Chicanos Studies Final
Why did orquesta Tejana music appeal to a different audience than did Conjunto music?
-Conjunto music was for the common people -Tejano music was for Mexican Americans in Texas -Tejano music was more anglicized -It was considered to be high culture at the time
Chicano Rock (film)
Chicano Rock is an interpretation of everything Chicanos have been exposed to; interprets how we feel/hear music. It incorporates sounds of rock, soul, and blues=unique mixture. Story of Chicano Rock: Lalo Guerrero-1930's Father of Corridos. Slang=Cahlo, pachuco boogie, pocho, etc. Black and Brown Jam=Rhythm and Blues in East LA. Used as a way to combat stereotypes and represent individuality. Richard Valenzuela had to change his name to appeal to a white audience. Created Spanglish music. He represented something that people could identify with. The Ballad is important to the Chicano community. -Example=Los tigres -the ballad was a way for men in the barrio to express their emotions with themselves and with women. Birth of the Eastside sound: Chicanos segregated in the 60's so they made their own clubs and dances. It was the beginning of the sound. East LA working class community: -prevalent to crime. -Cannibal and the headhunters group were a product of a broken home. The song Land of a thousand dances was a mistake, but turned into a hit. -The Midnighters started off their music with a grito aka scream which was clever because it had a Mexican tinge to it. They celebrated their community and themselves through their music. It was a sense of validation. Evolution of Chicano Rock: -end of 1960's=new musicians, new direction, music concerned issues affecting black and brown communities. -Concerned with the Vietnam war-emergence of the term CHICANO. -Example, el Chicano polticized musical group Late 1970's: Punk -New kind of rock music; INS, Police Brutality -Example, the BRAT group brought protest to the streets. Talked about domestic violent issues. Stereotyped because they were chicano that they had to create chicano music. Los Lobos embraced everything; Ranchera, rejoined them with their heritage. They broke all barriers through rockabilly and rock n'roll music. They covered La Bamba soundtrack.
Chapter 5
Popular Literature - Early Writers: *Jose Antonio Villarreal •Villarreal's novel "Pocho" published in 1959 is the first Chicano novel of the 20th century to be published by a major commercial mainstream publisher •"Pocho" is an important novel for presenting the multiple dilemmas face by many Mexican immigrants who abandon their own society and culture to adapt and fit into one that is very alien *Rodolfo "Corky" Gonzalez •Founder of the Denver-based Crusade for Justice, publishes his epic poem "Yo Soy Joaquin" in 1967 •Among the themes of the poem was political action achieved through unity and solidarity in order to maintain Chicano identity and protect Chicano values *Alurista •Seminal figure in the contemporary fluorescence of Chicano poetry •Notable as a poet for his bold experiments with bilingualism and the incorporation of indigenous themes in his work *Luis Valdez and El Teatro Campesino •Contemporary Chicano popular theater began in 1965 when Valdez founded El Teatro Campesino •The theater would be organized in such a fashion that it could take the message of the strike directly to the farmworkers in the fileds •It was an alternative theater of the proletariat *Culture Clash •Initially, the group performed cabaret-style without a narrative script, with each actor taking a turn on stage performing individual material •Culture Clash is a second generation Chicano/Latino theater group who inherited the political fervor and artistic commitment of the Chicano Movement *Rudolfo Anaya •Anaya's novel "Bless Me Ultima" is probably the best-selling Chicano novel of the past 30 years •Anaya has published numerous novels, collections of short stories and has branched successfully into detective fiction *Tomas Rivera •Like many Chicano writers, musicians, artists and filmmakers, Rivera's education was frequently interrupted by trips his family made every year to work in the migrant fields •An outstanding work of literature written by Rivera was his novel "y no se lo trago la tierra" (And the Earth Did Not Part) *Sandra Cisneros •Her "The House on Mango Street" is one of the most popular works of Chicano fiction published in the past twenty years •Cisneros was raised in a home with what she described as "seven fathers" *Victor Villasenor •In Villasenor's "Rain of Gold" he recounts the travails each of his family members encountered and overcame •Villasenor vigorously objected to having what amounted to a biography of his parents classified by publishers as fiction
The Other side of Immigration (film)
Located in Michoacán, Mexico around 1970-2008 -Lack of opportunities in Mexico is the reason why people migrate to the U.S. to work and earn money to take back to their families in Mexico and to stimulate the economy. The towns can't survive unless the people migrate. -People from the countryside are the poorest. -Once the people who come back from the U.S. it is obvious that they seem more confident, more alive, and more aware. -NAFTA=made an agreement on free trade which allowed competition but not for the small producers like farmers in Mexico. They don't make they put into their agriculture. The problem is the competition of grains and especially that the government won't do anything to help the people of Mexico or inform them of subsidies/loans. *The other problem is that people are scared to make an investment. *Other problem is that there is a disease of "Selfishness" in which the people do not help each other or look out for one another. Solution: fostering hope is the only way and the system must change, and most importantly people's mentalities must change-can no longer be selfish! The government depends on two things: 1)oil exports 2)tourism Ministry of rural development: -promote sustainable development -promote sewing activity workshops -promote economic activities Everything is interconnected. It is global. It is not the migrant's fault that the developing world is being forgotten. More than a local problem, it is on a global scale=globalization.
