Citizen in the Colony: An Americanish Reading

Abstract

This article offers a critical reflection on the possibilities of broaching race, racism, and Whiteness in Puerto Rico in the college classroom. It does so by briefly recounting class discussion of poet Claudia Rankine’s critically acclaimed book Citizen: An American Lyric, which focuses on the quotidian manifestations of anti-Black prejudice and violence in the United States. By telling of and commenting on the difficulties in sustaining a sincere dialogue on Whiteness as part and parcel of institutionalized racism on the Island, the article sheds light on the unsettled character of these conversations.