Spanning 500 years--from the first New World colonies to our nation's nineteenth-century westward expansion, from the days of gunboat diplomacy to the turn of the millennium--Harvest of Empire features family portraits of real-life immigrants along with sketches of the political events and social conditions that compelled them to leave their homeland. In addition, it gives a fascinating look at how these Latino pioneers have transformed the cultural landscape of the United States. Introduction

Part I—Roots (Las Raíes)
1. Conquerors and Victims: The Image of America Forms (1500-1800)
2. The Spanish Borderlands and the Making of an Empire (1810-1898)
3. Banana Republics and Bonds: Taming the Empire's Backyard (1898-1950)

Part II—Branches (Las Ramas)
4. Puerto Ricans: Citizens Yet Foreigners
5. Mexicans: Pioneers of a Different Type
6. Cubans: Special Refugees
7. Dominicans: From the Duarte to the George Washington Bridge
8. Central Americans: Intervention Comes Home to Roost
9. Colombians and Panamanians: Overcoming Division and Disdain

Part—Harvest (La Cosecha)
10. The Return of Juan Seguín: Latinos and the Remaking of American Politics
11. Immigrants Old and New: Closing Borders of the Mind
12. Speak Spanish, You're in America!: El Huracán over Language and Culture
13. Free Trade: The Final Conquest of Latin America
14. Puerto Rico, U.S.A.: Possessed and Unwanted

Epilogue
Acknowledgments
Notes
Glossary
Bibliography
Interviews
Index
"A serious, significant contribution to understanding who the Hispanics of the United States are and where they came from." --The New York Times Book Review

"Required reading, not simply for Latinos but for everyone." --Kansas City Star

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