Cultural Populism
A cultural populist would define popular culture as the ways in which consumers receive the messages sent to them by culture industries and they would see popular culture as expressing the interests, experiences, and values of ordinary people.
La Onda Chicano music
A newer style of music, more assimilated into American culture. Incorporated American pop music styles to Chicano based music. Chicano music wanted to go back to Chicano pride, stressing the uniqueness and beauty of Chicano culture.
Two-wage System
A type of payroll system in which one group of workers receives lower wages and/or employee benefits than another. - Los Mineros vs. their Anglo counterparts. - Usually established for one of three reasons: 1) The employer wishes to better compensate more senior, ostensibly more experienced and productive workers without increasing overall wage costs; 2) The employer wishes to establish a pay for performance or merit pay wage scheme that compensates more productive employees without increasing overall wage costs; or 3) The employer wishes to reduce overall wage costs by hiring new employees at a wage less than incumbent workers
Low Culture
Created to appeal to audiences whose tastes and sensibilities are not sophisticated or refined (Sporting events, rock and roll concerts, etc.) - individuals that create low culture are interested primarily in the qualities that will attract large numbers of consumers who are not well educated or aesthetically sophisticated.
High Culture
Cultural activities that appeal to an educated and sophisticated audience that have refined tastes and highly developed aesthetic sensibilities.
High Culture
Cultural activities that appeal to an educated and sophisticated audience; refined tastes and highly developed aesthetic sensibilities. Ex: Ballet, the Opera, Art shows/Exhibitions, Musicals, etc.
Chapter 1
Culture industries: •Culture industries merge the spheres of high and low art into consumable products for the masses •The consumer is the object rather than the subject in a process that lulls us into accepting our master's voice
Mass Culture Theory
Culture is produced by culture industries such as television and advertising for "mass" consumers in order to keep these consumers buying products and accepting ideas that keep a capitalist economy strong and stable. -Adorno believes that the consumption of mass produced products eliminates the value of the music.
Mass Culture
Culture produced by culture industries such as television and advertising for "mass" consumers in order to keep these consumers buying products and accepting ideas that keep a capitalist economy such as that of the US strong and stable. - The dominant classes exercise control over the means of production and culture industries that shape attitudes and behaviors of mass consumers.
Folk Culture
Folk culture: •Scholars commonly define folk culture as the practices of small groups within a larger society •These practices are not widespread throughout Mexican society but are limited to the areas the Indian groups historically have had their greatest influence
Nosotros (Latino Actors Group)
Group of concerned Latino actors that applied greater pressure on the film industry to change the portrayal of Chicanos on screen. -Advocated for a more positive portrayal of Chicanos onscreen.
Atomization of Society
Industrialization and urbanization have forced people to relate to each other.
Raices de sangre (film)
It is an anti-thetical border immigration film because it went against Anglo sweatshops. It opposed tactics that were used previously. This was the true voice against sweatshops and labor abuse.
Ignacio Lozano
One of the most powerful and influential business, intellectual, and political figures in the exile community. - Founded the newspapers La Prensa (1913) and La Opinion (1926). - He brought savvy business practices and high professional journalistic standards to these newspapers, which accounts for their content quality and longevity. - LA OPINION IS STILL OWNED AND PUBLISHED BY THE LOZANO FAMILY IN LOS ANGELES TODAY!!!
Richie Valens
One of the most talented rock and roll musicians of all time and probably one of the most confident as well. - To make himself more attractive to a general audience, they asked him to anglicize his name to Ritchie Valens--this was motivated more by commercial gain than protection against racism. - La Bamba revived his image after his death. Richard Valenzuela: joined the Silhouettes (a band)—"Fabulous Lil Richi and his crying guitar; - To capitalize on his success, he began taking his music across the country—died in an airplane crash at 17 - Richie Valens provided people something Chicanos could identify with—his death was crushing to the community
Chapter 2
Popular Hispanic Folk Music of the Southwest •The popular Hispanic folk music of the Southwest has deep roots in Spain and Mexico •It is forever changing and adapting to new social conditions and musical currents •The most common forms of popular Hispanic folk music of the Southwest are the cancion, the decima, the romance, and the corrido
Folk Culture
Practices of small groups within a larger society. - Not widespread throughout Mexican society but are limited to the locales where Indian groups have had their greater influence.
Mariachis
Quintessential form of Chicano music •Seems to appeal to Chicanos regardless of class or social status •Mariachi groups today, where ever they are found, typically dress in what is known as a traje de choro
Popular Culture
Some say it's folk culture in places that haven't undergone industrialization yet, some liken it to mass culture, some say it's the dominant ideology through which the dominant classes control the other social classes.
