3/15/13

Dispelling the Myth of the Latin Woman


During one of the first conversations I had with my mother-in-law, in which we were discussing our interests, she told me that she did not like West Side Story and I remember being shocked by that. When I asked her why she didn't like it she told me that it portrayed Puerto Ricans as gang members and that they didn't even have the decency to cast a real latina in the main role of Maria. She went on to tell me her experience as an immigrant to New York City at the age of 11 and it was truly eye-opening for me. She told me about how she was treated by teachers and other adults because she didn't speak English and how hard it was to adjust to the cold weather and celebrating Christmas instead of Three Kings Day. Being a third-generation Puerto Rican who grew up in New York (or Nuyorican as I often referred to myself), I had never really thought of the implications of being stereotyped in media and film or even what effect the Diaspora had on my ancestors because I never really encountered any of the discrimination or feelings of "otherness" that she described to me. My acculturation into American society had shielded me from, or some might say blinded me, to the very real prejudice and preconceived notions that many people probably had about me as a Puerto Rican female. Whichever way you want to look at it, I believe that I am very lucky to be a Latina that was born and raised in New York City by parents who valued education and pushed me to construct a positive ethnic identity for myself. I believe that as time has passed and as it continues to go on, more Latinas like myself, my mother-in-law, and countless others will continue to reshape the way Latin women are portrayed by society as a whole.

This weeks reading, "The Myth of the Latin Woman" by Judith Ortiz Cofer, was an inspiring account of the struggles faced by a well-educated, published author of Puerto Rican descent and how she  made it her goal to use her words and writing to change the negatively preconceived stereotypes of Latin women in America. Although, Cofer considers herself to be "one of the lucky ones," her account shows that her accomplishments were not without struggle and that along the way she had to deal with people who treated her with prejudice because of her physical appearance. She talks about an instance when she was serenaded by an English man on a bus with his rendition of "Maria" from West Side Story. At a restaurant where she was having her first poetry reading she was mistaken for a waitress by an older white woman. More recently, she was serenaded rather lewdly by a middle-aged white man, as Maria "whose exploits all rhymed with her name and gonorrhea." The instance of cultural ignorance that most resonated with me was when she was kissed by a white boy at her first formal dance and he said to her, "I thought you Latin girls were supposed to mature early." Her eloquent way of describing "being thought of as a fruit...[that] was supposed to ripen, not just grow into womanhood like other girls," brought back feelings of adolescent angst that I haven't felt in quite a while.

What made the reading most inspiring is the fact that while Cofer relates these experiences in a very real and heartfelt way, she presents the solution to dispelling the myth of the Latin woman in a very smart and logical manner. At the end of the essay, she recognizes that not everyone is as lucky as she is and that for many Latin women "life is a struggle against the misconceptions perpetuated by the myth of the Latina as a whore, domestic or criminal." She also admits that this cannot be changed by making laws, but by using her stories and her public life "to try to replace the old pervasive stereotypes and myths about Latinas with a much more interesting set of realities." Through her writing and her contact with the public, she has the power to make people forget about what they "know" about Latinas from media and popular culture and become interested in what we are really like. This will open up opportunities for Latinas worldwide.

In another essay, "The Story of My Body," Cofer gives a more extensive account of her life growing up and ends it with a very positive and empowering message:
"I had brains for sure and some talent in writing. These facts were a constant in my life. My skin color, my size, and my appearance were variables-things that were judged according to my current self-image, the aesthetic values of the times, the places I was in, and the people I met. My studies, later my writing, the respect of people who saw me as an individual person they cared about, these were the criteria for my sense of self-worth that I would concentrate on in my adult life."
Cofer is an excellent example of a Latina who constructed not only a positive ethnic identity for herself, but a model for all Latinas to imitate in the struggle of dispelling the myth of the latin woman. There are many Latin women out there that are also helping to dispel the myth, for example Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor. If we can all use these models in our own experiences and use our own powerful tools like words, writing, actions and positions of power to change the way we are viewed by society then we will make a difference and we will continue to carve a path for ourselves and all Latin women who come after us.






