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The Crossing: El Paso, the Southwest, and America’s Forgotten Origin Story – How the Rio Grande Borderlands Forged Multi-Ethnic America
A radical work of history that re-centers the American story around El Paso, Texas, gateway between north and south, center of indigenous power and resistance, locus of European colonization of North America, centuries-long hub of immigration, and underappreciated modern blueprint for a changing United States.
American history is almost always told from East to West. Yet a closer look at the past reveals the country’s start began not in the East, but in the West—at a Texan city situated in a natural shallow crossing of the Rio Grande River: El Paso.
El Paso is the crossroads of Indigenous America, the nexus of a thousand-year-old Native American migration and trade route, linking MesoAmerican and Pueblo empires and beyond. It’s where the European conquest of North America began, and where the United States’ Manifest Destiny was later achieved. Here, East met West, where the consequential transatlantic route, the Southern Pacific, was completed in 1881.
Here the West was “won”—the Indian Wars were not fought on the Great Plains, but in the Southwest, with a scorched-earth strategy that went on for decades. It’s where Immigrant America starts—more immigrants have passed through El Paso than Ellis Island—and where crucial battles for Civil Rights were fought—the city smashing through racial and ethnic discrimination before anywhere else in the nation.
The Crossing is a revelatory new history of El Paso that recasts the city as the unacknowledged cradle of American history, where cultures have encountered each other for centuries and forged a thriving multi-ethnic community far ahead of the rest of the nation. As award-winning, El Paso–native journalist Richard Parker charts, the city holds not only the framework of our American story, but also a model for a more diverse and flourishing country.
American history is almost always told from East to West. Yet a closer look at the past reveals the country’s start began not in the East, but in the West—at a Texan city situated in a natural shallow crossing of the Rio Grande River: El Paso.
El Paso is the crossroads of Indigenous America, the nexus of a thousand-year-old Native American migration and trade route, linking MesoAmerican and Pueblo empires and beyond. It’s where the European conquest of North America began, and where the United States’ Manifest Destiny was later achieved. Here, East met West, where the consequential transatlantic route, the Southern Pacific, was completed in 1881.
Here the West was “won”—the Indian Wars were not fought on the Great Plains, but in the Southwest, with a scorched-earth strategy that went on for decades. It’s where Immigrant America starts—more immigrants have passed through El Paso than Ellis Island—and where crucial battles for Civil Rights were fought—the city smashing through racial and ethnic discrimination before anywhere else in the nation.
The Crossing is a revelatory new history of El Paso that recasts the city as the unacknowledged cradle of American history, where cultures have encountered each other for centuries and forged a thriving multi-ethnic community far ahead of the rest of the nation. As award-winning, El Paso–native journalist Richard Parker charts, the city holds not only the framework of our American story, but also a model for a more diverse and flourishing country.
448 pages, Hardcover
First published March 4, 2025
51 people are currently reading
359 people want to read
About the author
Richard Parker
2 books6 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.
Richard Parker is an award-winning journalist who writes about political, economic, technological and social change. His work appears in the Op-Ed and Sunday Review sections of the New York Times, The Atlantic, Texas Monthly and the Columbia Journalism Review. A columnist for The Dallas Morning News, he lives in the Texas Hill Country outside Austin.
Richard Parker is an award-winning journalist who writes about political, economic, technological and social change. His work appears in the Op-Ed and Sunday Review sections of the New York Times, The Atlantic, Texas Monthly and the Columbia Journalism Review. A columnist for The Dallas Morning News, he lives in the Texas Hill Country outside Austin.
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March 20, 2025
The Crossing opens with the 2019 shooting in El Paso, Texas by a white nationalist who killed 23 people and injured 22 more. The shooter wanted to kill Latinos to stop the “Hispanic invasion”, because he believed that the only real Americans are those descended from white, northern Europeans.
This book reminds us that Americans have always been multiethnic, multicultural, multireligious, and multilingual. Instead of starting with the relatively late-coming English colonists on the Atlantic Coast, the author, Richard Parker begins in what is now El Paso, Texas.
In El Paso, Native Americans, Spanish, other Europeans, Africans, Jews, and Middle Easterners all lived together, married and had children from an early point. That was very different from the settlers in the English colonies who killed or drove out the Native Americans and attempted to keep enslaved Africans separate.
In 1846, the United States began the Mexican-American War and ended by taking massive amounts of land from Mexico. The book then goes on to show the mistreatment of the new U.S. citizens (former Mexican citizens) as well as the mistreatment of the Native Americans in the west. From that point, and up to the present, Anglo-Americans have denied Latinos their rights, persecuted them, and downplayed and or forgotten their accomplishments and contributions.
The Crossing is an excellent book and should be read by all Americans to remind us who we really are. I know a lot about history but most of the information in this book was new to me. It has opened my eyes and changed my perspective.
I listened to the audio version of this book and the narrator, Timothy Andrés Pabon, was excellent. The sound quality and production were great.
Thanks to HarperAudio through NetGalley who allowed me to listen to the book.
This book reminds us that Americans have always been multiethnic, multicultural, multireligious, and multilingual. Instead of starting with the relatively late-coming English colonists on the Atlantic Coast, the author, Richard Parker begins in what is now El Paso, Texas.
In El Paso, Native Americans, Spanish, other Europeans, Africans, Jews, and Middle Easterners all lived together, married and had children from an early point. That was very different from the settlers in the English colonies who killed or drove out the Native Americans and attempted to keep enslaved Africans separate.
In 1846, the United States began the Mexican-American War and ended by taking massive amounts of land from Mexico. The book then goes on to show the mistreatment of the new U.S. citizens (former Mexican citizens) as well as the mistreatment of the Native Americans in the west. From that point, and up to the present, Anglo-Americans have denied Latinos their rights, persecuted them, and downplayed and or forgotten their accomplishments and contributions.
