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The University of Southern Mississippi
Dissolving La Malinche Myth: Legitimizing and Justifying La Chicana Cause
by
Leslie Rodriguez
An Essay Submitted to Dr. W. Atkins-Sayre of The University of Southern Mississippi in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for SCM 740: Rhetorical Criticism 2
April 28, 2009 3
Introduction
Ruiz (1998) stated in her book From Out of the Shadows, “[a]lthough many scholars recognize the 1960s and 1970s as the era for the modern feminist movement, they have left
Chicanas out of their stories” (p. 100). History rarely speaks of the efforts and strides made by
Chicana women during their feminist movement as their own cause; instead, all women are seemingly represented in the modern feminist movement. However, although Chicanas were inspired by the White feminist movement and did take part in their efforts, they ultimately felt that their stories, their suffrage, their oppression was not the same. Instead, Chicanas felt they had suffered a double discrimination: one for being Mexican, and two for being a woman. As a result, Chicanas banded together and created a feminist movement of their own, the Chicana
Feminist Movement.
Although the Chicana Feminist Movement made great strides for Chicana women everywhere, despite their efforts – their story remains virtually untold. However, their story is not unwritten. Mirta Vidal passionately wrote on the Chicano struggles, specifically covering the first national Chicana feminist conference. Her article, Women: New Voice of La Raza, is an artifact that is an accurate representation that recounts the struggles and desires of Chicanas during that era.
Unfortunately, regardless of Vidal’s attempt to both justify and legitimize the Chicana movement, the cause remained highly scrutinized and rejected among Chicano men. It is my argument that the reason for such scrutiny and rejection can be linked to a historical and mythical figure of the Mexican culture, La Malinche. Historically, La Malinche was an interpreter who helped Hernan Cortes and the Spanish conquer her own people, the Aztecs. Mythically, La 4
Malinche has been broadened to represent any woman who is considered a traitor to her culture and her people. It is my argument that Chicana feminists were portrayed as La Malinche.
In this essay, I explore how Mirta Vidal’s article Women: New Voice of La Raza contains evidence suggesting that women involved in the Chicana Feminist Movement were considered traitors; therefore, they were being depicted from within their culture as becoming the modern day Malinche. Additionally, I note supplementary ways in which the La Malinche myth parallels with how Chicana feminist were being portrayed and identified by Chicano men. Ultimately, I exhibit how Vidal eventually justified and legitimized the Chicana cause by re-establishing the identity and clarifying the motives of Chicana feminists, while attacking the character and intents of Chicano men.
To sufficiently support these assertions, I begin by contextualizing the historical events that surrounded the Chicana Feminist Movement. I continue the discussion with a review of relevant literature that surrounded the cause. Thirdly, I thoroughly discuss the theoretical perspective I used to draw a parallel between La Malinche and Chicana feminist, and provide the methodology used to accomplish this task. Last, I offer a thorough analysis that explains how
Chicana feminists were depicted as the modern day Malinche as substantiated through Vidal’s text, and how Vidal ultimately legitimized and justified the Chicana Feminist Movement.
Historical Context
The Chicana Feminist Movement was highly influenced by both the Chicano movement and by second wave feminism. The Chicano movement “called for an end to the oppression of
Chicanos – discrimination, racism, poverty – goals which Chicanas supported unequivocally, but it did not propose basic changes in male-female relations or in the overall status of women”
(Mirandé & Enríquez, 1979, p.234). Therefore, the Chicana Feminist Movement was also highly 5 influenced by second wave feminists who sought “for women the same opportunities and privileges [that] society g[a]ve to men” (Evans, 1995, p. 2). Consequently, in order to fully understand the historical context that surrounded the article written by Mirta Vidal (1971) entitled Women: New Voice of La Raza, which addressed the Chicana Feminist Movement, it is essential to discuss the two movements that highly influenced and shaped their movement: the
Chicano movement and second wave feminism.
The Chicano Movement
The Chicano movement was a continuation of the Mexican-American Civil Rights
Movement that took place in the 1940s, which sought educational, social, and political equality in the United States for Mexican-Americans (Blea, 1977). Additionally, according to Escobar
(1993), the Black civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s reignited the 1940s Mexican-
American Civil Rights efforts as they refocused public attention on the issue of racial discrimination. Moreover, the Black power movement developed the concept of nationalism, which utilized racial identity as a source of pride. Chicanos borrowed this concept and “created the concept of cultural nationalism, which became the ideological underpinning for the Chicano movement” (p. 1486).
According to Asunclow-Lande (1976), a large portion of the Chicano movement focused on the rhetoric of identity and integration. Chicanos wanted to be identified as equal to their
Anglo counterparts without sacrificing their pride in their language, history, culture, and race.
More specifically, the Chicano movement, emulating the goals of Black civil rights efforts, developed four general goals for their movement, according to Escobar:
[Chicanos sought] to maintain pride in Mexican Americans’ cultural identity; to foster a
political understanding that Mexican Americans were an oppressed and exploited 6
minority group; to use the [sic] ethnic pride and the sense of exploitation to forge a
political movement through which Chicanos would empower themselves; and finally, to
force white society to end the discriminatory practices that restricted Chicanos’ lives.
