Angela Garcia - The Experience: Cathartic Writing, Collectivity, and Care Among Undocumented Mexican Immigrants

Date:
February 5, 2025
6:00 pm

This talk draws from an ethnography of a little-known therapeutic community of undocumented Mexican immigrants living in the United States. The foundation of this community is a grueling three-day healing ritual called an Experience. I describe one such Experience that took place in the Northern California forest in 2022, focusing on its novel practice of cathartic writing. I argue that this writing practice is far more than a tool for self-care or self-expression, it is also a medium for collectivity and political critique. By writing a “self” that is never alone, the experience provides a mode of care and healing that enables immigrants to collectively weather and represent the myriad forms of violence that accompany undocumented life.

Location:
6 East 16th Street, 11th Floor, Wolff Conference Room