Full name: José Miguel Guerrero Jiménez
Age: 24
Hometown: Moca
Major: Hispanic Studies, with a minor in Women’s and Gender Studies
Year of study: fifth (and final!) year
Relationship status: single
Anyone who studies at Colegio recognizes him: José Miguel is the kind of person who stands out. His slender, nearly six-foot frame is impressive, as is his near-completely black wardrobe, signature boots, and cap. But José Miguel is best known for his stride—a walk so commanding, graceful and, well, fierce that it has drawn attention from all kinds of UPRM students. “All kinds of people on campus approach me, boys and girls alike,” José explains. “Some guys will even come up to me and say things like ‘If only my girlfriend walked like you!’”
José, while flattered by the attention he attracts, doesn’t let his praises get to his head: “It was never my intention to command so much attention, ever. I was just being myself.” He is a deeply grounded person with a particular restlessness for making a positive impact in society, and a free soul who loves reading and writing who aspires to teach the literature he admires so much. That is just the kind of person José is: self-aware, and desperate to make others feel as much as he does.
Why did you choose your major?
Ever since I was in high school, I noticed I was always more practical in my Spanish classes. I loved grammar and composition, specifically. At first I didn’t know I would find a bigger world. Once I got to Colegio and moved to Mayaguez I realized that Hispanic Studies is more than grammar and composition, and I became fascinated by literature. Especially when I noticed how important literature in Spanish is—especially literature in Puerto Rico and Latin America—and the impact it has in society.
What do you like to read?
I like to read novels, and I am very feminist, so I prefer feminist novels. I’m passionate about literature in general: to me, it is sacred.
Who are your favorite authors?
I’m pretty open, but I definitely have to say that among my favorites are Gabriel García Márquez, [Mario] Vargas Llosa, and well Gioconda Belli, Isabel Allende, and others. But I prefer to read female authors to male authors, because they tend to deal more with themes of gender and inequality.
What are your hobbies?
I like reading about different subjects that aren’t really related to what I usually read, like science, biology because I like learning about new things. Also, if there’s one thing I’ve learned with literature it’s that, since it’s so interdisciplinary, you have to read more than about social sciences to understand it. But I also like to watch series about crime, CSI is one of my favorites; I like to watch animes. I started with Sakura Card Captor when I was a kid and started with Inuyasha not too long ago. But I also love to watch horror movies—I loved Evil Dead, the original one. And I also really like to reflect.
I keep a journal, which I have done since 2006, and I think keeping a journal is important and very good because it helps you find yourself. It really allows you to reflect and gives you the opportunity to look back to see how you dealt with certain situations in the past. I write stories and poems for myself, but my journals help me know myself better, so I can learn my style and see how I confront the world.
What are your interests?
Well, I’m graduating soon but I’m conflicted on whether to go allá fuera to study or to go to Río Piedras to pursue my master’s degree. But I’m definitely interested in literature and literature theory as a field of study, particularly how different theories can be applied to Hispanic literature, and how they can help us find our identity.
I’d love to be a professor someday, so I can teach my students the way I was taught about literature in a welcoming environment and in a profound, real way that can only be found in a university. I’d like to help students not see literature as something boring.
What motivates you?
Literature has truly captivated me, and motivated me not just to learn more but to apply what I have learned to different disciplines. Once you’re exposed to different ideas and points of view, you start seeing things in the world differently, so I would say reading motivates me to keep going, learning and growing.
I want to be able to teach what I have learned, but my goal is to learn about everything, and see how things work and how I can apply them to my daily life.
What makes you happy?
I love to help. It’s truly a pleasure for me to be helpful, to cooperate. When you lend a helping hand, it’s a special feeling. There is no ulterior motive, I just enjoy it. I like being able to understand people and helping them solve their problems, being dependable.
You mentioned earlier that you’re a feminist and are completing a minor in Women’s and Gender Studies. How did you become interested in that field?
Ever since I reaffirmed by sexual orientation and identity, and my gender identity, I began to question a lot of things. I figured that once I’d be in the university I’d find answers to a lot of my questions, and that I’m sure a lot of people have asked themselves. Without thinking it would be that important to me, one semester I enrolled in a course called “Women Narrators in Hispanic Texts” lectured by Dr. Jacqueline Girón. Once I started reading these novels that were from a feminist point of view, I began to really learn the actual significance of how dangerous the misogynistic, patriarchal social systems have been to our society, and the way it reproduces.
That course led me to this wonderful curricular sequence, which originally had no intention in taking, which has led me to see all these different points of view throughout literature. I’ve began to learn more about feminist theories, theories about racial inequality, queer theory. And by analyzing them through literature, I have been able to apply them to my own life.
As far as my own identity, I am a homosexual. But the LGBT community is incredibly diverse, and I don’t like to be categorized in a certain way or whatever. Despite how some people see my appearance, I do identify as male, but I may sometimes “adopt” some qualities that some people would deem “feminine,” like modeling, for example. But it’s not that I want to be a woman, it’s just that I act the way I feel most comfortable. I am just me. If people can’t understand that or don’t want to, allá ellos. I feel great!
People on campus tend to notice you because of the graceful, powerful way you walk—you command attention! How did you learn to walk that way?
To be honest, it never has been my attention to command attention; all I’ve ever wanted to be is myself, and I never thought that being genuine would ever provoke so much. I’ve realized that that is the power in being yourself.
But I guess I started when I was younger and I was very into America’s Next Top Model, and how Tyra [Banks] instructed and advised the models of her show. It’s not that I wanted to be a model, but her voice reached me and helped define me.
I like listening to music when I’m walking around campus; my favorite artist is Nicki Minaj, whom I admire so much because she’s so genuine. If I were ever to be compared to someone else, I’d like to be compared to Nicki.
When I began to notice how people here in Colegio reacted to the way I walk, it was flattering! But I do feel bashful sometimes when people try to put me apart, even within the [gay] community, because I think everyone has the potential to be different. It makes me wonder why people admire that part of me that much. It’s been a wonderful experience, feeling people open up to you and tell you they admire you; but I see that part of me as a product of my personality. I’ve always tried to just be genuine, and feeling comfortable.
To me, being myself is more than just acting a certain way. I feel most comfortable when I’m polite, generous, kind…I like pleasing others.
How would you like to be remembered?
Well, to my contemporaries here in Colegio, I hope I’ll be remembered as someone who is authentic, brave (in how I confront society), and as someone who enjoys making a difference.
How do you like making a difference?
I think the basis for making a difference is getting along with your peers, respecting each other and learning from each other. By recognizing the faults and virtues of the people who surround you; by forgetting about hierarchies. And finally, by seeing each other as human beings and forgetting about labels.