Customer Reviews

The Great Progression: How Hispanics Will Lead America to a New Era of Prosperity

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(8)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

I enjoyed reading some of the passages in this book pertaining to the contributions of the hispanic community to America's culture and economy. The information provided, however, was incomplete and frequently missed the point.

First of all, Geraldo regards Latinos in the US as the big monolith that they certainly are not. He believes that the biggest obstacles in the face of this monolithic community are what he calls "the education siesta" (true in some Latino communities but not all) and immigration (also relevant to one community (i.e. Mexican) but not all.) Lumping the distinct Latino communities in America into one will not go well with most Latino readers, I suspect.

Also, I didn't quite understand the parallels her tried to draw between the flow of Jewish, Italian and Irish "legal" immigrants at the turn of the century and the flood of "illegal" immigrants today. He failed to mention the role geography has played in both situations. The main reason the illegal immigration today is far more serious than ones past is that it is constant and unrelenting due to the land continuity between the US and Mexico. This very important difference and its impact on the overall culture, quality of life and public services in this country was never even mentioned in the book.

There was also very little mention of suspect groups like La Raza and others that are viewed by the vast majority of Americans as separatist and their impact on the Latino communities and the country as a whole.

My biggest beef with this book is that it didn't really deliver on its promise. Geraldo didn't really explain "how" Hispanics will lead America to a new era of prosperity. He didn't paint a prosperous future where the Hispanics where the leading force. He gave little hints here and there but nothing that one would expect from the title of the book.

Although the book was lacking in the areas I mentioned above and many more, I found it pretty entertaining and down right funny. The part where Geraldo compares himself to Oprah and Lassie is friggin' hilarious!

Skip this book, unless you you want to drink Geraldo's Kool-Aid.

Although Amazon does not like comments on the author himself, in this case it is impossible to separate the author from the content since so much of the content is about himself. Author Rivera repeatedly talks about himself and his personal life, even listing his children and giving brief bios on them.

The book starts out with name-dropping (Jennifer Lopez is the first to be quoted) and continues throughout the book. He definitely takes a journalistic, even tabloid view of his subject which also meanders throughout. There are NO footnotes or end notes, and NO references except vague quotes in the narrative that are difficult (if not impossible) to verify.

Supposedly this book is about how Hispanics will lead America into a new era of prosperity. Wow! Really? Sounds interesting. Fifteen percent of the population will become the leadership that will teach all those nasty nativist Americans of European extraction how to run a republic. Please tell me where Hispanics have successfully run a republic better than Americans of European extraction have done here in the US. No doubt there is a market for jingoistic tripe like this, but hardly among Americans of European extraction.

The work clearly exhibits much muddle-headed thinking, although it is useful to know what some segments of our society might believe. The biggest drum the author beats is over illegal aliens or undocumented workers depending on the reader's point of view. Rivera believes they should be given immediate and unqualified amnesty, and although he doesn't explicitly state this opinion, he apparently believes we should have an open border to allow as many Hispanics to come in as wish to enter. But what does this have to do with Hispanics leading the US into a new era? Well, once Hispanics are in the majority, I guess Hispanics will rule.

But actually, Rivera has a more subtle argument -- we MUST have Hispanic immigration, illegal or legal, to keep Social Security afloat in the short term. In fact he is correct on this point, regardless of what our cowardly and dissembling politicans in Washington say as they religiously spend every dime of the non-existent "Social Security Trust Fund" each year. But is that a reasonable solution to our great Ponzi scheme?

History abounds with examples of people losing control over their country through attracting immigrants of other nationalities, races, cultures, religions and linguistic orientations. That was how Mexico lost Texas in the first place. Also how the Boers lost South Africa to the English, or the Roman Empire lost Gaul to the Franks. If that is what the reader wants, then author Rivera is your man. As he states unequivocally, "No one is more proudly Puerto Rican than I am."

The author argues for bilingual education, affordable housing like through H.O.G.A.R (run by Edna Rivera) (the author claims "hogar" is an English word meaning "home" or hearth" -- if so, it is missing from American and English dictionaries as far back as the early 18th century), and many other left or far-left initiatives. He lauds La Raza (The Race in English) which offends non-Hispanics merely by its name, ACORN and its roll in taking the census, the S.I.E.U (which will be taken over by Hispanics in his forecasts), "Card-Check" although it would cause a new wave of out-sourcing to foreign countries and more loss of jobs, and even is at peace with Spanglish which he touts as a new language beinging Hispanics and English-speaking Americans together. Cuba is somehow "a sleeping giant" with its 11 million people although the island is stuck in a 1950s time capsule, and he recommends the US help Cuba into the 21st century. You'll never see the term "anchor baby" in this book, and only this author would describe a conflict between individuals as being based in which one had the largest male member. Wow, machismo at its worst.

