Reading: Alma Garcia’s Chicana Feminist Thought (1)

Please address the discussion questions for the following readings by replying to this post.  You do not have to answer all the questions, but be sure to demonstrate your familiarity with the reading.

El Plan de Aztlán

Alma Garcia, Chicana Feminist Thought (see Readings Page)

  • ”Introduction” (1-16)
  • ”The Woman of La Raza” by Enriqueta Longeaux Vasquez (29-31)
  • “Our Feminist Heritage” by Marta Cortera (41-44)

What do you think of when you think of the 1960s and 1970s? How do these readings fit in with or change your impressions?

Enriqueta Vasquez’s “The Woman of La Raza” was written in response to the same conference, the First National Chicano Liberation Youth Conference in March of 1969, where “El Plan de Aztlán” was written and adopted.  What connections can you see between the two documents?  What sort of conflict, if any, do you read into them? How did women of color respond to the civil rights movement (both Black Nationalism and the Chicano Movement)?  Why was it important that Marta Cortera “found” feminism with Mexican roots?

Alma Garcia discusses a series of Chicano movements in New Mexico (for land rights), California (for farmworkers, education and against the war in Vietnam) and Texas (political rights), among others.  How do you think the differences between these movements and their participants impacted each region’s Chicano movement?

Garcia also writes about Chicano Nationalism (Chicanismo) and the depiction of the “Ideal Chicana.”  What are the problems associated with such an idealized image?  Does it relate to the notion of a feminism based on “multiple oppressions”?

How did Chicanas organize themselves? What were the mechanisms and how was writing important to their organizations?

A little something about me…. (Introducing Beatriz)

Hello CHST 404 class! My name is Beatriz Alfaro and I am a Junior studying Spanish and Women’s Studies at LMU. I love both of my majors and they reflect who I am. My family is from El Salvador which means I grew up around the language and I have come to absolutely love it. My Women’s Studies major is a perfect fit for me because I am very passionate about women’s issues and creating more opportunities for women to succeed. That is why I am interested in attending Law School because I feel that the best way I can help others and my community is by bettering myself. With my skills and law degree I can cater to many communities and also apply what I have learned in my undergraduate career. I always wanted to take a Chicano Studies class because I’m interested in learning more about the growth and development of the Chicano movement. This class will be amazing because it intersects with my major and a new study I know very little about. I can’t wait for an incredible semester and insightful class discussions!

Reading: What Did You Think About the Sidekick Story?

Reading: from Here Comes Everybody by Clay Shirky, chapter 1: It Takes a Village to Find a Phone

The website Evan Guttman created is still up (though it looks like he’s taken down Sasha Gomez’s picture).  Are you interested in knowing more about the story? Here’s a link to the New York Times account. I’d like to know how you felt reading about it.  Were you, like Shirky, troubled or like Evan did you find the story pleasingly just?  How did you feel about Evan, about Sasha?  Does Sasha being 16, Puerto Rican or a single mother matter to how you feel about the story? What are other examples you can think of of viral organizing or flash mobs? How do you think someone makes an event like this happen?

Shirky ends his telling of the story with the question “What happens next?”  What do you think has happened with social media over the past few years?

And here’s an article by Malcolm Gladwell from The New Yorker arguing a different viewpoint.  Will the revolution be tweeted?

(Note: You don’t have to answer all these questions. Just choose something to write about.  See you Wednesday.)

 

First Day of Class

Welcome to Chicana/o Studies 404.  This blog is the site of the textual community we’re going to build as part of our study of Chicana feminist writers and communities.

Things to do before our next class meeting:

  • Send me an email from the email address you want to use for this course.  Please make sure it’s one you use and check daily.  My email address is annemarie (dot) perez (at) me (dot) com or you can use the blog email form.
  • When you get your reply from me, set up your CHST404 WordPress account.  
  • Set up your Twitter account.  Write a reply to this post in the comments section including your new Twitter handle. 
  • Follow me (@anneperez) and each other.
  • Tweet using the #CHST404 hashtag and use it to check and see what others in the class have written.

By Friday’s class, please write a blog post introducing yourself and telling us about your interest in and any experience with Chicana/o and / or women’s studies.