Strangers No Longer

Hospitality practices grounded in religious belief have long exercised a profound influence on Wisconsin’s Latino communities. Sergio M. González examines the power relations at work behind the types of hospitality--welcoming and otherwise--practiced on newcomers in both Milwaukee and rural areas of the Badger State. González’s analysis addresses central issues like the foundational role played by religion and sacred spaces in shaping experiences and facilitating collaboration among disparate Latino groups and across ethnic lines; the connections between sacred spaces and the moral justification for social justice movements; and the ways sacred spaces evolved into places for mitigating prejudice and social alienation, providing sanctuary from nativism and repression, and fostering local and transnational community building. Perceptive and original, Strangers No Longer reframes the history of Latinos in Wisconsin by revealing religion’s central role in the settlement experience of immigrants, migrants, and refugees.

“Sergio González has written an irresistibly intriguing and provocative book on the intersections of faith, politics, and immigration in Wisconsin. Strangers No Longer is a historically grounded and richly empirical book that speaks to the power of religion in the experiences of immigrants, refugees, and migrants. This is a must-read for all those who are working every day to build a better and more just world.”--Felipe Hinojosa, author of Apostles of Change: Latino Radical Politics, Church Occupations, and the Fight to Save the Barrio

Sergio M. González is an assistant professor of history at Marquette University. He is the author of Mexicans in Wisconsin.