The Life of Lenin

2016-09-21_19-43-15

For the first picture of my collage I chose a picture of my family on our trip to San Francisco a year ago. I chose this picture because it was the first major trip my family has ever taken together. I feel that I needed to add this picture to my collage because this trip was a major event in my life. Not only was it the first trip that my extended family ever took together, it was also the graduation of my cousin from art school. I think this relates to cultural factors. One of the cultural factors that I think that the picture conveys is unity. Richard T. Rodríguez explains that Chicano/a families are known for “embracing a family principle as a modality of unity” (98).  The picture conveys unity because it is a representation of my family together. The trip served as a way to bring my family together and make us more united. Chicano/a culture puts an emphasis on the family being united. I think that the picture also conveys the support that a family is supposed to give to its members. This is conveyed because the reasoning behind the picture was that my family was there to support my cousin on his graduation. The first picture of my collage conveys the cultural factors of unity and family support.

For the second picture of my collage, which is found in the right hand corner, I chose a picture of my Mom. I chose this picture because my Mom is the most important woman in my life. She has taught me a lot and continues to teach me even more as I get older. I chose a picture of my Mom because she was the first person to ever present the idea of machismo and its negative effects to me. Machismo is a problem faced by many Chicano/a families. Machismo is defined by Richard T. Rodríguez in Next of Kin as “a term most frequently used within Chicano and Latino context to imply manhood, or masculinity” (43). She introduced the concept of machismo and its negative effects on women to me through personal stories. She has told me many stories of her own struggles with machismo. She was faced with machismo because of her two older brothers. In Mexico, they would mistreat her and show their dominance over her. She basically served as their maid. She washed their clothes, made them food, and cleaned up after them. In a lot of families machismo is faced by the all the women and the mother does not do anything to bring it to an end. This is the situation my Mom was in. My Grandma witnessed a lot of the machismo but did not step in to intervene. She was not affected by the machismo because the machistas were her sons, not her husband. My Mom’s struggles served to convey a message to me. Growing up with a younger sister I never expressed any type of machismo attitudes towards her. After hearing my Mom’s stories I could never let machismo be a part of the relationship between my sister and I. My Mom’s stories served as a way to realize that machismo is not correct and it can ruin a person’s life. I am extremely thankful that at an early age my Mom taught me that machismo is not acceptable. I grew up with the idea that I should not expect a woman to do everything for. My Mother made it clear to me that being a male doesn’t automatically means that everything should be handed to me. I chose this picture for my collage because my Mom is the reason why I reject machismo and do not agree with a machista ideology.

For my third picture, which is found on the bottom left corner, I chose a picture of my cousins and I. I chose this picture because growing up my two older cousins served as guides in my life. I have always looked up to them and seen them as guides to how I should live my life. I learned from my cousins how not to fall into machismo. My cousins have always been very independent. They have never thought that things should be handed to them because they are males. By not relying on women to do things for them, they negated one of the effects of machismo. This relates to a statement that is brought up by Cherríe Moraga in Queer Aztlán. The statement is “On some level, our brothers-gay and straight-have got to give up being “men.” I don’t mean give up their genitals, their unique expression of desire, or the rich and intimate manner in which men can bond together. Men have to give up their subscription to male superiority” (233). I believe that my cousins do not subscribe to the idea of male superiority. By doing this my cousins had a great influence on me. The idea brought up in the quote is an exact representation of the way they are. An example of not relying on male superiority can be seen whenever we have family dinners. They never sit at a table and expect food to be served to them. They always make their own plates and wash their dishes after. This isn’t a major thing but it was the smallest details that have had the biggest impact on me. I also learned from my cousins that women deserve the same respect as everyone else and no one should be disrespected. In machismo, men tend to disrespect women and make them feel as if they are less. I can say that in my life I have never seen my cousins disrespect women. They have always treated everyone with respect and I have never seen them be disrespectful on purpose. Machismo presents the idea that women should be disrespected but my cousins taught me that everyone should be respected. I chose a picture of my cousins because by growing up with them I learned to go against machismo since they never displayed characteristics of machismo.

For my fourth picture, which is found in the bottom right hand corner, I chose a picture of my Grandma. I chose a picture of my Grandma because she is the one who raised everyone in my family. Not only did she raise all her children, she played a role in raising all her grandchildren. My Grandma is an example of a woman going against a patriarchal system. In a system of patriarchy, the father runs the family and is the one in control. In my family, the patriarchy was disrupted because my Grandma was the head of the household. My Grandfather passed away a long time ago in Mexico and my Grandma was forced to provide for the family. She raised 7 children, 3 daughters and 4 sons, on her own. My Grandma raised her children in a system opposite of patriarchy. She went against patriarchy in a country where patriarchy is found in almost every family. My Grandma went against one of the ideas that is brought up in Next of Kin which is that “womanhood is conceivable only as part of the symbolic principle informing machismo as guideline for the conduct of family life, male-female relationships, and personal self-esteem” (44).  She chose to provide for her children herself and never turn to a man for help. I see my Grandma as an inspiration because of this. Her decisions show that a patriarchal system can be overcome and a woman can separate herself from the idea of needing a male to provide for them. Not only is my Grandma an example of a woman going against a patriarchal system, she is also the one that brings unity to my entire family. My Grandma serves as the force that brings my family together. As long as I can remember, my Grandma has been the reason for my family coming together. Whether it’s a holiday or just a normal Sunday afternoon, my family always comes to together at my Grandma’s home. Like stated before unity is a major part of Chicano/a family structure. I chose this picture of my Grandma because she is the uniting factor of my family and she is the one who showed me that a patriarchal system can be overcome.

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