The Crossing is an excellent book and should be read by all Americans to remind us who we really are. I know a lot about history but most of the information in this book was new to me. It has opened my eyes and changed my perspective.
I listened to the audio version of this book and the narrator, Timothy Andrés Pabon, was excellent. The sound quality and production were great.
Thanks to HarperAudio through NetGalley who allowed me to listen to the book.
February 16, 2025
The Crossing: Rewriting America's Origin Story from the Borderlands
In the quiet corners of our library's Southwest collection, amid centuries-old maps and dusty chronicles, I've often traced my fingers along the ancient routes that crisscross the borderlands, wondering about the stories embedded in these well-worn paths. Richard Parker's "The Crossing" arrives like a revelation, giving voice to these silent trajectories and fundamentally challenging our understanding of American origins.
As a mathematician turned librarian, I'm drawn to patterns—the way numbers and stories reveal hidden truths when properly arranged.
Parker's work presents what mathematicians might call elegant proof: By shifting our historical origin point from East to West, from Plymouth Rock to El Paso, the entire equation of American history resolves itself with startling clarity.
Remapping American Origins
The book's central thesis is both simple and revolutionary: American history did not begin on the Atlantic seaboard but in the Southwest, specifically in El Paso—a natural crossing point of the Rio Grande that has served as a cultural confluence for millennia. Parker builds this argument with the precision of a master architect, laying one foundation upon another of historical evidence.
What makes this work particularly compelling is how it illuminates the fractal nature of borderland history. Like the recurring patterns in complex mathematical sets, we see similar dynamics of cultural exchange, resistance, and adaptation playing out across different scales of time and space.
The story of Esteban (or Estevanico), a Moroccan enslaved person who became "the first white man" seen by Indigenous peoples of the Rio Grande Valley, exemplifies the kind of categorical disruption that characterizes borderland histories.
A Mathematical Lens on Cultural Complexity
As someone who once dedicated years to studying topology, I am struck by how Parker's narrative reveals what we might call the "cultural topology" of the Southwest.
The region's geographic features—its mountain passes, river valleys, and desert corridors—have created natural pathways for human movement that transcend the artificial boundaries we've tried to impose on them.
The book depicts El Paso as a crucial hub within a vast cultural exchange network, echoing the idea of centrality in network theory—illustrating how specific nodes are vital for the entire system's operation.1
Parker demonstrates how El Paso's position at the intersection of North-South and East-West routes made it not just a geographical crossroads but a crucible for American multiculturalism.
The Violence of Artificial Boundaries
One of the most powerful aspects of Parker's work is his framing device: the 2019 Walmart massacre in El Paso. As someone who has spent years helping patrons navigate resources on social justice and civil rights, I find his connection between historical patterns of violence and contemporary manifestations of white supremacy both haunting and necessary.
The shooter's targeting of what he perceived as a "Mexican" invasion reveals the tragic irony at the core of borderland violence: the attempt to impose rigid categories and boundaries on a region characterized by fluidity and cultural synthesis.
Parker illustrates that this violence is not new; rather, it is a recurring pattern in the history of the Southwest, from the Spanish conquest to American expansion.
Beyond the Myths of Manifest Destiny
What Parker accomplishes here is nothing less than a complete reframing of American identity itself. By showing how El Paso served as a multicultural hub centuries before the concept of "diversity" entered our national conversation, he provides both historical precedent and a future blueprint for an increasingly pluralistic America.
The traditional narrative of Manifest Destiny—of civilization marching inevitably westward—crumbles when viewed from El Paso.
Instead, we see a complex web of civilizations, migrations, and cultural exchanges that defy simple directional narratives. Parker's work reveals how the Southwest has always been what America is becoming: a space where cultures meet, clash, and ultimately create something new.
A Personal Resonance
As I've watched patrons engage with our library's collections, I've observed how personal stories often provide the most powerful counter-narratives to simplified histories. Parker's work, while deeply researched and academically rigorous, never loses sight of the human dimension of borderland history.
His exploration of how El Paso processed more immigrants than Ellis Island challenges our national mythology about immigration while highlighting the ongoing relevance of borderland dynamics to contemporary American life.
The book demonstrates how the patterns of cultural exchange and adaptation that characterized early El Paso continue to shape American identity today.
Looking Forward Through the Past
What makes "The Crossing" particularly vital in our current moment is its vision of how understanding our true origins might help us navigate our future.
As our nation grapples with questions of identity, belonging, and the very nature of American society, Parker's work suggests that the answers might be found in the long history of borderland communities that have already navigated these challenges.
For those of us who work at the intersection of knowledge preservation and social justice, "The Crossing" provides both inspiration and instruction. It demonstrates how careful historical analysis can challenge dominant narratives while offering new frameworks for understanding both our past and our possible futures.
Conclusion
"The Crossing" is more than just a historical revision—it's a fundamental reconceptualization of American identity and origins. Like the best mathematical proofs, it achieves this through careful logic and attention to detail while arriving at conclusions that transform our understanding of the entire system.
For readers seeking to understand both America's past and its possible futures, "The Crossing" is an essential addition to their intellectual journey. It reminds us that the story of America isn't simply about East-to-West expansion; it's about the complex networks of cultural exchange, resistance, and adaptation that have always characterized our borderlands.
In these patterns of the past, we might find the key to our collective future.
"The Crossing" book review
In the quiet corners of our library's Southwest collection, amid centuries-old maps and dusty chronicles, I've often traced my fingers along the ancient routes that crisscross the borderlands, wondering about the stories embedded in these well-worn paths. Richard Parker's "The Crossing" arrives like a revelation, giving voice to these silent trajectories and fundamentally challenging our understanding of American origins.
As a mathematician turned librarian, I'm drawn to patterns—the way numbers and stories reveal hidden truths when properly arranged.
