How does the author’s use of language illustrate the impact that language has on Latinx identity in Cemetery Boys

Throughout the entirety of the novel, Yadriel grapples with his identity, questioning his origins, his relationships, and his culture. Yadriel struggles as a young teen boy to adapt to living in his new body since beginning to transition. He now wears male clothes and expects his family to see him as a boy, despite their difficulty in doing so.

As a member of the Mexican-American community in Los Angeles, Yadriel also finds himself with a foot in two worlds. He is surrounded by other children from school who share Hispanic backgrounds but not all are of Mexican descent. He is struck by the commonalities he shares with his friends, such as the Spanish language and the immigration journeys their families endured to come to the United States. Yadriel finds identity in being a son and a cousin, a smaller piece of the larger family unit. Another aspect of identity that Yadriel must grapple with is the extent to which he will allow his family to remain a part of his new life as a transgender teenager when they cannot fully accept him and respect his gender identity. He is unwilling to change who he is in order to receive love because he is only able to love himself when he is living as his most authentic self. He does not feel as though his classmates really understand him, as shown through their reactions to his clothes, but he also is afraid to take up too much space and be too forward about his identity.

When Yadriel meets Julian, he begins to see a new importance to his heritage and his journey toward self-acceptance. Julian is gay and he is comfortable with who he is as well as the thought that not everyone will be willing to accept him. He lived according to his own vision. Yadriel has not had contact with many other people from the LGBTQ+ community and so the appearance of Julian provides a positive presence with whom he can share his most intimate feelings and musings about his identity.