Latino Sci-Fi Society? Charla 1
The La Bloga list of book authors
in speculative lit is in the process of updating. Here's the latest, with more
to come. We've gotten suggestions from many people and groups, including members
of the Carl Brandon Society, a group of black
spec authors. Eventually, the influx of more
published books in these genres will bring up a question, even possibly this year at
latino lit conferences:
Should latinos form their own Spec lit group, like black authors have with the Carl Brandon Society or The Black Science Fiction Society?
Should latino authors follow the
pattern from the 60s, when Black Student Alliances and UMAS and MECHA student
groups multiplied on campuses to join forces and advance and advocate their
"special" interests?
My initial reaction is,
"Maybe not." Por qué no?
What's the matter con me, some might
ask.
Latino spec authors as young as
Amy Tintera and Matt de la Peña may not know, but viejos like Rudy Anaya and Armando Rendón haven't forgotten how the
Chicano Movimiento developed. I won't go into it much, but it's worth studying.
To remember the past so we're not condemned to repeat it, as Spanish-American
George Santayana advised.
[Mi aviso: these
thoughts are mine alone, though I've learned from other authors. They are not
set in stone; I could be turned other directions. Nor are they THE best ideas.
Those can only come out of a charla,
a straightforward, modest conversation. Something that Chicano history teaches
us is not necessarily fácil to
achieve. And the collective dynamic of latino authorship, however well guided,
can't be controlled. A hundred flowers might blossom, with some wilting into
weeds.]
First questions first. Should Latinos join SFWA?
There are natural societal
pressures on latin spec authors. Those wanting to become successful in U.S.
markets could join the very influential Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers
of America (SFWA). SFWA, largely white-male dominated from its inception,
repeatedly goes through convulsions of privilege, attempting to recruit, absorb
and appeal to women and non-Anglos into a more equitable, multicultural
organization. That continues today. I can't speak to how well they appeal or
respond to latinos. Based on Internet chatter and info, I await the time when
they have a better understanding of themselves. At the bottom are some links
describing recent turmoil in SFWA.
Should
Latinos join CBS? - Latino spec authors have joined the Carl Brandon Society. Its mission is "to increase
racial and ethnic diversity in the production of and audience for speculative
fiction." From what I could discern, their awards and
recommendations for published books do not seem to include any latinos; their
Hispanic Heritage reading list might only list one U.S. latino. All of which
may reflect low latino membership, or that few latinos have been nominated.
Despite this, latinos could/might still join CBS. As an author, I'm in contact
with them. There may other groups worth investigating.
Raza Movement lessons not
worth repeating
The Chicano student and
community organizations springing up in the 60s & 70s spread across the
Southwest like prairie wildfires ignited by a lightning storm of nationalist
self-identity and pure piss-offedness. Ya basta! Somos Chicanos! Viva Che y
Zapata! It was exhilarating, dismal, chingón, scary and incredibly successful.
La Revolución didn't arrive, but not all embers were tempered. What I describe
happened with others, the mexicanos, the puertoriqueños, and similar lessons
may apply from there. I use the Chicano Movement in this article, since I know most about it. Those movements had weaknesses, some cultural, some
fatal.
Caudillismo is a dish best served green
An English alternative to caudillismo would be
bossism, where one or a handful of leaders made decisions for their followers,
with democratic input and voting, at times, severely absent. Our version had/has
its cultural roots in feudal Spain, with an added indigenous spice of picante.
Leaders competed for press, followers, money and reputation. Bodyguards,
"muscle," beatings, shootings and other macho misbehavior sometimes
followed. May our respect for revered latino authors never fall into that.
Those aspiring to caudillo roles in latino lit are easily recognizable. Qué no?
So, maybe this lesson has been learned.
Equal rights and leadership of latinAs
If you don't know the stories,
read Chicano History, assuming your state hasn't outlawed it and banned the
texts. Few Chicano Movement groups genuinely allowed women's democratic
participation and fewer deliberately developed women as leaders. I'm proud that
the UMAS I belonged to trained and elected two female to be presidents of the
group. This lesson seems to have been better learned, though more is needed.
