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a journey of latinx creative expression

[poetasinpapeles]

Lowriders, Quinceñeras y Cultura Joteria

Existing in the United States as the othered non-white has caused detrimental effects to various different racial, ethnic, and religious minorities however when considering not just the perseverance of culture but the creation of culture is not just an act of resistance but activism as well. Lowrider culture rose out of the streets of Los Angeles as a way for Mexican Americans to express themselves, find community and fight against oppressive systems. The Lowrider life is not just a hobby but just as previously described a lifestyle, a key player in their identity, a reclaiming of expression, attention, and most importantly a source of empowerment. Crews soon began to emerge with different clubs and names and symbols that distinguished one from another, a good gang as one described, but these crews and cars were a healthy outlet to avoid getting roped up into the gang life. These cars were an unapologetic demand for attention screaming into the silence that white supremacy has created screaming "THIS IS ME Y QUE?!" and they did just that. Upon the popularization of cruising, a designated get-together for those in the community to ride along a long stretch of land together, legal systems began to crack down first with the handing out of various tickets: too low, too loud, too whatever the cops would say code for what they really wanted to say too Mexican. Then to the complete outlawing of cruising, a criminalization of Brown bodies, as they feared for so-called gang suspicion when these were members of the community, often serving as leaders in their community as well as. This movement gave birth to not just Chicano Park, a park in San Diego that now serves as a place to host the community but to transnational trends in low riding. As riders searched for cheaper parts they traveled down to Tijuana and there came an exchange of pop culture but it's not just there as we more popularly see Mexican pop culture, better yet folklore pop culture, transcend into the U.S. La Llorona for many Latinx children is a popularized folklore about a weeping woman who lost her kids and weeps for them to come back sometimes going so far in her mourning she kidnaps others; this is something that unless told orally or by research not many would know until we saw the release of "The Curse of La Llorana' an American film premiering in 2019. This movie along with countless television episodes involving a Latina's quinceñera, their 15th birthday and coming of age party, dedicated barbies, like Frida Khalo or the special edition XV, and Disney films based on our folklores, Coco and Encanto, shows the shift in the white majority's view of the value of Latinx culture and peoples allowing them to exist more freely and embrace themselves (although some policy change would be nice too). Lastly, cultural joteria, as created by those caught on the intersection of Latiné and queer, has expanded the ways in which those in the community and pushed societies boundaries of how they should exist. From the very name cultural joteria, a Spanish phrase loosely meaning "gay culture" has been molded to allow them more space to exist as they felt the term queer didn't allow room for their Latinidad. Culture is important and its creation and perseverance show the resiliency of people to continue existing on their own terms because time and time again it has proven successful.

[poetasinpapeles]

Latinx Alternative Archives and Hemispheric Foodways

Religion and food seem to be some of the strongest values held amongst the Latinx community and it can be so hard to try and go through decolonizing our minds especially for those of us state side as if often feels as though we have been double colonized. Growing up Catholic and then coming to college it is hard for me to want to continue practicing a religion that was forced upon the native peoples of my country and used for the slaughter and genocide of so many. However, I do understand the ways in which the Virgin Mary being adopted as a symbol for the mother goddess and the ways in which her Indigenous features and brown skin are still portrayed and celebrated today, "our morenita" makes it hard to give it all up and so a part of me still holds on. But the fight continues as I see the ways in which the virgin whore dicotachomy plays such a heavy role with the Latinx community and how the fetishization of Latinas in the United States has only exasterbated those effects onto young Latinas. Double colonization. I feel these complexities about my food as someone who refused to learn how to cook to fight machismo norms and ended up being unable to feed themselves I am reminded of the double edge sword that we are appointed to yield sometimes. Corn and maize was such a stable to our communities, and still is, but what we see popular as the sweet corn is such a homonogization of corn and erasure of the various rich plants and foods. Even now as I often see my friends ditch cultural foods like beans and tortillas for a healthier lifestlye which really just equates to white approved foods saddens me. As I enter both a fitness and cultural connectedness journey I am committed to decolonizing my mind to what I think good and bad foods are and cook foods both familiar to me, unfamiliar to me, and maybe even event some recipes of my own; and same as my food I will come to terms with the ways in which I relate to spirituality and religion on my terms and time.