Los Mineros (film)
The film was about how Mexican miners were exploited for labor work in the mining industry in Arizona, but they came from Northern Mexican states like Sonora and Chihuahua. There was a dual wage system between the Anglos and the Mexicans. So the Anglos made $4.00 while the Mexicans made $2.00. If the Anglos made $1.50 then the Mexicans made 75 cents. A miner could only buy a dozen eggs and coffee for a days work. Mexican salary was cut by 25%. To top it off they had horrible living and working conditions. Then 2,000 miners marched in solidarity, but let to a shootout between Texas Rangers; gave birth to the Mexican Revolution. This also enabled them to join the I.W.W. in 1915. Later they joined the WWII effort and gained the most medals of honor than any other ethnic group in the army. By joining the war effort they gained confidence and self-respect which pushed them towards making living conditions better back home. Abraham Salcido led the strike for the Mexicans; seen as a hero. He was arrested and when he got out he still led another strike in Cananea, Mexico. In June 27, 1917-4,000 workers demanded higher wages. Unfortunately, events took a turn for the worst in the Great Depression (1931) because they were scapegoats due to the economic crisis. The situation escalated when Hoover enforced strict migration laws deporting anyone of Mexican descent back to Mexico. A man named David Velasquez created and led the union in the mining group in order to be recognized by the Americans. They held a strike on Sept. 22, 1946. The company was forced to recognize them as a union and then the dual-wage was abolished and they received education, healthcare, and pensions. In Los Mineros, there were two kinds of racism: formal aka legal, and racism that existed by custom. Otherwise known as de jurie (legal/institutional) and de facto (informal).
Alambrista! (film)
The film was different because it had a realistic portrayal of the Mexican immigrant experience. It was shot in the real place and the actors weren't really actors, they were immigrants/border patrol officers.
Pocho (Novel)
The first Chicano novel in the twentieth century to be published by a major commercial mainstream publisher. - Written by Jose Antonio Villarreal. - Pocho is seen as bridge between the literature being written prior to the Chicano Movement of the mid-1960s and the literature written the decade a after. - Structured around the lives of Juan Manuel Rubio, a Mexican immigrant and his son Richard Rubio, the pocho (an assimilated Mexican). - Depicts Richard's personal development as he begins to agonize over questions such as the existence and immensity of God while at the same time suffering from the guilt of adolescent sexuality. - As his family disintegrates and he is thrust between Chicano and Anglo cultures, neither of which he completely accepts, Richard's suffering becomes more intense--at the end, he joins the army. - Pocho is an important novel for presenting the multiple dilemmas faced by many Mexican immigrants who abandon their own society and culture to adopt and fit into one that is vary alien.
The Bronze Screen (film)
The most comprehensive archive of Latino films, examines stereotypes the Latin lover and dark lady. Shows how Hollywood offers opportunities to Chicanos. Good vs. Bad stereotypes; -divided on a basis of color and melanin 100 yrs of Latino image in Hollywood: -Hollywood very influential when portraying images of Chicanos. They showed Latinos as Indians, savages, pirates and banditos. Displayed a story of good vs. evil and the Chicano is always seen as evil, bad, etc. -Created the Greaser stereotype because Chicanos had greasy hair and they were immoral "low-life" who kidnapped white women. They were generalizing every Latino. As for women, the dark ladies were show as bad women. -Became such an issue that Latin countries in 1922 asked Hollywood to ban any movies that portrayed Mexicans badly. Rise of the Latin lover: -Antonio Moreno was a sex symbol. Americans wanted to believe that Mexicans were spicy. Began in the 20's where the romanticism of Latinos occurred. The Latin lover was a profitable figure. -Then light skinned Chicanos played wealthy aristocrats and Europeanized these people. -Lupe Velez and Dolores Del Rio=Mexican Spitfire films. Were remarkable comedians before Lucille Ball was even around. Hollywood depicted Latinos during the depression: -dumb, lazy, creation of Bandito. -Cisco kid=was the opposite; he was the good guy. Film-Border town used a non-Latino actor who played a lawyer that retreats back to the barrio which poses a cautionary tale to Mexicans that they should go back to their homeland. WWII early 40's: -Rita Hayworth=famous pin up model who changed her name and died her hair blonde to appear to a larger predominantly white audience. Anglicized her name and her identity. She was seen as the "All American Girl" The Name Game: Hollywood always told Mexicans to change their name because people could never pronounce their names. Cowboy and Mexicans emerged in the Western era: -Afonso Boloya -Revolucionaries created schools everywhere they went -Katy Jurado=independent, autonomous woman in power of her own sexuality. The Latin lover returns: -In musicals, 40's initiated the Bracero Program -Jose Ferer was the 1st Latino to win an academy award The Blacklist: Anti-communist blacklist affected some gilmmakers. Point of these films to send Mexicans back to their homeland. -Border clash=movie about racism The Greaser returns: -Mexicans become easy targets-try to escape the law or try to break the law. Little understanding of latino community. The 1960's: -Ethnicity came in again; Puerto Ricans beginning to be recognized. Rita Moreno 1st woman of color to win award. The urban greaser: 60's, 70's, 80's Hard core gangster films. Judges Chicanos and doesn't give them a chance, it projects an identity in order to make money off of it. Explosion of Civil Rights Movement: minority groups had to be aggressive and positive in order to compete led to the Zoot Suit riots.
Los Lobos
The most enduring, adaptable and resilient of West Coast Chicano musical groups. - Began in a family living room jamming and talking about music. - The creation of the band would be the first time they had performed Mexican music for money and in public - Their dress and style was more funk than mariachi, their repertoire was very limited and they did not speak spanish. - What they lacked in Mexican authenticity they made up for in confidence. - They were persistent unlike earlier Chicano bands who tended to get frustrated or impatient if good things did not happen soon, or again and again. - Similar to other Chicano musicians from LA in that they listened to a broad spectrum of music and they were diverse in their musical backgrounds. - They did not wish to be typecast simply a Chicano rock band or band that played only Mexican traditional music
El Norte (film)
The movie shows the reality that many Chicanos and other Latinos face. It highlights the reality of immigrating to the U.S. not as the fantasy that may be portrayed like the American dream. It highlights how rather than finding political refuge and safety, the people encounter hardship and hostility. Spanish language is used and scenes shot in real locations.
