Where’s my Jewish Guatemalan self-identity?

Throughout the ages, Jewish literature has been a reflection of the diaspora, resistance and the pursuit of an identity. In this immense and complex panorama, Guatemalan writer Eduardo Halfon stands out as a key figure, whose work not only explores his Jewish background, but also transcends cultural and temporal boundaries.

Halfon, born in 1971 in Guatemala City, has a life and work deeply shaped by his rich Jewish heritage. With family roots in both Lebanon and Poland, his ancestors fled to Guatemala to escape persecution, including his maternal grandfather, Leon Tenenbaum Lesner, a Holocaust survivor. This blend of cultures and experiences serves as a constant wellspring of inspiration, allowing him to vividly express the complexities of his identity through his writing.

In them, Halfon tackles universal subjects such as the search for identity, memory and exile. His literary narrative sense, marked by a prose that is both lyrical and evocative, leads the reader on an evocative and introspective journey, where the boundaries between reality and fiction are blurred. Works such as The Polish Boxer and Signor Hoffman are vivid illustrations of how Halfon uses his own autobiography to explore broader questions about the human condition.

Neither am I a descendant of a Polish or Lebanese Jewish family, but of marranos, or as they used to call derogatorily all those judeoconverts who practiced their Judaism in secret due to the fear of being executed during the spanish inquisition. But for those of us who have read Halfon in search of his own identity countless times, we know that he is not alone in this exasperating situation.

He delves into themes of displacement and the ongoing quest for a sense of belonging. This exploration of identity plays a key role in his latest work Tarantula, where Halfon recounts his time at a summer camp for Jewish children in Guatemala. Through this experience, he contemplates the dual nature of his identity as both Guatemalan and Jewish, two cultures that frequently appear at odds with each other.

In Tarantula, Halfon revisits a childhood memory from 1978, when his father took him and his brother to a golf club in Guatemala. At the entrance, a sign barred dogs and Jews, a moment that profoundly impacted young Eduardo and symbolized the stark divide between his two identities. Do we still profess antisemitic comments in Guatemala? How common can it be? These painful experiences are key to understanding Halfon’s work, as they fuel his ongoing exploration of identity and the search for belonging. Who tells us what we really are?

Through his narratives, encourages us to contemplate the past and its impact on the present. In The Polish Boxer, for instance, he shares the story of his grandfather, as said before, Holocaust survivor, and how this traumatic experience shaped his family. The memory of the Holocaust and its transmission to future generations is a common theme in Jewish literature, and Halfon addresses it with a profound sensitivity that resonates deeply with the reader.

“ser judío es un yugo y, a la vez, una ocasión

Halfon has stated that “ser judío es un yugo y, a la vez, una ocasión” or “being a Jew is a yoke and, at the same time, an occasion”. This duality is evident, where the memories of suffering and persecution are woven together with the celebration of life and resilience. His literature emphasizes that memory is not merely about recalling the past, but also serves as a means to comprehend and transform the present. Furthermore, Halfon’s work resonates not only within contemporary Jewish literature but also across Latin American and international literary spheres.

His skill in addressing universal themes through a personal and culturally specific lens establishes him as a distinctive and compelling voice in today’s literary world. As he has garnered numerous accolades, including the esteemed 2024 Berman Literature Award for his novel Canción (where he shares in a brilliantly written way, the story of the hijacker of his Lebanese grandfather, also named Eduardo Halfon). This honor underscores not only the literary excellence of his work but also his remarkable ability to navigate and transcend cultural and temporal boundaries.

Halfon is undeniably a pivotal figure in contemporary Jewish literature. His writing, characterized by themes of identity, memory, and diaspora, encourages reflection on the human condition and the intricate nature of belonging. Through his lyrical and evocative prose, creates a bridge between cultures and eras, reminding us that, in the end… we are all connected by the same shared narrative.