At Emperifollá, we don’t believe in Latinx Heritage Month. Instead, we celebrate our communities year-round. Still, we understand the power that comes with setting apart one month out of the year to reaffirm our presence and existence in the face of oppression, criminalization, and persecution of our communities, especially in the United States.

Last month, the deadliest mass shooting against the Latinx community took place in El Paso, Texas, and more than 600 undocumented workers were arrested by ICE in the largest single-raid in history. Our stories and bodies are under siege, so Latinx Heritage Month feels more important in 2019 than ever before.

The Emperifollá team opted out of creating its own Latinx Heritage Month package because our mere existence is the equivalent of what publications, authors, and events will attempt to do in 30 days. Instead, we want to celebrate the writing of and about Latinx women that inspire and educate us about the multiplicity and beauty of our identities. From National Book Award winner Elizabeth Acevedo to legendary author Esmeralda Santiago, here is Emperifollá’s Latinx Heritage Month reading list.

• Hispanic vs. Latino vs. Latinx: A Brief History of How These Words Originated by Yara Simón for Remezcla
• Péinate: Hair Battles Between Latina Mothers & Daughters by Raquel I. Penzo
• The Joy of Always Being Emperifollá by Laia García for ELLE
• The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo
• When I Was Puerto Rican by Esmeralda Santiago

• I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter by Erika L. Sánchez
• These Latina Avon Sellers Have Dominated A Beauty Company Modeled On White Womanhood by Tonya Riley for Buzzfeed News
• The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros
• Why I Can’t Quit You, Hoops by Sandra E. García for The New York Times
• 3 Latinx Beauty Editors On What the Industry Can Do Better by Andrea Devoto for Byrdie