Latina/o Sexuality
Latinas already have a variety of social forces to fight in order to survive in the world, and another constant battle that doesn't seem to end soon is the power over their sexuality. Latina women are controlled by a patriarchal society that tells them how they should act and what their gender expectations are according to their sexuality. Latinas are hypersexualized and expected to be sexually passive and ignorant; these expectations are perpetuated by religion, class, and patriarchal society. These stereotypes about Latina sexuality are enforced through music, media, and even policies. In my buzzfeed I will present evidence of how Latinas are portrayed in media, misconceptions about sexuality, differences between conceptualizations of sexuality, sexual education among Latino communities and how the type or lack of sexual education effects Latinos, and new identities that Latinos are taking on in order to challenge gender norms in Latin American cultures.
1. Can you dance like Selena?
In the article by Alicia Arrizon, "Latina Subjectivity, Sexuality, and Sensuality", she tries to explain the reason behind the stereotype of hyper sexuality in Latin women. She calls it "brownness" and the obsession of the white superior with "brownness". Alicia gives us an example when she uses Arnold Schwarzenegger as an example of this. Schwarzenegger made some remarks about state assembly woman Bonnie Garcia and how hot se was because she is Puerto Rican, and Puerto Ricans have the best of both worlds, they are mixed with Latino and Black. Arrizon states that "Schwarzenegger's comment therefore must be understood in the context of colonial/neocolonial fantasies in which the ''brown-different-body" becomes the subject/object of racist stereotypical discourse". She believes that the objectification of the Latina body is due effects of colonial oppression. This is relevant to my theme because this is the main problem with Latina women stereotypes; they are hypersexualized and objectified. Selena is another topic of her article that some criticize for perpetuating the hypersexualization of Latinas, while others applaud her for giving young Latina their own "Chicana sexuality". Everyone can agree with the fact that Selena had a tremendous impact of the lives of Latina girls all over the world, but was it a negative of positive impact? In the article, Arrizon talks about the contrasting views about Selena, Yvonne Yarbro-Bejarano on Chicana intellectual that Arrizon interviews about Selena. Yvonne thought that the fact that Selena gave young girls a 'racialized sexuality' is what makes her a positive role model. While Sandra Cisneros, another Chicana intellectual believed that Selena was not a positive role model due to her hypersexualization and dropping out of school. I agree with the thought that Selena wasn't a very positive model for young Latin girls because she only perpetuates stereotypes about Latinas. This is important to our lives because young girls still to this day worship Selena and continue the cycle of Latina objectification. An example of how Selena is problematic is in a Selena Barbie I found online (http://media-cache-ec0.pinimg.com/originals/ed/83/ca/ed83ca2bb18431ac1e3260f40f039fae.jpg). Little girls that play with dolls like these falls into the trap of believing that every Latina should be like Selena, and at a young age it teacher little girls how to be more sexual.
2. I am not a machine
When looking at the history of Female sexuality we see that patriarchal societies have no clue as to what female sexuality is. In the article, "The New View and Latina Sexualities" by Lisa Aronson Fontes gives a great insight to what constitutes Latina sexuality. In patriarchal societies there is this view that female sexuality is programmed in the female and if its nit working properly it needs fixing, because there has to be something wrong with the programing. Fontes calls this the "dishwasher view of sexuality" when, " you push the start button the woman should cycle painlessly through desire, arousal, and orgasm. If there is any variation in the cycle we-therapist/repair technicians say she is broken or dysfunctional and try to fix her" (2008). Fontes introduces a new way of dealing with sexuality concerns especially among Latinas. This new approach is called New View. When using New View in treating Latina with sexuality problems, they take into account how cultural and social class can affect sexuality. This is important to my theme because it gives us a way to take into account intersectionality when treating Latinas for their sex problems. According to Fontes, "The New View diagnostic categories offer new options for considering the psychological, relational, and sociocultural concerns" (2008). Instead of calling it a dysfunction, The New View uses a injury model, which connects suffering with the environment. This new approach to psychotherapy is great for Latina Women and will greatly benefit many Latinas. In the article she talks about a Cuban woman named Sarita and her problems with her sexuality. She had not had sex with her husband in years and didn't know what to do. Before looking for psychotherapy, she did talk to her priets about the problems that the lack of sexuality in her marriage was giving her. Like Sarita, many latina women look to their religious leader for guidance, and often end up with the wrong information. The response that Sarita got from her priest was to keep trying. Sarita got every upset at his answer as if she hadn't already been trying for years, and replied, "I am not a machine". This is a summary of an article I found specifically on sexual dysfunctions across cultures and how much your environment affects the sex life. http://apt.rcpsych.org/content/19/2/144.abstract
