The Death & Resurrection of my Spanish Name
Mom as biker chick
I’ve rarely spoken in public about the trauma I suffered when I was forcibly adopted at the age of 14. It broke my heart and stung like hell to learn that my biological father had signed me away; giving in to the relentless two year pursuit of my biological mother’s attorney who hunted my father in Puerto Rico. Mom thought it best to strip me of my beloved Spanish surname in favor of a Jewish one that, overnight, changed the way the world perceived me. I became a hollow shell, while it was demanded that I blend into our White American culture pronto.
Thank you to the Center for Puerto Rican Studies (Centro) at Hunter College in New York for empowering me to share my cautionary tale of one girl’s traumatized adolescence at the hands of the adults around her. I share my story to enlighten and educate others – contentious parents, divorcing couples, unscrupulous attorneys, caregivers, etc. – to think long and hard about how you’re impacting the lives of your/our children due to the fallout of your failed relationships. NEWYORICANGIRL