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Karen Corona

English 115

Professor J. Rodrick

22 October 2018

Latinos Born in America: How has America Helped them to be Performative?

When it comes to shaping one's identity, society, the people who surround them on a day

to day basis, the culture they practice, and the environment they live in, all play a critical role.

This will either cause one to conform due to pressure or to be performative. Being born and

raised in America by Latino immigrants definitely has its struggles as would any minority;

however many Latino-Americans have found a way to overcome these struggles. Due to their

cultural traits, their physical traits, and stereotypes that they are labeled with, they are able to

perform and prove wrong those who constantly doubt them.

Cultural traits allow Latino-Americans to be performative by outperforming those who

are not bilingual, although it may sometimes be tough. While some parents encourage their

children to speak Spanish, other parents do not. A lot of Latino immigrant parents are afraid of

having their child be discriminated or treated differently, simply because they are speaking

another language other than English. In an interview filmed by NBC News (2018), “Defining

Latino: Young People Talk Identity, Belonging”, Berenize Garcia shares how her father, who is

a Mexican Immigrant has pushed her to be more American, while her mother encourages her to

speak and practice her Spanish with her Mexican relatives. Garcia explains how this has made

her confused, however on the other hand she dreams of becoming a doctor and help out patients
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who have a language barrier, using her mom as an example. She explains that her mom is unable

to express her pain to the doctor, since she does not speak English well. Many times, the children

serve as a “translator” to their parent, whether it be a visit to the doctor or a meeting at school.

However, Garcia explains how she would love to help and “empower” her spanish-speaking

clients that have the same language-barrier as her mom. In this case being bilingual serves as an

advantage.

Being bilingual also opens up more job and career opportunities. In an article, “Young

Latinos: Born in the U.S.A., carving their own Identity” written by Suzanne Gamboa, a young

Latina, who was interviewed, shared her thoughts, “​We’re stripped in a lot of cases of our

Spanish tongue...told it’s really important that you only speak English and to speak English well,

otherwise, you’re going to face hardship...because of the prejudice that this country holds​”. She

then mentions the importance of speaking Spanish and how one should not be ashamed. I for

example, grew up Mexican-American and Spanish was my first language. I am very proud to be

bilingual and use my Spanish when needed, such as assisting a customer at my job, who does not

speak English well. I work as a receptionist at a car dealership and when there are Spanish calls

they are often connected to me, since the other receptionists do not understand the language. This

makes me feel happy, that I have made it easier for the customer to communicate and have them

directed to the correct department. Speaking spanish is part of our culture, whether we speak it

fluently or inarticulate and we should not be embarrassed. We also should not be embarrassed of

our physical traits.

Our physical traits allow Latino-Americans to be performative since they are all different

skin-tones. This has caused confusion to others who are not part of the Latino community, as
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well as those who are. This allows the Latino-American community to educate them and break

the stereotype that they are all “brown”. In the same article written by Gamboa, Alma Flores who

is a light-skinned Latina shares that she is questioned when she identifies herself as a Chicana

because of her light complexion. She also mentions that they have called her “white-washed”. I

am able to relate to Alma, since I am also light-skinned and was even teased by own peers who

also happen to be Latino-American. I was told that I was not “Mexican” enough simply because

I was not their skin color. What a lot of people do not understand however, is that

Latino-Americans all have different skin complexions; some darker than others and some lighter

than others. This does not in any way make us less or more “latino”. Gamboa also wrote about

Leyanis Diaz who is an Afro-Latina born in Cuba. Diaz shared how she first had self-esteem

issues, when people would tell her that they did not know that there were black people in Cuba.

She then took advantage of this opportunity to teach the people that surrounded her, about her

Cuban/Latino culture. It is sometimes difficult for a lot of Latino-Americans when it comes to

filling out forms or surveys that ask for your race. These forms do not include Hispanic or

Latino and they are either forced to choose Caucasian/White or a different option that they do not

identify with. I for example, always wondered why my high school records identified my race as

Caucasian, until I realized that there is not an option for Hispanic and/or Latino. The solution to

this would be to provide an option for the Latino community that they do identify with, unlike

Caucasian. Being different skin-tones in the Latino community allows a Latino to outperform

others by educating those who think that all Latinos are “brown” and educating them on their

country of origin as well.