[poetasinpapeles]

Latinx Pop Artivisms

Latinx pop art does not allow itself to be limited by a single origin nor a single narrative this is perfectly explained through different muralisms, graffiti, tattoos, street art, and more. This art is created out of the lived realities of respected communities and experiences which is why so often we see this correlated with civil rights work. It calls upon justice against, racism, classism, patriarchy, white supremacy, touches immigration, environmentalism, and more. And while all these concepts might be social construct these pop artivisms are a reminder that they have real consequences to the bodies that wear said labels and shows a sense of community. Type lettering was able to unite communities across the country from its origins in New York all the way to the LA barrios. And just as the artist has been said lettering or graffiti began to be racialized and criminalized classified as dangerous gang activity; instead of what they were really trying to say which was the signifier of a community of pride of knowing where you belonged as opposed to where you felt excluded. Yet through that, they became even more ostracised and targeted by the already existing police presence. The best part about graffiti and other street arts is that it becomes accessible to anyone in the area and can create inspiration in another person to pursue their passion regardless of what it was. Something otherwise impossible had it not been for street art and its criminalized origins. Streetart isn't always something plastered on the side of a building it can also exist in the ways of performance as explored through in the Asco interviews a group of Chicanos during the movement and the ways in which they too were criticized both by those inside and outside their own community. Classified as not real art, as either too masculine, feminine, or just plain weird now in the very museum they were kept out of. These artivisms are needed to push the narrative of what we consider to be normal both in terms of art and social norms.

[poetasinpapeles]

Latinx Identity, Language, and Music

The Latinx identity is very complicated as is with so many overlapping identities so deeply embedded into our culture, from the Indigenous cultural practices that continued their way into Spanish Catholic religion or the ways in which African and Indigenous beats have created countless Spanish genres of music. The expression of such blending is still seen within media and language tools within the United States and how they reach cross-culturally and nationally. Pinto poetics describe the ways in which generational evolution forms of expression about mass incarceration. Maiz narratives dive deeper into the ways in which we navigate not feeling wanted or without belonging. Radio has served as a great driver of this as it is one of the earliest forms of television that can be done in between commutes to work and reach a large spanning audience. Piolin por la Mañana is not only a national hit amongst Latinos within the U.S. but internationally as well, growing up I would hear this show every day on my way to school as my father dropped me off. And while yes a lot of it was funny and scandalous hits it also played the latest Latinx hits but most importantly he created a community amongst Spanish speaking, heavy immigrant communities in the U.S. He informed the masses where health clinics would be, what lawyers are good or are scamming people and many other opportunities. And now with the help of different social media, other creatives are also able to explore the ways in which they are able to explore their hybrid identity. Take for example Snow tha Product, a Mexicana rapper, who first blew up a few years back on Facebook for her single "Waste of Time". Hip-hop has often served as a catalyst for change and Snow the Product demands just that both directly and indirectly, she calls upon the breaking of generational curses, calls out the Obama administration for its record-breaking numbers of deportations, and proudly flaunts her culture as she often raps in both English, Spanish and Spanglish. All while being a queen Latina she truly speaks for a community, she further proves the validity of a hybrid sense of being. Spanglish has often been discredited as a broken language but it proves itself to be a hybrid language that serves the masses and builds bridges instead of barriers. Those who understand Spanglish understand two language contexts and that should be admired and further used not shunned like how we have sadly seen in schools and communities alike.