(p.1492)
To obtain these goals, many important organizations were developed to focus on the oppression and inequality experienced by Chicanos throughout the United States. Some of the most important organizations that developed were the Educational Issues Coordinating
Committee, which focused on the reformation of public schools, the United Mexican American
Students and the Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlán, which focused on Mexican
American access to higher education, the Brown Berets, who were often compared to the Black
Panthers, which focused on issues of education, health care, and police brutality. Additionally,
La Raza Unida party was formed, which attempted to form a third political party to address
Chicano concerns (Escobar, 1993), and civil rights leader Cesar Chavez’s efforts were aimed at creating a Farm Workers Labor union, which would secure safer working conditions and higher wages for farm workers (Hammerback & Jensen, 1980).
These organizations worked together to “influence the social systems that ha[d] perpetuated social injustices” (Aguirre, 1972, p. 2). Demonstrations to pursue the previously mentioned goals ranged from quiet protest to violent demonstrations. Regardless, all efforts sought to free the Chicano from a discriminating society, and to recreate a Chicano identity that was free from the margins of society, and treated equally in all spheres of life.
Second Wave Feminism
As the ‘first wave’ of the feminist movement “succeeded in achieving a significant victory – that of enfranchising women within the political and legal system” (Whelehan, 1995, p. 7
4), which ultimately secured women the right to vote, the ‘second wave’ of the feminist movement sought “for women the same opportunities and privileges [that] society g[a]ve to men” (Evans, 1995, p. 2). In essence, ‘second wave’ feminist women “believed that men and women are equal and [that women] should have equal respect and opportunities in all spheres of life – personal, social, work, and public” (Wood, 2008, p. 323). Additionally, second wave feminists evaluated the effects of a patriarchal organization, which inheritably embedded inequality into their private lives. Due to this inequality, second wave feminists fought to incorporate change in this sphere of their lives, as well (Whelehan, 1995).
According to Evans (1995), early second-wave feminism took on two forms of equality.
The first was more liberal, and began with the Presidential Commission of 1960, and The
Feminine Mystique. The second form was more radical and emerged from the 1960’s New Left, and the movement for Black civil rights. Regardless, it is noted that both sought for an element of sameness, which asserted that “men and women are and could be the same, and equal or capable of being equal once stereotypes [of women were] changed or barriers [were] removed”
(Evans, 1995, p. 14).
In the late 1960s, according to MacLean (2006), due to the increasing support of the women’s liberation movement, “the ranks of women activist surged, their supporters multiplied many times over, and the pace of the reform accelerated” (p. 19). As a result of the increasing support, many women’s groups and political forces began to form as they worked actively towards establishing change regarding the following issues: equal pay, equal education and job opportunities, birth control and abortion, and childcare (Whelehan, 1995).
A few years later, MacLean (2006) notes that women “won protection from employment discrimination, inclusion in affirmative action, abortion law reform, greater representation in 8 media, equal school access to athletics, congressional passage of an Equal Rights Amendment, and much more” (p. 19). Second wave feminism was enjoying its share of success, and continued to make advances far into the late 1980s and early 1990s (Whelehan, 1995).
Chicana Feminist Movement
Initially, Chicana women were inspired by the efforts of White feminists. Chicanas also wanted to fight against gender inequality and the domineering patriarchal system; however, they soon realized that they had to create their own identity as their Anglo counterparts refused to address racial and class inequalities as part of their movement. As a result of this refusal,
Chicanas began to see the movement as a White middle-class movement only. Being that
Chicanas saw themselves as Chicanos first, and women second, due to the loyalty they had for their own culture, they branched off from the established feminist movement and created their own, which is now known as the Chicana Feminist Movement (Ruiz, 1998).
The Chicana Feminist Movement served as a middle ground between the Chicano movement and the Women’s Liberation Movement. The Women’s Liberation Movement sought to establish for women a position of equality in a male driven world. The Chicano movement sought educational, social, and political equality in the United States for Mexican-
Americans (Blea, 1977). The Chicana Feminist Movement sought to do both. Chicana feminists wanted to establish social, cultural, and political identities for themselves in America (Blea,
1977), but also sought to establish an identity for themselves in their own culture, in their own household. Flores (1996) stated that the Chicana feminist often felt alienated and isolated, and longed for a space and home in which they belonged.
In 1969, the Chicana Feminist Movement began to take form as a result of the 1969
Chicano Youth Liberation Conference, which was held in Denver, CO and was sponsored by the 9
Crusade for Justice. In attendance were more than 1500 young men and women (Ruiz, 1998). It was at this conference that Chicano issues first gained a national platform, and that women began to participate in male-dominated dialogues. Additionally, this venue provided a place for women to rally together to address feminist concerns that consisted of both racism and sexism. As a result of this gathering, it is noted that women went back to their communities as activists; thus, signifying the beginning of the Chicana Feminist Movement (Blea, 1977).
