As someone who has never never much of a fan of television, this was an issue that didn't really come to my attention until I was in my mid to early teens.
Particularly, wasn't until I came across this character that I realized that mainstream society quickly wasn't evolving- and nor was I entering- into a place where I had a chance at an equally footing as my white peers as it pertained to representation in the media. A little background about myself; I'm a Sephardic-Mexican American who was raised in a primarily East Asian and Ashkenazi American community. While still young, I quickly became aware of the stark inequalities I faced, but it took me years to speak up about it, often out of the threat of isolation and institutional support, which I already faced a great deal of the time.
Note: All commentary made are purely reflective of my own experiences and perspective. I'll preemptively add a disclaimer and apologize for not providing commentary on the discrimination faced by Afro-/Asian-/etc. Latinx Femmes/Gender queer individuals in the media, as I do not believe I am qualified to speak on their behalf. However, I write, with the prospect of opening a dialogue about this issue.
(1)
This is the character is Isabel from "Meet the Fockers". She is the sex toy -oops I mean- domestic assistant brought into the life of Ben Stiller's character Greg, initially to babysit him by his parents . Then she became domestic sex slave- ooops I mean, sexual interest of the virginal Greg when he was 15, which resulted in an "illegitimate" child.
Note: I don't believe in assigning legitimacy to children as it places human value on a kind of hierarchical capitalistic institutionalization that has completely run it's course and belongs nowhere in the domestic sphere, but for sake of the length of this post I'll save that for another time.
Nonetheless, Isabel plays a role of domestic object to Greg, which results in a child who receives none of the financial, emotional, or social support that is eventually bestowed upon his other children. The character of Isabel is, by all metrics, of no real value to Greg or his family nor is she accepted as an a member of Greg's family aside from the domestic and sexual services she provides.
A bit like how slave masters were given free reign to impregnate slaves in the 1700's. Ooops, did I type that?!
Irony of all ironies, the script goes out of it's way to characterize Greg's parent's as "extremely progressive" owners of a sex-friendly small business run out of their home.
Later in the film, it's only in a drunken tirade that Stiller's character admits he is the father of Isabel's child Jorge.
(2)
While to many people this my simply "be a joke" or a non-issue, it points to a very real problem many Jews of color and mixed-race individuals face and that's basic acceptance. The biggest problem, particularly in the U.S., is that race is often tied with class and when denying a child their heritage often means denying them the same institutional support, social support, and value within their community it can lead to lasting economic and emotional deprivation that is all built on the basis of race.
Much the way that some of the young white Ashkenazi men felt it was acceptable to sexually harass me in me in my teens. The character of Isabel is emblematic of the kind of tropes used to justify the discrimination and bigotry Latinx women/ femmes/ people face on a daily basis. By any stretch we are not considered "real women" due to lack of institutional power, and consequently endless jokes about us are considered completely acceptable as well as endless physical and sexual forms of harassment.
That is racism. Period. Plain and simple. There is no way around it.
While there are a plethora of characters I can list off, one of the most most egregious examples I can remember is in 2014 while watching SNL- when I came across the character of my nightmares.
If you want an example of a character that sets an entire community back 40 years, you'll find it in SNL's Marisol.
View video here
In this SNL skit "Jewelry Party", the heavily accented Venezuelan Marisol casually chats with her boyfriend's friend, as played by Lena Dunham, at a jewelry party about the current political climate. As a conservative, Marisol's boyfriend extols what he believes to be the struggles of being a "Men's Rights Activist". Clearly the butt of the joke and the naturally ignorant, Marisol is completely unaware of her boyfriend's sexism, when he declares that he is trying to "help women" by protesting outside of a Planned Parenthood. Marisol is unaware of the services provided by Planned Parenthood, until she is "enlightened" by Lena Dunham's character.
Wow, how progressive and refreshing! It's nice to see a white woman finally giving one of those "stupid Latinas" a reality check. Please note the sarcasm.
If this were an African-American character we would automatically identify it as racism, but since Latin American women/femmes/people are currently a socially acceptable punching bag, that isn't the case for the mainstream media. If there is any struggle Latinx women/ femmes/ people are facing it's the same one that many working class Irish and Italian immigrants faced in the past, not only as newcomers to the country, but outsiders to the WASP community. It's one where we are seen as neither desirable or worthy, socially or socioeconomically and it will only come when our all-around tolerance for immigrants and "the other" comes full circle and we all (as Americans) accept that which is foreign in ourselves as well as others.