16 comments:

  1. Wow, absolutely awesome post. This reminds me of the stories my mother told me about her days when she was new in the country. Being that she came from war-torn El Salvador in the 80's, she was met with a flood of ignorant, uh, stuff. My college graduate mother was a presumed idiot, mute- almost less than human, because she was new and had a very heavy (and reasonably so) accent and often responded with universal gestures. People also thought my family was involved with the ms-13's or somehow okay with death and bloodshed because of the fact that we were Salvadoran- even though we were obviously escaping that. I'm sure if we sat every backward thinking American and had our mothers explain their stories, America would become a better place. That's always the problem with ignorance, no one is willing to listen and some of us don't want to tell. I like to think there's a universal human spirit that is willing to have perspective, it just needs to be exhumed.

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  2. Very True as Venusasaboy stated, My mother as well a college graduate, infact Medical School Graduate of Dominican Republic was put down so much as she came into the United states newly married and with 1 five year old child and one on the way(me), she took college courses in order to re- qualify to take her MCATS. Not only did she have the barrier of not speaking English well but she was told she had to retake all her exams inorder to get license. With little money and stress my mother was not able to retake her exams. From there she moved on and instead became a special education teachers assistant which sort of helped her engage with children like she always wanted as a doctor. However, it is not only my mom who were placed under bad circumstances like this and not guided through in order to pursue her dream. Many mothers like mine, struggled to qualify for financial Aid help, language barriers, and taking care of their families. With her story I have always taken it as an example to strive and move forward in my life, She was even proud of me when I told her I wanted to pursue a Medical Career, she sees in me what she couldn't do for herself, and Now I am a well spoken person, who strives for Latin women to move forward and carry my heritage strong over my head with pride.

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  3. The way that Cofer explained the stereotype of the hyper-sexualized, Latina woman, is extremely interesting. Her explanation of why Latina women are often viewed as promiscuous, introduced me to a tradition that I didn't know existed. She said that in the hot, Latin American countries, it was common for young girls to wear revealing clothing as a way to deal with the heat. The fact that this coping mechanism is construed as promiscuity in America, is actually disappointing. In the melting pot that is New York, seeing different styles of dress is a commonality. The fact that some people will actually regard the cultural dress of Latina women as "vulgar," is embarrassing. Why would we view a scantily clad woman any different than a shirtless man, waltzing around New York in the summer weather?
    As Venusasaboy said, the problem here is ignorance. Rather than accepting the traditions of others, we are quick to stereotype people based on outward appearances. In regards to Cofer's experience of being called a waitress- how wrong it is to assume that the only purpose for Latinos in this country are to service others. As a well educated woman, the struggle for Cofer to overcome the generalization of Hispanic women, must have been dehumanizing and difficult. But she knows who she is and she is connected to her culture. She, as well as many other Latina women, must take these stereotypes, and as Intellectuallady4 said, carry their heritage strong over their heads with pride.

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  4. As a minority I feel these stereotypes can never escape us because of the brainwashing from the beginning of time. Cofer really opened up my eyes to these hateful stereotypes of Latinas that I never even heard of. I reslly found it disturbing when the boy disrespected her about her maturity. She is being disrespected as a Latina and also as a woman. A double slap of discrimination. As a Aftican American I know what it feels like to have stereotypes against us so I def can relate to Cofer and her experiences. Stereotypes come from the roots of stupidity and ignorance, having no knowledge about what you are speaking of. I wonder can anyone escape stereotypes no matter how hard you try to overcome them? Wether your Latina, black, a woman, or even your sexual preference stereotypes are always linked to you.

