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In the novel “Cuban Color in Tourism and La Lucha” the author and anthropologist L. Kaifa Roland describes her journey in Cuba and the different people she encounter with that describe to her the life of a citizen in Cuba. Throughout her stay in Cuba, Roland describes the different situations people go through in Cuba economically and gender wise. She also mainly describes “La Lucha” which in the book is identified as the struggle people face and go through every day in order to get by in Cuba economically. However, the thing that caught my attention the most in the book was how women get mistreated and seen by people differently. Through my paper I am going to be discussing how women in Cuba get discriminated not just by their color or where …show more content…
they are from, but what women do in order to stay economically stable and escape the discrimination and life in Cuba. For many years women have been discriminated and have been treated unequally around the world and in different cultures not just by men, but by society. Society has been responsible for creating the image of women across the world along with how people see women. For example: in the 1950’s in America it was typically know for a woman to be a stay at home mother. According to Robert L. Welsch and Luis A. Vivanco (2014) authors of the book “Culture Anthropology: Asking questions about Humanity”, it is said that in the 50’s, there was a television show called “The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet with a hard working husband/ father who is the head of the household, a loving stay at home mother/ wife” (Robert & Luis, 2014, p. 319). It also states that due to this famous TV show in the 50’s, the public started seeing the famous family not as a “ traditional family, but a new pattern” (Robert & Luis, 2014, p. 319).In which the public started following the steps of an “American family” indicated by that famous TV show in the 50’s. The public started viewing women as just worthy of staying at home and raising the children while the men were the only ones who were able to go to work because that’s how a family in America is supposed to run. Of course throughout the years women have grown in society in America and now in the present day, women work, some are the head of their own household and some women have even ran for president and hold a position in office. But in other parts of the world, women are still singled out and considered to be unequal to men. Cuba is one of many countries today, who discriminated their women not just by their gender, but by their color as well. For example, in the novel “Cuban Color in Tourism and La Lucha” the author L. Kaifa Roland is an anthropologist who is studying the Cuban life and how people live there. In one of her chapters she writes about women in Cuba and how some get treated unequal due to the term “Jiniteras” (L. Kaifa, 2011, p. 54). According to Roland, a jinitera is considered “a female hustler or prostituted” (L. Kaifa, 2011, p. 54). Throughout her research in Cuba, she interview many men and ask them what they thought about jiniteras. Roland claimed that most of the men just looked down and shrugged their shoulders as well as replying that “ everyone had to do whatever they had to do to survive” (L. Kaifa, 2011, p. 54). But according to her, there was one man named Javier, who answered her question very differently than the other man and took her to a store window and showed her one of the causes of prostitution in Cuba. The man showed Roland a pair of shoes and said that those shoes were one of the main causes why women sell their bodies to be able to get nice things because most people can’t afford to have nice things in Cuba. Another source name “Havana Unwrapped” claims that “The jineteras saunter the streets and enjoy the attentions of the mostly older male tourists.” (“Jineteros and Jinetera”). The reason why, according to “ Havana Unwrapped” is due to the reason that older men are wealthier and the better chance they have at staying and eating in extravagant places or getting paid more to be able to have nice things. Throughout the text, Roland also interviews a couple of women in this case known as jiniteras to get informed more about their lifestyle. One of the women she interviewed didn’t look at herself or will call herself a jinitera, but a “luchadora” (L. Kaifa, 2011, p. 55).” Most women, of course in Cuba, don’t think that getting some money at the end of the night for a good time from a man is bad, but helpful. According to the text, women don’t view this as anything inappropriate, but a job to help them get by “la lucha”. Another reason why women in Cuba get discriminated is due to their color.
Since many women in Cuba are dark skin and dress similarly, women that may not be considered Cuban get treated unequally as well. For example, Roland the author of “Cuban Color in Tourism and La Lucha” describes a moment in her book that due to her skin color she was considered a jinitera; as described previously as a female hustler or prostituted. She claimed that “people who did not immediately recognize me as a foreigner assumed that I was around foreigners because I was jinitera” (L. Kaifa, 2011, p. 54). Tourists who are not from Cuba, but are dark skin get the shorter end of the stick. According to the article “Jineteras Love, Marriage and Divorce” seeing white people with Afro Cuban people is a bad thing and can sometimes lead to serious consequences. For example, as described in Havana Guide, once a white man and a twenty year old Cuban woman were walking and according to the article,”Jiniteras Love, Marriage and Divorce” “The police stopped them for an identity check, because they suspected the young Cuban woman of being a jinetera” (“Jineteras Love, Marriage and …show more content…
Divorce”). As described previously, women in Cuba get treated unequally not just by their gender, but by their skin tone.