Parker's work presents what mathematicians might call elegant proof: By shifting our historical origin point from East to West, from Plymouth Rock to El Paso, the entire equation of American history resolves itself with startling clarity.
Remapping American Origins
The book's central thesis is both simple and revolutionary: American history did not begin on the Atlantic seaboard but in the Southwest, specifically in El Paso—a natural crossing point of the Rio Grande that has served as a cultural confluence for millennia. Parker builds this argument with the precision of a master architect, laying one foundation upon another of historical evidence.
What makes this work particularly compelling is how it illuminates the fractal nature of borderland history. Like the recurring patterns in complex mathematical sets, we see similar dynamics of cultural exchange, resistance, and adaptation playing out across different scales of time and space.
The story of Esteban (or Estevanico), a Moroccan enslaved person who became "the first white man" seen by Indigenous peoples of the Rio Grande Valley, exemplifies the kind of categorical disruption that characterizes borderland histories.
A Mathematical Lens on Cultural Complexity
As someone who once dedicated years to studying topology, I am struck by how Parker's narrative reveals what we might call the "cultural topology" of the Southwest.
The region's geographic features—its mountain passes, river valleys, and desert corridors—have created natural pathways for human movement that transcend the artificial boundaries we've tried to impose on them.
The book depicts El Paso as a crucial hub within a vast cultural exchange network, echoing the idea of centrality in network theory—illustrating how specific nodes are vital for the entire system's operation.1
Parker demonstrates how El Paso's position at the intersection of North-South and East-West routes made it not just a geographical crossroads but a crucible for American multiculturalism.
The Violence of Artificial Boundaries
One of the most powerful aspects of Parker's work is his framing device: the 2019 Walmart massacre in El Paso. As someone who has spent years helping patrons navigate resources on social justice and civil rights, I find his connection between historical patterns of violence and contemporary manifestations of white supremacy both haunting and necessary.
The shooter's targeting of what he perceived as a "Mexican" invasion reveals the tragic irony at the core of borderland violence: the attempt to impose rigid categories and boundaries on a region characterized by fluidity and cultural synthesis.
Parker illustrates that this violence is not new; rather, it is a recurring pattern in the history of the Southwest, from the Spanish conquest to American expansion.
Beyond the Myths of Manifest Destiny
What Parker accomplishes here is nothing less than a complete reframing of American identity itself. By showing how El Paso served as a multicultural hub centuries before the concept of "diversity" entered our national conversation, he provides both historical precedent and a future blueprint for an increasingly pluralistic America.
The traditional narrative of Manifest Destiny—of civilization marching inevitably westward—crumbles when viewed from El Paso.
Instead, we see a complex web of civilizations, migrations, and cultural exchanges that defy simple directional narratives. Parker's work reveals how the Southwest has always been what America is becoming: a space where cultures meet, clash, and ultimately create something new.
A Personal Resonance
As I've watched patrons engage with our library's collections, I've observed how personal stories often provide the most powerful counter-narratives to simplified histories. Parker's work, while deeply researched and academically rigorous, never loses sight of the human dimension of borderland history.
His exploration of how El Paso processed more immigrants than Ellis Island challenges our national mythology about immigration while highlighting the ongoing relevance of borderland dynamics to contemporary American life.
The book demonstrates how the patterns of cultural exchange and adaptation that characterized early El Paso continue to shape American identity today.
Looking Forward Through the Past
What makes "The Crossing" particularly vital in our current moment is its vision of how understanding our true origins might help us navigate our future.
As our nation grapples with questions of identity, belonging, and the very nature of American society, Parker's work suggests that the answers might be found in the long history of borderland communities that have already navigated these challenges.
For those of us who work at the intersection of knowledge preservation and social justice, "The Crossing" provides both inspiration and instruction. It demonstrates how careful historical analysis can challenge dominant narratives while offering new frameworks for understanding both our past and our possible futures.
Conclusion
"The Crossing" is more than just a historical revision—it's a fundamental reconceptualization of American identity and origins. Like the best mathematical proofs, it achieves this through careful logic and attention to detail while arriving at conclusions that transform our understanding of the entire system.
For readers seeking to understand both America's past and its possible futures, "The Crossing" is an essential addition to their intellectual journey. It reminds us that the story of America isn't simply about East-to-West expansion; it's about the complex networks of cultural exchange, resistance, and adaptation that have always characterized our borderlands.
In these patterns of the past, we might find the key to our collective future.
"The Crossing" book review
September 21, 2025
This is a sweeping southwestern history written by a journalist, ostensibly focused on El Paso but rapidly moving from New and Old Mexico and Texas. He begins and ends his story on that fateful day in 2019 in that El Paso Wal-Mart when a white nationalist loser drove down from the Dallas region to kill Latinos. Starting from that point, we're given a sweeping history starting from Oñate's expedition north and ending with Trump's cold insults to the city.
I was particularly struck by the sections taking place in the early 20th century. I didn't realize just how much El Paso had led the way in civil rights battles.
This also gave a bit more later Mexican history than other books we've done in Southwest History Book Club. He spends some time going into important figures like Benito Juarez and Pancho Villa, both of whom would have been well known in El Paso.
This is an impressive amount of information crammed into a relatively short book. My brain is full right now - we'll be discussing it in a few days and I foresee quite the book talk.
I was particularly struck by the sections taking place in the early 20th century. I didn't realize just how much El Paso had led the way in civil rights battles.
This also gave a bit more later Mexican history than other books we've done in Southwest History Book Club. He spends some time going into important figures like Benito Juarez and Pancho Villa, both of whom would have been well known in El Paso.
This is an impressive amount of information crammed into a relatively short book. My brain is full right now - we'll be discussing it in a few days and I foresee quite the book talk.