[poetasinpapeles]

Performing Brown Bodies

The occupation of white spaces is something that as Latinx peoples are always struggling to break through. As mentioned in the previous blog post within sci-fi and comics it took a lot to break through same as we see with performing arts, having to break through typically and predominately white spaces, such as broadway, to create a counter narrative and shed light on something once hidden. This is powered through the performance os Mestizaje and Indigeneity. Mestizaje a framework working to highlight the ways in which a hybrid way of being is constructed upon both mind and body. Indigeneity highlights the ways in which we understand spirituality, empowerment and liberation through the practice, representation and creative expression of said bodies. These works drive conversation of inclusion, diversity and civil rights. Zoot Suit written by Louis Valdez, the godfather of Chicano culture, had notably won a medal of arts granted by the Obama administration with its highlights of Chicano, Pachuco, culture and the ways in which they faced discrimination during the riots of the 1940s. Mexican Americans in 1940s would be racially discriminated against by the police due to their fashion, Pachuco fashion, a more loose and baggy fitting clothing style type casted as gang wear who were met with violence from sailors at bay ending with some Chicano kids behind bars. Telling a story of resistance as the infamous Pachuco character serves as the spiritual component letting us know that in the hopelessness there must be hope that while things changes they stay the same and we can constantly overcome this sense of none belonging. Entertainment with a purpose, a purpose to educate, open eyes, inspire, and demonstrate how we haven't made as much progress as we think all reminding us that Valdez's work began at its roots causes in migrant farm worker fields. Performance is done anywhere it is needed on a stage of any level even individual.

[poetasinpapeles]

Latinx Creators of Comics and Science Latinxfuturisms

Comics and Science Fiction are two genres that are heavily White dominated fields in where even the first small portrayals of Latinx characters were heavily rooted in stereotypes and huge misrepresentations. When I think about the realms of comics and sci-fi many fans of color are often ostracized from both their own communities for being "white-washed" despite the various amounts of fans and creators within the field and from the community itself due to its rampent racism. An example of this is the constant discrimination of cosplayers of colors with comments and accusations of "Black-washing" a character. And while that isn't a thing the representation of our communities is important to creation of deeper community. Latinx comics early on arose from activism showing a counter-narrative to that of mainstream media to spread awareness to the acts of second class citizen hood. The same can be said for the comics that circulate within Latin America and the shared and varied identities and experiences. Creating a trans national community, connection and message. However it is important to note that not all art within these spheres exists as a means of activism or trauma porn many of these comics are created for the simple means of entertainment with representation. Jaime Hernandez is a comic creator of Love and Rockets staring a rockera who has grown with him as he says and her everyday life, while touching very serious topics such as identity and sexuality. Latinofuturisms brings up the fact that we exists in already thought of dystopias, in struggling communities, and so these futurisms are often times stories existing within the decolonial imaginary. A future imagined and created by the stories of the past and ideas of what could have been and what could be these stories are heightened by the cultural perspectives of Latinx creators but they do not let it become the soul focus of the story.

[poetasinpapeles]

