La Mujer de Mango

La Mujer de Mango

Story by Francis Rodríguez

Photos by Brandon Nixon

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Cisneros was on campus.

The celebrated Mexican-American author and activist Sandra Cisneros shared insights with students at the George Washington Educational Campus recently.

Hundreds of students of the High School for Media and Communications, one of four institutions on site, reveled in the opportunity to hear directly from Cisneros, whose groundbreaking first novel The House on Mango Street was first published in 1984.

The classic coming-of-age novel has sold over six million copies and has been translated into more than twenty languages.

Seated comfortably on stage, Cisneros was treated to a warm welcome on Tues., Sept. 19^th as she settled on stage into a Q-and-A session with students, followed by a book signing.

She recalled growing up as the only girl alongside a family of six brothers in Chicago while making frequent family trips to Mexico. She spoke frankly of the challenges of being looked upon as “different” for cultural customs practiced at home and for being bilingual.

The audience, made largely of students of immigrant backgrounds, listened intently.

Cisneros, who has earned various national and international awards, including the National Medal of Arts, the Texas Medal of the Arts, and a MacArthur Fellowship, said it was precisely that unique outsider existence that would manifest into the distinctive and valuable elements upon which she would draw as a narrator and storyteller.

“If you stay focused on what you want in life and persist, then it will be easy to find ways to vent your creativity,” she said. “When I was growing up, I remember I felt sad and disappointed at the library because I could not find characters that I could relate to. That is when I decided to write stories that could genuinely portrait the lives of Latinos, [that reflected] the life I knew.”

Cisneros, who has also penned Woman Hollering Creek and Other Stories and Caramelo, among other publications, exhorted the students to be proud of their cultural heritage and to pursue higher education as a means of remaining independent.

“Study [and] get prepared,” she urged. “Because if you depend on your parents or [anyone else], you will never be totally free. The future starts now. Plan your life, plan your fertility.”

Cisneros also underscored the importance of making time for reflection to nurture the creative impulse.

“Enjoy the moments of solitude, the time for yourself,” she said. “In my case, I used that time to write since I was 11 years old.”

Juan Villar, who serves as Principal of the High School for Media and Communications, said that the visit would prove an unforgettable moment for the entire school community.

“I could not stop looking at the expression on their faces,” said Villar. “The students were very attentive and when Cisneros gave them the chance to make questions, all of them had one to ask; all of them felt the need to learn more about her life.”

Cisneros’ visit is one of a series that is organized throughout the year by the school administrators and teaching staff, including the campus’ Artistic Director Zulaika Velázquez.

The group views the in-person discussions as critical opportunities to meet with and engage members of the cultural and artistic community that can offer different perspectives on the notions of maturation, success, and relationships.

“We have invited writers, actors and musicians to share their stories with the students and we will

continue doing this as part of our mission,” said Villar. “We are very excited because we already have a wonderful program of guest speakers at the school that we hope to develop on a monthly basis.”