Mex

"Mex" by Laurence M. Janifer is a story set near the border between the US and Mexico where a young Mexican-American boy experiences racism and prejudice. It looks at the problems in society connected to race and where you come from. The story follows a seventeen-year-old who encounters a group of white men in a bar that taunt him with insults. The insults make him extremely angry, and he wants to stand up for himself, but others hold him back. The protagonist mentions that his family is special, and his sister has real magical powers, and his father is large and intimidating. After suffering their abuse, he is forced to leave the premises holding on to his anger, leading to severe implications for those who insulted him. Fantasy elements blend in as he changes into a terrifying figure to get revenge on his tormentors, a sign of the difficulties experienced by marginalized people in society.