June 23, 2025
Why do I keep thinking about the whole concept of rewriting history or deleting it as a new thing? It's not. What we are spoonfed as public school students, in condensed paragraphs expected to give a truthful take on history is more wrong than right. I'm going to keep reading non-fiction about the world I live in and the people who surround me until I'm dead and I'll be better for it. Wow.
November 9, 2025
My reviews are only on StoryGraph, as I do not want to help Amazon get any larger. The only reason I keep this app is because it has my list and tally of past books read.
March 10, 2025
Thanks to NetGalley and Harper Audio for the Audio ARC!
The Crossing is a comprehensive history of the El Paso, Ciudad Juarez, and the natives of that area. Beginning with the indigenous inhabitants of the area, Parker chronicles the changes of nationality and the variety of ethnic groups that have created the modern city of El Paso. I especially enjoyed the stories of the various achievements of the Mexican and Mexican-American troops that fought in the world wars. That was all previously unknown information for me, and very interesting. Definitely recommended for anyone with an interest in what really goes on along our southern border.
The Crossing is a comprehensive history of the El Paso, Ciudad Juarez, and the natives of that area. Beginning with the indigenous inhabitants of the area, Parker chronicles the changes of nationality and the variety of ethnic groups that have created the modern city of El Paso. I especially enjoyed the stories of the various achievements of the Mexican and Mexican-American troops that fought in the world wars. That was all previously unknown information for me, and very interesting. Definitely recommended for anyone with an interest in what really goes on along our southern border.
March 11, 2025
This book caught my eye when it was released. My family lived and worked on both sides of the US - Mexican border many generations ago and remains there today. Parker does a great job summarizing so. much. history that is easy for the reader to digest.
This should be required reading for folks who want to take a position about border security and immigration.
This should be required reading for folks who want to take a position about border security and immigration.
March 3, 2025
“The Crossing” recenters American history west to El Paso, Texas. It’s a great argument; it is the bridge between South and North. A feast between the Spanish and Indigenous peoples took place in El Paso decades before the pilgrims arrived at Plymouth Rock. It’s where Immigrant America starts—more immigrants have passed through El Paso than Ellis Island—and where crucial battles for Civil Rights were fought.
If you were around when I took a Modern Mexico class, you would have learned a lot of new history while I did. This book felt like a sequel to the class. SO well researched…and I made so many highlights and notes. Richard Parker, I do agree, our history starts in El Paso, Texas. Anyone who has a slight interest in American History, make this a must read.
Thank you NetGalley and Mariner Books #TheCrossing #NetGalley
If you were around when I took a Modern Mexico class, you would have learned a lot of new history while I did. This book felt like a sequel to the class. SO well researched…and I made so many highlights and notes. Richard Parker, I do agree, our history starts in El Paso, Texas. Anyone who has a slight interest in American History, make this a must read.
Thank you NetGalley and Mariner Books #TheCrossing #NetGalley
August 31, 2025
Before I was done with the Prologue, I began thinking of this as Texas tall tales, El Paso style.
First was the claim that American Indians were in the El Paso area 38K years ago, and crossing from Asia 55K years ago. The White Sands footprints are the last nail in the “Clovis” coffin, at about 25K years ago. NObody I’ve read dates the Indian entrada to 55K ago. He actually claims “some scientists now suspect” 55K years BEFORE the Bering Strait crossing is the date for the White Sounds footprints. (The best estimate for first humans in SIBERIA is 45K years ago.) Neither is directly footnoted. In addition, on the Orogrande site, it’s spelled that way, one word, not the author’s two words, and it’s right up the street from El Paso, less than 40 miles away.
Richard MacNeish, the guy who has his New York Times obit cited in another footnote, actually claimed, yes, the Pendejo Cave site was occupied as long as 75K years ago, but dating, provenance and more on the “chipping tools” in the cave has been rejected by most archaeologists. (And, AFAIK, MacNeish never explains how Homo sapiens got to the Western Hemisphere before Siberia.)
He claims the original transcontinental railroad was “abandoned” for the Southern Pacific route soon after it was completed.
He claims the pre-contact Puebloan world was an “empire.” As the disunity soon after the 1680 revolt showed, it wasn’t even a good confederation then, was not that or an empire before, and as the cliff dwelling end phase of the Anasazi shows, they fought each other.
Mesoamericans most certainly did not trade directly with Mississippean mound-builders. Mayan-world boat-building doesn’t exist.
The Mogollon people did NOT settle near Flagstaff, Arizona. That’s Anasazi, or Anasazi/Sinagua borderlands. The thesis of the book is now clear — Texas exceptionalism, El Paso style, using New Mexico as a crutch. No, the Hohokam did not move up the Gila River to the New Mexico side and its Mogollon lands. They’re “still there” in Arizona, as today’s various O’odham peoples.
I have no idea what the Numbers River is. Neither does Google nor Google Maps. Did he mistype “Mimbres”? Did he dictate this book with Siri?
His ideas on the “Great Abandonment” of Puebloan peoples of the greater Chaco area, then the Four Corners, is simplistic. His putting thoughts and beliefs in the heads of people of 800 years ago is laughable.
In his Oñate material, he doesn’t mention the Española (Alcalde) statue losing a foot as revenge and controversy over the El Paso statue. (It too was later defaced but not so severely.)
More than once in the book, he appears to believe much of the largely bullshit pseudohistory about crypto-Jews in New Mexico. These are most likely Adventist Protestants. See this and for detail, this.
I looked at the 1840-60 chapter to see if he discussed details of the Compromise of 1850, including the half a dozen or so different proposals for the Texas-New Mexico state line, like this book does. He does not. All he has is El Paso’s (Mexican-suppressed) vote to be part of Texas, but doesn’t even have the Mexican War’s Texas Postmaster General outracing US troops background for that.
I pretty much hit DNF at this point.
In the index, about once a page, Wikipedia is cited as a source. Not that Wikipedia is incorrect, but that’s just not how you do it.
