"Out of line": Mujeres Revoltosas y Vidas Transnacionales in "Made in L.A."

Our panel addresses how Chicana/o and Latina/o Studies are almost always in constant epistemic conflict precisely because the boundaries of traditional disciplines cannot explain through traditional methods/archives the lives... [ view full abstract ]

Our panel addresses how Chicana/o and Latina/o Studies are almost always in constant epistemic conflict precisely because the boundaries of traditional disciplines cannot explain through traditional methods/archives the lives of Chicana/os and Latina/os. The panelists use “film”, the “classroom”, and a “magazine” as sites of meaning that uncover Chicana/Latina epistemologies. While this presents real problems for academics, researchers, and independent scholars in institutional settings, this research generates methodologies to uncover the narratives of Chicana/Latina lived experiences and provides space for “social change”.

Norma A. Valenzuela’s, “‘Out of line:’ Mujeres Revoltosas y Vidas Transnacionales in Made in L.A.:” paper examines the intersectionality of race, class, ethnicity and gender in Chican@ Studies utilizing film to explore the central role women of color play in the creation of alternative narratives to deconstruct dominant discourses. By using the documentary Made in L.A. (2007) as an archive to foreground stories effectively that would otherwise be overlooked, marginalized or distorted; the documentary film offers an avenue for igniting community-based awareness and action as it does not rely on the colonial emphasis of the written word for communication. In this regard, film becomes a significant avenue for participatory action research as a community-centered tool to generate conversation at the grassroots to then formulate research agendas that are determined by and for those in Chican@/Latin@ communities.

Panel 281