February Blog Post

This month of class has been super informative!  Discussions of positionality and intersectionality in particular really piqued my interest; specifically, the Borderlands reading helped me grasp the concept of intersectionality.  I found that the poem La curandera outlined the dichotomy of Mexican culture and American border policy.  Anzaldua writes that “Juan Davila went back across the border, The Border Patrol said no way,” meaning that our culture tends to block out opposing views or foreign values.

A great example of this can be seen in one of my favorite TV shows, Smallville.  Throughout the series, Clark Kent struggles with his newly found identity of Kryptonian while, at the same time, managing life as a human teenager.  In regards to Anzaldua’s work, Smallville exemplifies the struggle the author outlines in La curandera.  Lionel Luthor and the society Veritas attempt to capture the Traveler (Clark) in the mid section of the series’ run, similar to The Border Patrol keeping Juan Davila out.  Smallville and Anzaldua teach us that we typically view other identities in a negative manner, which creates negative consequences.  This could be compared to the echo chamber effect we discussed in class today.  Since Clark and Juan do not echo the values and norms of the areas they live, they are ultimately persecuted for their identities, proving the struggles of intersectionality.

Anzaldua further notes, as we discussed in lecture, that the purpose of Borderlands was that it was not accessible to everyone.  What this goes to show is that there are experiences that we can never truly understand.  However, we can become more aware and knowledgeable of those issues in the future.  Referring back to the Smallville example, Clark’s friend Chloe discovered that he was not human, but rather than using this information against him, she aided Clark and tried to understand his plight. 

Overall, the topic of intersectionality, in my opinion, is extremely important.  Our identities are essentially at a crossroads at all times; a crossroad of our traits and experiences.  Whether it be the poetry of Anzaldua or the CW series Smallville, we see intersectionality in our every day lives.  Therefore, we should recognize that we cannot necessarily pin down identities, but rather, we should learn of them and do our best to welcome viewpoints that could be deemed different.  Only then can we truly become more accepting.