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  5. Very well relation to the article! As I was reading I also couldn't stop thinking about the importance of a name and how much it can standout to other's in order to define you. Such as the name Maria it is commonly used through Hispanics. This name also reminds me of my own mother who chose this name to come to America on her passport and my father went by the of Pedro. When, I had asked them why couldn't they pick another name? they simply said it was a common name used back home. Therefore, I completely agree that no laws can change what people think because opinions among people will remain but changes can be made through stories and experiences.

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  6. The same stereotype that Cofer and lysspo points out of the hyper-sexualized Latina woman really hits home with me on a personal level. I was raised in the United States but my first language was Spanish and I was able to live a couple of years in the Dominican Republic and experience my culture first hand. Thinking back to the differences between living in DR and living here it had never occurred to me until this article how this stereotype became manifested within my own life as soon as I moved to the US. Until I started middle school in the states I had never been forced to become aware of my body. For example, I remember back in high school one of my nicknames as being "Big Booty Judy," however in DR nicknames like this would never serve to distinguish one girl from another. Without even realizing it, I am sure that most of the people that see me for the first time, this stereotype is the first to enter their mind. And to be honest, whether I like it or not, I know this is something I will never be able to turn off. I did in fact "mature" early into my body, therefore I look older than I really am. In addition, I am comfortable in the what some would call "skinky" clothes and to me that is just how I dress. What is shameful though about stereotypes is that people don't seem to get past them. They only focus on judging them and not on truly trying to get to know the person. Yes, our stereotypes will always be linked to us no matter what therefore I hope that instead of trying to create a society where we change the stereotypes that already encompass our lives, we instead try to break down the walls that pushes people to assume rather than ask.

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  7. I think that this is a great post. I think that stereotypes are still prominent even in 2013. Many people assume if your first language is not english and you live in the states that you are not as intelligent or that you do not have an education. I think that goes for many latinos.

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  8. I found this article very inspirational. Women like Ms. Judith Ortiz Cofer and as you have mentioned Supreme court judge Sonia Sotomayor are role models for Latinos and people from different backgrounds. It is hard to leave everything behind to start a new life in another country, and learn a new language which a barrier for new immigrants. I came to the United States when I was sixteen, it was not that easy to learn the language and get used to my new life. In high school when I was asked where I was coming from by some of my classmates I said "Peru", just by the mention of it, people would relate my country to "cocaine" and marijuana", and some other things instead of the good things about Peru. Stereotypes is what damage this society. People should not stereotype because of the way people look or come from. Stereotypes would disappear when people would be less blinded by it.

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  9. I thought this post was very interesting. I also found the part where Cofer was kissed by a white boy to be very offensive and ignorant of the boy to say to her "I thought you Latin girls were supposed to mature early." Her eloquent way of describing "being thought of as a fruit...[that] was supposed to ripen, not just grow into womanhood like other girls," because unfortunately it is true that many people have this misconception of latin women and they use harsher words to describe them such as "fast" and "easy." The media also plays a huge role in propagating these stereotypes of latin women by portraying them as sexual symbols.

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  10. I think this is very interesting post. I believe that Judith Ortiz Cofer in her piece "The Myth of the Latin Woman" brings to attention the everyday experiences of latin women and how they are "othered" in society.As a latina myself i can relate completely to this reading. I grew up between spain and the dominican republic , but it wasnt untill i moved to nyc for college , that i really felt how my cultual backround influences my interactions with others. I believe that these stereotypes should be left a side, and individuals should be valued by their positive influence in society not by race or gender

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  11. Nice post! I agree that from Cofer's article, the reader really gets an idea of the personal struggles Latin women who are stereotyped together based on their race. It's such an unfortunate phenomena that pretty much all non-white races that come to America are stereotyped based on ignorance or discrimination. The media has definitely helped make these stereotypes accepted and almost common knowledge, which is the reason why they continue to plague our society. I do feel that we are nearing a more accepting society that tries to focus on individual qualities rather than racially stereotypical ones that aim to create sense of otherness and inferiority.

