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Empanadas, Pupusas and Greens on the Side

Author Amelia Tseng in Conversation with Canek Aguirre

Join Alexandria Library and Tenants and Workers United to hear from author Amelia Tseng on her recent book "Empanadas, Pupusas and Greens on the Side: Language and Latinidad in the Nation's Capital."

In the 1980s, Washington, DC—a predominantly African American, racially and economically segregated city with a strong local Black culture—became a hub of Latin American immigration. As the city's communities interacted, an identity both unique to DC and reflective of diverse Latin American cultures was born.

Empanadas, Pupusas, and Greens on the Side is the first linguistics book to explore how the Latinx community forged a new sense of home and identity in Washington. Using original ethnographic research—including interviews, narratives, and surveys—Tseng develops a new framework for understanding the relationship between race, identity, language, and culture, and she explains what happens when communities interact.

Readers interested in the cultural history of Washington, Latinx history, and language and society will enjoy this rich study of language as a cross-cultural current in ever-evolving America.

Books may be purchased from Georgetown University Press. Enter code: TGUF to receive 30% off the list price.  https://press.georgetown.edu/Book/Empanadas-Pupusas-and-Greens-on-the-Side

Amelia Tseng

Dr. Amelia Tseng is Assistant Professor in Spanish and Linguistics. Her research addresses how language shapes and is shaped by identity across immigrant generations in Latinx diasporic contexts, focusing on multilingualism, dialect variation, discourse, and the construction of ethnoracial and cultural identity.

Canek Aguirre

Canek Aguirre was first elected to the Alexandria City Council in November 2018 and re-elected to a third term in November 2024. Born and raised in Los Angeles to Mexican immigrants, Canek is the first Latino to ever serve on the City Council.

Tenants and Workers United

For nearly 40 years, Tenants and Workers United has been organizing low-income communities of color to build power through community-led campaigns for affordable housing, health equity, education justice, police accountability, immigrants' rights, and more. TWU centers education and leadership development to help people become change agents, and we practice civic engagement to secure sustainable systemic changes that advance racial, economic, and social justice across Northern Virginia.

Local History/Special Collections

Local History/Special Collections houses many resources for those interested in Alexandria and Virginia history and genealogy and the Civil War. Major activities include generating online exhibits, collection guides and genealogy indexes. 

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