Speedy Follow-Up

After getting a glance at the Speedy Gonzales Wiki entry, I've decided there is nothing to be absolutely ashamed of.  So what if certain people out there think he's a derogatory figure, he can also be viewed as a figure of empowerment.  Where else can you see a clever Mexican character outwit the oppressive figure? Zorro maybe? 

 

I loved his cartoons and there aren't that many animated shows that feature Hispanic/Latino main characters.  Can you think of any others besides Mucha Lucha?  There's a few comic strips out there and plenty more comic book characters, and I find it awful sad that within 20 years, there has been only one other Hispanic lead in a television show since Chico and the Man.  Granted, the demographic itself is small, but it's growing larger everyday, especially in California.

 

Myself, I'm not much of an activist.  I realize there are many other minority groups underrepresented in media, but one is always going to be somewhat partial to their own.  I always like to say that I never identified with my own culture as much until after I took a Chicano Literature class my sophomore year of college.  It's the culture my girlfriend says comes from us being "Third Generation" kids.  We're not of the originating country, nor are we able to be accepted into America completely as we are.  Is it weird for me being completely Hispanic yet never being recognized as such?  Seeing as I have a questionably unidentifiable physical appearance, it can be.

 

This is where the Literature comes in, I can identify with being misplaced, being different, and being happy that my family and myself can be completely comfortable in that sense.  I once had someone tell me I had no culture at all, and was completely offended because what in the heck lack of culture did I grow up with if my parents and grandparents never grew up with their own experiences and passed them on to me?  Is that not culture?  Is it my Orange County upbringing and lack of barrio birth that strip me of my heritage? 

 

It's just someone else's opinion.

 

My opinion is that, what the heck, Speedy Gonzales was my hero when I was nothing but a short stack of silver dollar pancakes.  I have new ones now, of course, but is there anything that I can do?

 

I think so... but I'll keep it under wraps until my lazy butt gets in gear.