Thee Midniters
Thee Midniters were an American group, among the first Chicano rock bands to have a major hit in the United States. Also they were and one of the best known acts to come out of East Los Angeles in the 1960s, with a cover of "Land of a Thousand Dances", and the instrumental track, "Whittier Boulevard" in 1965. They were among the first rock acts to openly sing about Chicano themes in songs such as "Chicano Power" and "The Ballad of César Chávez" in the late 1960s.
The Cancion
•Is retrospective in nature and is usually found in the form of four-line verses called coplas •It became the song form of choice among the disenfranchised masses •The cancion ranchera provided the Spanish speaking population a voice in its transition from a rural, subsistence based economy, to an urban capitalist culture
Chapter 3
*Authenticity in Chicano films: resistance, maintenance, affirmation, and recognition/pride in Chicano culture. [Race and Ethnicity in American Movies] •Anglo perceptions of their Southern neighbors and Chicanos were largely based on the images that Hollywood conveyed to audiences of the Silver Screen for decades •The most important consideration for theater owners, film creators and distributors was that their products be commercially viable; that is, profitable •Films making fun of race, ethnicity, and women were highly popular and therefore profitable [Castilian Caballero and Dark Lady Films] •The Castilian Caballero was a hero who identified as Castilian (White European) who would follow a predictable formula of putting down, denigrating, and patronizing mestizos •Lupe Velez, called by her Hollywood publicists the "Mexican Spitfire," became the most popular of the dark ladies •Rita Hayworth (born Margarita Carmen Cansino) and Raquel Welch (born Raquel Tejada) both went from dark ladies roles, Latina actresses to mainstream love goddesses [Good Samaritan Films] •Hollywood created several films in the 1930s in which well-intentioned Anglos would save ethnic-minority victims from exploitation •Mexican and Mexican American characters were portrayed as childlike beings incapable of controlling their own personal or social destinies [Progressive Films] (The Lawless-1950, Salt of the Earth-1954) •"The Lawless" is a very progressive film that deals explicitly with the violation of the fruit pickers' labor rights by Anglo industrial (mining) interests •In the film "Salt of the Earth" the unrelenting message is one of resistance against a capitalist enterprise that has stolen land from its original Mexican-American owners and then exploited them as low-wage earners •The film depicts the women of the mining community as becoming fearless and active protagonists on their own behalf, a role unprecedented up to that point in any film about Mexican Americans •"Salt of the Earth" clearly went far beyond the constraints of Hollywood social problem films and provided a model for progressive filmmaking for decades to come [Chicano Cinema] •Latino actors known as Nosotros and organized by Mexican-born actor Ricardo Montalban applied even greater pressure on the film industry to change the portrayal of Chicanos •Chicano filmmakers brought to their work a commitment to social change and a heightened sensibility Hollywood Hispanic Films: •"Hollywood Hispanic" films were a hybrid that combined Chicano expertise - and sometimes control - with Hollywood production values and distribution •Zoot Suit (1981) was both a movie and a play that revolves around the murder of a young boy at a place called "Sleepy Lagoon" in Los Angeles in 1942 •American Me (1992) Edward James Olmos directed and starred in this bleak but brutally realistic film about urban gangs and prison life [The Current State of Chicanos in U.S. Cinema] •U.S.-born Latinos as avid consumers of movies, whereas foreign-born Latinos are less likely to go •Latinos are more likely to see films that star Latino/Latina actors that they are to see equally popular films that do not star Latinos
Corridos
A ballad form closely related to the romance. - Most of the corridos heard today have developed into song forms that sometimes have little resemblance to the traditional corridors composed and sung during the early part of the century. - It became a popular form of expression among Spanish-speaking populations among the Lower Rio Grande border in relation to the increased immigration into Texas of Anglos from other parts of the US. - At this time, corridors began to be used to record in song the increasing incidents of social conflict arising from Anglo social and racial oppression of the Mexican American population. - Became a form of cultural resistance and sung in Spanish what a wide variety of public and private events - It reflected the heightened tension, and occasional armed resistance, associated with the intercultural conflict between Anglos and Texans of Mexican descent - Most important and most popular of these ballads were based on the historical events surrounding the life of Gregorio Cortez. - The use of corridos to express intercultural conflict along the US-Mexican border continued well into the 20th century. - Wartime corridos differ from the earlier songs in important ways: BEFORE WW2, the protagonist of a corridor was presented as a potent larger-than-life hero who avenged the collective insults against his people. AFTER WW2, the hero is replaced by a relatively weak character who is portrayed more as a helpless victim--shift of the role related to the changes that took place in the socioeconomic circumstances of the Chicano population relative to those of the dominant society. - There are countless recordings of corridors that deal with racism, politics, intercultural and police violence, drugs and illegal drug running, the plight of undocumented Mexican and Central American workers, poverty and economic exploitation, etc. - Not uncommon to hear on Spanish-language radio and television stations corridors about every imaginable topic.