It’s no wonder that no academic historian blurbed this book on its back cover. That said, racism-indulging Texas journalist S.C. Gwynne DID, enough reason to give me pause about checking it out from the library right there. There’s no racism, but there is Texas exceptionalism, right up Gwynne’s alley.
Some Texas exceptionalists might like this book; a few might even love it. Most other people should skip it. People who grew up in New Mexico, if you have a non-library copy under your own ownership should burn it.
What a disappointment otherwise. The sad story of the 2019 El Paso mass shooting hijacked to spout pseudohistory.
You might ask, how does a guy who wrote for the New York Times make such a shitload of errors? Simple. Larger newspapers and magazines still have fact-checkers. Book publishers never have. And despite recent discussion about that issue in various literary corners, that's not likely to change. Either the author ponies up for fact checking in political type books to avoid libel, or, in most other nonfiction books, they do nothing.
First was the claim that American Indians were in the El Paso area 38K years ago, and crossing from Asia 55K years ago. The White Sands footprints are the last nail in the “Clovis” coffin, at about 25K years ago. NObody I’ve read dates the Indian entrada to 55K ago. He actually claims “some scientists now suspect” 55K years BEFORE the Bering Strait crossing is the date for the White Sounds footprints. (The best estimate for first humans in SIBERIA is 45K years ago.) Neither is directly footnoted. In addition, on the Orogrande site, it’s spelled that way, one word, not the author’s two words, and it’s right up the street from El Paso, less than 40 miles away.
Richard MacNeish, the guy who has his New York Times obit cited in another footnote, actually claimed, yes, the Pendejo Cave site was occupied as long as 75K years ago, but dating, provenance and more on the “chipping tools” in the cave has been rejected by most archaeologists. (And, AFAIK, MacNeish never explains how Homo sapiens got to the Western Hemisphere before Siberia.)
He claims the original transcontinental railroad was “abandoned” for the Southern Pacific route soon after it was completed.
He claims the pre-contact Puebloan world was an “empire.” As the disunity soon after the 1680 revolt showed, it wasn’t even a good confederation then, was not that or an empire before, and as the cliff dwelling end phase of the Anasazi shows, they fought each other.
Mesoamericans most certainly did not trade directly with Mississippean mound-builders. Mayan-world boat-building doesn’t exist.
The Mogollon people did NOT settle near Flagstaff, Arizona. That’s Anasazi, or Anasazi/Sinagua borderlands. The thesis of the book is now clear — Texas exceptionalism, El Paso style, using New Mexico as a crutch. No, the Hohokam did not move up the Gila River to the New Mexico side and its Mogollon lands. They’re “still there” in Arizona, as today’s various O’odham peoples.
I have no idea what the Numbers River is. Neither does Google nor Google Maps. Did he mistype “Mimbres”? Did he dictate this book with Siri?
His ideas on the “Great Abandonment” of Puebloan peoples of the greater Chaco area, then the Four Corners, is simplistic. His putting thoughts and beliefs in the heads of people of 800 years ago is laughable.
In his Oñate material, he doesn’t mention the Española (Alcalde) statue losing a foot as revenge and controversy over the El Paso statue. (It too was later defaced but not so severely.)
More than once in the book, he appears to believe much of the largely bullshit pseudohistory about crypto-Jews in New Mexico. These are most likely Adventist Protestants. See this and for detail, this.
I looked at the 1840-60 chapter to see if he discussed details of the Compromise of 1850, including the half a dozen or so different proposals for the Texas-New Mexico state line, like this book does. He does not. All he has is El Paso’s (Mexican-suppressed) vote to be part of Texas, but doesn’t even have the Mexican War’s Texas Postmaster General outracing US troops background for that.
I pretty much hit DNF at this point.
In the index, about once a page, Wikipedia is cited as a source. Not that Wikipedia is incorrect, but that’s just not how you do it.
It’s no wonder that no academic historian blurbed this book on its back cover. That said, racism-indulging Texas journalist S.C. Gwynne DID, enough reason to give me pause about checking it out from the library right there. There’s no racism, but there is Texas exceptionalism, right up Gwynne’s alley.
Some Texas exceptionalists might like this book; a few might even love it. Most other people should skip it. People who grew up in New Mexico, if you have a non-library copy under your own ownership should burn it.
What a disappointment otherwise. The sad story of the 2019 El Paso mass shooting hijacked to spout pseudohistory.
You might ask, how does a guy who wrote for the New York Times make such a shitload of errors? Simple. Larger newspapers and magazines still have fact-checkers. Book publishers never have. And despite recent discussion about that issue in various literary corners, that's not likely to change. Either the author ponies up for fact checking in political type books to avoid libel, or, in most other nonfiction books, they do nothing.
May 31, 2025
Richard Parker has produced a masterful work of historical scholarship that fundamentally challenges how we understand the origins and character of American civilization. Through his sweeping history of El Paso—his hometown and a crossroads of cultures for over four centuries—Parker makes a compelling case that "American history did not begin in the Northeast. It began in the Southwest," offering readers both rigorous scholarship and a hopeful vision for our national future.
What makes this book exceptional is Parker's ability to document both conflict and cooperation across cultures with equal precision and nuance. His account of how "Native, Spanish, European, African, Jewish, and Arab cultures fought, bled, died" in El Paso refuses to romanticize the violence of cultural encounter, while simultaneously celebrating how these same communities forged a "vibrantly diverse" society that serves as a powerful model for American pluralism. This balanced approach demonstrates both intellectual honesty and deep understanding of historical complexity.
Parker's research, spanning from the sixteenth century to the present, reveals patterns of cross-cultural accommodation that have been overlooked in traditional American narratives focused on East Coast origins. His documentation of how El Paso became a laboratory for multicultural democracy provides essential insights into alternative models of American identity that feel particularly relevant to contemporary debates about immigration, diversity, and national belonging.
