Pilgrims in Aztlan

Miguel Mendez' response to the social ills of the day is to write about the crude realities of some of the experiences of the undocumented immigrant on his way to the U.S. Mendez lets us know that he will be using the voice of the oppressed to describe their suffering. In Pilgrims in Aztlan, Mendez writes about the soical and political by talking about borders. Borders that are difficult to explained and be visualized.In Mendez's story there is no protagonist, only the human journey of people who seem to have no names. Everything gets in the way of this human journey. The place of exodus, poor, uncaring, does't seem to mind. The place of destination does not welcome them only exploits them. Suffering is universal and knows no borders or time. Yet, the universal suffering of mankind are but individual stories of people. To describe these suffering Mendez has used the tool of literature to document and tell stories of human suffering, least they be forgotten.