Chicana/o-Latina/o Gender & Sexuality

In thinking about the creation of TNMS it’s interesting to consider the idea of decentralizing a particular component of one’s identity. Through the acknowledgment that these are all aspects of one’s identity, and masculinity and femininity both influence one another as obviously we noted when making our list in class of traditional hetero representations of them. I agree that it is problematic that some of the men advocating for such a study view it as a means of reclaiming the importance of the masculine identity, when the masculine identity has already been dominating academia in our patriarchal society. It is also complicated to consider the role that women play in such a field of study, as traditionally we discussed men’s discussion of feminism is not widely accepted in the field as it is viewed as a topic that they can never fully understand. Conversely, considering women’s say in TNMS then using this line of thinking it would have to be conceded that they are the ones experiencing all of those factors that play into the formation of their masculine identity and women cannot necessarily contribute to the discussion. So where do the two fields begin a productive conversation then? Though it is complicated I think the having such studies as TNMS and providing a space in which men can begin to process the development of masculinity and how such aspects of their identity formation interact with the world around them would be more productive than damaging.

Posted by jrfta at 11:43 AM | Permalink

I absolutely feel that there is a need for what Mirande encourages, a new study of Chicano/Latino masculinity. I think that our lists at the start of class on Monday regarding the "traditional" concepts of masculinity and femininity prove this need. The list which we created for men was in fact longer than the one we created for females. That is not to say that in reality males have more expectations than females do, but it is interesting and important to note that we could come up with so many "essentialized"notions of masculinity. I feel that this is a prime example of why a larger space for scholarship should exist, attention should be paid to how males also have to negotiate daily life within given "norms" of who they must be. I do not feel that this would overshadow women's studies or take away power from women. In fact, like we are doing in this class, it may be very useful to have studies of both genders laid out next to each other to see how one may affect the other and visa versa. I believe that when we find comminalities between people (for example both genders having to negotiate certain norms) there is the potential for change. When men view their experience through a critical engagement like a Chicano/Latino Men's Studies movement the ability to relate to the Women's studies movement will increase and I believe this could work both ways. I do not think that this is specific to just the Chicano/a Latino/a community, but in many communities throughout the world.

Posted by snide040 at 10:02 AM | Permalink

As we've been reading scholarship on machismo, masculinities and the development of The New Men's Studes, I would like to know your thoughts on the role these conversations have within the fields of Chicana/o-Latina/o studies and Gender, Women & Sexuality Studies.

Alfredo Mirande states that one of the controversies regarding the development of TNMS, "has centered around the assertion that TNMS and the call for more generic gender studies programs are simply insidious tactics designed to weaken and co-opt feminist studies" (1997, 121). Do you agree or disagree with this charge made by feminists? And within the context of Chicana/Latina feminist scholarship we've read this semester do you think they would agree with this? How do our understandings of femininity develop as we focus on issues of masculinity? And where does machismo fit into all of this?

You don't need to answer all of these questions, they are simply here to get your thoughts going about these issues.

Posted by Kandace Creel Falcon at 11:26 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)