A Latinx Guide to Navigating Oberlin by A Latinx Guide to Navigating Oberlin

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

- Introduction 1-2 - Latinx Students in the Sciences: Testimonials & Resources 3-4 - Capstone & Honors: What, Who, When, Where, Why and Hooooooow? 5-6 - Latinx Testimonio from ENVS 6 - To My Latina Sisters 7-8 - Untitled from the Skin Land Comparison 8 Series - Additional Resources at Oberlin & Beyond 9-10 ---------------------------------

LATINX, -O, -A, -@ Because Spanish is a gendered language that adheres to a feminine/masculine binary, it fails to encompass the gender identities of all Latinxs - such as genderqueer or non-binary identifying people. We will use an x in place of o/a or @ to allow space for individuals to gender themselves instead of being gendered. It is pronounced Latinexx.

A note from the contributors: This zine is a work in progress. I mean, Is anything really ever finished? Many individuals contributed to the creation of this zine. The tones and messages of each of the pieces differ based on the person and their individual experiences. This is part of what makes this zine beautiful and important. We made this zine because we want to share our knowledge and our experiences. Some of these things are not often shared or talked about. Know that you are not alone! We only hope that you will learn something from our stories, that some of them will resonate with you, and that you leave this zine with questions and critiques. That said, feedback is more than welcome and extremely necessary. We want to hear from you! It is so important that we can grow and build together. This is a communal effort at an ongoing conversation. We want to continue talking about the different Latinx experiences within and outside the context of Oberlin College. Feedback will also help us when releasing the second part of this zine focusing on Latinx identity beyond Oberlin. If you have comments, questions, concerns, laaaavvv to share with us, etc. please email oberlinlatinxzine@gmail.com

A LATINX* GUIDE TO NAVIGATING OBERLIN WHAT IS THIS? WHO IS THIS FOR? This zine developed through conversations between Latinx students currently or formerly at Oberlin exploring their identities within and outside of a liberal arts college setting. Many of our pieces are reflections about how our relationship to these identities evolved during our time at Oberlin. This zine seeks to: • Serve as an introductory educational resource for Latinx students • Document and circulate the lived experiences of past & present Oberlin Latinx students • Connect incoming students with upperclassmen and former students who can serve as mentors • Break down some images and stereotypes about Latinx people and their experiences This zine doesn’t cover everything, and doesn’t claim to speak for the entire Latinx community within or outside of Oberlin College. We know that there are significant gaps in portraying the Latinx experience, especially because our experiences are so diverse even in the ways that they are connected, but this does not take away from the value of our individual stories. We each navigate different communities on campus, some overlapping and others separate. We can’t tell you how to survive at Oberlin, because we each resist and survive differently, but we can tell you some of the things that have helped us along the way. WORKING DEF OF LATINIDAD Latinidad refers to the many facets and complexity of Latinx identity - but also to new understandings and constructions of it depending on context. It is intersectional, meaning that it is influenced by and inseparable from our other multiple identities such as race, gender, class, sexuality, ability, citizenship, size etc. Because context is so influential, we hope that these short testimonios highlighting different aspects of our time at Oberlin, will begin putting together alternative images of what Latinidad can look like here, AND how we want to envision and enact it for ourselves. Though we might be seen in a particular way in sectors of the college, or perhaps not recognized by the communities that are supposed to see us, we still have power to assert what Latinidad looks like, feels like, breathes like for us. “— Hey, hippie girl, you Mexican? On both sides? — Front & back, I say. — You sure don’t look Mexican. A part of me wants to kick their ass. A part of me feels sorry for their stupid ignorant selves. But if you’ve never been farther south than Nuevo Laredo, how the hell would you know what Mexicans are supposed to look like, right? There are the green-eyed Mexicans. The rich blond Mexicans. The Mexicans with the faces of Arab sheiks. The Jewish Mexicans. The big-footed-as-a-German Mexicans. The leftover-French Mexicans. The chaparrito compact Mexicans. The Tarahumara tall-asa-desert-saguaro Mexicans. The Mediterranean Mexicans. The Mexicans w/Tunisian eyebrows. The negrito Mexicans of the double coasts. The Chinese Mexicans. The curlyhaired, freckled-faced, red-headed Mexicans. The Lebanese Mexicans. Look, I don’t know what you’re talking about when you say I don’t look Mexican. I am Mexican. Even though I was born on the U.S. side of the border.” - Sandra Cisneros, Caramelo