Lastly stereotypes. Even though there are many situations, where one might sink into the

stereotypes that are labeled on to Latino-Americans, they are able to surpass many of them

causing them to outperform majorities. A lot of Latino-Americans grow up in low-income

neighborhoods and are raised by parents who did not complete their schooling. This becomes a

challenge; not falling into the stereotypes America has labeled them with. In Stephen Balkaran’s

article, “Hispanic Heritage Month: How Hispanics Are Defining and Redefining America” he

explains, “Hispanics are envisioned as migrant workers, cheap laborers with leaf blowers,

non-English-speaking individuals...”. This in my opinion sounds harsh, however it is how a lot of

people see Latino-Americans. Many parents of Latino-Americans, came to the country not

knowing how different the culture is from their own, challenging them to raise their children in a

country where they are expected to fail. My parents, who were Mexican immigrants (they now

have their citizenship) raised me with the idea that I had to go to college, in order to be someone

in life and that school would be the way out of my “ghetto” neighborhood, Pacoima. They raised

me by not “handing” me anything, but rather explained to me that I had to work for what I

wanted. As a result of this, I was able to get a job when I was 16, worked two jobs my senior

year (while passing all my classes) and was able to get a brand new car on my own, with my

savings. My parents knew that my sister and I had to work harder than others because as Latino/a

Americans we are either expected to become young parents, high school dropouts, and to

continue to live in poverty. In a research study, “Between Two Worlds: How Young Latinos

Come of Age in America”, by Pew Research Center, they explain, “they are much more likely

than other American youths to drop out of school and to become teenage parents. They are more

likely than white and Asian youths to live in poverty. And they have high levels of exposure to
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gangs.” It is difficult to not fall into a statistic when the numbers for Hispanics are so high. On

the other hand, this urges them to not be another

statistic, but exceed in whatever it is that they are doing, whether it be work or school. This

encourages them to work harder and outperform those who are already expected to succeed.

Even though Latino-Americans are put down as a minority due to our cultural traits,

physical traits, and stereotypes that are given to them, they are either expected to conform to

rules or fail. They are never really quite seen as performative, however they are. They embrace

both their Latino culture and American culture and want to help break the labels that are put on

them by outperforming majorities.

Works Cited

Balkaran, Stephen. “Hispanic Heritage Month: How Hispanics Are Defining and Redefining

America.” ​The Huffington Post​, TheHuffingtonPost.com, 19 Nov.

2014.​www.huffingtonpost.com/stephen-balkaran/hispanic-heritage-month-b_b_5848568.h

tml.​ ​Accessed 18 Oct. 2018

“Between Two Worlds: How Young Latinos Come of Age in America | Pew Research Center.”

Pew Research Center's Hispanic Trends Project.​ 1 July 2013.

www.pewhispanic.org/2009/12/11/between-two-worlds-how-young-latinos-come-of-age-

in-america/​. Accessed 24 Oct. 2018.

“For Young Latinos, a Difficult Passage to Adulthood”. ​Pew Research Center's Hispanic Trends

Project.​ 1 July 2013. Accessed 24 Oct. 2018.

Gamboa, Suzanne. “Young Latinos: Born in the U.S.A., Carving Their Own Identity.”

NBCNews.com​, NBCUniversal News Group. 14 Sept. 2018.

www.nbcnews.com/news/latino/young-latinos-born-u-s-carving-their-own-identity-n908

086.​ ​Accessed 22 Oct. 2018.

Movieclips, director. ​Twice as Perfect, Selena Scene (1997).​ ​YouTube​, YouTube, 27 June 2017.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=HIBYaeYQF0k​. Accessed 24, Oct. 2018.

NBCNews, director. ​Defining Latino: Young People Talk Identity, Belonging.​ ​YouTube,​

YouTube, 14 Sept. 2018. ​www.youtube.com/watch?v=QePAmImu2wA​. Accessed 24,

Oct. 2018.