PROJECT 1

 

ACTS OF VIOLENCE COMMITTED AGAINST CHICANA/O AND OR MEXICANA/O GLBT COMMUNITIES

 

I examine why acts of violence are committed against U.S. gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender (GLBT) communities. A great deal of research has addressed the above issues but the majority of it has focused on White, middle-class, gay, and lesbian communities whereas my critical analysis is specifically based on GLBT Chicanas/os or Mexicanas/os. The term “act of violence” is used instead of hate crime because the term “act of violence” includes GLBT victimization regardless of whether or not a police report is made. Acts of violence consists of physical, sexual, or verbal assaults committed against GLBT individuals.

The ultimate goal of this research project is to examine how and why individuals’ race/ethnicity and class, among other structural forces, begin to shape issues related to the victimization of U.S. GLBT Chicanas/os or Mexicanas/os communities. Chicanas/os or Mexicanas/os refers to Latino individuals of Mexican decent residing in the U.S. but not necessarily U.S.-born. This community is of particular interest because there is a void concerning empirical research about their victimization. Furthermore, conducting research on this community will permit me to disseminate much-needed knowledge about the ways in which people construct their identities. I also believe this research will help to promote social justice and reshape public policies, since the issue of equal human rights is an ongoing battle in GLBT communities.

 

PROJECT 2

 

This project challenged my academic training as a sociologist in many ways. In my discipline, I am not encouraged to embrace multiple ways of examining social phenomena. My training for the past 8 years has consisted of utilizing multivariate, interpretative, and historical research methods to study society. It was not until I enrolled in (RTF 331R), that I was challenged to show how I could present my research interests in creative ways from a humanities perspective. In my research, I examine the social forces and institutions that impact Latina/o Transgender communities. I complicate the examination of this group because I take race/ethnicity into consideration. I attempt to understand the ways in which Transgender Latinas/os must deal with other forms of discrimination in addition to their sexual and gender identities.

In my project entitled “ Trans Latina/o Identities,” I utilized Trans artistic forms of expression that draw from issues concerning the interaction of sexuality and gender, social class, race/ethnicity, and citizenship status. These images show how individuals can deconstruct and reconstruct their identities to capture the social nuances that embody who they are, and contest the White, middle-class, normalized, forms of self-expression. Those normalized forms of expression being White, heterosexual, having class privilege, and adhering to gender ideals.

PROJECT 3

 

THE WANK PROJECT

I was challenged once again, when I agreed to participate in the class project called “ WANK.” I was encouraged to draw upon newfound talents that emerged as the result of taking (RTF 331R). I discovered that in the process of creating Project#2 that I had good editing skills. In retrospect, I realized the multitude of decisions I had to make while deciding the colors, photographs, sequence, and music I choose while working on “ Trans Latina/o Identities.”

While working on the WANK project, I viewed several hours of WANK video footage, and I looked for scenes that caused me to laugh or made me critically examine what was happening. My co-editing partner, Audrey took the scenes I selected and set them to music. Her and I also had several conversations, over the course of a couple of days, to decide the video sequence. While viewing the footage, I found myself repeatedly saying, “ These are powerful ways to contest the sexual repression the institution of religion continuously enforces, to facilitate social control of people!”

Masturbation is a socially taboo matter, because issues concerning the assertion of body ownership and self pleasure challenge the institutions of social control, that members of society have established to promote conformity and acquiescence. Functioning, as an editor for the WANK project was a rewarding experience in that I was made aware of the multiple ways people can convey information to stimulate critical thinking.