RACE VS. ETHNICITY Not all Latinx people are brown, though we often see Latinx portrayed this way in the media. Because of racism and colorism within and outside of our community, Afrolatinx and darkskinned Latinxs are often invisibilized and devalued. Some Latinxs are white. Some Latinxs are lightskinned, pass as white, and therefore still benefit from white privilege and white supremacy. Some Latinxs are mixed race. You can’t know that someone is Latinx just by looking at them. LANGUAGE & TERMINOLOGY Language signals the ways we value people and their ways of existing, and can be a starting point for being conscious of our actions. Our words have many meanings, and it is a constant learning process to discover those meanings. For example, the word “picnic” has origins in describing slave auctions, so it is important to clue each other in to this violent history and to further identify how anti-blackness is present in so many aspects of our lives. This is not about being “politically correct,” but about genuinely reflecting on how our words can reinforce and uphold violence and systems of oppression. Regardless of our intentions or prior knowledge, our words have real impact on those around us. We learn to think about things by listening to how other people talk about them. Much of the mainstream media frames undocumented people as “illegal” in order to make them seem like a threat, as less human, to categorize them as criminals, and portray individual choice as the only factor in leading people to leave their homes. Simply changing our language won’t end oppression by itself, but it’s a good starting point for thinking about and questioning the ways we’ve been taught to think about the world. Here are some of the terms used to describe the Latinx diaspora and a bit on why we are choosing to use some vs. others: (We acknowledge that language has its limits and respect choices to self-identify however feels right and create new language that describes identity. This can change over time.) HISPANIC: Was created for statistical (U.S. demographic census) and marketing purposes in the 1970s and ‘80s. Someone from Spain/of Spanish ancestry. Emphasizes and privileges Spanish heritage and language, erases indigenous and Black ancestry, and homogenizes community. Also carries connotations of upward mobility, political obedience, and assimilation to whiteness. SPANISH: Nationality of someone from Spain/of Spanish ancestry/reference to the Spanish language. A Spanish person from Spain is not Latinx. Sometimes used to describe someone from Spanish Harlem/East Harlem/El Barrio which has a significant Puerto Rican, Dominican, Salvadoran, and Mexican population. Note: Not all people within the Latinx diaspora speak Spanish--this is a common misconception. Other languages spoken include English, Creole, Portuguese, French, Quechua, Nahuatl, Aymara & many more. CHICANX: Someone who identifies as Chicanx is one who is of Mexican descent living in the United States. It is a politically charged term that developed during the Brown Power Movement around the 1960s. Many folks who identify as Chicanx also recognize Aztlán (modern U.S. southwest) as the land of their ancestors and to some, Aztlán signifies the reconquering of this land. Also spelled xicanx, the “x” in the beginning can be tied to the Mexica people, also known as Aztecs. The “x” in Mexica and xicanx are pronounced the same way. This “x” links folks to the indigenous peoples of Mexico. LATINX: This term is complicated because it can homogenize diverse people, but it can also recognize Latin America’s shared history of (neo)colonialism, genocide, slavery, imperialism, (im)migration, survival, and resistance. “Latin America” encompassing a multiracial, multiethnic geographic region including Indigenous, African, and European ancestries. Many Latinx people prefer to identify with their race, ethnic identity, nationality, or the nation(s) they have roots in over identifying solely (or even at all) as Latinx.