Perhaps most powerfully, Parker transforms personal tragedy into a source of hope and renewal. While the 2019 white nationalist attack at an El Paso Walmart prompted him to write this book, Parker's conclusion that "this isn't just where America began" but where "it can show America how to begin again" offers a vision of national healing rooted in historical truth rather than mythology. This is essential reading that reframes American history while providing a roadmap for a more inclusive and authentic national identity.
What makes this book exceptional is Parker's ability to document both conflict and cooperation across cultures with equal precision and nuance. His account of how "Native, Spanish, European, African, Jewish, and Arab cultures fought, bled, died" in El Paso refuses to romanticize the violence of cultural encounter, while simultaneously celebrating how these same communities forged a "vibrantly diverse" society that serves as a powerful model for American pluralism. This balanced approach demonstrates both intellectual honesty and deep understanding of historical complexity.
Parker's research, spanning from the sixteenth century to the present, reveals patterns of cross-cultural accommodation that have been overlooked in traditional American narratives focused on East Coast origins. His documentation of how El Paso became a laboratory for multicultural democracy provides essential insights into alternative models of American identity that feel particularly relevant to contemporary debates about immigration, diversity, and national belonging.
Perhaps most powerfully, Parker transforms personal tragedy into a source of hope and renewal. While the 2019 white nationalist attack at an El Paso Walmart prompted him to write this book, Parker's conclusion that "this isn't just where America began" but where "it can show America how to begin again" offers a vision of national healing rooted in historical truth rather than mythology. This is essential reading that reframes American history while providing a roadmap for a more inclusive and authentic national identity.
March 22, 2025
When we think about the origins of the United States and places which witnessed its development, we rarely think about El Paso.
Yet, as Richard Parker has well demonstrated in The Crossing: El Paso, the Southwest, and America’s Forgotten Origin Story (galley received as part of early review program), perhaps we should.
The author began and ended with the 2019 mass shooting event at an El Paso Walmart; the author grew up in El Paso and felt compelled to write to show how the story of El Paso is integral to the story of America.
The author began with how Indigenous people have lived in the areas around El Paso for perhaps an incredibly long time. In terms of more modern history, the author began with the Oñate expedition of the late sixteenth century. While they would pass through the El Paso area heading to what is now New Mexico, El Paso would become the territorial capital after the revolts against the Spanish among the Pueblo peoples.
The author then focuses more primarily on El Paso itself: its development on the south side of the river, independence from Spain, early white settlement, the Mexican War and the establishment of the border, and the Gadsden Purchase and how many who had been in Mexico were now in the United States. The story of El Paso as part of Texas and the Confederacy is told with the events of the Civil War which took place in the general area; how El Paso and Juarez would develop through the late 19th and 20th centuries; and the modern story of both towns, the border, migration, economic development, and economic challenges. The author spoke of the challenges El Paso has experienced, but also its multi-cultural nature and how well people actually live among one another there. He very much emphasizes how the 2019 Walmart shooter came from outside of El Paso and was fueled by narratives foreign to the lived experience of El Paso.
This is a great read about the history of El Paso and the southwest in general.
Yet, as Richard Parker has well demonstrated in The Crossing: El Paso, the Southwest, and America’s Forgotten Origin Story (galley received as part of early review program), perhaps we should.
The author began and ended with the 2019 mass shooting event at an El Paso Walmart; the author grew up in El Paso and felt compelled to write to show how the story of El Paso is integral to the story of America.
The author began with how Indigenous people have lived in the areas around El Paso for perhaps an incredibly long time. In terms of more modern history, the author began with the Oñate expedition of the late sixteenth century. While they would pass through the El Paso area heading to what is now New Mexico, El Paso would become the territorial capital after the revolts against the Spanish among the Pueblo peoples.
The author then focuses more primarily on El Paso itself: its development on the south side of the river, independence from Spain, early white settlement, the Mexican War and the establishment of the border, and the Gadsden Purchase and how many who had been in Mexico were now in the United States. The story of El Paso as part of Texas and the Confederacy is told with the events of the Civil War which took place in the general area; how El Paso and Juarez would develop through the late 19th and 20th centuries; and the modern story of both towns, the border, migration, economic development, and economic challenges. The author spoke of the challenges El Paso has experienced, but also its multi-cultural nature and how well people actually live among one another there. He very much emphasizes how the 2019 Walmart shooter came from outside of El Paso and was fueled by narratives foreign to the lived experience of El Paso.
This is a great read about the history of El Paso and the southwest in general.
May 2, 2025
When you live in a border state, you know this history to some degree. You learn bits and pieces of it over a lifetime, but it's never really an official part of the school curriculum or national narrative. For that reason, everyone needs to read this book. I'd go a step further and recommend it as a school textbook, but it is so detailed in brutally, rapes, and creative acts of cruelty that I'm pretty sure it wouldn't survive the censors. It's also of course arguing that the first European settlement in the U.S. was Spanish and not Anglo, which also probably wouldn't pass censorship, especially - ironically - in Texas.
Just as I sometimes struggled with history texts in school, I found that the avalanche of dates, names, events, etc was beyond what I could entirely commit to memory, so I plan to keep a copy of this book on my shelf for reference. I don't believe I'll be regularly calling upon a specific battle of the 18th century, but the broad strokes here are important: for example, the point that the narrative of how the U.S. was settled deliberately leaves out how much of the modern day U.S. was once Mexico. Of course, Mexico too is a story of violent European conquerers and widespread genocide of indigenous people, but in the current Zeitgeist of Mexican-Americans being othered, as though they haven't been part of this nation as long as Western Europeans, makes these details especially relevant.
As I write this review, though, I have taken a pause on the book for my own mental health. I plan to finish it and to keep it as a reference, but I stopped at the gas chambers in El Paso and how Hitler was inspired by them. Is that a spoiler? Because shouldn't it be something I learned in history class decades ago? Who really needs to read this book is all the Americans who voted to end Democracy based on a false sense U.S. exceptionalism.
