Response To: The End of Popular Culture?

I grew up listening to three different types of music: rock (i.e. Journey), salsa (i.e. El Gran Combo de Puerto Rico), and classical. Listening to salsa music was a way of connecting to Puerto Rico while living in Seattle, WA—for both my parents and for their children. It is interesting then that a part of Puerto Rican, and Latin American, identity is a genre of music that has both European and African influences. It goes back to what Latin American identity actually is, and who owns it. Music—something that is considered an important part of any culture—has become widely distributed and consumed. It is identified with Latin America, but is listened to and danced to in Europe and North America by people who are not from Latin America. What is culture then if it can become so easily sold off? It must have been an important part of Latin American identity, especially for the Puerto Ricans and Cubans living in New York City, but now it is no longer just for these groups of people. Does it lose power as a result? Or can it still be an important part of Latin American culture if it is not unique to Latin America?

To jump to another topic, there is the article on Jennifer Lopez and how she is portrayed in the media. This was interesting considering the recently publicized views of Hollywood’s primarily using white actors. Jennifer Lopez and her influences on the views of Latina women by North Americans, whether positive or negative, are interesting to dissect. There’s the fact that her body challenges beauty standards, but at the same time it furthers this idea that Latina women have curvy bodies—that to be Latina is to be curvy. This can be dangerous in its own right because there are a wide variety of bodies represented by Latin Americans, especially because of the genetic diversity in this region, and it can allow certain assumptions to continue to exist—that all Latinos are darker, have dark hair, have curly hair, etc. It is difficult to say whether Jennifer Lopez really challenges these stereotypes about what Latinas look like. For example, there have been women that have been turned for movies because they do not look “Latina enough”. What does this say about our times and how we view Latinas? I do not know how to answer that, but I do think that there is still progress to be made regarding the way that Latin Americans are portrayed and represented in the media—maybe Jennifer Lopez is or will be a part of this development.