Premiering on October 21, 2009, CNN's "Latino in America - Meet the Garcias" followed the lives of seven different individuals whose last name is Garcia. These Latina/os were from various ethnicities, ages, and genders. After viewing part I of the special, I was pleasantly surprised at how fair and balanced the two-hour broadcast was. Despite the heavy criticism that CNN faced with the similarly structured "Black in America," I was expecting a program riddled with inaccuracies and stereotypes. What this special did do was showcase the diversity and issues facing our community. While others may view these issues as stereotypes I challenge the critics to find a way to showcase our community while simultaneously sharing with middle (white) America the issues we face. We have to remember that this special is exactly for those individuals, people who regularly watch CNN and their various documentaries. This is not a college-level sociology or cultural critique on the history of Latino/as in America. Similarly you will not find the ultra right-wing part of the country tuning into CNN for a documentary about Latino/as - its not FOX!
In remembering the various segments, I feel that it also speaks to other Latino/as, as a reminder of the various struggles nuestra gente faces across the US, regardless of their culture. For example, it was quite mind-blowing that 70% of Latino youth in Los Angeles are not graduating from high school on time. It is also mind-boggling that young Latinas are struggling with depression and suicide (1 out of every 7 Latina teens!) And yet, here I am, an educated Chicana woman who also comes from a low-income, gang-infested community, who can now be better informed about her fellow Latinas and in some way, whether that be role-modeling or mentoring, can help her own people.
Yes, of course, what stands out the most about this part of the documentary is how many times our morals/values seem to be at the crux of the problems, particularly for the women in the documentary. The value of placing family first "led" to young girls not finishing high school, dropping out, getting pregnant, depression, isolation, and the feeling of being torn by being American and being true to your Latina/o culture. That was the biggest problem of the documentary- instead of making it the salient reason for failures, it should have been put into perspective - that while family is the core of our moral values, it is often times family mixed with outdated traditions of a woman's place in the family and underlying racism as mentioned above, that are the problem. As we witness from Cindy's story, she is responsible for all the children in her family because her mother works too many jobs. There is no mention of the men in the family - where they are or what they contribute. Also, there is no childcare assistance for her while she is in high school. Again, for what it was, the documentary could not have unpackaged the complex and complicated origins of the woman's place in the Latina/o household; that in and of itself would take hours to explain - Catholicism, ancient indigenous practices, hierarchies, and misconceptions of nature/nurture. But making it the main reason for the many problems facing our youth is irresponsible and untrue.
Another criticism of this part of the documentary was the ways in which various Latino/as use the term "Mexican". There is a segment in which a teenage boy from North Carolina states that he "doesn't like it" when other people call him Mexican. Without context or understanding of North Carolina demographics or his high school's demography - critics immediately thought that he was saying that being called Mexican is bad, because of the negative stereotypes associated with the term. Needless to say that Mexican is an adjective to describe something as coming from or being from Mexico. This boy did not have the opportunity - or CNN did not show anything beyond that comment - to explain himself. It is likely that he did not like it because he is in fact NOT Mexican. That's like saying, "I don't like being called a man" (Because I am not one - not because there is anything bad about being a man). Then again, perhaps he did mean that being called Mexican was bad - bad because Mexicans are bad - we will never know. So again, a little bit of context would have helped viewers understand the statement. And for that segment in particular, it may have been helpful for a quick note saying that most individuals don't know who they are when they are teenagers.
I must also commend Soledad O'Brien for putting some of the white interviewee's feet to the fire. In the segment about St. Louis' Catholic church divide - Soledad interviewed a group of white Catholics who were basically complaining about the demographic shift taking place within their parish. She asked them if their feelings were "very Christian," which made them look like bigots who can't stand change. These people where leaders in their parish! So despite all of the critics complaints about the Latino/a stereotypes, and the few points that should have been placed into context - CNN did quite a good job showing just how much of the issues facing Latino/as are based on racism. Not enough money for the largest school district in Los Angeles and the 2nd largest in America - which happens to be 90% Latino; the push-pull factors that undocumented workers face and how hypocritical the US has been toward undocumented workers, the ignorance and violation of human dignity by Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio, the underlying racism in the St. Louis Catholic diocese, and the Hollywood elite that refuse to fully represent this country by making Latino/as 6% of the roles on television/movies. So look deeper into the stories, because you will find that racism is the undercurrent and the driving force behind many of the issues Latino/as face - not just our values of family coming first!
Some of stories did include some very uplifting segments of Latino/as succeeding in middle America - like Eva Longoria Parker, George Lopez, Lorena Garcia and Pedro Garcia. They are utilizing and showcasing their Latinidad in America and it has given them great success. Despite all the obstacles before them - those obstacles that Latino/as face everyday - they have achieved the American dream. All in all, this part of "Latino in America" was pretty good - Can't wait to review the next segment!
For more visit: http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2009/latino.in.america/
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