Latinx Representation in Animation and Digital Media

Digital media is so expansive and covers a variety of different medias and creations from written, visual, journalistic, broadcasting, video and many other forms of art. When I think of digital media the first thing that comes to mind is the usage of animation and cartooning, which leads us back a little bit to our previous topic about the ways in which children's t.v. has served as a catalyst for many writers, directors, producers and animators of color's careers. And while live t.v. is most certainly included within children's tv I feel as though animation has a larger representation. One animated show that I heavily remember is Mucha Lucha a story about a fictions town modeled after south California showed luchadores, masked Mexican professional wrestlers. This show while not written by Latinx peoples the voice actors, musical composers, and even musicians all contribute their latinidad to the project. What I remember most from the show was its accuracy to what it was like growing up in nuclear Latinx families within the U.S. just as El Tigre later demonstrated in Nickelodeon. Mucha Lucha was one of the first children's shows to be created with the use of Adobe making it extremely accessible. Accessibility is what I believe makes digital media so insicing to the Latinx creator and audience. Through the usage of social media many influencers have been able to take to Instragram, TikTok, Youtube, and many others to show off their art, craft, give advice, and grow community. Dulce Candy, a veteren Youtuber, began in the early years of social media influencing and I remember following her from a very early start because she was like the older sister I didn't have, as I grew up with two brothers, teaching me makeup tricks and how to style my hair, one of the first places I saw myself represented as a pre-teen. Into young adult hood I now see that with the surge of social media there is an ever growing online community for Latinx peoples to express themselves and connect globally. I believe this to be due to the relative "low-risk" of social media where if you have a phone and internet access you have all tools necessary to start content however it is important to know that "low-cost" means various things to various peoples and as we fight classism and racist algorithms on social medias we cannot turn our heads away from the inequities for representation that exist amongst the digital sphere as well.

[poetasinpapeles]

Latinx Film and Children's T.V.

The beauty of cross-cultural integration within popular media is the creation of global and transnational artistic expression and relatability. As many people exist on these borderlands both figuratively and physically these films allow for multiple communities to share a collective experience. Raices de Sangre is credited to set the standard for what would be considered a border film and tones in regards to Chicanx/Latinx films. The film focuses on the stories of immigrant workers who cross the borderlands showing a shared narrative on the actions that affect Mexico and Latin America in relation to the United States and worker struggles. This was the catalyst of many films to come that highlight the many struggles within the Latinx experience one of which explored is that of Maquiladoras, factories along the southern border in which the majority women lead workforce are hired for dangerous tasks under health code violations as a means to provide for their family. These factories are promised to bring great economic gains for said cities, such as Tijuana, only to be met with underpaid labor, hazardous conditions, and environmental racism both of which have led to health concerns for not only the workers but the community as a whole.

Children's t.v. serves as an entry point for many creatives as the low production value has been a gateway for many women and people of color for the entertainment and creation industries. Early exposure to self-representation is important for these children and often very impactful as we see Disney's Coco be the first of their films to premiere in Mexico before it even premiered in the states breaking records for a film premiere in Mexico and breaking records states side as well. Lalo Rodriguez worked on the project once upon a time using Disney imagery to speak upon social issues such as migration. Children's media is a great way to approach social issues that Latinx films exposes for older audiences as they are more likely than not experiencing it if not simply hearing about it in their everyday life. The problem has become the commodification of Latinidad in which a blanket experience is placed on Latinos erasing the rich and diverse culture often white-washing it and perpetuating stereotypes.

[poetasinpapeles]

introducing latinx creative expressions (pop culture)

Latinx peoples have been co-creating the fabric of American history from the first days of contact, providing perspective into the ways in which we see, hear, and taste the world around us. Doing so through expressions within popular media spanning a great array of different media platforms and modems. A deeper look into pop culture allows a greater perspective on the history and societal standings of that time and any progress or lack there of that we have made as a peoples. In doing so the addition of Latinidad allows for their art pieces and self expressions to be seen, heard, touched a reminder that Latinidad is real and that those who exists within its identity are real too. This is exactly why the need for us to be our own storytellers became so prevalent, especially in that of television where we see some of the most creatives and representation. Yet oddly enough we still struggle seeing the representation that we want on television. Spanish t.v. unites a community driving politics, news and as well as entertainment however English t.v. is a somewhat forward movement of the Latinx experience in the U.S. and we can see the dire need for stories of our own telling as the ways in which we are represented are not a reflection of our community. Latinx peoples account for 18% of the population and see themselves represented in about 2% of media and less than 1% of news and despite our constant achievements, majority holding of MLB positions, more medals of honor awarded to than any other racial group in ww2, and countless other achievements the coverage is low and when we are seen we are portrayed as criminals. These creatives emerging out of our barrios are challenging that notion forcing us to be seen.