By 1971, in Houston, Texas, at La Conferencia de Mujeres Por La Raza (First National
Chicana Conference), Chicana women were speaking out with a distinct feminist platform.
Issues on the platform included: “free legal abortions and birth control in the Chicano community be provided and controlled by Chicanas, higher education, for acknowledgement of the Catholic Church as an instrument of oppression, for companionate equalitarian marriage, and for child care arrangements to ensure women’s involvement in the movement” (Ruiz, 1998, p.
108).
Being that these issues, as well as the movement, were controversial in nature, it was evident that the Chicana Feminist Movement was highly scrutinized. The Chicana cause needed help. To help strengthen and advance the Chicana cause, it was necessary for someone to help legitimize and justify the claims of the movement. This necessity for legitimacy is what prompted Vidal to write about the cause in her article Women: New Voice of La Raza. At that time, Vidal was one of the few writers who devoted her time to writing about the Chicano movement. Later, other writers followed suit by finding the Chicano movement worthy of rhetorical study; however, writings regarding Chicana rhetoric has remained sparse. 10
Existing Literature
Just as the Chicana movement encountered problems trying to establish an identity of its own, the same has occurred regarding the scholarship devoted by critics to exploring the rhetoric surrounding the Chicana movement. Aside from a few articles that address Chicana rhetoric independently (e.g., Enoch, 2005), most is seemingly represented in the analysis surrounding both the Chicano movement and second wave feminist rhetoric.
Rhetoric of the Chicano Movement
Although more literature has been published regarding the Chicano movement than the
Chicana feminist movement, it is also sparse. Many of the articles that do exist analyze the rhetoric produced by Cesar Chavez and Rodolfo “Corky” Gonzales. Both men have been said to have contributed significantly to the Chicano movement as leaders; therefore, making their oration worthy of study.
Chavez, founder and president of the United Farm Workers, has been praised as one of the twentieth century’s greatest orators. Due to his ability to persuade many labor workers to unite and demand change, his strategies are often analyzed (e.g., Hammerback & Jensen, 1980,
Hammerback & Jensen, 1994, Jensen, Burkholder, & Hammerback, 2003, and Zompetti, 2006,).
Similarly, author of Yo Soy Joaquin, Rodolfo “Corky” Gonzales, was also known to have significantly contributed to the Chicano movement through the use of his rhetoric, which also united La Raza. Jensen and Hammerback (1982) examined Gonzales’ public addresses as he sought to improve the lives of Chicanos. Analysis found that Gonzales’ substantive themes, primary audience, and rhetorical techniques separated him from other, less influential, Chicano leaders. 11
More generally speaking, Powers (1973) sought to establish presuppositions pertinent to the understanding of the Chicano movement. Powers, recognizing that the Chicano movement was significant in its persuasive efforts to unite, established five axioms that were inherent in unification rhetoric established in the Chicano movement: the feeling of oppression, La Raza, the robbery of conquered people, Huelga, and Aztlán. Additionally, Delgado (1995) surveyed
Chicano movement rhetoric and argued that the unification of Chicanos was established through key documents that created and rooted their political ideologies as presented in El Plan
Espiritual de Aztlán and El Plan de Santa Barbara.
Although the above literature addresses unification rhetoric that appears to have surrounded the Chicano movement, and that unification was also a key factor in the Chicana movement, it does not address the rhetoric that surrounded the Chicana movement regarding their rights as women. Therefore, I will turn to a review of second wave feminist rhetoric to address this portion of the movement.
Rhetoric of Second Wave Feminism
Dow (2005) asserts that in rhetorical studies, the second wave has received less attention than that received by the first wave. She attributes this fact to the notion that the first wave fit so well into the traditional public address paradigm; whereas, the second wave does not. Due to this fact, Dow notes that second wave is a “messier movement, and the rhetorical scholarship devoted to it is smaller and less cohesive” (p. 90). Additionally, Dow notes that the
“fragmentation and general absence of second wave scholarship in rhetorical studies reflects the elusive nature of the movement itself” (p. 90). However, some scholars have attempted to
“incorporate women into the rhetorical tradition and to develop critical perspectives and theory 12 better suited to understand women’s discourse during the second wave of feminism” (Campbell,
2001, p. 9).
According to Campbell (2001), initial efforts were established through the recovery of women’s texts, which provided the material for anthologies of speeches by women (e.g.,
Anderson, 1984; Kennedy & O’Shields, 1983), social-movement analysis of women’s rights
(e.g., Campbell, 1989), and documents that evaluate women’s petitioning activities (University of Wisconsin, 1997).
Furthermore, Campbell (2005) also noted that some scholars contributed their time to establishing critical perspectives and theories to enlarge the understanding of women’s rhetoric.
As an example, Campbell discusses how Lynne Derbyshire’s (University of Maryland, 1997) dissertation explored the “prior discourse that created an alternative subject position for women that allowed the constitutive rhetoric of the Seneca Falls Convention to succeed” (p.10).