Just as I sometimes struggled with history texts in school, I found that the avalanche of dates, names, events, etc was beyond what I could entirely commit to memory, so I plan to keep a copy of this book on my shelf for reference. I don't believe I'll be regularly calling upon a specific battle of the 18th century, but the broad strokes here are important: for example, the point that the narrative of how the U.S. was settled deliberately leaves out how much of the modern day U.S. was once Mexico. Of course, Mexico too is a story of violent European conquerers and widespread genocide of indigenous people, but in the current Zeitgeist of Mexican-Americans being othered, as though they haven't been part of this nation as long as Western Europeans, makes these details especially relevant.
As I write this review, though, I have taken a pause on the book for my own mental health. I plan to finish it and to keep it as a reference, but I stopped at the gas chambers in El Paso and how Hitler was inspired by them. Is that a spoiler? Because shouldn't it be something I learned in history class decades ago? Who really needs to read this book is all the Americans who voted to end Democracy based on a false sense U.S. exceptionalism.
March 5, 2025
Reading notes: The Crossing by Richard Parker
An #ownVoices historian in El Paso uncovers the hidden stories of the land that became known as the United States of America. The well-researched truths of exploration and colonization long before and far away from the Plymouth Rock story shook my world view.
Within a few pages I was deep into a story far different fron the 'official' versions, complete with the heinous conquistador inhumanity toward the tribes living on the land they came to plunder. There are good surprises, fascinating details about the earliest prehistoric peoples and the tribes living in the region during the invasions from Spain, and an effective frame that highlight the danger of hate-based ideologies.
The documentation is excellent, making this an authoritative history to stand against the misinformation and erasures aimed against diversity.
A sweet thing, the more I read about multiculturalism in El Paso, Texas, the more hope I felt for a future where cooperation, respect, and human values will triumph over fear-mongering, ignorance, and greed.
I rated The Crossing 4.5. Highly recommended for all mature readers. You don't need a background in history to be grabbed by this story.
Find some joy in your day. I made silver dollar hot cakes and espresso. The cats are having a siesta. The sun is angled over my kitchen reading nook, and I don't have to go anywhere.
The Crossing releases on March 4th!
Thank you, @HarperCollins, for the E-ARC via @NetGalley for consideration. These opinions are solely my own.
An #ownVoices historian in El Paso uncovers the hidden stories of the land that became known as the United States of America. The well-researched truths of exploration and colonization long before and far away from the Plymouth Rock story shook my world view.
Within a few pages I was deep into a story far different fron the 'official' versions, complete with the heinous conquistador inhumanity toward the tribes living on the land they came to plunder. There are good surprises, fascinating details about the earliest prehistoric peoples and the tribes living in the region during the invasions from Spain, and an effective frame that highlight the danger of hate-based ideologies.
The documentation is excellent, making this an authoritative history to stand against the misinformation and erasures aimed against diversity.
A sweet thing, the more I read about multiculturalism in El Paso, Texas, the more hope I felt for a future where cooperation, respect, and human values will triumph over fear-mongering, ignorance, and greed.
I rated The Crossing 4.5. Highly recommended for all mature readers. You don't need a background in history to be grabbed by this story.
Find some joy in your day. I made silver dollar hot cakes and espresso. The cats are having a siesta. The sun is angled over my kitchen reading nook, and I don't have to go anywhere.
The Crossing releases on March 4th!
Thank you, @HarperCollins, for the E-ARC via @NetGalley for consideration. These opinions are solely my own.
July 17, 2025
Great account of the history of the Southwest and the origin story of El Paso. Parker makes the point that the opening of the interior of the US happened long before the Europeans hit the Northeast shores with the Mayflower. Indigenous populations were first exploited by Spaniards that ventured n0rth out of Mexico in the 1500's. Parker brings his story across the decades to modern times with this tribute to the influence Southwestern cultures have had including and maybe better said principally from the Southern Hemisphere with El Paso being the focal point where cultures both clashed and melded. Ending the book with the horrific and senseless killing of 22 innocent shoppers at a Walmart in El Paso by a Trump inspired white nationalist madman, Parker laments the continued paranoia of white culture in America that feels so threatened by their neighbors whose ancestors have been in our country far longer than anyone that might trace their heritage back to the Mayflower. Parker didn't live to see the havoc a second Trump administration is wreaking, but we can well imagine his reaction.
April 24, 2025
This fascinating book tells the story of the American Southwest from indigenous civilization to modern day. In order to do that, Parker zooms in and out to address international history, (a lot of) wars, civil rights abuses, changing identities and attitudes toward immigration. He references his personal experience growing up in El Paso and bookends the narrative with a discussion of the recent massacre and how we got there.
I learned a LOT from this book, about El Paso itself and about the history of this area, immigration and the Mexican-American conflicts over history. My big takeaway is that El Paso's residents has have to be incredibly adaptive as their home has ping ponged between third parties and been used as a pawn in other people's political conflicts. I ended the book hoping to hear more from Parker, and then learned by googling that he passed away right as the book was coming back. I'm grateful that he was able to leave this book as a legacy and recommend it to any American.
I listened to this on audio and the narration was good and not distracting, which I think is best case for a historical non-fiction book!
Thank you to Harper Audio adult for an advance listening copy for an unbiased review.
I learned a LOT from this book, about El Paso itself and about the history of this area, immigration and the Mexican-American conflicts over history. My big takeaway is that El Paso's residents has have to be incredibly adaptive as their home has ping ponged between third parties and been used as a pawn in other people's political conflicts. I ended the book hoping to hear more from Parker, and then learned by googling that he passed away right as the book was coming back. I'm grateful that he was able to leave this book as a legacy and recommend it to any American.
