[Rosa Guy]'s personal life odyssey has been a major influence on the scope and tone of her writing. Upon arriving in the United States with her parents in the early 1930's and moving to Harlem at the age of eight, Rosa became a prolific observer of African-American culture and the forces that shape its existence in American society. Guy's novels have explored the stifling consequences of poverty in settings as far away as the Caribbean, or as near as New York's Harlem. Once it is published, her newest novel from Dutton Press, The Sun, The Sea, A Touch of the Wind will join an impressive body of literary material authored by Ms. Guy that include: Bird At My Window; A Measure of Time; And Then She Heard A Bird Sing; Edith Jackson; Ruby; Children of the Longing; and Music of Summer.
Amid the flurry of designations by the media, law enforcement officials, and advocacy organizations--terms ranging from "migrants" to "asylum-seekers" to "economic refugees"--one thing was clear. The people aboard that boat had fled desperate conditions for safe harbor in the U.S. What awaited them when they touched land was then, and remains, a matter of great contention. When asked about the implications of the designation "migrant," Miami field office INS public relations officer Barbara Gonzalez said that in the context of INS policy, "There is really no such thing as a migrant." She said, "Many use the word," when the correct terminology for what they intend is "non-immigrant." How about the terms "alien" and "refugee?" Amnesty International notes that the term "alien" has been used in U.S. legislation to describe various types of non-citizens, including those Amnesty would call "asylum-seekers." Similarly, the INS describes an alien as any non-citizen or national of the U.S.