In fact, most of the women don’t last too long being jiniteras. In some cases, most women marry tourist who come from different countries just so they can get out of Cuba and away from all the suffering economically. In the article “Jiniteras Love, Marriage and Divorce” they state that most Cubans are considered to be “nice and attractive people” and most of them will act like everybody’s friend to get money out of tourists along with the possibility of marrying them. In the web article “Jiniteras Love, Marriage and Divorce”, they claim that “youngsters want to leave the country and try to escape poverty and better their family’s economic situation by marrying a tourist. Many of these romances are fake and only for the money, and this can be very frustrating” (“Jiniteras Love, Marriage and Divorce”). The article also describes how Cuban women can be very nice and attractive at first, but can later start demanding gifts, money, or trips and that’s where tourist need to be cautious because there has been a various situations where turorists have fall in love with Cuban
women. Overall women had always had it rough in life with facing discrimination, getting treated unequally, facing humiliation and getting judge by others. Where now some women grew in society and have a better chance in life along with the ability to be free and do what they please. While in other parts of the world such as Cuba, women are still being discriminated. For example, the jiniteras in Cuba known as women hustlers or prostitutes, it was never their first choice to be working as a jinitera, but in order for them to help themselves economically they got to do what they got to do to stay financially stable. Yes, some women don’t see it as a wrong thing, but just simply a job and some aren’t even prostitutes, but just simple hustlers. Due to that reason, most men and the population in Cuba see mostly women with similar traits to their women in Cuba as prostitutes or what they like to call it jiniteras. People like L. Kiafa Roland, who are anthropologist who go and want to know more about the Cuban culture, get discriminated first because she is a woman and second due to her skin color that is similar to the skin color of women in Cuba. Women have come a long way to manage how to survive all the discrimination against them and it doesn’t seem right for the public to create an image about all women in society without learning the ability’s some women can do.
Junot Diaz is Dominican American, and he came from a very poor family with five other siblings. Since they were not that wealthy, they lived in a simple way. Even though his mother was basically the bread winner of the family since his father could not keep a job, she still manages to send money back home every six months or so. When they got home from their vacation, they had found out that someone has broken into their house and stole most of his mother’s money. It was easy for them to be a target because they were recent immigrant, and in their neighborhood cars and apartment were always getting jacked. His mother was very upset; she blamed her children, because she thought it was their friends who had done such a thing. “We kids knew where
Moreover, she feels that the "U.S society is gendered and racialized: it expects certain behavior from women, certain bearings from men, certain comportment from queer mujeres, certain demeanor from queer hombres, certain conduct from disabled, and so on"(65 Anzaldua).
The entire struggle that Helg is alluding to in her book is founded within the racial hierarchies and racial ideologies that were formed early on in Cuba’s history. Several aspects of Cuban society (as discussed by Helg) served to foster the racism and the antagonistic attitudes that whites had towards the Afro-Cubans. An acute example of the inequality that the blacks were made to suffer was the denial of citizenship after 1886. According to Helg, Afro-Cubans were denied the titles of "Don" and "Doña" on their identity cards. This was a blatant form of discrimination against because it prevented blacks from being considered as first class citizens, "…despite the fact that they were full taxpayers". (25) What Helg means by this is that even though the Afro-Cubans were participating in the economic spectrum of Cuba, they were still denied access into the political and social arenas.
Oftentimes, societal problems span across space and time. This is certainly evident in Julia Alvarez’s How the García Girls Lost Their Accents a novel in which women are treated peripherally in two starkly different societies. Contextually, both the Dominican Republic and the United States are very dissimilar countries in terms of culture, economic development, and governmental structure. These factors contribute to the manner in which each society treats women. The García girls’ movement between countries helps display these societal distinctions. Ultimately, women are marginalized in both Dominican and American societies. In the Dominican Republic, women are treated as inferior and have limited freedoms whereas in the United States, immigrant
Rather, it criticizes this culture through its portrayal of women. The narrative is focused on a male and is told by a male, which reflects the male-centered society it is set in. However, when we compare how the narrator views these women to who they really are, the discrepancies act as a critique on the Dominican culture. Yunior, who represents the typical Dominican male, sees women as objects, conquests, when in fact their actions show their resistance to be categorized as such. Beli, whose childhood was filled with male domination by Trujillo and the family she worked for, attempts to gain power through sexuality, the avenue the culture pushes women toward. This backfires, creating a critique of the limited opportunities available for women. La Inca portrays a different side to this, working quietly but in ways that are not socially acceptable through self-employment. Society attempts to cage these women, but they continue to fight against it. Diaz, in an interview, quoted James Baldwin, stating, “Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced" (Fassler). He exhibits the misogyny in the system but does not support it, rather critiques it through strong female characters. By drawing attention to the problem, the novel advocates for change. Diaz writes, at the end of part 1, “Nothing more exhilarating… than saving yourself by the simple act of waking”
The novel ‘The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao’, by Junot Diaz gives a very entertaining insight towards many social dynamics that are relevant to Dominican culture, and it fits very well within the scope of the course; and, although it is a work of fiction, this novel is set in New Jersey, and deals specifically with the Dominican Republic experience under the Dominican dictator Rafael Trujillo. From what I’ve learned after reading the first half of this book, there is certainly a lot that can be discussed. Thankfully the book’s versatile portrayal of vivid topics that are seldom discussed shine light upon these many issues that face such an overlooked culture, especially for the American audience.
