After learning of her family connection to the historic military group, Connecticut children’s author Talia Aikens-Nuñez wrote Men of the 65th: The Borinqueneers of the Korean War to highlight a portion of intricate Puerto Rican history in the United States. WSHU spoke with her before her lecture on the regiment’s history at the New Haven Museum on Oct. 3 to learn more.
WSHU: Talia, tell me about the origins of your career in writing children’s books.
TAN: So I wanted to make sure that my kids had books that they could see themselves in and connect with. It was hard for me to find multicultural books. So my husband is Puerto Rican, and I'm Black, and so I wanted my kids to be able to not only visually and culturally see themselves, but also, as they developed into people, see themselves in books. And so it was very hard for me to find those books. So I started writing them.
WSHU: So, get me up to speed on this newest book.
TAN: So the 65th infantry regiment was the only Latino-segregated unit in military history. So the book is about their history, and it really focuses on the Korean War. Because, before the Korean War, due to segregation practices, they weren't allowed to have larger roles in wars or just the military in general. And so it wasn't until the Korean War that they showed that they were a capable unit.
WSHU: This book started from a place of family, right? Tell me more about it.
TAN: Actually, we were at a gathering with my husband's family, and my husband's grandfather showed me a medal. And I was like, “Oh, this is so cool. You know, where'd you get this from?” All the questions started coming, and he said he was part of the famed 65th. I felt so embarrassed… I just felt horrible because I never heard of this unit. And so he told me a bit about the unit, and then on our way home, I Googled who these people were, but also, are there books about them? Because I wanted my kids to know about this part of history that their great-grandfather was a part of, and I couldn't find anything. And then my husband, as he always says to me, sometimes when I come across these things, he's like, so I guess you have to write it. And so I did.
WSHU: On the subject matter, talk to me about why the men of the 65th volunteered to be a part of the country’s military when its same civilians were discriminating against them. And how do you break that down for a kid to understand?
TAN: So one of the things that's actually very interesting about Puerto Rico is that it does sport some of the highest volunteer enlistment numbers of any state or territory in the United States. So, serving the country is a serious cultural point of pride, and it was actually pushed by some of the governments in Puerto Rico. It was always seen as disappointing when they couldn't engage in those direct combat roles like in World War I and World War II.
That was not good to the men who wanted to show that they are brave, wanted to show that they are heroes, courageous, all of those things. They were able to show that in the Korean War, but then they were also discriminated against. It's the best way to kind of explain it. I didn't try to sugarcoat it, but I gave it in a very “strictly the facts" kind of way so that the kids could see it for what it was: unjust and not try to color that aspect or, actually, any aspect of it. And it's also done in more of a narrative style so that kids are engaged by it, so that – and actually people. Everyone tells me it doesn't feel like a history book, but you learn something.
