Most US history books begin with colonization of the thirteen colonies by English invaders who conquered numerous Indigenous nations. However, the part of modern US territory that was colonized the earliest is Puerto Rico. As a result, Hispanic history in regions that are now called the United States spans more than five centuries. In addition, the Indigenous ancestry of mestizos on modern US territory extends for tens of thousands of years, and includes countless nations from all the Américas: North, South, and Central. Condensing every aspect into one book of poems would be an overwhelming task. All I’ve tried to do in Dreams from Many Rivers is portray a few glimpses of a vast and complicated past.
With the exception of the first section about Borikén (Puerto Rico), I have used modern place names to avoid confusion since historically, place names changed quite often.
Only Hispanic and Latino voices are included in Dreams from Many Rivers, with the exception of Indigenous Taíno voices in the first section. Fictional characters are indicated by first name only, while historical figures include a surname or title.
I have made no attempt to explain the history and politics of countries of origin of US Latinos, because they include dozens of Latin American countries, as well as many other parts of the world.
Television programs, movies, and popular culture often portray Latinos as impoverished barrio dwellers. The truth is that we live in every part of the United States, both rural and urban; poor, middle class, and wealthy. Our reasons for living in the United States range from being here before it became the US to arriving as refugees or arriving as highly qualified doctors, scientists, artists, and musicians. We are complex. We cannot be simplified.
In order to write about US Latino history, I had to make two essential decisions. The first was facing the shameful atrocities of Spanish conquistadors and their descendants, including invasions, genocide, conquest, forced labor, persecution, and racism. Spanish invaders were just as brutal as English invaders, slaughtering Native Americans, enslaving the survivors, then importing enslaved people from Africa. This book is an attempt to portray our history honestly, rather than choosing to ignore the parts that we long to forget.
The second decision was acknowledging that the history of the modern US begins in Puerto Rico, not Plymouth Rock or Jamestown, as is widely believed. Puerto Ricans are US citizens. They can travel freely between the island and mainland without passports. They pay taxes. But Puerto Rico is a territory, not a state. They are not allowed to vote in presidential elections. They often have to endure being mistaken for immigrants. This dual nature of Puerto Rico, with two languages and a confusing in-between status, strikes me as significant for anyone who has ever felt simultaneously accepted and rejected.
Dreams from Many Rivers does not answer even a tiny fraction of the questions that a student might ask a teacher during Hispanic/Latino Heritage Month. I have my own series of enormous questions. Why has so much of the Latino experience been omitted from standard textbooks? Why are we so often reduced to a few absurd stereotypes? Why are invaders and conquerors glorified, while peacemakers are ignored? Why do we have to learn history’s truths on our own, instead of encountering our real stories in school? How can this drastic injustice begin to change?