West Side Story Source
Anita sings about Puerto Rico, “Always the population growing, and the money owing.” Things look so much better to her in America. But there’s a problem. She’s not part of the majority culture in America. Bernardo, who has already had conflicts with the white culture of power, talks about the discrimination endured by the minority culture. They are not welcome, they are taken advantage of, and their standard of living is lower. As the girls talk about the great opportunities they are going to have in America, Bernardo warns, “Better get rid of your accent.” It’s interesting…the girls are comfortable with the idea of acculturation, but Bernardo brings up an good question—Can Latino’s live in America and be welcomed and embraced with their culture, or must they assimilate in order to be accepted? Bernardo and his desire to "Fight in America" plays into the resistance theory faced when the majority culture expects assimilation. The lyrics are quite thought provoking. If nothing else, this song should get us to start thinking. In West Side Story, the presence of Latin's in America is causing some tension and people can't get along. The whites don't want the Latin's there, and as Bernardo says, “Life is all right in America…If you’re all white in America.”
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So, as I started searching for “artifacts” for my cultural snapshot, I went around asking my friends if they had seen any TV shows with a lot of Latin’s in them. One of my friends answered enthusiastically, “COPS!” I laughed thinking this was a joke, and he grew serious, “No. Mary. I mean it. Watch it for yourself. They are always arresting Latino’s for something on the show.” I went and did some research by watching some random episodes. I’ll admit, a large portion of the arrests are of Hispanics. There must be a lot of Latin criminals here:) The first clip I attached showed a Latin getting caught smoking weed and calling the police officer papi. I had to remove it due to the language, but this next clip should do just as well.
Cops: Drunken Fight Source
This clip from Napoleon Dynamite is included partly because I think it is funny. And honestly, there are a lot of stereotypes in this movie--Latin's pulling up in their flashy cars, making pinata's, the thick accent, and the threatening presence you don't want to mess with.
Napoleon Dynamite Source
In Latino Portrayals In Film and Television by Jesus Trevino, a review of contemporary media exposes some touchy issues regarding Latinos in the media. This article goes through a large number of films pointing out the negative depictions of Latinos within them. In the past, Latino's haven't really been represented in the media. Now the media portrayal of Latino's "reveals a succession of abusive stereotypes and denigrating distortions." Latino men are portrayed as the lovers, drunk, passionate, violent, illiterate, helpless, or lazy loafers who sit on the porch to drink and smoke. Women are depicted as the "hot-blooded temptress obsessed with carnal pleasure." An interesting point from this article--In our media, Latino’s aren’t often depicted as “people in control of their lives, capable of standing up for their rights, or having an interest in their own future."
Now, do I understand that this article has an agenda, that perhaps bias has tainted the validity of the words written? Yes. But, the number of films listed with specific examples of negative Latino portrayal are compelling.
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Are all depictions of Latin's in the media negative? Absolutely not. I grew up watching I Love Lucy. The Co-star is handsome, talented and successful. Ricky Ricardo brings his cultural capital to the screen and uses his accent, his music, and his cultural background, to make him not only successful, but famous in the I Love Lucy show, as well as in the American society. But don't they make fun of Ricky's accent? Wasn't that a running joke? Only Lucy is allowed to make fun of his accent, and the tone of that teasing is more endearing than offensive. In this media portrayal, Ricky's success as a movie star, owner of a night club, actor, performer, loving husband and father is due to his cultural traits. In this show, Ricky's cultural capital is responsible for his success.
I Love Lucy Source
What about the TV show, Dora the Explorer? Dora is a smart, ambitious, talented little Hispanic girl. She has a good, strong family, she helps out everyone and she teaches little children Spanish.
Then, there’s Maya and Miguel. If there's a show that depicts Latino children as intelligent, inventive problem solvers, !eso es! Maya and Miguel teach about the Latino language and culture. This television series has a message of strong family values, the importance of doing good for the family and community, and of sharing your happiness with others. You can check out the Maya and Miguel Homepage. It’s !Super Fabuloso!
These two television shows are positive media portrayals of Latinos. They encourage socialcultural learning and show credible examples of biculturalism.
Let's take a look at Spy Kids, a movie catering to English speaking American's as well as Hispanics. This movie illustrates the story of the Latino Cortez family who are not only model citizens but super heroes saving the world. Once again, this media portrayal gives exposure to the emphasis of having strong family values because "Spy work, that’s easy. Keeping a family together, that’s difficult and worth fighting for."
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Let's look at how Latinos are portrayed in the news. In the news, article, Latinos Facing Racial Intolerance you'll read the sad stories of Latinos being run off the roads, beaten, shot at, taunted spit at, etc. because of their race. There has been a 40% rise in anti-Latino hate crimes between 2003 and 2007. Reports say the police are indifferent to the reports given by Latinos and often "blame the victim instead." What kind of message does this send about Latinos in America?--Perhaps they are unwelcome and unwanted by some? Perhaps some people want them to leave? Perhaps some people don't think they are worthy of the rights held by others?
I also happened upon a Mexican Joke Website. At the top of the page is a heading that reads,"NOT RACIST, JUST FUNNY!" Really? These jokes depict Mexicans as a people who can’t get a respectable job, who can’t raise their kids, who have too many kids, who can’t afford anything new, who are thieves if they do own anything nice, who are lazy-law-breakers, and the list goes on and on.
If racism is a theory that claims that one person or group is superior to another due to race, than I would suggest that there are examples of racism depicted both by the article of hate crimes, and by the jokes posted on that website. I might go a little further to say that the hate crime article is an example of institutionalized racism, where law enforcement protects people of one race while being unjust to those of another. And as for the joke website, if we laugh, if we share those jokes with our friends, if we see the web page and go on with our happy lives without really thinking about what we just read, then we are guilty of passive racism. We are guilty of seeing racism and allowing it to go on, or accepting it in any way, because we think we can justify ourselves by saying that these jokes aren't "racist,just funny."