Romance
A brief narrative song form with lines that are generally of eight syllables. - Usually of an episodic character--it deals with an occurrence or series of occurrences that happened or are supposed to have happened. - It is usually to the point, concise, and lively as it narrates an event, sings the praises of a hero, or expresses religious sentiments. - The romance had already established a long and distinguished history in Spain centuries before the arrival of the Spanish in the New World.
Culture Clash
A collective theater group made up of mainly northern Californian Latino actors and writers who come together to produce satirical theater. - The name signifies the culture clash of Latinos against mainstream America, as well as the culture clash between different Latino races. - Initially, the group performed cabaret-style without a narrative script--each actor would take a turn on stage performing individual material (although members did collaborate on sketches and played off of each other's jokes) - Recently, the group has cowritten and co-produced several plays.
Zoot Suit (Movie and Play)
A filmed version of a Luis Valdez/Teatro Campesino play directed by Luis Valdez. - Both play and movie revolve around the murder of a young boy at a place called Sleepy Lagoon in Los Angeles in 1942. - Although the film is based on a historical episode, it has a strong mythical and archetypal dimension in the figure of El Pachuco--a flamboyant, supremely confident, and savvy larger-than-life individual based on the proud and cynical pachuco social type that other Chicano filmmakers and creative writers draw on for inspiration. - In the film, El Pacheco functions as a kind of Greek chorus who comments on the main action from his position stage left or right--he is depicted as a supremely cool and hip outsider. - Valdez presents El Pacheco as a kind of intellectual and spiritual guide to the film--his role is to comment on and undermine the motives of the Anglo characters and the trial. - Film provides biting and unrelenting social commentary and at the same time is entertaining. - Seen as Chicano cinema's answer to Hollywood musicals and gang pictures that distort history and portray Chicano characters in decidedly negative or superficial ways. - Zoot Suit represented an important step forward for popular Chicano theatre because for the first time, a contemporary play by a Chicano had successfully made the transition from the barrio and the university campus to commercial theatre.
Decima
A form of folk song especially popular in New Mexico where it flourished during the 19th and early part of 20th centuries. - Deals with a wide range of subject matter, including themes that are philosophical, religious, lyrical and political. - Humorous decimas typically would satirize an individual's weakness or foolish act--decimero would challenge the target of the satire or his/her defender to respond in kind with a decimal, thereby setting up a song duel that tested the originality and with of contending composers. - Trovo (or song contest) in which contestants (or trovadores) matched their wits as they created humorous troves (short verses that served to parody their rivals or some other agreed-upon subject. - Trovadores had to be good singers and quick versifiers and had to posses an equally sharp wit in order to be competitive. - They sang verses of their own compositions but also well-known Spanish romances and decimal--sometimes they would improvise on a familiar ballad, adapting it to a specific set of circumstances.
Ranchera
A genre of the traditional music of Mexico. - It dates before the years of the Mexican Revolution. - It later became closely associated with the mariachi groups which evolved in Jalisco. - Ranchera today is also played by norteño (or Conjunto) or banda and Tamborazo. * Drawing on rural traditional folk music, ranchera developed as a symbol of a new national consciousness in reaction to the aristocratic tastes of the period. - Some well-known interpreters of the genre are the following singers: Amalia Mendoza, Antonio Aguilar, Chelo, Cuco Sánchez, Flor Silvestre, Irma Serrano, Javier Solís, Jorge Negrete, José Alfredo Jiménez, Lola Beltrán, Lucha Villa, Pedro Infante, Rocío Dúrcal and Vicente Fernández.
Pedro J. Gonzalez
A legendary radio personality who produced and hosted one of the first Spanish-language radio programs in the United States. - Immigrant from Mexico who came to the United States and launched a successful broadcasting career--was indicted and convicted on trumped-up charges. - The film Break of Dawn (biography) suggests that his growing political influence and pro-union views quickly lead to attempts to destroy him.
Judith Baca
A pivotal figure in contemporary Chicano art. - She was fired (along several nuns and lay teachers) from her teaching job at a Catholic high school from which she graduated for participating in anti-Vietnam War activities in the early 1970s. - She organized a group of youth from different neighborhood gangs into an arts group that painted a mural in Hollenbeck Park. - Her interest in mural art took her to Mexico city in the mid-1970s, where she studied mural materials and techniques and learned about the importance of Mexican muralist as a public and political act. - Organized the Citywide Mural Project, whose participants were youth from different racial and ethnic backgrounds. - She supervised the painting of more than 250 murals throughout the city's poor neighborhoods--her most ambitious and best-known being the Great Wall of Los Angeles (a half-mile-long mural painted under her supervision on the concrete walls of a drainage canal). - She founded the Social and Public Arts Resource Center (SPARC) in Venice, California: the expressed purpose of this non-profit arts center is to involve artists, community groups, and young people in painting and preserving murals in multiethnic communities. - Currently lives in Los Angeles, where she continues to promote and organize mural and other art as projects among youth from different ethnic and racial backgrounds.
Rita Hayworth
Actress born Margarita Carmen Cansino that got her start as a dark lady. - She successfully made the transition from ethnic minority to mainstream actress, a process that required her to lose her Latino identity.
Raquel Welch
Actress born Raquel Tejada underwent the same transition from Latina actress to mainstream love goddess by losing her Latina identity.