Moreover, she noted how Browne (2000) analyzed women’s discourse to show how an identity or signature was symbolically channeled into moral reform. Aside from critical perspectives and theories, Campbell introduces a wealth of literature published in articles that deal with second wave feminism. She notes that authors have written about the efforts of Catholic women, women’s political rhetoric, the construction of gender, abortion rhetoric, and women in the labor movement.
Providing a list of published journal articles, Campbell (2005) again notes that although a handful of articles can be found regarding women’s rhetoric from the second wave of feminism,
“feminist rhetorical theory is in its infancy in communication studies” (p. 11). This infancy can be exhibited through the lack of scholarship devoted to rhetoric surrounding the Chicana
Feminist Movement. Although, as time passes, efforts are being made to include the rhetoric of 13 subgroups, such as Blacks and Chicanas as established in Roth’s (2003) book entitled Separate
Roads to Feminism: Black, Chicana, and White Feminist Movements in America’s Second Wave.
Critical Perspective
According to Nelson (2008), “in many cultures, women, far more than men, serve as archetypes” (p. 1). Nelson argued that it is through these archetypes that women are reduced to symbols, and that the actual complexities of women become dismissed and hidden.
Additionally, Nelson asserted that these symbols surface through stories that appear within a culture and that these stories work to “define what it means to be male or female” (p.1) and
“provide the parameters of acceptable behavior within those roles” (p.1). Furthermore, she stated that it is through the retelling of these stories that the gender system of a particular culture is reinforced. Moreover, the stories also work to establish boundaries and define punishments for those who choose to step outside these boundaries.
In regard to the Mexican/Chicano culture, Gaspar de Alba (2005) identified three archetypal roles that have surfaced regarding women: la madre (the mother), la virgen (the virgin), and la puta (the whore). Gaspar de Alba argued that all Mexican/Chicana women are identified and defined through these three roles, which are not mutually-exclusive; therefore, technically, a woman can exhibit characteristics of all three. For example, la virgen and la madre often overlap with stated characteristics of marianismo: “an idealized woman who is an obedient, self sacrificing mother, subordinating her needs to those of her children, [she] obeyed the wishes of her son, Christ, and of other men including the disciples and God himself” (Acosta-
Alzuru, 2003, p. 275). Therefore, these two roles often blend and become one – the Virgin
Mary. However, realistically, a coexistence of la virgen and la puta cannot exist; instead, they contain a natural division. As a result of these natural combinations and divisions, 14
Mexican/Chicana women are often identified as exhibiting characteristics of la Virgen Madre or la puta; therefore, creating a dichotomy of identification for Mexican/Chicana women.
This created dichotomy has been reinforced through Chicano literature. Chicana authors, such as Gloria Anzaldúa, Ana Castillo, Sandra Cisneros, and Cherrie Moraga, have created literary works that reinforce this dichotomy through the female figures of La Virgen de
Guadalupe (la Virgen Madre) and La Malinche (la puta). In the literature, the Virgen de
Guadalupe is the figure that Mexican/Chicana women should seek to mimic as they represent the ideas of marianismo. However, tiring from the inherent oppression of a patriarchal world, the women battle with the desire to rebel against these standards and create a voice of their own.
However, to rebel is to move away from marianismo and inch toward whoredom as they become a traitor to their culture – a Malinche. It is noted that this may be a false dichotomy for identifying women; however, it is further noted that regardless of its possible falsity, it has been readily accepted as reality within the culture. Therefore, Mexican/Chicana women are either La
Virgen de Guadalupe (the virgin mother) or La Malinche (the traitor).
This created dichotomy of virgin/whore can also be found in how women are portrayed in film. Acosta-Alzuru (2003) asserted that “‘feminism’ and ‘feminist’ are conflicted terms in all regions of the world” (p. 269) and that Latin America is no exception. As a result of this assertion, Acosta-Alzuru’s study sought to examine a successful Latin American media product
– a telenovela (soap opera), to analyze how feminism and feminists are represented. Through her analysis, Acosta-Alzuru discovered that the virgin/whore dichotomy is reinforced through the portrayal of women in Latina American telenovelas, and that this dichotomy reinforces the
“public/private dichotomy that subordinates women in Latin America” (p. 275). Specifically, her analysis of the telenovela El Pais de las Mujeres offered a positive critique of the 15
Venezuelan patriarchy, a sharp rejection of feminism as the telenovela “ridicules feminism as a man hating, aggressive, emotional, out-of-place discourse” (p. 288), and an empowering message for women in how they should behave as established through the virgin/whore dichotomy.
Additionally, in regard to print, Calafell (2000) examined how the virgin/whore dichotomy is presented in issues of Latina Magazine. Her analysis found that Latinas are visually portrayed in the magazine as either virgins or whores, and that the magazines strategically use skin color, phenotype, and weight to continuously establish either the virgin or the whore. Ultimately, Calafell asserts that Latina Magazine helps reinforce the mold that either
Latinas are virgins (the Virgin Mary) or whores (La Malinche), and that no woman exists aside from these two.
