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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This work belongs to so many people. It belongs first and foremost to the Chicana/o students. Hundreds of students agreed to work with me on this project, and hundreds more provided inspiration for the work to move forward. These students include the many kids I went to school with who were smarter than me but never found their way out, the brilliant young raza at Oak Street Elementary School when I taught there, the gente who came to all those talks where I shared the work and who explained what worked and asked the questions that allowed me to clarify those ideas that were unclear, the mechistas at Washington State University who fought hard to create change for their little brothers and sisters and who always inspired me, and the students in my classes and in MAESTR@S who have always made it clear that this work needs to continue. I want to thank several editors and colleagues who helped me with different concepts, approaches, and insights that have become essential to this book. Laurence Parker and Sofia Villenas helped me develop the methodological approaches that underlie my work (Pizarro 1998). Brian McNeill and Liz Vera helped me solidify my analysis of the previous work on Chicana/o identity, which allowed me to push this work in new directions (Pizarro and Vera 2001). Tom Gelsinon and the folks at Perspectives in Mexican American Studies helped me develop the analysis that has evolved into Chapter 1 (Pizarro 1997). Paul Wong created a space for me to do the innovative work that evolved into Chapter 3 (Pizarro 1999). I am grateful for the financial support received for conducting the research that led to this book. The Institute of American Cultures and the UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center provided me postdoctoral support for the year in which I began work on Chicana/o research methods (see the introduction) and then conducted the Los Angeles Project . The Spencer Foundation funded the Washington study. In addition Paul Wong, formerly the chair of the Department of Comparative Cultures at Washington State University, was a constant source of support and pushed me to seek the Spencer funding. While I was at WSU, the xiii 00a-T3261-FM 3/22/05 1:21 PM Page xiii c h i c a n a s a n d c h i c a n o s i n s c h o o l Meyer Fund of the College of Liberal Arts also provided support for the project. After the research was complete, the Ford Foundation provided me with a postdoctoral fellowship that allowed me the time to work with the interviews carefully. Eugene Garcia, then the dean of the College of Education at the University of California, Berkeley, was a great mentor for that year and really helped me move the work forward. I also received some important support along the way. I am indebted to Luci Loera, who was invaluable as she helped me conduct and make sense of interviews and provided feedback to various drafts of the work. She worked tirelessly because it mattered, and she made this book possible . Other friends and colleagues also read the work and provided essential feedback, particularly Amy Best and Jose Gonzalez. Finally, Theresa May and the staff at the University of Texas Press have been tremendous. Without their support, patience, and guidance, this never would have been possible. In particular, I want to express my gratitude to Rosemary Wetherold, whose careful editing made this a much better read. The personal support I received along this journey was much more important to its completion than any of the professional. My family— Leonard, Helena, and Charlie—in no uncertain terms made me what I am today. They lived justice in a loving and powerful way that forced me to always strive to be the change I sought. My suegros were also a great moral support and grounding for me in those times when I was away from my own family. In addition, my suegra always made sure my translations were tight and showed me how to be in the world when I would forget. My camaradas in MAESTR@S have been my strength. Raquel, Margaret , Julia, Prishni and Serg, Rafa, Danielle, Mario, and all the others who have joined us push me, inspire me, and make me work harder to live up to their examples. Most important of all is my partner, Esther. She has grounded me in...

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