I also gathered some CNN clips on Latinos. This one is on Latinos and their high birth rates.
Birth Rates Source
Read the Article for yourself.
This is a negative media portrayal of Latinos because “They say they want to be educated and get good jobs and have important life goals, and that they know having a baby interrupts that, and yet the teenage pregnancy rates among Latinos are higher than among non-Latinos such as whites and African Americans.” This news report suggest that there are aspects of the Latino culture that could be responsible for these alarming pregnancy rates such as the catholic prohibition on abortion and birth control, and cultural issues with discussing sex in the Latino community versus other communities. These are culturally binding customs that are making it difficult for Latinos to have the higher standard of living they say they want.
This clip talks about road Blocks to Latinos Education
Latino's Education Source
And here's an article with similar findings.
There is an alarming drop-out rate in the Latino community here in America, especially for Latina women because of discrimination and gender stereotyping. A survey taken among young Latinas showed that 1/3 did not expect to achieve their educational goals because of family and societal expectations. They face the stereotypes of Latinas as submissive underachievers and caretakers. Poverty, immigration status, limited English, discouraging family situations and lack of documentation are all challenges to education. This article refers to some institutionalized racism of not having enough funding and resources, and teachers with lower expectations for ELL students. This article also hints that Latinos are suffering the effects of teachers deficit theory, the theory that because one is not originally from the majority culture, they will not be adequate in their performance.--This article sets the stage perfectly for our discussion in which I will delve deeper into the article.
WHAT MESSAGES ARE BEING SENT ABOUT THIS CULTURAL GROUP?
I have talked about the messages being sent about this group all throughout the blog. There are some positive messages about this group. They are intelligent, contributing, thoughtful problem solvers. This is a group that is talented, that works hard, that has strong family values and that can save the world. This is a group that is welcome, that enriches society, that has a different culture we can learn about and appreciate.
Some negative messages portray this group as one with high pregnancy rates, high crime rates and a low level of education. This is a group who's customs don't match with ours, who are lazy, lustful, and gluttonous. This is a group who claims they want to be contributing members of society but who can't give the follow through. This is a group that we can crack jokes about because it's funny. And this is a group that suffers hate crimes because they don't belong.
When it comes to education, this is a group that is unlikely to graduate or to get a higher education. This group is seen as the underachievers and outsiders. They can’t speak English, and they come from disparaging backgrounds. They are poor. They are illegal and suffer from the associated instability. They don’t have the advantages and opportunities of their American counterparts. They don’t have many role models because there aren't a lot of Latino politicians, doctors, lawyers, or people of high position on display. Latinos have a hard family life and difficult backgrounds. Latinos have a hard time staying in school and they will need extra help and encouragement if they are going to be able to succeed.
How might these messages impact how a child from this cultural group is viewed and treated in the classroom?
Perhaps the positive messages being sent about this group will speak louder than the negative messages. Latino students will be viewed and treated just like every other student and there won't be any problems. But what if the negative messages being sent overpower the positive messages?
To answer this question, I would like to refer back to the clip of challenges in Latino education. Lucy Flores made a disturbing but eye-opening comment when she described the reasons for her dropping out of school,"Graduating wasn’t something that was expected for me. It just wasn’t something that really happens for a lot of people in my community.” Lucy had a hard time at home, a hard time speaking English when she started school, and she was exposed to a lot of teachers and a community who had lower expectations for her.
If there are messages being sent about Latinos that depict them poorly in the academic setting and group them with the lazy, the addicts, the criminals, the gangs, and the unwanted, then perhaps that is how they will be treated. Perhaps students of other cultural backgrounds will view themselves as superior to Latinos. Perhaps Latino students will be treated as the potential drop-out rather than the potential genius. Perhaps the teacher and other students of the classroom will have low expectations for the Latino students. Perhaps students and teachers will judge the Latino's in their class before they have even given them a chance to prove themselves...
And perhaps, Latino students may fear that they have already lost and that they cannot succeed because of their ethnicity .
Why is it important for teachers to know how cultural groups are represented in the media, curriculum and policy?
Teachers have been given stewardship over their students. I wonder if teachers know how powerful and influential they can be. Teachers will be able to best reach and teach their students if they know their students. This means knowing their background and knowing about their culture. This means knowing about how that cultural group is represented in the media, curriculum and policy. Knowing this empowers teachers to recognize and combat racism (institutionalized racism and passive racism) within their classroom. Teachers are placed in a position where they can either contribute to the deficit theory or they can fight it.
A lot of us are going to be teachers. If you see negative portrayals of your students' cultural group, you can teach the class the truth, that everyone can succeed. You can stop yourself from prejudging your students based on their ethnicity, and you can help them succeed when society, or the media says they can't.
Lucy Flores was a high school dropout who joined a gang and lost her way. Lucy is back on track today studying to be a lawyer because there was an intervention. She found someone who treated her as a child with issues, not a criminal. She found a teacher to guide her, to encourage her and to allow her to believe that she was capable of something different. Lucy speaks fondly of that person who supported her as the "first person that set me on the right track."
That quote should give us a feeling of teacher efficacy. We can be that first person to set our students on track. We can believe in our students and be aware so as to fight against the challenges that face Latino students (including the racism and deficit theory they might be exposed to by us, their teachers.) The first step to solving a problem is diagnosing it. We can succeed. We can be good teachers. And ALL of our students can be successful as well.
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