Frito Bandido
Ads created by Madison Avenue. - Presents Chicanos in a very light, or degrading or undignified manner. - The Frito Bandito was the cartoon mascot for Fritos corn chips from 1967 to 1971. - The character was voiced by Mel Blanc, who used an exaggerated Mexican accent. - The Frito Bandito spoke broken English and robbed people of their Fritos corn chips, a reference to the "Mexican bandit" stereotype in western movies. - He also complained that he was being pursued by the "Frito Bureau of Investigation. - Pressure from the National Mexican-American Anti-Defamation Committee and others prompted an update to the character; his gold tooth and stubble were eliminated and his hair combed.
Chapter 6
Arts, Celebrations, and Other Popular Traditions *Santos and Santeros: •"Santos" are simply images of the Holy Family, the crucifix, saints or other holy persons painted for use as church adornments •Once only found in church settings, many of these images have found their way into museums and galleries as well as into private homes throughout the Southwest *Judith Baca •Studied mural techniques in Mexico City during the mid 1970s •Baca was a pivotal figure in contemporary Chicano art, whose most ambitious and best known project was the Great Wall of Los Angeles *Los Tres Grandes/The Three Great Ones •Diego Rivera, David Alfonso Siqueiros, and Jose Clements Orozco are known for their achievements in the art form of muralism •These and other painters rejected European gallery art in favor of public art Fiestas Patrias (patriotic fiestas) •Cinco de Maya celebrates the victory of Mexican troops over French invading forces •16th of September celebrates Mexico's independence from Spain in 1821
Salt of Earth (Movie)
Based on a successful New Mexico miners' strike. - Its unrelenting message is one of resistance against a capitalist enterprise that has stolen land from its original Mexican American owners and then exploited them as low-wage earners. - Was independently produced and therefore did not have to conform to the usual Hollywood norms. - Exposes and deals with some of the underlying social causes of racism against Mexican Americans and of their underclass economic status. - In contrast to other well-intentioned but misguided films that attributed racism, discrimination, and exploitation to an individual. - Through a system similar to debt-peonage, workers and their families are charged heavily and unfairly for living in company-owned housing and buying goods at the company store, the mining company is able to trap the miners in a seemingly endless cycle of debt that forces them to remain dependent on their Anglo overseers. - Company houses are without adequate living conditions (sanitation and plumbing) and the mine's safety provisions are minimal, especially for the largely Mexican American and Mexican workers who are forced to work under the most dangerous conditions or lose their jobs.
Chicano art article
Chicano Art-painted in the creative manual art that is La Raza. Manual art: woodwork/metal work used in making art; basically using your hands. Stresses achievement in the fine arts as seen in Pre-Cortesian and Colonial periods, 19th Century Mexico, Chicanodom, and Mexican Renaissance of the 1930's. Qualities of patience, imagination, ability to do abstract thinking, individual expression, love of color, love of order, and manual dexterity. *Chicano Literature-El espejo "the mirror". Understanding elements based on Anglo-Saxon and Hispanic-Indian traditions.
Chicano Popular Culture
Chicano Popular Culture-a form of understanding ourselves; knowing about ourselves. Chicano popular culture as historical, a way of understanding a culture; norms and values. A way of being able to communicate and understand what has gone on and what is going on in the Chicano realms. Americo Parades-brought corridos to the limelight. Popular culture can be a method of controlling people-people get manipulated and exploited.
Chicano time and space article
Chicanos do not use exacting schedules and can do several things with their time without being upset •Chicanos have developed a concept of time that respects the biological limitations of the individual •To the Chicano, time is for living, but he has a sense of history •Chicano literature has universal elements based on Anglo-Saxon as well as Hispanic-Indian traditions *Time is for living, the reward of experience is perception, understanding, awareness of the truth of some things. Time is considered with the biological limitations of the individual. As opposed to Anglo view of time as a commodity; "buying time/precious time/always on time". Anglos have strict schedules that must be followed="being on time is the key to success". Anglos go through experiences in order to gain the "know how". Promptness is valued for Anglos; lots of stress from missing deadlines/times. Benefits of living in the U.S=learning the positive things from each other's culture.
Cinco de Mayo
Cinco de Mayo (Spanish for "May 5th", or literally, "Five of May") is a celebration held on May 5. - The date is observed to commemorate the Mexican army's unlikely victory over French forces at the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862, under the leadership of General Ignacio Zaragoza Seguín. - In the United States, Cinco de Mayo is sometimes mistaken to be Mexico's Independence Day—the most important national holiday in Mexico—which is celebrated on September 16.
Low culture
Considered not sophisticated or refined. The opposite of High culture.
Los Tres Grandes
Diego Rivera, Jose Clemente Orozco and David Alfaro Siqueiros. - Joined the ranks of Mexican revolutionary cultural workers to resurrect the ancient muralist traditions. - These painters rejected European gallery art in favor of public art. - They were encouraged to cover the exterior and interior walls of government buildings in and around Mexico city with paintings (received financial support and patronage from the new revolutionary government). - Their murals emphasized revolutionary themes including the exaltation of Mexico's indigenous cultures and the history of oppression that these cultures had suffered under the yoke of Spanish (European) conquerors. - All three muralists came to the United States at some point in their respective careers. - The Marxist revolutionary themes of many of the works by these three also resonated with the social activism of the Chicano movement.
