¿Qué Onda?: Urban Youth Cultures and Border Identity.  Cynthia L. Bejarano. Tucson: The University of Arizona Press, 2005. 248 pp.

Reviewed by:  Nancy Ríos

¿Qué Onda? describes the ethnic identities constructed by youth of Mexican-descent while livingamid xenophobia within the U.S.–Mexico borderlands and attending Altamira High School in an unspecified major city of Arizona. Bejarano makes an important contribution to youth studies by introducing borderlands theory to an analysis of youth cultures and identity making. Bejarano, trained in criminal justice, challenges the concept of a homogeneous Mexican identity that is shared by all Mexican-descent youth by exploring the competing Mexican identities that are constructed by two “alterNative” youthcultures at Altamira and revealing the tensions that exist between Altamira’s Mexicana/o youth (Mexican-born youth) and Chicana/o youth (Mexican-descendent youth).

Based on four years of multidisciplinary research (observations, focus groups, surveys, and structured and unstructured interviews about conflict, ethnic/cultural identity, and student school life), Bejarano concludes that youth of Mexican descent not only actively seek identities in “alterNative” youth cultures (a concept borrowed from borderlands scholar Alicia Gaspar de Alba), but youth also criticize each other’s “Styles” or ethnic expressions.  Bejarano also finds that Mexicana/o and Chicana/o youth identities are enacted through language use (Spanish, English, and Spanglish), social hierarchies, and cultural citizenship. Bejarano’s main assertion is that differences among “border dwellers,” or those living along the U.S.-Mexico border, depend on one’s location along the “Mexican cultural continuum”.  Their specific subaltern locations in U.S. society, Bejarano thus concludes, shapes the distinct youth cultures that exist in the borderlands.

Bejarano uses borderlands theory to contextualize the lived experience of Altamira’s youth within the history of colonialism and the physical and psychological effects it has had on the Mexican people in the U.S. She argues that these ramifications are more pronounced in the physical space known as the borderlands, a space situated along the U.S.-Mexico border and encompassing most of the U.S. Southwest. On the use of borderlands theory, Bejarano writes, “Border theory helps explain how Latina/o youths are impacted by structural inequality, cultural hybridity, social hierarchies, and the legacy of colonialism that overshadows life on the border” (28). Bejarano argues, albeit lacking empirical research data, that people who live in the borderlands are more significantly impacted by the experience of colonization because of their proximity to the actual border and because of their continual subjection to racism and discrimination as border dwellers than those who ascribe a metaphysical borderlands experience (e.g., Mexicans in the Midwest).

Bejarano begins her book with thirty (12 Chicana/o, 18 Mexicana/o) biographical sketches of her participants. Chapter 1, “Buscando la Identidad,”  briefly describes the identity politics and sociohistorical context of Mexican-descent youth living in the United States.  She also describes the changing demographic context of the ethnically and racially mixed southwestern metropolitan city in which Altamira High School is located but does not actually identify the city. In Chapter 2, “Stepping Stones,”  Bejarano provides a brief literature review of the scholarship about Mexican immigrant and Mexican American/Chicana/o youth and identity construction. She continues her literature review in Chapter 3, “Youths of Mexican Descent,”where she provides a thorough review of the physical and psychological components of borderlands theory and its implication for youth studies.  In Chapter 4, “Escuchando las Voces de la Juventud, Listening to Youths’ Voices”, Bejarano contextualizes her research project within Chicana feminist thought and describes her research as a project committed to self-reflexivity and exposing the myriad ways that youth of Mexican descent construct ethnic identities. This chapter also reveals some of the limitations of her research (i.e. easier access to ESL students [predominately Mexicana/o youth] than to Chicana/o youth).

After analyzing the alterNative concept in Chapter 5, “Latina/o Youth Cultures,” Bejarano finally describes the alterNativecultures of both Mexicana/o and Chicana/o youth at Altamira. Additionally, she describes how ethnic borders are policed and how Style is performed. The tensions highlighted in Chapter5 are further analyzed in Chapter 6, “Serpent Tongues, Social Hierarchies, and National Citizenship,”  by developing the conflation of language use and identity politics through the concept of vergüenza (shame). Bejarano’s concluding chapter, “Discussion and Conclusion,” reiterates her research goals and findings‑to use borderlands theory to explain the differences that exist between youths of Mexican descent (Mexicana/o and Chicana/o) who live in the Southwest. Her conclusions are followed by two appendices, which contain her interview questions and focus group survey and questionnaires.

Ultimately, Bejarano draws on her participants’experiences and opinions about one another to demonstrate that Altamira’s Mexican-descent youth live a borderlands experience. Unfortunately, Bejarano attributes internalized oppression, a major tenet of borderlands theory, for tensions that exist between the two alterNative  youth groups and misses the opportunity to critically examine those tensions and possibly advance borderlands theory. Additionally, even though Bejarano devotes considerable discussion reflecting on her research experience, she does not expound on how her limitations may affect her conclusions. Still, Bejarano’s work is fairly accessible to a wide audience. Her review of the literature on youth of Mexican descent is thorough and useful for any reader interested in the subject. In fact, this book is a great introduction into the topics of borderlands theory, Chicana feminist research, and youth studies of Mexican-descent youth. ¿Qué Onda? lacks the rich ethnographic descriptions one would expect out of four years of qualitative research. However, Bejarano’s commitment to expounding the diversity of ethnic identities among youth of Mexican descent by using borderlands theory is original and provides a foundation for emergent scholarship to continue developing youth and schooling studies informed by borderlands theory.