La Malinche Myth as Lens
Slave, interpreter, raped, harlot, traitor, secretary, lover of foreigners, mistress, heroine, mother of the first mestizo, political consultant, whore, La Chingada ( the screwed) – these names are all used to describe La Malinche, an individual who continues to be surrounded by controversy in Mexico. To the majority, La Malinche continues to be reviled. More recently, to a handful of others, La Malinche has become a strong representation of a feminist and heroine
(Lencheck, 1997). Regardless of one’s view, La Malinche continues to be both a historical and mythical figure in the Mexican/Chicano culture that is used to define women who are considered a traitor to their people.
Historically Speaking
La Malinche, born Malinal, was born to a noble Aztec family around 1505. Her father, who was a rich and powerful nobleman, died when Malinal was young. As a result of her father’s death, Malinal’s mother soon remarried and bore a second child, a son, who she desired 16 to be the heir to her first husband’s estate (Adams, 1995). In order to ensure that this occurred, the mother sold Malinal into slavery to the Cacique, the military chief of Tabasco (Lencheck,
1997), and then obtained the body of a slave’s child who had died and buried it, and then told the townspeople that it was her child, Malinal, who had died (Adams, 1995).
As a slave, Malinal moved often, which exposed her to many different Indian cultures.
Historians state that because of Malinal’s personality, intelligence, and noble background, she was intellectually advanced therefore used for important tasks, such as translation. It was during this time of frequent movement that Malinal also learned Spanish, Mayan dialects, and Nahuatl.
In around 1522, Hernan Cortes arrived on the mainland near Tabasco in hope of conquering the land of the Aztecs. As a result of his landing, Cacique offered Malinal and 19 other young women as slaves to Cortes to dodge possible bloodshed. Initially, Malinal was given by Cortes to one of his captains, but after discovering her intelligence Cortes changed his mind and took her as his own slave.
As Cortez’s slave, Malinal, who was called Malinche by the Spaniards, was then used as an interpreter. She was utilized to help negotiate with the Indians, appearing to be on their side; however, she would then offer their information and strategies to Cortes. This information was key in helping Cortes with the conquest of the Aztec land. Malinche’s ability to communicate with the Indians shaped the entire campaign for the conquering of New Spain. In addition to this treason, she also bore a child with Cortes, who the Indians believe to be the first Mexican.
However, it is believed that shortly after the birth of her son, Cortes abandoned Malinche and took their son with him (Adams, 1995). 17
Mythically Speaking
Although little is known historically about La Malinche, “her story has become mythologized, [and] her name has come to stand primarily for the betrayal of the Mexican race and the danger of female sexuality” (Nelson, 2008). As a result of the betrayal of her people by
Malinche, the term Malinchismo “denotes the opening of Mexico to outsiders, those who have rendered Indian stock ‘impure’ and have sullied Indian culture” (Adams, 1995, p. 17).
Furthermore, a Malinche is “a Mexican who has been corrupted by foreign influence, usually that of the US” (O’Keeffe, 2007, 59). This assertion derives from the belief that
Malinche was seduced and corrupted by Cortes, who was of Spanish influence. Therefore, as a result of their relationship, Malinche began to accept the Spaniards way of life as her own, and she also became a supporter of their ideas. Ultimately, it is believed that Malinche lost her cultural identity as she allowed the Spaniards to pollute the Aztec heritage by accepting their ideas, but, more so by bearing a child of both Aztec and Spaniard descent, which permanently polluted the bloodline of the once pure Aztecs.
Alarcón (1983) stated that the myth of La Malinche emphasizes her sexual relationship with Cortes, and that contemporary Chicana/o culture considers Malinche an “evil goddess and creator of a new race. . .mother-whore, bearer of illegitimate children, responsible for the foreign
Spanish invasion” (p. 182), and Lanyon (1999) asserts that Malinche’s name is synonymous with
“the enemy within” (p. 188-189). Furthermore, Chicano writer Octavio Paz extends the sexual weakness of Malinche to all women “expressing the belief that because of their sexuality, women inherently pose the threat of betrayal and therefore must be controlled by men” (Nelson,
2008). As a result of the sexual deviance exhibited, the Mexican/Chicano culture framed La
Virgen de Guadalupe as an opposition to La Malinche. Simply stated, virgins were those women 18 who exhibited qualities of marianismo as established through the Catholic Church, whores were any woman who worked against marianismo (Nelson, 2008).
Nelson (2008) further stated that being a Malinche is also synonymous with a woman stepping out of her role of submission and actively trying to behave as a man in terms of leadership. This argument is drawn from Malinche’s leadership and political involvement with
Cortes, which led to the destruction of her own people. Therefore, Mexican/Chicano men warn their women that although other cultures may try to seduce them with their ideas, it will ultimately lead to destruction, as it did with Malinche. Her intellect, her education, her leadership, her sexuality, and her political influence all lead to Malinche’s downfall and consequently to the downfall of her people. As a result of this misfortune, Mexican/Chicana women are instructed to “support [their] men, maintain traditional roles, preserve their culture”
(NietoGomez, 1976, p. 99), and remain in their subordinate roles (Moraga, 1993) in order to avoid their destruction and the destruction of their race and culture.
