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Chicano movement today
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The Chicana/o identity has developed through the history of Mexican-Americans living in the United States. Chicana/o identity is multi-layered and self-identified. Although, it does not have a set definition, I will highlight examples of different forms of representations that helped claimed this identity. Through various examples of Denise A. Segura and Beatriz M. Pesquera article “Beyond Indifference and Antipathy”, “Chicana Identity Matters” article by Deena J. Gonzalez, “Chicano Teatro” article by Jorge A. Huerta, “Their Dogs Came With Them” novel by Helena María Viramontes, and Murals by Judith Baca and David Alfaro Siqueiros, they will illuminate the historic struggle that creates and defines Chicana/o identity. The Chicana/o term has been very complex throughout time as a form of identity. However, Mexican-Americans were given this long history of misrepresentation as being dumb, lazy, inferior, servile, sexualized and/or criminal. One example of it would be the creation of Olvera Street in Los Angeles. In I will argue that through numerous forms of representations, Chicana/o identity is multi-dimensional and has developed through Mexican-Americans life experiences and the influence from the larger white U.S society. Lastly, I will demonstrate this by including the representations of gender, race, citizenship, and class to expose the self-identified Chicana/o identity.
During the Chicano movement gender issues led to the Chicana movement for equality because the Chicano movement did not deal with women’s issues or even family issues. Chicana women had limited roles within the Chicano movement because of their gender. Feminism calls for female unity against patriarchy in traditional cultural patterns and Chicanas began to a...
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... States. I argued that Chicana/o identity could be defined as multi-dimensional through the representations of gender, race, citizenship, and class to demonstrate that Chicana/o identity is a self-identity. Through the examples of Chicana Movement, Cherrie Moraga’s choice of identity, Chicano Teatros, Muralism, and the concepts of performing politics and social sublime, Chicana/o identity is self-choice and a political ideology identity that relates to all the historic struggles that deal with intersectionalities. However, the misrepresentation of Chicana/o identity through Anglo Americans also took part in defining the Chicana/o identity because it set a stereotype that was not true about Mexican-Americans. Furthermore, through historical struggles, Chicana/o identity has became a self-identify identity, being politically aware and conscious of intersectionalities.
This book was published in 1981 with an immense elaboration of media hype. This is a story of a young Mexican American who felt disgusted of being pointed out as a minority and was unhappy with affirmative action programs although he had gained advantages from them. He acknowledged the gap that was created between him and his parents as the penalty immigrants ought to pay to develop and grow into American culture. And he confessed that he got bewildered to see other Hispanic teachers and students determined to preserve their ethnicity and traditions by asking for such issues to be dealt with as departments of Chicano studies and minority literature classes. A lot of critics criticized him as a defector of his heritage, but there are a few who believed him to be a sober vote in opposition to the political intemperance of the 1960s and 1970s.
He then gives some historical context by touching on the many challenges that Chicana/o students faced in the past. For an example, he touches on the discrimination many Chicana/o students faced in the classroom during the 1960’s. Nelson then shows how during those times Chicana/o authors used stories and poetry to voice their feelings and experiences regarding the issue of discrimination in order to draw a parallel to the purpose of Rivera’s publication. Nelson goes on to dive into the Rivera texts and draws different examples of the authors’ strategies to expose the issue. Finally, Nelson identifies the two different rhetorical strategies of In Lak’ech and mestiza in the texts and explains how they play
Fernandez, Lilia. "Introduction to U.S. Latino/Latina History." History 324. The Ohio State University. Jennings Hall 0040, Columbus, OH, USA. Address.
Latinos who were raised in the United States of America have a dual identity. They were influenced by both their parents' ancestry and culture in addition to the American culture in which they live. Growing up in between two very different cultures creates a great problem, because they cannot identify completely with either culture and are also caught between the Spanish and English languages. Further more they struggle to connect with their roots. The duality in Latino identity and their search for their own personal identity is strongly represented in their writing. The following is a quote that expresses this idea in the words of Lucha Corpi, a Latina writer: "We Chicanos are like the abandoned children of divorced cultures. We are forever longing to be loved by an absent neglectful parent - Mexico - and also to be truly accepted by the other parent - the United States. We want bicultural harmony. We need it to survive. We struggle to achieve it. That struggle keeps us alive" ( Griwold ).
Although our society is slowly developing a more accepting attitude toward differences, several minority groups continue to suffer from cultural oppression. In her essay “How to Tame a Wild Tongue,” Gloria Anzaldúa explores the challenges encountered by these groups. She especially focuses on her people, the Chicanos, and describes the difficulties she faced because of her cultural background. She argues that for many years, the dominant American culture has silenced their language. By forcing them to speak English and attempting to get rid of their accents, the Americans have robbed the Chicanos of their identity. She also addresses the issue of low self-esteem that arises from this process of acculturation. Growing up in the United States,
Cofer uses the rhetoric appeal of ethos to establish her authority to make the argument that Latina stereotypes are just myths. Growing ...
Torres, Hector Avalos. 2007. Conversations with Contemporary Chicana and Chicano Writers. U.S.: University of New Mexico press, 315-324.
myself did not know before I came to college. The two words are overlapped and used out of context frequently in people’s daily lives. The United States is what people call an immigrant country, there are many different ethnic and racial groups that not even the census can keep up with. All this diversity is what makes our country so different yet amazing. We are willing to embrace the many different cultures that each person has to bring. My family and I have been confused for many different ethnic groups and it is always very interesting to hear people say why they thought we were of a different ethnic group other than Mexican American. Ethnic confusion is a big deal, especially in America because of all the different identities people claim.