I listened to this on audio and the narration was good and not distracting, which I think is best case for a historical non-fiction book!
Thank you to Harper Audio adult for an advance listening copy for an unbiased review.
March 13, 2025
This is an interesting and thoughtful history of El Paso, the American southwest, and the United States generally. Parker traces the history of El Paso starting with the Native Americans indigenous to the land, European colonization, and then the growth of the United States. Parker discusses the huge role of El Paso in the United State’s initial westward expansion, the struggle for civil rights, and the changing makeup of America as more immigrants enter the country.
I enjoyed reading this book and learned a lot from it. I grew up in Massachusetts and so I have had a very East-coast centric American history education, and I appreciated this reframe. At the same time, I found this book a bit repetitive and scattered and I wish it had been more cohesive, so I docked a star. At the same time, everything I learned felt interesting and valuable and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this book!
I enjoyed reading this book and learned a lot from it. I grew up in Massachusetts and so I have had a very East-coast centric American history education, and I appreciated this reframe. At the same time, I found this book a bit repetitive and scattered and I wish it had been more cohesive, so I docked a star. At the same time, everything I learned felt interesting and valuable and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this book!
April 5, 2025
Mr Parker has crafted a wonderful paean to El Paso, Texas. Covering the history from the first humans on the continent to the present day, he puts forth his theory of El Paso as the crossing and focal point for much of the southwest. He presents it with the 'bark on,' blemishes, and gilt, and backed by research that proves the points he wants to make. It is a must-read for people who want to know the background and responsibilities of the border 'crisis' and where the fault lies. My only 'knock' on the book is that his editor and proofreaders let him down. There are many silly mistakes throughout (JFK as Senator from NY, JFK shot on November 12, Robert E. Lee as a lieutenant in the war with Mexico, etc.) These do not disqualify the book from the worthiness it deserves, but they provide an opening for those who would denigrate his purpose.
March 9, 2025
The Crossing: El Paso, the Southwest, and America's Forgotten Origin Story by Richard Parker tells the rich story of El Paso, Texas and its pivotal role in the origin story of American History. It describes how this city plays a pivotal role in the origin story of the Untied States and was a battleground for early American democracy and equality. Like a People’s History of the Untied States by Howard Zinn, it exposes a portion of American History that many are either not familiar with or are willing to acknowledge. This book is a must read for those who want to understand the complex narrative of our American History.
The Narration by Timothy Andres Pabon is provide at a great pace, easy to follow and understand given the number of dates and stats that are provided.
Thank you Mariner Books, Harper Audio and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC. All Opinions are my own.
Rating: 5 Stars
Print Pub Date: Mar 4 2025
Tags:
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@marinerbooks
Harper Audio
@harperaudio
#TheCrossing
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#netgalley
August 6, 2025
This is the story of El Paso beginning centuries in the past when it was nothing more than a bend in the Rio Grande, going almost through to today. It contains an incredible breadth and depth of information about all the different peoples and cultures who lived there, and why/how it changes along the way. It doesn't shy away from the hard parts of history while still celebrating the successes and spirit of each group as they changed the Southwest.
Thanks to Netgalley and HarperAudio Adult for an audio ARC of this book.
Thanks to Netgalley and HarperAudio Adult for an audio ARC of this book.
November 20, 2025
This was interesting! I’ve read a few southwestern history books, and growing up in AZ I got a fair bit of history in school as well. So some of it was rehash for me, but it would be a great intro into the first American settlements (Albuquerque, Tucson, etc) for those only familiar w/ the Pilgrim mythology version of American establishment.
The second half had a lot more I didn’t know about — Mexican-American troops who served in WWII Latino / Chicano influence on the Civil Rights movement and JFK’s campaign, etc.
The second half had a lot more I didn’t know about — Mexican-American troops who served in WWII Latino / Chicano influence on the Civil Rights movement and JFK’s campaign, etc.
June 5, 2025
There wasn't a ton of history in this I hadn't read before, but I enjoyed the book thematically as an alternative to the right-wing talking point that the U.S. is fundamentally a Christian, European nation. The early chapters of this book (which I think are its best) especially offer a strong counter that America's strength is foundationally its melange of cultures, and throughout the book, the nation's failures arise from forgetting that.
February 17, 2025
Many thanks for the ARC of this excellent new work. Readers interested in a deeper understanding of American history will love this book. This is one of those books that change how you think. The East-to-West version of how the USA was built is challenged here. This is a new way of looking at how our country really came together. Highly recommended. This is a very original piece of work.
May 30, 2025
Fascinating history of the US that, for the most part, I never knew. I bought a copy after reading the library's copy so I can go back and highlight info. It is also an excellent chronicle of the border struggles and our ever changing attitudes toward the people who cross it.
June 10, 2025
When the author said El Paso had 5,000 people which was more than Massuchuets Bay colony I fact checked it because I had already been suspect of some of his other claims. That's when this book became a DNF. It's ashame because it could have been good.
July 13, 2025
Enlightening history of the West
This book leaves natives with pride and visitors with envy. With incredible detail we trace El Paso's history through the years and see how important this town has been in shaping the United States.
This book leaves natives with pride and visitors with envy. With incredible detail we trace El Paso's history through the years and see how important this town has been in shaping the United States.
May 11, 2025
A broader history of the US than the title and reviews suggest. Very current and has a lot of history that's not commonly told. Very interesting and enlightening, but has a jumpy style of writing
June 18, 2025
A close look at the important role El Paso has served in the development of North America over the years.
At times, the book read as a polemic with the author inserting his opinion.
At times, the book read as a polemic with the author inserting his opinion.
August 17, 2025
Really good, informative book if you are from Texas
September 11, 2025
Tedious in places, riveting in others.
November 18, 2025
This is a virtual trove of history and information but perhaps there was just a bit too much detail to make this book flow for me.
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