As evident through this myth, La Malinche is the “root of much of the disdain Mexican men display toward Mexican women” (Krauss, 1997, p.1). Additionally, to men, the La
Malinche myth has justified the need for a patriarchal culture as Malinche has shown what occurs when women are educated, political, sexually immoral, and exposed to foreigners and their ideas. Therefore, to adequately prevent the dissolution of the Mexican/Chicano culture, and to protect women from being seduced by outsiders and their ideas – Mexican/Chicano men must control their women, and women must submit to their control in order to avoid a similar fate as
Malinche.
Since it has been established through previous research and exhibited through Chicano literary works that Mexican/Chicana women are often identified according to the virgin/whore 19 dichotomy, I used this established dichotomy to analyze Mirta Vidal’s Women: New Voice of La
Raza in order to uncover how Chicana feminists were viewed from within their culture.
Specifically, I used the La Malinche myth to exhibit how Chicana feminists are portrayed as traitors, therefore being labeled as the modern day Malinche. Additionally, I exhibited through examples of Vidal’s text how Chicana feminists faced similar issues as Malinche, and how this parallel was used by Chicano men to hinder the Chicana movement.
The Modern Day Malinche
From the moment that Chicana feminists sought to establish social, cultural, and political identities for themselves in America and within their culture, they were highly scrutinized and criticized by Chicano men. This scrutiny and criticism focused on the notion that they were believed to be dividing the Chicano movement by adopting views established through the modern feminist movement and embracing Anglo ideas. In short, from within their culture,
Chicanas were labeled as traitors. As a result of this label, Chicana feminists became an example of the modern day Malinche, and evidence to suggest this parallel can be seen in Mirta Vidal’s article Women: New Voice of La Raza as it provides a means in which to view how Chicana feminists were portrayed, and how this portrayal contains similar characteristics to La Malinche.
As a result of these similarities, Vidal was required to legitimize and justify the Chicana cause in such a way that it would dissolve a 500 year old myth that Chicano men readily embraced in order to support why they refused to give Chicana women the voice they so desired.
Additionally, Vidal had to reinforce the identity of Chicana feminists as lovers and supporters of their own culture so that Chicana feminists would remain faithful to the cause and so that other
Chicana woman would join the ranks of other Chicana feminists.
In her article, Vidal quickly introduced her topic as she wrote: 20
“[a]t the end of May 1971, more than 600 Chicanas met in Houston, Texas, to hold the
first national conference of Raza women. For those of us who were there it was clear that
this conference was not just another national gathering of the Chicano movement”
(para.1).
Whereas other conferences attended by Chicana women were in support of the Chicano movement, this conference was held for Chicana women, by Chicana women, in order to uncover the Chicana cause – something that had never been done.
Vidal further revealed her purpose when she stated, “the conference as a whole reflected a rising consciousness of the Chicana about her special oppression in this society” (Vidal, para.
4). This sentence alone functions in two ways. First, it informed the reader that Chicana women felt oppressed by society. Secondly, and more importantly, this sentence acted as a transition that housed the ultimate purpose of informing the reader of the Chicana oppression as presented in the first national conference of Raza women. It also provided a list of the issues that Chicana feminists challenged. These issues are highly similar to issues highlighted in the La Malinche myth. Vidal wrote:
With their growing involvement in the struggle for Chicano liberation and the emergence
of the feminist movement, Chicanas are beginning to challenge every social institution
which contributes to and is responsible for their oppression, from inequality on the job to
their own role in the home. They are questioning “machismo,” discrimination in
education, the double standard, the role of the Catholic Church, and all the backward
ideology designed to keep women subjugated. (para. 5)
As seen through the above excerpt, it becomes obvious when compared to the La
Malinche myth that Chicana feminists were guilty of rising up against the same issues that 21 damned Malinche when she stepped out of a women’s role and acted as a man. Therefore, it also became Vidal’s mission to introduce feminism and women’s liberation in a more favorable light.
Vidal chose to do this in a more subtle manner, by randomly seasoning relevant arguments with statements such as, “among the many distortions about the feminist movement is the argument that women are simply fighting against men” (para. 27), “they are not turning away from La
Causa or waging a campaign against man” (para. 50), and “but the news media portrays women’s liberation people as karate-chopping, man-hating hippies” (para. 26). Regardless of the subtleness, clarification of the feminist intent surfaced throughout the article, and issues regarding the Chicana’s role in education and politics continuously surfaced, as did a discussion regarding sexuality.
Educationally, Chicana feminists wanted an opportunity to pursue a higher education and seek professional careers; however, they felt that that they were not afforded this opportunity as established in Vidal’s article:
“84% [of Chicanas] felt that they were not encouraged to seek professional careers and
that higher education is not considered important for Mexican women . . . 84% agreed
that women do not receive equal pay for equal work” (para. 6).
