Decolonization in Latino culture

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Decolonization in Latino culture refers to contemporary treatment of and work with past colonialist and imperialist influences on Latin American society in the US.

Contents

History

Decolonization is a term that refers to a period in history, but it has evolved to become a theme in many studies revolving around Latino literature, studies and arts. It arose as a response to the rule of many states by a bigger, usually more powerful, nation. It “was interpreted to be both a calculated process of military engagement and diplomatic negotiation between the two contending parties: colonial and anti-colonial”. [1] It first became prominent after World War I, being that Europe lost manpower, finances, and confidence and, at the same time, anti-colonial resentment grew through European colonies especially in literature and in an increase of strikes. [1]  Decolonization usually involved the removal of European influence which led to greater implications for the newly freed states.  These implications involved gaining independent economic control, amongst other things. [1]   The aftermath of decolonization left these states to rebuild themselves and, in many cases, end up mimicking the Western world which they rid themselves of in the first place.

Modern decolonization

Decolonization is now seen as more than ridding European influences. The modern definition involves “obtaining constitutional independence”. [2] This definition, however, has been critiqued to disregard the “economic, social and cultural implications” of the process. [2] In an attempt to incorporate this aspect, the definition has been repurposed to be the “reversal of the process of European imperial expansion with all it political, economic, social, cultural and linguistic consequences”. [2] This, however, is also critiqued because it is difficult to reverse history and the “remnant of its colonial past”. [2] So, decolonization as a theory arose.  Decolonization, as a theory, involves assessing history in order to benefit the advancement of society on an international level, during the process of world-making. [3] It involves better assessing the failures and limitations of decolonization in history and anti-imperial efforts to benefit remaking the international order. [3] It also involves detaching from “the overall structure of knowledges in order to engage in epistemic reconstruction”. [4]

Critique of decolonization

The increased popularity and usage of decolonization has also caused critiques. These critiques, mainly emphasizing that “decolonization is not a metaphor” argue that decolonization has been more popularly used to characterize things that must be fixed or improved in society which gives the term a metaphorical implication. This is said to be dangerous because some of the objectives it is being applied to may not always be in alignment with decolonization’s true definition. [5] Metaphorizing decolonization is critiqued to be a result of “attempt[ing] to reconcile settler guilt and complicity, and rescue settler futurity”. [5]

Decolonization of Latino studies

Decolonizing Latino archives involves undertaking a “decolonial reading of colonial test with Latino literary history”. [6]  Scholars, such as Yolanda Martinez San Miguel, theorize that in order to decolonialize the colonial dimensions that appear in United States Latino archives, colonial tests must be read with a decolonial perspective.  This would consequently open up Latino studies to its blind spots that are embedded in its teachings. These blind spots, which results from colonization, include lack of collaboration, erasure of some countries and the invisibility of some cultures, such as, indigenous or Asian peoples. [6]  Decolonizing how Latino archives are read, also brings in the different engagement with Americanness and the incorporation of experiences of displacement. Decolonization as a theme is thought to have the power to diversify the Latino archives that play a role in Latino studies and diversify the definition of latinidad by dismantling blind spots. [6]

Decolonization as a theme in Latino arts

Decolonization has been incorporated into films, books, music and many other forms of art by Latino artists in order to dismantle the influence that historical colonial efforts has on said art-types. This is popularly seen in the characters and plots that work to critique or comment on society or simply offer stories that break out of the colonial norm known in the field.

Books and writers

These books are written by Latino writers that challenge the norms of society and therefore give a decolonized perspective in their stories.

Film

Many films have offered a decolonial perspective on Latin American science fiction media.  These films usually involve showcasing utopian and dystopian tales and incorporate Latin American identities and ideas. Cinema Tropical and the Museum of the Moving Image offered some examples of these films in their film program for “Uchronias and Dystopian Futures: Latin American Science Fiction Cinema of the 21st Century.” [8]

The films included were: [8]

Related Research Articles

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Decolonization</span> Undoing political, economic and cultural legacies of colonisation

Decolonization is the undoing of colonialism, the latter being the process whereby imperial nations establish and dominate foreign territories, often overseas. The meanings and applications of the term are disputed. Some scholars of decolonization focus especially on independence movements in the colonies and the collapse of global colonial empires.

