the talk, said she found Grande’s perspective and insights to be incredibly relevant today.
“I think she brought up many really critical points about how it’s an ongoing issue, and how it’s something so deeply rooted in our country’s history and our legacy in Latin America,” Mone said.
Grande concluded her talk with a call for action.
“Storytelling is such a powerful tool for fighting for social justice and trying to create change, to educate others and to heal and to empower my community,” she said.
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