Image sources:
1. www.alannaubach.net/photos-movie/
2. www.mirror.co.uk/3am/celebrity-news/see-what-ben-stillers-secret-6736119
Particularly, wasn't until I came across this character that I realized that mainstream society quickly wasn't evolving- and nor was I entering- into a place where I had a chance at an equally footing as my white peers as it pertained to representation in the media. A little background about myself; I'm a Sephardic-Mexican American who was raised in a primarily East Asian and Ashkenazi American community. While still young, I quickly became aware of the stark inequalities I faced, but it took me years to speak up about it, often out of the threat of isolation and institutional support, which I already faced a great deal of the time.
Note: All commentary made are purely reflective of my own experiences and perspective. I'll preemptively add a disclaimer and apologize for not providing commentary on the discrimination faced by Afro-/Asian-/etc. Latinx Femmes/Gender queer individuals in the media, as I do not believe I am qualified to speak on their behalf. However, I write, with the prospect of opening a dialogue about this issue.
This is the character is Isabel from "Meet the Fockers". She is the sex toy -oops I mean- domestic assistant brought into the life of Ben Stiller's character Greg, initially to babysit him by his parents . Then she became domestic sex slave- ooops I mean, sexual interest of the virginal Greg when he was 15, which resulted in an "illegitimate" child.
Note: I don't believe in assigning legitimacy to children as it places human value on a kind of hierarchical capitalistic institutionalization that has completely run it's course and belongs nowhere in the domestic sphere, but for sake of the length of this post I'll save that for another time.
Nonetheless, Isabel plays a role of domestic object to Greg, which results in a child who receives none of the financial, emotional, or social support that is eventually bestowed upon his other children. The character of Isabel is, by all metrics, of no real value to Greg or his family nor is she accepted as an a member of Greg's family aside from the domestic and sexual services she provides.
A bit like how slave masters were given free reign to impregnate slaves in the 1700's. Ooops, did I type that?!
Irony of all ironies, the script goes out of it's way to characterize Greg's parent's as "extremely progressive" owners of a sex-friendly small business run out of their home.
Later in the film, it's only in a drunken tirade that Stiller's character admits he is the father of Isabel's child Jorge.
(2)
While to many people this my simply "be a joke" or a non-issue, it points to a very real problem many Jews of color and mixed-race individuals face and that's basic acceptance. The biggest problem, particularly in the U.S., is that race is often tied with class and when denying a child their heritage often means denying them the same institutional support, social support, and value within their community it can lead to lasting economic and emotional deprivation that is all built on the basis of race.
Much the way that some of the young white Ashkenazi men felt it was acceptable to sexually harass me in me in my teens. The character of Isabel is emblematic of the kind of tropes used to justify the discrimination and bigotry Latinx women/ femmes/ people face on a daily basis. By any stretch we are not considered "real women" due to lack of institutional power, and consequently endless jokes about us are considered completely acceptable as well as endless physical and sexual forms of harassment.
That is racism. Period. Plain and simple. There is no way around it.
While there are a plethora of characters I can list off, one of the most most egregious examples I can remember is in 2014 while watching SNL- when I came across the character of my nightmares.
If you want an example of a character that sets an entire community back 40 years, you'll find it in SNL's Marisol.
View video here
In this SNL skit "Jewelry Party", the heavily accented Venezuelan Marisol casually chats with her boyfriend's friend, as played by Lena Dunham, at a jewelry party about the current political climate. As a conservative, Marisol's boyfriend extols what he believes to be the struggles of being a "Men's Rights Activist". Clearly the butt of the joke and the naturally ignorant, Marisol is completely unaware of her boyfriend's sexism, when he declares that he is trying to "help women" by protesting outside of a Planned Parenthood. Marisol is unaware of the services provided by Planned Parenthood, until she is "enlightened" by Lena Dunham's character.
Wow, how progressive and refreshing! It's nice to see a white woman finally giving one of those "stupid Latinas" a reality check. Please note the sarcasm.
If this were an African-American character we would automatically identify it as racism, but since Latin American women/femmes/people are currently a socially acceptable punching bag, that isn't the case for the mainstream media. If there is any struggle Latinx women/ femmes/ people are facing it's the same one that many working class Irish and Italian immigrants faced in the past, not only as newcomers to the country, but outsiders to the WASP community. It's one where we are seen as neither desirable or worthy, socially or socioeconomically and it will only come when our all-around tolerance for immigrants and "the other" comes full circle and we all (as Americans) accept that which is foreign in ourselves as well as others.
Image sources:
1. www.alannaubach.net/photos-movie/
2. www.mirror.co.uk/3am/celebrity-news/see-what-ben-stillers-secret-6736119
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