3. Latin American Homosexuality VS American Homosexuality
Sexual identities can be very different across cultures and the article "Gender and Sexuality in Latina/o Miami: Documenting Latina/o Transsexual Activists" by Susana Pena gives us insight in the differences in classification of homosexuality and transgender between Latin America and the U.S. According to Pena, in the US sexuality is based on a person's desires, while in Latin America is is based on your actions and gender norms. In Latin America what determines your sexuality is who id penetrating and who is getting penetrated. Those that are penetrating are less stigmatized and less likely to suffer from hate crimes and discrimination, while those that get penetrated are labeled as "maricon" a derogatory directed at homosexuals. Another way that you can look at this classification among Latin Americans is through active vs passive people. Active are those that take on the male role and penetrate while passive are the women's role and get penetrated. In the U.S homosexuality has to do with your desires or who you like, where in Latin America it has to do with the role you are playing. Pena states " these sexual roles are assumed to correspond to outward gendered manifestations that are socially visible" which explains why Latin Americans rely on active vs passive roles to determine sexuality. Another difference between Latin American and the U.S is that Latin Americans are less concerned with the same-sex act, but have a big problem with transgressing gender norms. In The U.S as long as you have thought about liking someone of the same sex and feeling desire, you are automatically considered a homosexual. In Latin American countries its more about breaking gender norms. Latin American men have to dress like women and act like women in order to show or prove that they are gay. They feel that the only way to show they are proud to be homosexual is by acting and dressing like the opposite sex; which we would call transgender here in the U.S. I found a really cool article and Photoshop of a community of transgender women in Mexico called Muxes. Muxes are known to have a third gender identity that rose from ancient Aztec and Mayan gods.This relevant to this headline because maybe the belief of this third gender in Aztec and Mayan cultures is the foundations for the classification of homosexuals today in Latin American countries.
4. Moms have sex?!?
Older Latin American women have been stigmatized as sexless individuals that have lost connection with their sexuality and Yvette G.Flores talks about the specific struggles Latina women have to encounter when trying to take back control of their sexuality during midlife. In the article " Latina Sexuality: De(re)constructing Gender and Cultural Expectations in Midlife", Flores talks about Latino culture and their preference in young women. Once a Latina crosses over to midlife, they are no longer relevant and almost invisible in the sex world; they are desexualized. Flores interviews different Latinas about their sex life and their struggles to take back their relationship with their body and sexuality. Flores suggests that cultural upbringing and a family's lack of communications about sexuality is what influences their desexualization. By Flores giving these women the opportunity to give their narratives on their sexuality and by them being able to speak out loud about these problems that are usually swept under a rug in Latino cultures, they were able to see the influence of the Latino culture had on their sexuality. They were able to connect with their bodies better and understand that even though they are no longer young hot Latinas, they still have sexuality and can have a healthy sexual life just like their male counterparts. In Latin American cultures, sex is not something people talk about, not even among spouses, so it is especially difficult for older Latino women to be happy with their sexuality when they are thought to not be sexual and are only thought to be caregivers. An article I found online by AARP The Magazine ( http://assets.aarp.org/rgcenter/general/2004_sexuality.pdf) about sexuality at midlife talks about other stereotypes associated with people over 45 and their sex life. It brought up things about how important sexuality is to them and their relationship with themselves and their partners. Now i can only think about intersectionality and how much Latina women have to deal with; race, age,and gender are all affecting their sexuality.