In one of his many personal aggrandizements, the author mentions that fear was one of the reasons he avoided military service in the US Army when he was young, but considers himself a "warrior journalist" today because he has traveled with US military units in Iraq (and was protected by them.) One must really read past the author's repeated displays of abject machismo to find anything to keep.

There are so many wild statements in this book that I don't know where to begin. Venezuelan President Chavez is "ebullient", the web site Media Matters is "left-leaning but usually accurate" (wow!), Anglo-Americans are all Protestant (Catholics are excluded?), the country was formed by "ex-pat Brits" (showing an incredible lack of knowledge of American history), etc, etc. If I didn't know better, I would think the author just arrived in the US from a backward village somewhere in Venezuela.

Yet there is also good here that is valuable to read. Rivera advocates tough love for Hispanics in education and learning English so they can play his appointed role. He believes the gang cultures have to be neutralized and that the DREAM program should be resurrected to provide a path to citizenship through military service. Both of these points are well-considered.

On the other hand there are many chapters of no value and can be skipped altogether unless the reader simply wants to read Hispanic names dropped by the author. Included in these would be:
1. The First Brown President
3. The Hispanic Consumer
6. Reverse Migration
7. A Hogar is not a Home
10. The Boy Scouts Get It
12. Disfrute
15. Beisbol
16. Mutts like Us
17. Spanglish

In short, there is much to learn here if the reader is not familiar with Hispanics in the US and their issues, actual or contrived. Author Rivera puts a Latino spin on everything, even when the consequences of what he advocates would be bad for Hispanics. He shows a great deal of passion for his subject, but also a great deal of ignorance. All in all, I was happy that I read this book and am now better able to put author Rivera into context.

Geraldo Rivera has never been known for his accuracy as a "journalist," and has always been something of a showman, with lots of razzle-dazzle and little genuine fact, or import.

This book rates overall about what I had expected. That's right, the person most people know as Geraldo Rivera is the son of a Jewish mother and Hispanic father. The scuttle but on the Good Morning America show, where he first emerged as a "hot talking head" some 35 years ago was that he traded up on his half-Hispanic heritage given the demand for "minority" reporters, and absolutely went ballistic every time anyone called him by his given name---Jerry Rivers.

And much like all his "hot talking head" reporting over the years, such as the spectacular tale of a sunken Spanish treasure whose booty he "first revealed" on air, this book is a lot of snap, crackle and fizz.

Other reviewers have already commented on many of the other disappointments here, including Rivera's failure to mention the appalling racism of groups like La Raza and the murders of many New Yorkers by Puerto Rican nationalist terrorists (freed by Bill Clinton in the waning days of his presidency, at the behest of his soon-to-be New York senator wife), not to mention other heinous crimes. They've also noted the sad statistics concerning Hispanic life in America, and the alarming rate at which illegal aliens cross the southern U.S. border --- to the detriment of all Americans, most especially Hispanics who are legal American citizens and attempting to rid their neighborhoods of crime and improve their economic lot.

Overall, I'd have to agree. This book is a quick try at a fast buck, a typical slick, and somewhat sleazy Rivera play. Skip it.

---Alyssa A. Lappen

Geraldo is clearly a racist of the worst kind and he brings that out in this book! It is clear that hispanics are destroying this nation and Geraldo must be blind or lying. Look at ANY neighborhood where hispanics live? End of Story! ALL hispanic neighborhoods look just like the cess-pool of Mexico City. Geraldo Rivera is disgusting, hates whites, and defacates on the very nation that gave him his success. The worst kind of racist!

When I ordered this I was a little leery because Geraldo has been such a champion of free border policies and the open migration of Latinos at will into and out of the United States. I discovered several things while reading the book: Geraldo is out of touch with most of the Hispanics in the US (except the Puerto Ricans on the East Coast) and many of his arguments in the book make the case for closing the border, although I am not sure that was the intended result.

I was irritated by his first mention of "undocumented" workers and continued to be through the book. He harps on ICE for raiding businesses that hired illegal workers, and describes such people as hard working, law abiding citizens, whose only crime is that of illegally crossing the border, even while discussing the fact that many have bought illegal documents such as green cards and Social Security cards in order to work. Apparently, identification theft is not a serious crime in his eyes, however stealing the social number of a legitimate US worker is a felony. I do agree with Geraldo that the companies should also be punished, but saying these are law abiding citizens is a bit of a stretch, and seems extremely hypocritical. These workers knowingly commited the crimes and should not be upset when they get caught!

