Ruben Navarrette Jr. is a nationally syndicated columnist with The Washington Post Writers Group whose twice-a-week column appears in up to 150 newspapers. This makes him the most widely read Latino columnist in the country, known for his unpredictability and provocative thinking. He challenges both political parties with equal enthusiasm and his column is required reading for anyone who wants to better understand the nation's 52 million Latinos. ^[1]

Navarrette was born May 11, 1967, in the farm country of the San Joaquin Valley in the state of California. He attended public schools in Sanger, California, a town of deep roots where all four of his grandparents lived.

After high school, Navarrette went on to graduate from Harvard University in 1990. Years later he would return to get his MA in Public Administration from the Kennedy School of Government in 1999.

He is a member of the USA Today board and contributers as well as a nationally syndicated columnist with The Washington Post writers group. He is often a guest as a commentator on NPR Tell Me More and CNN.

He wrote a book called A Darker Shade of Crimson: Odyssey of a Harvard Chicano (Bantam, 1993).

After graduating from Harvard in 1990, Navarrette returned to his native Fresno, Calif., where he began a free-lance writing career that produced more than 200 articles in such publications as the Los Angeles Times, The Fresno Bee, The Chicago Tribune and The Arizona Republic.

In 1997 he joined the staff of The Arizona Republic, first as a reporter and then as a twice-weekly columnist, before returning to Harvard in the fall of 1999 to earn a master’s in public administration from the Kennedy School of Government.

He joined the editorial board of The Dallas Morning News in July 2000, and in 2005, moved to the San Diego Union-Tribune.

His column has been in syndication since 2001.

Navarrette draws on both his knowledge of policy and politics and his life experiences to provide meaningful and hard-hitting commentary.

He is a gifted and widely sought speaker on Latino affairs, has worked as a substitute teacher in classes from kindergarten to high school, and has hosted radio talk shows.

Navarrette has also served as guest host of public television’s “Life & Times” and has discussed current affairs on CNN, CNBC, Fox News, NPR and PBS NewsHour with Jim Lehrer. He also does regular commentary for NPR’s "Morning Edition".

His book, A Darker Shade of Crimson: Odyssey of a Harvard Chicano drew favorable reviews after it was published in 1993. In 2000, he contributed an installment to “Chicken Soup for the Writer’s Soul,” of the best-selling “Chicken Soup for the Soul” series.

His columns won second place in the 2004 National Headliner Awards presented by the Press Club of Atlantic City.

In 2002 and 2003, the Dallas Observer named him “Best Columnist at a Daily Newspaper.”

Navarrette lives in the San Diego area with his wife and children.