Regardless of their desires, the La Malinche myth provided Chicano men with a vivid example on why women should not be educated nor hold professional careers. Malinche was an example of a woman who was educationally advanced (Adams, 1995). However, due to her inability to control her sexual desires and because of her constant vulnerable state that is inherent in women, her educational training was her demise. Therefore, to educate Chicana women would be a repetition of history, and Chicano men were not willing to destroy their culture in order to please their women; therefore, the Chicana plea for higher education and professional lives remained 22 rejected – only to preserve the culture and to save their women from becoming traitors, according to Chicano men.
Politically, Malinche was known as Cortes’ right hand “man.” She was a full participant in the plans and strategies implemented by the Spaniards. Additionally, Malinche was instrumental in conducting negotiations among the Spaniards and her people, the Aztecs.
Although Malinche convinced her people that she had their best interests in mind, this was not the case. Instead, Malinche’s loyalty remained with Cortes – she had found love. According to the myth, it was this naïve love that blinded Malinche and allowed her to be easily manipulated.
Approximately 500 years later, Chicana feminists were demanding to play a key role within the Chicano political culture: “not satisfied with [their] role the women got together, stormed into one of the meetings, and demanded to be recognized as members on an equal basis”
(Vidal, para. 11). Unfortunately for Chicana feminists, Chicano men felt that their women were, too, blinded by love – a love for the feminist platform established by Anglo women. This sentiment is revealed when Vidal wrote:
Because sexism and male chauvinism are so deeply rooted in this society, there is a
strong tendency, even within the Chicano movement, to deny the basic right of Chicanas
to organize around their own concrete issues. Instead they are told to stay away from the
women’s liberation movement because it is an “Anglo thing.” (para. 19).
Evidently, 500 years was not long enough to erase the memories of a woman given political power. Once again, Chicano men rejected this request – they would not birth another
Malinche. Instead, they would choose to secure their culture regardless of how their women felt.
Besides, only Chicano men were objective enough to make such decisions, for as seen through the La Malinche myth, women could easily become blinded and manipulated when in love. 23
A discussion regarding sexuality also helps build a parallel between Malinche and
Chicana feminists. As stated earlier in this paper, Chicana women are often portrayed as either a virgin or a whore from within the Mexican/Chicano culture. This identification is partly decided in accordance to how the woman approaches and institutes marianismo into her life. In Women:
New Voice of La Raza, Vidal wrote about how Chicana feminists were rising up against the
Catholic Church as they insisted that they be in total control of their bodies:
[t]he fact is that Chicanas are oppressed and that the battles they are now waging and will
wage in the future are for things they need: the right to legal abortions, the right to
adequate child care, the right to contraceptive information and devices, the right to decide
how many children they do or do not want to have. In short, the right to control their own
bodies. (para. 38)
With Chicana feminists’ little regard for the opinion of the Catholic Church concerning these issues, they seemingly moved away from marianismo and inched toward whoredom – once again, showing characteristics of La Malinche. Therefore, the similarities in character between
Malinche and Chicana feminists provided Chicanos with ammunition on why they should not allow their women to have any social, educational, or political power.
A parallel can also be drawn between the La Malinche myth and the Chicana Feminist
Movement when speaking about malinchismo as being a lover of foreigners and their ideas, which ultimately, in Malinche’s case, destroyed the Aztec culture. This parallel can be seen when Vidal seeks to reach Chicana women not currently involved in the movement. Although
Chicana women were making great progress in defining and establishing their own movement, many Chicanas were reluctant to join. Their reluctance was partly rooted in the fact that they were consistently told by Chicanos that the feminist movement was for Anglo women only. 24
Vidal revealed this reluctance when she writes, “[i]nstead [Chicanas] are told to stay away from the women’s liberation movement because it is an ‘Anglo thing’” (para. 19). As seen in this statement, Chicana feminists were warned by Chicano men not to be seduced by Anglo things, not to be a lover of foreigners and their ideas, for as seen through the La Malinche myth, it would ultimately destroy their culture as it would cause them to become traitors.
As evident through the previously mentioned examples, Chicana feminists were readily assigned the characteristics of La Malinche; therefore, to justify and legitimize their cause, Vidal had to present the movement in such a way that it would override the La Malinche myth.
Ultimately, Chicana women must be assured that they were not La Malinche nor would they be if they joined the cause. Moreover, Chicano men had to be assured that their women would not destroy their culture nor become traitors if they were provided the status they were petitioning for through their movement.
Vidal attempted to reach Chicana feminists and Chicana women by reassuring them that the movement was not a campaign waged against men nor was it a movement that would ultimately destroy their culture. Instead the movement was aimed to help liberate La Raza – not just women. Additionally, Vidal stressed in her article that Chicana feminists were not seeking to divide the Chicano movement. Instead, they were seeking to advance the culture as a whole through their efforts: Vidal wrote:
When Chicanas choose to organize into their own separate organizations, they are not
turning away from La Causa or waging a campaign against men. They are saying to
Chicanos: “we are oppressed as Chicanas and we are moving against our oppression.