What is undetermined is the
portrayal of women in latino spec. From Reyes Cardenas's book cover to Junot
Díaz's macho characters, I guess this will long remain the most
contentious and possibly divisive questions. On one side is verisimilitude,
free speech and poetic license and men's genetic flaw of being attracted
by--well, you know. On the other, is the desexualizing, demystifying and
respecting women as people first; plus there's more. As you can read below, the
decades-old SFWA hasn't solved this among its membership. For a latino
sci-fi society to not die at its inception, un chigón/chingona of a path about equality would
need to be laid.
Nationalism may not be far-reaching and long lasting
Chicanismo, latinismo as an
identity is correct within its own definition. What you describe yourselves,
you are. Cultural nationalism when practiced by a group can also be great,
however short and limited its lifespan. If a Chicano sci-fi society begins
tomorrow, bet that its name alone will not appeal to the puertoriqueños. And
what about the mexicanos, U.S. citizens and residents though they may be?
Latino may not be the ultimate term, but one in that vein would work better if
the group aimed beyond national identities.
Empowering younger writers and the children
The fact that Amy Tintera and
Matt de la Peña have an agent and grossly better sales than some old latinos,
doesn't mean los ancianos have no obligation to those younger. Envidia has no
place in a flowering of literature, anymore than it did in the Chicano Movimiento's
political wildfires, and leads to stagnation that serves no writer.
To some extent, the Chicano
youth and college movements were suffocated by the older generations. The young
rivaled the power of the caudillos. Threats, shootings, beatings, political maneuverings--these
and more secured the old-people status quo. Bits of that dynamic may be what
periodically erupts in SFWA.
In a sense, some of the raza youth were forced
out, driven to seek guidance elsewhere--in the writings of Mao and Che, for
instance. Eventually the young latinos mellowed, partly from the frustration of
fewer successes and declining memberships.
Many established latino writers
mentor younger writers, individually or through various writers' workshops. A
latino spec society would need to expand on that work.
Expand it also into the public
schools where our future Mario Acevedos and are dying to be discovered, guided,
nurtured and applauded. Teachers go it alone every day in public schools, and
any new lit society should buttress that work with its expertise. You would not
believe how many teachers--latinos and otherwise--are crying to know how to
teach fiction to little brown kids.
How far should a latino literary spec society reach?
Such a group has no limits. It
is a new mutant species that has never existed before. Assuming we avoid the
major weakness of the Chicano, Puerto Rican, mexicanos, dominicano movements of
the 60s-70s, we can make as many mistakes as needed. As alien as the gaseous
creatures of Cortez on Jupiter, as innocent as freshman Chicano, latinos
entering college in the late 60s.
Obviously, latinos of any label
should be encouraged to join or participate in any manner they want and can.
(Latinos who don't "advertise" their ethnicity nor write latino
characters might prefer "observer" status.) Just as
obviously, non-latino authors who support the aims and "atmosphere"
of the group should be recruited, not simply allowed to participate. How else
to build a strong base, if not with the participation of people-of-letters like
Ilan Stavans?
Bottom line, this suggests a
latino-initiated organization that from the onset actively intends to
eventually fill a vacancy. That of a multinational, necessarily progressively
oriented (anti-sexist, anti-racist, anti-bullying of any nature) group. Why
not? We are not required to go back to 1968-Go
and only create a nationalist-rooted group.
 |
| Sherman Alexie |
Could latino authors benefit
from working non-latinos who have experience, agents, connections and
anthologies they're producing? Could non-latinos' art benefit from professional
contact with latinos and become more inclusive to reflect U.S.
society's peoples, increasing their audience? Could I learn anything from
Sherman Alexie? Would you enjoying mentorship from a progressive Hugo,
Nebula or Bram Stoker award winner? Even if they weren't latino.
If not now, when?
These are a few questions
relating to the eventual establishment of some type of latino spec group. Mine
are not the only possible answers, however much thought I've given to this and
related matters.
 |
| Author Guadalupe Garcia-McCall |
Nor are they a proposal to be
presented at a conference. As the title states, they may be useful in helping
to begin a discussion, in many
places. Una charla.
Do leave comments here, but more, take the topics and begin the discussion with others.
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Es suficiente, hoy,
RudyG
These
stories weave detailed, multi-faceted, multi-layered mosaic of
Older’s New York.They deal with ghosts from different background,
African, Caribbean, and Latino cultures, and their view of
afterlives, and the supernatural are explored. The characters are of
an wide-ranging ethnic gumbo.