The author moves through various subjects related to the immigration of illegals, such as mentioned above and tries, while failing miserably, to make a case that theft of Social Security documents is actually good for the system and hurts no one. I would like to see his reaction if his number was used, and it fouled up his earnings report. I am betting he would be pretty mad. And that is exactly what is happening to untold retired workers who have not yet attained the age where they can work and still collect full benefits.

Another subject where he is off base is on schooling. He blames the lack of education on the current method schools use to try to teach immigrants and assails them for their failure. Sadly, he only uses the example of New York City, which is not the only district in the country and doesn't represent most schools. He argues that teaching bi-lingually is an issue and he actually supports immersion education for immigrants where they are forced to speak English in order to get ahead. However, that is what our local school district does and it has had great success, or should I say it did until a group of parents and activists started a charter school that will teach these individuals only in Spanish. Geraldo claims that the parents want their children to learn English, yet our experience here in the Valley with the charter school is the exact opposite. He does get it right that many of these kids drop out early because the family wants them to go to work to support the family, but doesn't support sanctions against the parents.

A fair part of the book is dedicated to the old sage that Americans don't want the jobs in restaurants, and fields and factories that the immigrants take. Again, to a great extent, wrong. Living in the heart of the Central Valley, I have seen numerous occasions where Americans cannot get jobs because the farmers and restaurant owners will only hire Hispanic workers. (Of course there is no sign saying that, but...). The average kid in our town can't get beyond the secretary at the desk at the local hiring halls for farm labor....they won't even consider them. And, five minutes later they will hire a Latino worker. The farms and restaurants and other low level jobs don't want white or African American workers because they know that they have an education and goals....they want the Latino workers because they know they are stuck and won't leave them for a better job in a year or two.

Overall, the book has a lot of problems and isn't really worth the effort to read, unless you need to see many of the reasons why we should shut our borders first, and then figure out a solution. I have no problem with legal immigration, but fully believe that we need to remove as many of the illegal immigrants as possible before we allow any more people into the country. Geraldo has spent too much time with the Latino special interest lobbies,and with limosibe liberals, and has forgotten what it is like to actually come to a town and see what life is really like. Much like a politician, he hears and sees what he thinks is happening, but misses what actually exists in the real world.

I really wanted to like this book. I know that ever since he failed to find anything in Capone's vault, back in like 1986, Geraldo has often gotten a bad rap. I tend to think he's an intelligent man and a charismatic personality. But this book was just sort of a waste of my time. There are a few interesting points, such as that Hispanics are likely to be the majority by the end of the 21st Century and they played a large role in the election of Barack Obama to the Presidency of the United States. But for the most part it is just fluff and unfocused writing. And it's not that this isn't a topic I'm interested in. My father was Mexican American ("Chicano") and was actually friends with Cesar Chavez. From a certain perspective, I am a part of Chicano history. This is a topic of great importance and interest for me. But it's just treated in a trivial manner. I mean, the first chapter itself reads more like an issue of People Magazine, chuck full of descriptions of celebrity behavior. It's just plain bad writing. Instead of this book, I recommend the following book by Aviva Chomsky, daughter of noted linguist and political activist Noam Chomsky: "They Take Our Jobs!": and 20 Other Myths about Immigration

Sadly, I have to establish my bonafides here, otherwise I'll just get attacked in the comments section. I am a history and a Spanish teacher (20th year this year!). I live in an ethnically mixed neighborhood in which my best neighbors are, by far, a Mexican family. I live with illegal immigration every day, in my neighborhood and at my work. I am not a raving nut that says "round 'em up!" Nor am I an open borders guy that wants to take in the whole world. My neighborhood has been improved, my workplace has not - thanks to No Child Left Behind, my school's population of non-English speaking Hispanics will doom us to be labeled a failed school (fail just one category, you fail - period!) because they cannot pass the tests in English.

So, now that we've gotten that out of the way, on to Geraldo's book. It is a lot of sizzle, half-baked commentary and an endless series of attacks on Lou Dobbs (who I must admit that I have not watched for years now since we ditched cable and we don't have satellite - I thought he was the host of a financial show).

