In my time organizing on the border, I've found that it's hard to get people to actually read things. Not only do people have preciously limited time and energy to dedicate to the non-essentials, but often these works are written in the inaccessible dialect of the academic or social justice adept.

But Huey's story is familiar to those who need it most. He writes about growing up poor in a violent neighborhood, doing badly in school and eating the equivalent of cup noodles for every meal. 

Most importantly, he describes how he was able to transform his personal struggle for survival into a communal struggle for liberation. Because so many of my community members can see themselves in that first struggle, it makes it a profound tool for helping them assume the second.
 

- Alec Martinez, NASCO Board Director