5. White sexuality is the only sexuality.
The representation of minorities in American research can definitely use some fixing, especially in sexuality research. In the "Introduction to Special Issue: Black and Latina/o Sexuality" Asencion and Battle give light to the gaps withing sexuality research and Black and Latino populations. Intersectionality is the main focus of this introduction, and how whiteness has also had an effect on sexuality. Asencion and Battle compare race and ethnicity to patriarchy and how patriarchy isn't just about individual men, but a much broader "social structure that forms both men's and women's experiences" (2010). Race and ethnicity isn't about the individual's race and ethnicity but about the "sociopolitical terrain" (2010). It isn't just about a person being a Latina, but about the politics and institutional oppression associated with Latinos. According to Asencion and Battle, Whiteness has to be mentioned when talking about how sexual discourses came about and what is considered normal. Asencion and Battle say this happens "through the stance that sexuality is race free or by uncritically framing it through research on white populations" (2010). This is relevant to our lives because the fact that everything we know about sexuality is through the white experience and the little representation of minorities only perpetuates more negative stereotypes and oppression; from the hypersexualization of Black women to the submissive sex slave Latina. Asencion and Battle believe that race and ethnicity in sexuality are used to control and continue to oppress minorities. When talking about white sexuality we see researchers take into account intersectionalities between class, location, ethnicity, and age, but when talking about Black or Latina sexuality we don't recognize the diversity among these minorities and lump them all in the same categories due to the preconceived stereotypes about these minorities. It is time that Blacks and Latinos get the same recognition among sexuality research as the white majority, because the minorities now will soon be the majority. We need to get out of the cycle of studying everything through the white experience. An article on PLOS medicine (http://www.plosmedicine.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pmed.0030049) titled "Why are Ethnic Minorities Under-Represented in US Research Studies? " suggests that one of the main reasons for the under=representation is due to ethnic minorities' willingness to participate in research. Minorities are less likely to participate in research than whites. This can be due to the lack of trust minorities have when it comes to authoritative figures. This really needs to change in order for everyone in the nation to be equally represented in research in order for it to be effective in communication its findings.
6. Mexican Dads Be Like:
There are many stereotypes associated with the Mexican male and especially a father. Mexican males are supposed to be strong, macho, that protect the dignity of their daughters at all cost. We see posts like these all over the internet that portrays the Mexican father as being scary and overprotective, but in reality they don't really care about their daughters being sexually active as long as their successful in life. In the Article "Fathering Latina Sexualities: Mexican Men and the Virginity of Their Daughters" by Gloria Gonzalez-Lopez these myths about Mexican fathers get debunked. Gonzalez-Lopez studied interviews of 20 Mexican men and their sexuality and the sexuality of their daughters. The results She got from her research was that Mexican men are less worried about making sure their daughters stay virgins than making sure they finish school. Most many Mexican families, including my own, come to the US in pursuit of a better life for their kids and to make sure that their children receive the best education possible. The main priority for Mexican fathers is to make sure their daughters finish school. As Gonzalez-Lopez wrote, "protecting their daughters from sexually dangerous society and improving their socioeconomic future is of greater concern than preserving virginity per se" (2004). It is not only Latina women that are stereotyped and affected by the stereotypes of Latina sexuality, Latino men are also affected by these views on Latina sexuality. Latina girls are looked at as "whore-virgins" because even though Latina women are hypersexualized and objectified, but they are thought to have strong believes in abstinence and avoid premarital sex. They are told by society that they are just promiscuous, erotic bodies and then are told they need to be pure in order to be considered "good women", because once a girl is no longer a virgin, its like she lost her worth. This research on what Mexican men really think about their daughters virginity gives insight on real Latino Male experience on the Latina sexuality. They all said that they didn't care about their daughters having sex, as long as they used protection and finished school and became successful, one even said he offered his daughter his support for an abortion, just so his daughter wouldn't drop out of school. I would've never thought that, and i'm Mexican. In this comic strip (http://www.freethunk.net/weeklies/2007-feb-20-abstinence-only-sewing-club.php) there are 4 girls sewing their vagina as part of the Abstinence Only Sewing Club . This comic strip is relevant to my headline because the person that posted it to their blog wrote about the opposite, and rejected abstinence. The 20 Mexican men that Gonzalez-Lopez studied were all men that have lived in the US for at least 5 years. Maybe the reason why all these fathers were so indifferent to their daughters' virginity is because the view of virginity is changing int he US as a whole. I know many schools around the US that have extensive sexual heath classes, that not only promote abstinence but also safe sex. Maybe the Americanized Mexican fathers have adapted these beliefs about safe sex versus abstinence. And it just means that the US is moving towards a more sex acceptable country.
