“I don’t want them to forget their heritage”: afterlives of English-only schooling for single Mexican American mothers

Abstract This study examines how single Mexican American mothers sustain Spanish in their homes while navigating the legacies of Arizona’s English-only regime. Guided by Critical Race Theory and Transnational Feminism, I analyze testimonios from two mothers whose own childhoods under Proposition 203 and Structured English Immersion (SEI) shape how they now raise their children. One, a first-generation mother in a bilingual nursing fellowship, and the other, a second-generation mother pursuing a