Support our Struggles.” The sooner that Chicanos understand the need for women to 25
struggle around their own special demands, through their own organizations, the further
La Raza as a whole will be on the road toward liberation. (para. 50)
Additionally, Vidal exhibited to reluctant Chicanas/os that women could be instrumental in liberating La Raza and Chicana women:
[a]n even more significant measure is what they are actually doing. The impressive
accomplishments of Chicanas in the last few months alone are a clear sign that Chicanas
will not only play a leading role in fighting for the liberation of La Raza, but will also be
consistent fighters against their own oppression as Chicanas. (para. 7)
This statement showed reluctant Chicanas/os that their comadres, although fighting for cultural relief as women, would be instrumental in helping secure liberation for La Raza. They were not traitors – they were not La Malinche.
Furthermore, in order for Vidal to legitimize the Chicana movement, it became necessary for her to attack the character of Chicano men. Vidal did this by asserting that Chicano men were not concerned with securing neither their culture nor their women; rather, they were protecting the patriarchal system embedded within their culture, which undisputedly distributed all power to men. Therefore, Chicano men were not looking out for their women; instead, they were looking to maintain their old-age concept of cultural heritage. Vidal wrote:
While it is true the unity of La Raza is the basic foundation of the Chicano movement,
when Chicano men talk about maintaining La Familia and the “cultural heritage” of La
Raza, they are in fact talking about maintaining the age-old concept of keeping the
woman barefoot, pregnant, and in the kitchen. (para. 30)
In the above paragraph, Vidal, as the omniscient speaker, was able to formally verbalize the thoughts of the Chicano man as she challenged their intent. To Vidal, Chicano men were not 26 protecting their culture nor were they protecting their women as they asserted; instead, their resistance against the Chicana Feminist Movement was based purely on self interests. Chicano men wanted to retain the power inherent in a patriarchal culture; therefore, they had to resist changes that would empower women. It was not the La Malinche myth that Chicano men feared; instead, it was the thought of empowered women that frightened them. To Chicanos,
Chicanas with power equated to Chicano men with less power – this was their actual fear.
After re-establishing an identity for Chicana feminist and clarifying their motives, and by challenging Chicano men’s intent, Vidal ends by stating in her text: “FREEDOM IS FOR
EVERYONE” (Vidal, para. 51). This statement functions in two ways. First, this statement insures women that the desire for freedom is not owned by any particular subgroup or culture; instead freedom is for all women, regardless of race or ethnicity, and that they should pursue it.
Second, this statement dictated to Chicano men that freedom is for Chicanas, too. Yes, Chicanas deserve to be free from a dominating Anglo society, but, more importantly, Chicanas deserve to be free from the cultural, educational, and political restraints placed on them by such a domineering and patriarchal culture – without being labeled La Malinche.
Conclusion
When Chicana feminists separated from the modern feminist movement to create a movement of their own, which reflected their concerns and needs as both women and Chicanas, they became highly scrutinized and criticized from both within their culture and from the outside.
As a result of this scrutiny and criticism, Mitra Vidal set out to legitimize and validate the
Chicana cause in her article Women: New Voice of La Raza. 27
In writing this article, perhaps the largest barrier Vidal had to overcome was to diminish the parallel that equated Chicana feminists to La Malinche myth for it provided Chicano men with a strong and vivid argument on why women should not have a role in political, cultural and educational matters as La Malinche myth exhibited the outcome of an empowered woman who ultimately destroyed her people and her culture. As a result of this outcome, Malinche was considered a whore, a traitor, and a sell-out. Approximately 500 years later, Chicana feminists were being accused of those same things. Chicanas were whores for they developed an unwavering love for the feminist platform established by Anglo women, and their desires and beliefs were inching them away from the Catholic Church. They also became traitors and sell- outs when they created a movement separate from the Chicano movement and established the
Chicana Feminist Movement.
Vidal was able to dissolve the La Malinche parallel by re-establishing the Chicana feminist identity and by clarifying their intents. More importantly, however, Vidal was able to challenge Chicano men and their motives as Vidal asserted that Chicano men were not concerned for their women or their culture. Instead, they were concerned that they may lose their power over women. Ultimately, this argument helped legitimize and justify the Chicana Feminist
Movement, which created a name for Chicana feminists aside from being solely represented through the modern feminist movement. However, it should be noted that although Chicana feminists chose to separate from the modern feminist movement for various reasons, they were still women, and as women they were able to empathize and identify with their Anglo counterparts as they both diligently worked towards securing women’s rights – for all races.
Most importantly, Vidal’s article Women: New Voice of La Raza moved Chicana feminists out of the shadows and gave them a voice by speaking of their efforts and strides 28 towards women’s liberation. For once, their story, their suffrage, and their oppression was revealed. Yes, they were feminists, but they were also Chicanas, and as a result, they banded together to form a feminist movement of their own, the Chicana Feminist Movement.
29
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