7. Latina Moms and sexuality.
Now that we have talks about Mexican father's and their experience with their daughter's sexuality, we need to talk about the mother and her relationship with her daughter and her sexuality. We have debunked many Latino father stereotypes and it is time to see if it is the same with the mother-daughter relationship. In the article, "El Sexo no es Malo: Maternal Values Accompanying Contraceptive Use Advice to Young Latina Adolescent Daughters" by Laura F. Romo & Magali Bravo & Maria Elena Cruz & Rebeca M. Rios & Claudia Kouyoumdjian, there is deep insight on the communication between Latina mothers and young Latina daughters. As growing up in Latino household I can relate to this topic deeply because I have experienced this first hand. Latino families do not talk about sex, we grow up believing that sex is bad, its shameful, and if you are even curious about sex you are considered a "bad girl". This is an extremely important problem among Latino communities, because the lack of communication and understanding of sexuality among Latino cultures on negatively affects the country as a whole. The reason why there is such a vast number Latino adolescent with STD's and teen pregnancy is because they are not taught to practice safe sex. According to the article, "Latina mother-daughter communication about positive aspects of sexuality is not typical. Latina daughters receive messages that non-marital sexual activity is morally wrong (Gilliam, 2007), fostering a loss of self-respect and a loss of innocence" (Romo, Bravo, Cruz, Rios, & Kouyoumdjian, 2010). The study that was conducted in the article showed that Latina Latina daughters that have a more open communication with their mothers about sex are more likely to talk to their mothers about waiting to have sex when they are older rather than believing the catholic view on sex that sex is always wrong and abstinence is the only thing that should be on an adolescent's mind. This open communication about sexuality lowers the probability of the daughter practicing premarital sex and teen pregnancy. I found a cool anti-feminist website (http://redeemingfeminism.wordpress.com/2013/12/06/anti-feminist-memes-pt-4-most-rape-accusations-are-fake/) that i thought related to this topic because everything that I researched on Latina/o sexuality was usually about women sexuality and their problems with it. It was rarely about how young male Latinos learn about sexuality or their communication with their parents about their sexuality. In Latin American cultures there is a huge double standard that needs fixing and studying. Because of the patriarchal societies we don't tend to include males when thinking about lack of communication among Latino families or their struggles with their sexuality and the expectations placed upon them for being male Latinos. The website shows a lot of double standards that women might benefit from but males end up with the short end of the stick.
8. Abuelas and HIV/AIDS
According to "Older Latina Women and HIV/AIDS: An Examination of Sexuality and Culture as they Relate to Risk and Protective Factors" by Richard L. Beaulaurier, Shelley L. Craig, and Mario De La Rosa, "Older Latina women are one of the least studied American demographic groups with regard to social, health, or sexual behavior" (2009). They are also among the fastest growing groups infected with new HIV cases. In order to understand these dynamics and why older Latina women are suffering so much from HIV/AIDS we have to understand all other special forces acting on these women. Gender roles among Latin Americans has a great effect on these results because men are taught to be machos and ladies men, and usually demonstrate their masculinity through by engaging in sexual relations with multiple women. Also stated in the article was that Latino men also take pride in the amount of children they have and that is why they are so opposed to using condoms (Beaulaurier, Craig, De la Rosa , 2009). These beliefs among the Latin American males is what perpetuates the spread of diseases among Latino communities. Women on the other hand are supposed to be ignorant about sex. Those Latina women that are knowledgeable and insist on the use of condoms and talk about sex are looked down upon and seen as promiscuous (Beaulaurier, Craig, and De la Rosa, 2009). Latina women also have the wrong idea that since they are in a marriage they are excluded from contracting HIV, when in reality they are one of the most affected groups due to these myths. Homophobia among Latin American communities also encourages new HIV cases among Latinos. Latin Americans have a variety of negative stigmas associated with homosexuality, and therefore many live in the closet. A lot of Latin men are married and have children but at homosexuals and have sex on the down low with other men. It is very similar to the case of African Americans and the Down low brotherhood we read about in class. Latin men have sexual relations with other men in secret and then might bring diseases back to their wives. There are many social factors that are responsible for such high and growing numbers of HIV/AIDS among older Latin American women, these forces include but are not limited to, gender roles, homophobia, social structure, religion, and socioeconomic status. According to the article, "it is a combination of stigma attached to sexual knowledge and an actual lack of knowledge about risks associated with their own or their partner's activities may be related to the high percentage of older Latinas infected with the virus" (2009). There is much more extensive research on Latinos and HIV/AIDS on the Center for Disease Control and Prevention and it is terrifying to see how large the numbers are and how they are increasing (http://www.cdc.gov/hiv/risk/racialethnic/hispanicLatinos/index.html). It is very difficult to lower HIV cases in the United States while having specific groups of people that are ten times more vulnerable to a disease and don't even know it. We have to educate everyone in the United States and try to put an end to the negative stigmatization of sexuality in the US in order to reduce HIV/AIDS in the country as a whole.