Nevertheless, Cisneros’s experience with two cultures has given her a chance to see how Latino women are treated and perceived. Therefore, she uses her writing to give women a voice and to speak out against the unfairness. As a result, Cisneros’ story “Woman Hollering Creek” demonstrates a distinction between the life women dream of and the life they often have in reality.
Since the revolution, men and women in Nicaragua had digressed from their traditional expectations and behaviors of gender roles. Moving away from machismo, men started focusing on bettering their country, helping themselves by getting an education are generous with his friends and even contributes towards the household chores which would have never been acceptable before the war; men did not believe in women’s work at all it. The traditional woman ended up changing more drastically. First, they began to voice their opinions and started becoming more aggressive as Dona Flora proved to us. They were forced into fitting men’s shoes by becoming the breadwinner of the family, while trying to be mother still.
Many Cubans in exile, such as my neighbor, Roca Beiro, a professional caterer whom I had the opportunity to interview, informed me that many Cubans have cut down on the starches they consume and that they try to follow a healthier diet. Due to the lack of time in their day to day life, many buy products, such as black beans, because preparing them from scratch is very time consuming. In addition, Cubans have added more salads to their diet, use less sauces, and prepare fewer potajes (stews). They have also adapted more American foods into their daily life since their children are exposed to them at school and through their acquaintance with endless chains of fast food restaurants in their communities. For example, breakfast in Cuba usually consists of café con leche and tostada (coffee with milk and Cuban toast).
As she tours her hometown, one can see the horrendous circumstances in which her community thrives in, for example, to get from one side to the other they must cross a makeshift bridge where the water has begun to change color such as black, green, even beginning to foam. Numerous health problems have arisen due to the toxic waste that is being dumped into the streams that therefore leading to runoff when it rains such as sores developing on feet and legs, weakened immune system, spots that appear on the limbs, etc. Lujan, a third world feminist (could also be known as an environmental feminist as well) exposes the unsanitary environment in which she lives in, desiring a greater community where her children can live in without the worry of diseases or the contamination of their water sources. Though she was not always a promotora/advocator it was not until Lujan came face to face with a sign inviting women to participate in a health survey furthermore learning about the health risks that she made the decision to be outspoken about the cause. She took workshops to help her better apprehend labor and women’s rights in order to promote laws and speak out against illegal acts conducted by businesses. Therefore, it only makes sense that women would be the most outspoken group of the maquiladoras since they make up eighty percent of the
Judith Ortiz Cofer, a professor of english and creative writing, tackles gender roles as well as cultural stereotypes in “ The Myth of the Latin Woman” and challenges them by attempting to replace the stereotypes with the realities. In “The Myth of the Latin Woman” Cofer discusses her life in America as a Puerto Rican woman. She also shares her stories of when she was stereotyped and how gender roles play a role in how Latinos are viewed. Stereotypes will follow you around because of your appearance and how the media portrays Latinas.
Child rearing and family structure within the Hispanic culture is noticeably different than what is present in the mainstream Western culture of today. One apparent difference is in gender roles. There exists a vastly different expectation in Hispanic culture for males and females. The male is considered to be the independent breadwinner, and the head of the household. Accordingly, the female role is one of submission and provider of childcare. In contrast, it is more than acceptable in Western culture for a female to maintain a non-traditional role. Hispanic culture additionally differs from Western culture in the traditional makeup of the family. Within Hispanic culture the extended family plays a huge role
Cofer, Judith Ortiz. "The Myth of the Latina Woman." Bullock, Richard, Maureen Daly Goggin and Francine Weinburg. The Norton Field Guide to Writing. Ed. Marilyn Moller. 3rd. New York: W.W. Norton and Company, 2013. 806-812. Print.
Folklore is a collection of stories passed down from generation to generation that includes Legends, Myths and Fairy tales. Legends are a semi-true story, which has been passed on from a person to another person that has an important meaning. Myths are a traditional story, especially one concerning the early history of a people or explaining some natural or social phenomenon. A Fairytale is a children's story about magical which they have imaginary beings and lands. Hispanic Folklore is the traditional is mostly about beliefs, legends, customs and stories of the community of the hispanic culture. Hispanic or latino culture encompasses the traditions, language, religious beliefs and practices, legends, music and history.
As the Hispanic Caribbean has evolved it has managed to grow and thrive beyond belief, whether one is discussing art, music or just the culture alone the Hispanic Caribbean is truly reaping the benefits of allowing themselves to be influenced by many other cultures. While the Hispanic Caribbean is thriving they are still facing the many new found struggles that come along with the territory of becoming more affluent as well as more accepting to other cultures and their beliefs. Often with the growth of large proportions comes many problems, problems also can come about when incorporating of different cultures as a whole as well as just bringing in their beliefs and mannerisms. None the less it can be argued that the struggles being faced in