Postcolonial feminism is a form of feminism that developed as a response to feminism focusing solely on the experiences of women in Western cultures and former colonies. Postcolonial feminism seeks to account for the way that racism and the long-lasting political, economic, and cultural effects of colonialism affect non-white, non-Western women in the postcolonial world. Postcolonial feminism originated in the 1980s as a critique of feminist theorists in developed countries pointing out the universalizing tendencies of mainstream feminist ideas and argues that women living in non-Western countries are misrepresented.

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Latin American poetry is the poetry written by Latin American authors. Latin American poetry is often written in Spanish, but is also composed in Portuguese, Mapuche, Nahuatl, Quechua, Mazatec, Zapotec, Ladino, English, and Spanglish. The unification of Indigenous and imperial cultures produced a unique and extraordinary body of literature in this region. Later with the introduction of African slaves to the new world, African traditions greatly influenced Latin American poetry. Many great works of poetry were written in the colonial and pre-colonial time periods, but it was in the 1960s that the world began to notice the poetry of Latin America. Through the modernismo movement, and the international success of Latin American authors, poetry from this region became increasingly influential.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Decoloniality</span> School of thought

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Xicanx</span> Gender-neutral term for select Mexican subcultures

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Decolonization of knowledge</span> Process of undoing colonial influences on knowledge

Decolonization of knowledge is a concept advanced in decolonial scholarship that critiques the perceived hegemony of Western knowledge systems. It seeks to construct and legitimize other knowledge systems by exploring alternative epistemologies, ontologies and methodologies. It is also an intellectual project that aims to "disinfect" academic activities that are believed to have little connection with the objective pursuit of knowledge and truth. The presumption is that if curricula, theories, and knowledge are colonized, it means they have been partly influenced by political, economic, social and cultural considerations. The decolonial knowledge perspective covers a wide variety of subjects including philosophy, science, history of science, and other fundamental categories in social science.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coloniality of knowledge</span> Decolonial theory

Coloniality of knowledge is a concept that Peruvian sociologist Anibal Quijano developed and adapted to contemporary decolonial thinking. The concept critiques what proponents call the Eurocentric system of knowledge, arguing the legacy of colonialism survives within the domains of knowledge. For decolonial scholars, the coloniality of knowledge is central to the functioning of the coloniality of power and is responsible for turning colonial subjects into victims of the coloniality of being, a term that refers to the lived experiences of colonized peoples.

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References

  1. 1 2 3 Betts, Raymond F. Beyond Empire and Nation.
  2. 1 2 3 4 von Bismarck, Helene. "Defining Decolonization". The British Scholar Society.
  3. 1 2 Adom Getachew (2019). Worldmaking after Empire: The Rise and Fall of Self-Determination. Princeton University Press. ISBN   978-0-691-18434-0.
  4. ↑ "Interview - Walter Mignolo/Part 2: Key Concepts". E-International Relations. Retrieved 2020-03-19.
  5. 1 2 Tuck, Eve; Yang, K. Wayne. "Decolonization is not a metaphor" (PDF). Decolonization: Indigeneity, Education & Society. 1: 1–40.
  6. 1 2 3 Martínez San Miguel, Yolanda (February 2018). "Rethinking the Colonial Latinx Literary Imaginary". The Cambridge History of Latina/o American Literature. pp. 93–118. doi:10.1017/9781316869468.006. ISBN   978-1-316-86946-8 . Retrieved 2020-03-19.{{cite book}}: |website= ignored (help)
  7. ↑ León, Concepción de (2018-11-29). "8 Books Reshaping Latinx Literature". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2020-04-15.
  8. 1 2 "Decolonize Sci-Fi: This Film Series Showcases Utopian & Dystopian Tales Set in Latin America". Remezcla. 2019-04-22. Retrieved 2020-04-15.
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