9. Intimate Partner Violence
Maria E. Fernandez- Esquer selects a specific groups of Latinas that she chooses to study in her article, "Intimate Partner Violence Among Stigmatized Latina Workers". She focuses on Latinas that have recently immigrated to the US and are young, living in poor conditions and work in bars. She focuses a lot on stigmatization and the effects of stigmas on the rates of intimate partner violence (IPV) among poor Latinas. According t the article, surveys conducted in the US demonstrate that the rate that Latina women report IPV is very similar to those reported by African American women, but are a lot higher when compared to white women ( Esquer, 2013). There is a lot of stigma associated with these poor Latinas, especially due to their line of work. No women Latinas women working nights at a bar will ever get the respect they deserve. She gives stigma such a lot of importance when talking about rates of IPV because according to her, "stigma damage a woman's social standing, weakening her social ties and making her an easy target for victimization" (Esquer, 2013). This groups studied by Esquer is especially vulnerable to IPV due to their line of work. This is where intersectionality comes i to play when looking at rates of IPV. Latinas working in bars or cantinas are stigmatized for their line of work, their race and ethnicity, age, and social economic status among other forces. In order to reduce these rates of IPV among Latinas we have to change the stigmas associated with poverty, status and race. It isn't about just teaching cultures to not engage in IPV, but to remove the stigmas associated with different identities Latinas acquire. Latin Americans make a huge part of the American society, and reducing IPV among Latinos will only reduce violence in the country all together. It is our responsibility to prevent vulnerable women to fall into traps of stigmatization and IPV to make our country a safer place for everyone. The NCBI and NIH ( http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3627727/ )have also conducted many studies in IPV among Latinos and they also found similar results. They found that social support, economic status and culture all have a great part in the rate of IPV among Latinos.
10. S-T-R-8-UP
S-T-R-8 UP signals a new path of sexual identification among Latina women. In the article, “S-T-R-8 Up” Latinas: Affirming an Alternative Sexual Identity" by Aline C. Gubriuma & M. Idali Torres , there is a new identity that Latina women want to take on. Aggressiveness is a trait opposite of what a Latina is supposed to be. Like Gubriuma & Torres suggest, "in a heteronormative context that suggests heterosexuality as the norm, with men and women possessing distinct but complementary gender roles, aggression is not a term generally linked to young women's sexual identity constructs" (2011). Latina women are supposed follow the traits of 'marianismo', and are expected to be sexually passive and pure. The authors of the article suggest that Latinas are taking on this new sexual identity of being aggressive has a lot to do with challenging dominant heteronormative gender expectations. It is about time Latinas stand up to our oppressors and show them that they cannot label us as something we aren't and get can take control of our sexuality and identify ourselves how ever we want. Aggression in women is often associated with deviant behavior, and that is exactly what this S-T-R-8 UP movement is about. Latinas are going to be straight up about how they feel and how ever they would like to identify as. The article also suggest that due to the complex oppression that Latinas face in this country taking on an affirmative aggressive identity works as a survival mechanism against all the forces that already negatively affect Latinas, for example, race, class, and gender. You can see this movement of aggression among young Latinas passed upward to their mothers. According to Gubriuma & Torres, Latina daughters "encourage their mothers to 'revise the Latina cultural script' to allow for their own sexual needs and desires to be fulfilled or expressed" (2011). The article also talks about sexual education and how Latino youth is at the bottom of sexual education quality. It is important to incorporate specific culture, communities into sexual education programs for Latinos. I found an article on Latin Post about a group of women that are taking on this aggressive role and going against their gender expectations (http://www.latinpost.com/articles/4778/20131213/nuestro-texas-nuestrotexas-org-latinas-immigration-reproductive-health.htm). This group of Latinas in Texas are taking a stand on their reproductive rights in the Rio Grande Valley. This article is relevant to this topic because this group of women are fighting for reproductive rights even though they will be stigmatized for fighting for control over their own sexuality. It might take Latinas longer than white women for control over their own sexuality due to other social forces Latinas have to face, but with movements like S-T-R-8 UP, Latinas will eventually find sanctuary withing their sexuality.
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