Latina/o Cultural Expressions: A View of US Society Through the Eyes of the Subaltern

The seventh chapter of A Companion to Latina/O Studies presents the essay “Latina/o Cultural Expressions: A View of US Society Through the Eyes of the Subaltern,” by Edna Acosta-Belén. Acosta-Belén’s essay begins with the discussion of Latinx community asserting their national identities. Through this assertion of their culture, many diverse groups have been able to have their culture, literature, music, and art recognized by the United States; this period was from 1970 all the way to 2006 and these many cultures attempt to remain present in our society. However, the influence that the United States has essentially marginalized all of these diverse groups of people into one large group; this gives less recognition to those who have been treated as such. For instance, many associate the Latinx community with Mexicans because they are deemed a more prominent group from the perspective of the United States, and the same can be said about Afro-Caribbeans being called African Americans, but the culture of the two are completely different. Personally, I feel that proper representation should be given to these groups because each culture is special in its own way.

Moreover, Acosta-Belén presents that Anglo-Saxon influence attempts to strip away Latinx culture. In her essay, Acosta-Belén writes, “As a general pattern, immigrants have been expected to relinquish their cultural and linguistic backgrounds and assimilate into the dominant Anglo American mainstream” (Acosta-Belén; 78). I chose this quotation because Acosta-Belén brings up a very good point. Individuals with curly/kinky hair are expected to straighten or alter their hair in order to conform to the idealistic expectations of American society. The same can be said about dialect. I believe that becoming bilingual opens the door to many opportunities, but some people may not agree with me. Some Americans feel that every person in their country should only be speaking English because it is a language that they are comfortable with, yet they fail to see that the English language is very difficult from an immigrant’s perspective. This is a country that was built by the immigrants, and it should be welcoming of all groups of people.