Chicana artists are historically underrepresented and their art work is always viewed lesser to the Chicano artists due to hegemony. However, many Chicana artists depict the reality of the Chicana experience and criticize and question the heterosexist Chicano narrative. Moreover, Professor Gaspar de Alba defines and distinguishes the difference between politics of identity and identity of politics. She emphasizes how politics of identity is the way the individual defines themselves. She then raised a very interesting question on who identifies as "Feminist" and unsurprisingly mostly women raised their hand and men did not. She then explains that many people misinterpret the meaning of feminism. It is stereotyped to be a "hating men" movement, when that is not the case. Gaspar de Alba goes into depth explaining how a man can also identify as a feminist if he has shares the same beliefs as feminists. Similar, to being a queer ally any individual may be a feminist ally. It is not surprising to me that many people misinterpret the feminism movement because historically feminism was centered on the upper-middle class white
The struggle to find a place inside an un-welcoming America has forced the Latino to recreate one. The Latino feels out of place, torn from the womb inside of America's reality because she would rather use it than know it (Paz 226-227). In response, the Mexican women planted the seeds of home inside the corral*. These tended and potted plants became her burrow of solace and place of acceptance. In the comfort of the suns slices and underneath the orange scents, the women were free. Still the questions pounded in the rhythm of street side whispers. The outside stare thundered in pulses, you are different it said. Instead of listening she tried to instill within her children the pride of language, song, and culture. Her roots weave soul into the stubborn soil and strength grew with each blossom of the fig tree (Goldsmith).
Chicana feminism was born out of Chicana women realizing that the Chicano Movement failed to acknowledge their struggles as women, and the Women’s Rights Movement was largely led by and focused on white women. Chicana women lived in a heterosexist and male dominant society, and faced sexism at home, even as they were expected to work for their husbands in the Chicano movement. They were also isolated from the Women’s Rights Movement because it focused largely on issues affecting First World white women, and Third World Chicanas’ needs conflicted with those of white women. The Chicana movement was hence centered around creating not only legal protections for Chicana women, but also around creating
Subsequently, “Feminism was also viewed to be Anglo, middle-class, and bourgeois, and Chicanas were thus denounced as being traitors to ‘la causa’” (Vigil 277). Additionally, I believe that is interesting that feminism was considered to be middle class because I contemplate that feminism basically is middle class. To tell the truth, women are constantly struggling to be equal with men, and feminism is directed towards middle ground, so I definitely am new to the idea that feminism is like bourgeois. Also, the Chicanas who were denounced as traitors were initially being restrained in communicating their demands (Vigil 277). Furthermore, I believe that it is important for demands to be met no matter what kind of restraint there is, humans are not meant to be restrained, but to live life to the utmost righteousness. As a final thought, “Confronting these difficulties, Chicanas have fought for equality and justice within their community organizations. Demands have included welfare rights, rehabilitation programs for pintas (female ex-convicts), safeguards against male violence, access to birth control, and the right to refuse forced sterilization” (Vigil
There was no better defining example of the division of main stream views and that of a particular ethnicity as in The Myth of the Latin Woman: I Just Met a Girl Named Maria. Ortiz Cofer provided me with a very clear and a very defining expression of how her Puerto Rican culture could easily be misinterpreted. When discussing the dressing habits of her Puerto Rican culture Ortiz Cofer stated “As young girls it was our mothers who influenced our dec...
Indigenous people of the world have historically been and continue to be pushed to the margins of society. Similarly, women have experienced political, social, and economical marginalization. For the past 500 years or so, the indigenous peoples of México have been subjected to violence and the exploitation since the arrival of the Spanish. The xenophobic tendencies of Spanish colonizers did not disappear after México’s independence; rather it maintained the racial assimilation and exclusion policies left behind by the colonists, including gender roles (Moore 166) . México is historically and continues to be a patriarchal society. So when the Zapatista movement of 1994, more formally known as the Ejército Zapatista de Liberación National (Zapatista Army of National Liberation; EZLN) constructed a space for indigenous women to reclaim their rights, it was a significant step towards justice. The Mexican government, in haste for globalization and profits, ignored its indigenous peoples’ sufferings. Chiapas, the southernmost state of Mexico, consisting of mostly indigenous peoples living in the mountains and country, grew frustration with the Mexican government. It was in that moment that the Zapatista movement arose from the countryside to awaken a nation to the plight of indigenous Mexicans. Being indigenous puts a person at a disadvantage in Mexican society; when adding gender, an indigenous woman is set back two steps. It was through the Zapatista movement that a catalyst was created for indigenous women to reclaim rights and autonomy through the praxis of indigeneity and the popular struggle.
In the essay "It’s Hard Enough Being Me," Anna Lisa Raya relates her experiences as a multicultural American at Columbia University in New York and the confusion she felt about her identity. She grew up in L.A. and mostly identified with her Mexican background, but occasionally with her Puerto Rican background as well. Upon arriving to New York however, she discovered that to everyone else, she was considered "Latina." She points out that a typical "Latina" must salsa dance, know Mexican history, and most importantly, speak Spanish. Raya argues that she doesn’t know any of these things, so how could this label apply to her? She’s caught between being a "sell-out" to her heritage, and at the same time a "spic" to Americans. She adds that trying to cope with college life and the confusion of searching for an identity is a burden. Anna Raya closes her essay by presenting a piece of advice she was given on how to deal with her identity. She was told that she should try to satisfy herself and not worry about other people’s opinions. Anna Lisa Raya’s essay is an informative account of life for a multicultural American as well as an important insight into how people of multicultural backgrounds handle the labels that are placed upon them, and the confusion it leads to in the attempt to find an identity. Searching for an identity in a society that seeks to place a label on each individual is a difficult task, especially for people of multicultural ancestry.