Greasers
Ethnic equivalent to Hollywood gangster movie genre - Greaser is a highly negative epithet commonly used to denigrate Chicanos and Mexicans event today. - Filmmakers finally stopped using the greaser in move titles but only after many protests by film insiders, Mexican American groups and even the Mexican government--the character, however did not disappear from the screen but instead evolved into the greaser-gangster. - Unlike his greaser counterpart, the greaser protagonist was portrayed as shifty, untrustworthy, treacherous, ugly, crude, oily and totally disloyal even to other gangsters.
El Teatro Campesino
Founded by Luis Valdez and known as the Farmworker's Theater. - Valdez's idea of organizing a theater whose writers, actors, and crew would be drawn from the agricultural fieldworkers themselves was revolutionary. - Was an alternative theater of the proletariat, who would control the artistic as well as material aspects of an artistic enterprise that would benefit them in their own struggle. - Organized to such a fashion that it could take the message of the strike directly to farmworkers in the fields. - The acto (a short improvisational one-act play with simple props, direct dialogue, and a hard hitting theme became the vehicle that the theater used--what made it Chicano was the bilingualism and the fact that it addressed specific needs of Chicanos. - The actors stood on improvised stages such as the flatbed of a truck, etc. - No props required except for an occasional chair or table, etc. - Everything--actors, props, language--was designed to make the presentation simple and direct in order to convey a clear message to the audience. - Two other characteristics of the early actors were their mobility and their portability--the actors needed to be able to set up their simple sets and perform quickly. - In the earliest days, it dealt solely with the farmworkers' and the union's struggles agains the growers. - In 1970, it turned its attention to the Vietnam War with the production of Vietnam campesino. - Zoot suit was one of the theater troupe's most popular plays.
Santana
Has endured since the early 1970s and continues to tour the United States and internationally while at the same time producing award-winning albums. - Group's founder was Carlos Santana, who was introduced to traditional Mexican music and the basics of music theory by his father (an accomplished mariachi violinist). - They played the Filmore West, one of the most important west coast venues for rock and roll bands. - The band performed at the New York Woodstock Festival, introducing and East Coast audience to Santana's brand of Latin-flavored rock. - Produced eight gold and seven platinum albums. - Won a lot of awards: Billboard Century Award, Chicano Lifetime Achievement Award, etc. - Have sold more than 40 million albums and have performed for well more than 20 million people. - Have played for numerous charities and worthy causes (SF earthquake relief, Tijuana orphans, the rights of indigenous people, education for Latino youth, etc.) •Like Los Lobos, Santana has endured since the early 1970s and continues to tour the United States and internationally •The band has played for numerous worthy causes including Blues for Salvador, Tijuana orphans, and the right of indigenous people
I am Joaquin (film)
I Am Joaquin, by Rodolfo "Corky" Gonzales, is a famous epic poem associated with the Chicano movement of the 1960s in the United States. In I am Joaquin, Joaquin speaks of the struggles that the Chicano people have faced in trying to achieve economic justice and equal rights in the U.S, as well as to find an identity of being part of a hybrid mestizo society. He promises that his culture will survive if all Chicano people stand proud and demand acceptance. A manifesto of Chicano struggles. [Hybrid identity] a dual identity between the conqueror and the conquered, the Anglo and the Indio=the Mestizo. Themes: Cultural Nationalism/Pride, Chicano Identity, Resisting Colonialism and Imperialism, Fostering hope and faith through surviving horrible conditions such as racism, segregation, discrimination, etc.
Tomas Rivera
In addition to his career a a gifted teacher and inspiring academic administration, Rivera was a good writer. - He won the first Premio Quinto Sol (1970) for his novel "Y no se lo trago la tierra", which launched his writing career in an auspicious way. - He had already published some poetry and short fiction, but this novel gave him instant recognition throughout the Chicano literary world and beyond. - Rivera avoided the trap of dividing the world into good and evil people, he portrays both Chicanos and Anglos as lying, cheating, robbing and even killing their own people. - In 1979, he was appointed chancellor of the University of California, Riverside.
La Opinion and La Prensa
In their news stories, cultural features, and advertising these newspapers catered primarily to the educated exile and immigrant Mexican community and increasingly also to native-born Spanish-speaking population located wherever the newspapers' extensive distribution systems could reach readers. - In the beginning, most of the editors, journalists, and writers were drawn from the Mexican exile community, but Lozano also employed Spaniards and Latin Americans to write for his newspaper. - Some moralists assumed pseudonyms and wrote sometimes scathing short satirical pieces promoting a Mexico de afuera mentality that was critical of working-class and rural Mexican immigrants as well as of less-educated native-born Chicanos. - Although La Opinion has been a vehicle for political protest and the champion of social causes since its founding, it was never as radical as most of the local and regional activist newspapers and its readership has continued to be middle class and educated--it is by far the largest Spanish-language newspaper today that appeals to Chicano readership.
Lupe Valadez
Luis Valdez is an American playwright, actor, writer and film director. - Regarded as the father of Chicano theater in the United States, Valdez is best known for his play Zoot Suit, his movie La Bamba, and his creation of El Teatro Campesino.