Keep in mind, I read an uncorrected proof so I am not allowed to quote page numbers, or even provide quotes in this review. That being said, early on Geraldo Rivera attacks Rush Limbaugh for a series of anti-immigrant comments entitled "Limbaugh's Laws." I did an internet search and I found 3 paragraphs of the same title. They are inflammatory. They are awful. But, here's the essential third paragraph of the commentary - the paragraph that Rivera ignores: ""I can imagine many of you think that the Limbaugh Laws are pretty harsh. I imagine today some of you probably are going, "Yeah! Yeah!" Well, let me tell you this, folks. Every one of the laws I just mentioned are actual laws of Mexico, today. I just read you Mexican immigration law. That's how the Mexican government handles immigrants to their country."

That's a telling example of the slipshod commentary throughout. Rivera's thesis doesn't even hold up to his own scrutiny. He is critical of those that claim illegal immigration drives down wages and than, a few chapters later, he notes that Cesar Chavez of the United Farm Workers fame was against illegal immigration for that same reason. He even calls it an economic law. He asserts that the anti-illegal immigration crowd (he disingenuously calls them anti-immigration) is racist because it is afraid of the gang violence of such groups as MS-13 and than he has a whole chapter devoted to drug-related gang violence on the border. So, the violence is real, but trying to keep it out or even to talk about it is racist? He does a similar thing with ARM mortgages and immigrant families (they aren't overly-represented, but then, a few chapters later they are because they are victims). He gets upset that Hispanics are hassled for ID to prove they are citizens and then notes that the presence of "obviously foreign" day laborers. Is only Mr. Rivera allowed to make such assumptions?

The book begins with "hard hitting" interviews with such political greats as J-Lo, George Lopez and Rosario Dawson. We get lists of baseball players of Hispanic origin (literally - paragraph after tedious paragraph) is a cahpter called "Beisbol." I am still unsure as to the purpose of the chapter.

Geraldo Rivera gives us a look into his jet-setting lifestyle (he notes that he is writing in L.A. for this paragraph, Puerto Rico for another and so on) but shows how truly out of touch he is when he comments that America's lawns wouldn't be mowed, their kids cared for or our toilets cleaned if it weren't for Hispanics. Really? I wish I had that kind of money. The only lawn mowed by Hispanics in my neighborhood belong to houses with Hispanic families living in them.

Is he all wrong. No. Rivera gives an impassioned argument as to why education must become a priority in the Hispanic community. His chapter on "The Hispanic Consumer" is fascinating and entertaining. He makes valid points when discussing allowing illegal aliens to join the military as a path to citizenship in another chapter.

But, more often he wanders afield in commentary such as his on unions - he wants the so-called "Card Check" legislation to pass but isn't quite clear as to why, especially when businesses can just go to newly arrived workers with fake IDs to replace the strikers.

More irritating is his tendency to name call. For example, he calls "Joe the Plumber" a "douchebag".

He labels North Carolina's newest Senator a wonderful progressive for calling for an enforcement of the existing laws on immigration but is outraged that the Bush administration staged raids to enforce the existing laws.

If you want a lot of splash, this is your book. If you want well-reasoned commentary - the kind that has been thoroughly researched, discussed and evaluated, well,this is not it. There is no middle ground in this book. Even attempting to have a reasoned conversation about immigration with Rivera would be cause for attack and liberal use of the epithet "anti-immigrant".

I have nothing against Geraldo Riveira. I respect him because he's enthusiastic about what he does. I have no negative opinion of him. I watch his show often because he is so much fun on air! Let it be known that this is an objective review of his book!

That being said...

This book has little direction and is light on analysis. Geraldo seems to say, "Look at this Hispanic person," and "Check this person's achievements out," instead of making a case for "The Great Progression." His writing isn't compelling; in fact, the passages become a bit sing-songy and boring.

Not really a great book to contribute to the field of Latino Studies. But good for the coffee table, maybe!

I enjoyed HisPanic, Mr. Rivera's last book. This one, while it includes some important and relevant information about the size and impact of the hispanic population in the U.S., suffers greatly from Mr. Rivera's superficial analysis and opinions about issues of importance to the Latino population. He is clearly well intentioned and passionate, but seems too far removed and from the community he wishes to represent. Well intentioned, yes, but just too "analysis-light" on fundamental issues.

I would not read this book if it were given to me free. Geraldo HAS ALWAYS taken the part of Latinos. Does not matter what the subject or perhaps crime is about. Afterall, he is a Latino, so what would one expect. I cannot imagine there would be much truth in the book. He fails to see the illegal immigration problem for what it is.