The readings of this week focus on the representation of Chicano/a families in the media. The readings talk about how Chicano/a families are portrayed on television and in movies. Of the two readings I found Chapter 2 “Shooting the Patriarch” of Next of Kin by Richard T. Rodríguez to be the one to catch my interest the most. I found this reading to be interesting because I felt there was an emphasis on recent representations of the Chicano/a family.
“Shooting the Patriarch” talks about the origins of Chicano/a film and how it has progressed and is still progressing. In the second part of the chapter Rodríguez focuses on the film Mi Familia/My Family and this is the part I found to be the most interesting. This part was the most interesting to me because it focuses on a film that I have seen many times. The analysis that is presented about the film made me realize that I had not really fully understood the message. I had never seen the film as a representation of patriarchy. I actually had never even thought about it in that way. Rodríguez’s analysis helped me understand what the film represent. Rodríguez uses the role of the sons to show patriarchy. Chucho is the son that always goes against his father and Jimmy is the son who listens and respects his father. These two are the representation of the “good son/bad son” (78) in a Chicano family. Chucho represents the “bad son” and he is the one that ends up being killed. On the other hand, Jimmy is the “good son” who ends up having a son and adding to the family genealogy. Chucho serves as a risk to the patriarchy and he “must literally be shot.” (78) The message that Rodríguez is trying to convey is that Mi Familia presents the idea of a patriarchal system found in Chicano families. If it wasn’t for this reading I don’t think I would have ever noticed this idea. Every single time I watched it before I never about what kind of a representation it presented. However, next time i watch this film I will definitely be on the lookout for things I would have never noticed if it wasn’t for the analysis by Rodríguez.
Do you think that Chicano/a families will continue to be represented as patriarchal in movies and television? What kind of change can Chicanos/as involved in the film and television industry make in order help bring change to the representations of our families?
Hi Lenin,
Mi Familia/My family is one of my favorite films. However, I have never notice the representation of patriarchy in the film before. Now that I think about it there is a bit a patriarchy between the characters of Chucho and his father. On the contrast, although there very limited roles or films that are created for the Chicana/o communities , most films represent that patriarchal structures. For the most, part in Chicana/o family films or television, the representation of the family structure always involved la familia and the protective father and caring mother. Patriarchy is always representing through the family structures, gender roles, values, and religion. The father typically represents the machismo aspect and the mother always seem to be the sensitive ones. Although the representation of the family in the media is important, there needs to be changed in the industry. In order to change the industry, filmmakers and producer need to go beyond the family structures. It would be nice to see Chicana/o family comedies or actions movies or television shows.
I can’t be naïve, so yes the Chicana/o family structure in media will continue to present us in stereotypical fashions that harm our community. The change starts with the decolonization process for both men and women-we must understand the values that have been imposed on us, and then make a decision to create our “own” reality, one that embraces multiculturalism- a world that allows men and women to go outside those “borders” or shaped realities that depict us in roles that do not acknowledge some of our positive contributions to society. Not every Chicana is straight, or embraces domesticity. Not every Chicano is straight, or embraces hyper-masculinity, or a gardener, or the Machismo patriarch of la familia. Some females/males do not fit the binary gender and sexuality constructs, therefore we need to be more conscious to other people’s realities that go beyond the “borders,” rooted in heteropatriarchy. I truly believe it starts with education-we must empower our youth, nieces, or nephews to realize education and knowledge is a powerful weapon, which can teaches us to challenge dominant paradigms, and not buy into the Status Quos constructed realities, which relegate both Chicanas and Chicanos to the margins in stereotypical roles that harm our communities.
Hi friend!
I completely relate to your comment about viewing the film and not noticing the patriarchy viewpoint. Sometimes I think we notice it but we do not necessarily connect it to patriarchy or want to consider it because we believe this kind of ideology and practice is a norm in Latina/o families. If Latina/os do not stop participating in roles that represent the negative stereotypes of our community, then the misrepresentation and generalization of Latina/os will continue. If they start embracing more empowering roles, they will let the audience know that Latina/os are not just labor workers, servants, gardeners, or factory workers; they are humans who are trying to obtain a better life just like the rest.
Lenin,
I liked how Rodriguez used a very recognized film to emphasize patriarchy. I also do believe that patriarchy will be represented in families in movies and television. Even today we often see novelas that really imply patriarchy. For example we are always demonstrated that the “men” holds the power, and all the women are just pretty and have no say. A change that would be nice is having more television shows that empower women, there are some, however, there aren’t a lot. For those few shows that do empower women media often seems to have a negative aspect upon them.
Being a media studies myself i know there’s a loooooong way to go when it comes to minorities in the film industry, i’ve talked to so many professionals in the industry who are POC and they have told me the craziest stories about things they’ve encountered. I really hope to see and be apart of a day where Chicanas are able to produce their stories without having to white wash them or create stereotypes because that’s what their producers want. I think as far as change, its important for Chicana/o like myself who are looking to get into the film industry to keep telling our stories and avoiding outside pressures to change our stories so that more people can see it in theaters. Its also important to network with other POC in the industry and start a little support team where you can help each other in any way you can even if that’s just emailing a friend about watching a film clip or something.