Ken Salazar’s Borderlands: My Fight for an Inclusive America (2026) is a memoir that goes a long way in understanding the trajectory of his personal and political life. The insights he provides are living lessons on the passion and commitment it takes to offer effective service to others.
Borderlands is made up of 7 parts and 45 chapters that record key moments in Salazar’s personal, professional and political experience that shaped his knowledge of the world, and the challenges America faces as a country of diverse people. In it, he indicates that every turn in his life has led to the same conclusion: everyone matters.
The perspectives manifested in his writing are colored by the heritage of the family’s 428-year history and more. His own sense of belonging is derived from his upbringing in the rural San Luis Valley of Colorado.
In the second part of the book describes Salazar’s childhood and tells of a teacher that would single him out to wash his hands because she assumed he was dirty. Another story that reflects my own memory of discrimination was his being denied membership in the National Honor Society even-though he was the salutatorian of the high school graduating class.
His adventure at Colorado College includes a story of how he got lost in the big city of Colorado Springs, could not find the school and ended up at the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs before he found his Alma Mater. Another college story is about how he came to be part of MEChA which is the acronym for Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlan, a most important Chicano student activist organization. The term Chicano entered his vocabulary, and the work of the organization also became his own.
After Colorado College and Law School at the University of Michigan, Salazar began his professional career in Denver and there worked on issues that eventually led him into a political world that saw him elected Attorney General of Colorado, United States Senator, Secretary of the Interior and United States Ambassador to Mexico. In addition, he considered running for governor of Colorado and President of the United States.
The book’s narrative on his political career begins and ends with his work as Ambassador to Mexico. Mexico under the leadership of President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrado (AMLO) who made national sovereignty a non-negotiable priority, tested Ken Salazar’s ability to navigate American and Mexican relations in the face of an immigration crisis on the border and the presence of violent Mexican drug cartels that affected the security of the United States.
Borderlands actually begin with the last moments of the Ambassador’s personal connection to AMLO, a connection that was lost because two high valued members of the Sinaloa Cartel arrived in New Mexico from Culiacan, Mexico and were promptly arrested by American authorities. The speculation in Mexico was that the United States was responsible for that flight and therefore had violated the country’s sovereignty.
The book is a great read for both those who know or met Ken Salazar as well as those who may want to know more about an icon that models belief in the notion that everyone matters. The text is expressed in the first person and reveals the key points in a journey focused on helping to bridge the gaps in our divisions both here and abroad.
The “fight for an inclusive America” is also a motto for those in the margins that are searching for place in America. It is the story of our future.
The views expressed by David Conde are not necessarily the views of LaVozColorado. Comments and responses may be directed to News@lavozcolorado.com.
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