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  12. What I love about this reading, as I can see from all of the comments and even the personal story that Vanny325 added to the blog post, is that it resonates with so many of us, and not even only Latinas. I'm Jamaican, but I can relate quite a lot to the sentiments that are expressed in the conversation. There are so many stereotypes associated with my culture, and I've been confronted with them more times than I can count, especially in middle school and high school, when everyone, including me, was just beginning to discover who they were. In addition to coming from a culture considered "other" by some, being a woman just seems to amplify the ignorance and stereotyping that comes with the territory.

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  13. I agree with the various comments above. Along with others this really hits home and stereotypes never do escape minorities. It is so easy to just label someone that sometimes the poeple themselves don't even realize that they are doing it. This reminds me of a couple of years back when I was forced to take in a second job cleaning offices to make more money. One in particular was an AIG office, where the women not only assumed I couldn't speak english, they assumed that I was incapable of getting any other job. They would make faces of disgust towards me,and some would rather that I didnt clean there office because they thought I would steal. When I finally got a better paying full time job, one of them responded to me "Well how did YOU get that job". I remeber it all so clearly today because they made there beliefs and sterotypes so obvious. They were cruel just because I am a Latina and I look the way I do. This is only one example but I could go on forever with this it seems. Like Cofer we can use our intelligence and strength to try and break this. Though it may take long, it is not impossible.

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  14. Cofers piece reminded me of a section of a novel I’m reading for another class in “The Hypersexuality of Race” by Celine Shimizu in which Shimizu discusses how Asian American women are constantly portrayed as fulfilling one of two stereotypes: The karate-master “dragon lady” who is a sexual force to be reckoned with or the subservient gheisa who lives to serve to male oppressor (master?). Connecting these two pieces made me consider how contemporary media portrays women of non-anglo descent (be them Latin or Asian American). The similarities being that the image of a Latin American woman is always of a maid or a fiery, hypersexual entity who dominates the passion and attention of her male company. In Cofer’s piece she appropriates some of the behavior of Latin American woman as being a part of the cultural origins (“As young girls, it was our mothers who influenced our decisions about clothes and colors – mothers who had grown up on a tropical island where the natural environment was a riot of primary colors, where showing your skin was one way to keep cool as well as to look sexy. “) However, I find that although it’s perfectly valid to attribute some of the behavior of recently-immigrated women to their cultural heritage I find that it’s hardly vindicating for the actual stereotypes impressed upon these women in society. Both Cofer and Shimizu have a similar idea on how to escape these oppressive stereotypes that can limit the intellectual integreity and potential of non-Anglo women in society which is that women who are aware of this injustice have a responsibility to popularize and support woman who embody the deep falsity of these stereotypes.

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  15. Most people think I'm white because of the way I dress, act, speak, etc. The second they find out my last name (Garcia) and ask "are you Spanish?", everything changes. It's almost as if the preconceived notion of being white excused my behavior and appearance, but now that I'm labeled a Puerto Rican, I'm expected to behave a certain way and my not-so-blatantly-hispanic behavior is viewed as deviant.

    I can relate to Cofer's experiences, but the reactions I've gotten regarding my heritage have been from both whites and hispanics. I've even been taunted by my own family for "not acting Puerto Rican". I'm third generation and obviously too Americanized for my own good but despite "acting white", once the cat is out of the bag, I'm expected to act like Sofia Vergara. So in my case, it feels as if there is no winning, I'm not white, but don't quite act Puerto Rican and both treat me like an outlier.

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  16. This was a very interesting post and article. As I read this article I also felt like I could connect to the author’s experience because as a Latina, I to have often felt stereotyped too. The misconception of the Latin women makes it hard to progress in a society that only sees them as a whore, domestic, or criminal. It’s sad to see that the misunderstanding of different cultures often leads to stereotypes and myths of different ethnic groups. These mindless stereotypes are the things which many minorities have to carry around on their day to day lives, and they seem nearly impossible to escape for many who do not have a lot of opportunities.

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