Eduardo "Lalo" Guerrero
Musician who left his native state of Arizona for Los Angeles as a young man to fulfill his desire to become a successful recording artist. - Imperial Records asked Guerrero to begin recording in English and to change his professional name to Don Edwards--this flopped and he went back to recording and playing for Mexican American audiences. - He has never considered himself a militant but he has taken strong stands on occasion in order to combat negative stereotyping and overt racism.
Rain of Gold (Novel)
Novel by Victor Villasenor. - Publishers wanted to shorten the long manuscript and change the title to something like "Rio Grande" which the editors thought would sell more books. - Author objected to having what was essentially a biography of his parents classified as picture under a title with which he was profoundly uncomfortable. - The novel recounts the many travails each family encountered and overcame (including narrow escapes from death and serious injuries). - Author drew on many stories he had heard from his parents, etc. when they fled the violence and deprivation of the Mexican Revolution to come not to the United States. - Captures the deep dismay with which the Mexican rural poor and urban working class regarded the regime of Porfirio Diaz, Mexico's president--Mexican population had become disgruntled with their economic dependence on foreign interests. - They drove Diaz from power and set in motion through a full-scale revolution. - The book's narrative alternates between two families: Juan Salvador's (volatile and impulsive) and Lupe (thoughtful and calming). - Villasenor describes the harsh living conditions in the camps and the random acts of violence the refugees were forced to witness.
Alabados and Alabanzas
Songs and melodies that are religious. The Alabados address the various events of the Passion of the Christ commemorated every year during the Holy week. Commonly associated with penitents, a roman catholic religious sect that exists even today in villages of northern new Mexico and Colorado. -The Alabanzas are songs that praise either the virgin Mary or the saints.
Chapter 4
Spanish-Language Newspapers in the 19th and Early 20th Centuries •In the 20th century, it was the elite, educated, upper-class Mexican exile community that was largely responsible for continuing many of the newspapers started decades earlier •Ignacio Lozano was one of the most powerful and influential business, intellectual, and political figures who founded La Opinion newspaper in Los Angeles •La Opinion is by far the largest Spanish-language newspaper today that appeals to the Chicano readership [Radio - The Early Years] •Pedro J. Gonzalez is a legendary radio personality who produced and hosted one of the first Spanish-language programs in the United States •The founding of station KCOR was momentous in the history of Spanish-language broadcasting because it was the first station fully owned and operated by a Mexican American [Radio - The Transition Years] •Radio personalities became informal editorialists dispensing commentary on current affairs and opinions on political candidates and municipal issues •Radio personalities would supplement their incomes by charging listeners for dedicaciones (dedications, songs played on special occasions [Television - The Spanish-Language Television Industry] •Spanish-language television differs from Spanish-language radio in one important way: there are fewer locally owned TV stations than radio stations •In 1955 KCOR-TV Channel 41 in San Antonio begins broadcasting as the first clearly defined Spanish-language television station in the United States
Jose Clemente Orozco
Spent the late 1920s and early 1930s in exile in the United States, - In 1930 he accepted an art commission at Pomona College, where he painted Prometheus and other heroic figures.
Culture populists
Tend to define popular culture as the ways in which consumers receive the messages sent to them by culture industries. - Consumers subvert the messages by interpreting them in ways that are personally meaningful and even beneficial. - Popular culture expresses the interests, experiences, and values of the ordinary people.
Why can Texas be described as the epicenter of Mexican American music?
This is where a lot of artists came from. They traveled to LA like Selena and Guerrero. Also because of its geographic position it was so close to Mexico so it was also close to Mexican music.
Y no se lo trago la tierra
Tomas Rivera's most famous novel: was translated into English, published in bilingual form, and has become one of the most popular and widely read Chicano novels of the past 30 years. - The novel focuses on Texas-based migrant farmworkers. - Author's intent ins not to preach social change by glorifying the Chicano farmworker or vilifying Anglos but to create an artistic world in which the literary characters must move, speak, and feel as true complex creations. - Draws heavily on the lives of farm workers while at the same time elevating their fears, struggles, and beliefs beyond the level of social protest. - Rivera gives their cause a greater force and credibility by creating characters who are multidimensional.
Diego Rivera
Was in the United States from 1930 to 1934. - In 1931, he was contracted to paint several murals in the San Francisco Bay Area, including one on the wall of the San Francisco Stock Exchange Luncheon Club. - He also painted a commissioned mural in the lobby of the Rockefeller Center in New York in 1933--the mural was controversial because it contained the figure of Vladimir Lenin (the Rockefeller family ordered it whitewashed just days after he unveiled it--Rivera later re-created this mural).
David Alfaro Siqueiros
Went to exile in 1930 and lived for a time in Los Angeles, where he taught mural painting at the Chouinard School of Art. - He painted some controversial murals including Meeting in the Street, which had a strong pro-union theme that caused an uproar in a city that was at the time strongly antiunion.
West Coast Music of the 1960s and the 1970s
West Coast Music of the 1960s: •Cannibal and the Headhunters record "Land of a 1,000 dances which becomes a standard in East Los Angeles •According to Chicano music historian Steven Loza, Thee Midniters were considered by many to be the most significant rock and roll band to emanate from the Mexican community of Los Angeles West Coast Music of the 1970s: •Bands and individual performers no longer tried to disguise their identity as American of Mexican descent •Even some established bands changed their names to reflect a newfound pride in Chicanismo