testimonios from Latinx students in the sciences The environmental movement often gets painted as a trendy thing to do, mostly wealthy white people buying organic foods, but it’s really about people of color and womyn who have been affected by toxic waste dumps, food scarcity in low-income neighborhoods, polluted sources of food and water, noise and light pollution etc. Despite environmental justice issues disproportionately affecting these populations, they aren’t the kids I see in my science or environmental classes, and the professors don’t always prioritize issues about race, class, gender, etc. in relationship to the environment. It’s hard to study relevant issues and feel like I’m the only brown kid in class. So where y’all at? current Latinx science major Although I usually can make friends, or at least get along with, all kinds of people, making friends in the sciences has been a challenge. From my experience taking two chemistry courses and a neuroscience course at Oberlin, students are usually really competitive and seem to have a need to prove themselves. This sometimes leads to them being condescending of peers who they think aren’t as bright (on the basis of skin color, language proficiency, etc.). It wasn’t until my second semester chemistry course, when there were two other Latinx students, that I was able to feel much more confident in navigating the course. Struggling with these two other students throughout the semester made me realize how important it is to have community, especially when there are so very few Latinx students in the Oberlin science departments. current Latinx science major My first year at Oberlin, I quickly realized that I would not find any kind of community in the sciences, which was disappointing since I was especially excited about studying science at a small college where I assumed the opposite would be true. Discussions in these classes were often dominated by white men in the class and I felt intimidated by the competitive classroom environment, especially in introductory science classes. This discomfort carried into study sessions that I ended up not attending because of the competitive vibe. As time went on, I began exploring topics outside of the natural sciences that interested me, such as health inequities in the United States and the role of science in the historical/present oppression of people based on race, gender, class, sexuality, nationality, and disability. I started raising questions about the social implications of scientific research in my classes and I felt like my questions were seen as distracting from the ‘real’ purpose of scientific coursework. As a result of this, as a queer white latina immigrant in the sciences I often felt like I had to leave everything but my whiteness at the door before entering a science classroom at Oberlin. I found support from older Latinx science majors and some professors, and I am grateful for that, but the responsibility to support students of color and LGBTQ students in the sciences should not fall solely on the shoulders of those same students and a few professors -- which will continue to happen until the lack of support systems for students of marginalized identities in the sciences at Oberlin is seriously addressed at an institutional level in the college. Latinx science major, class of ‘14

how to navigate the sciences at Oberlin as a Latinx student Resources & Tips: Although many of these resources may be presented as ways to get help when you’re struggling in a class, it can often be useful to preemptively get a tutor or go to study sessions, whether or not you think the class will be difficult. ● Tutoring: Sign up at Student Academic Services, Peters Hall, Room 118 ● CLEAR Quantitative Skills Center, A263: drop-in peer mentoring for science and math courses in the Science Library Marcelo Vinces, Director of Center for Learning, Education, and Research in the Sciences (CLEAR) is also a great resource -- he and the other staff of CLEAR have made it a priority to sponsor programming that addresses under-representation and support for students of color in the sciences. ● Office Hours: all professors have them! Really helpful to get clarification on class material or to find out more about a topic you’re interested in. Sometimes they can be a bit intimidating, in which case it can be helpful to pair up with someone from the class and go together. ● Advisors: If you have an advisor in the sciences, they can help you decide what classes to take depending on your academic background and interests. Many advisors in the sciences only know about their specific field so make sure to get a second opinion if you’re interested in exploring other areas. ● Multicultural Research Center (MRC), Wilder 208 If you feel you are lacking support or have an idea for ways that students of color and/or LGBTQ students can be better supported in the sciences, reach out to the Community Coordinators (CCs). They will have ideas on what steps to take. ● La Alianza Latina (LAL): can connect you to other Latinx science majors who will have more tips and advice! ● Student Accessibility Advocates: through the Office of Disability Services, Peters Hall, Room G-27/28 Research and summer internship programs: At Oberlin it can sometimes be difficult to get research experience because there isn’t a set system for assigning students to research labs, but there are a few structured opportunities at Oberlin that are specifically for students of color in research. There are also some summer internship programs that are not affiliated with Oberlin, and here are couple to get you started. Apply regardless of experience! ● Oberlin-affiliated: - Oberlin College Research Fellowship (OCRF) - Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship ● Summer internships outside of Oberlin (application deadlines in DecMar): - National Science Foundation Research Experience for Undergraduates (NSF REU): http://www.nsf.gov/crssprgm/reu/reu_search.jsp - Occupational Health Internship Program (OHIP): http://aoec.org/ohip/

Capstone and Honors: What, Who, When, Where, Why, and Hooooooow? By your junior year, someone in your major department will have talked to you about completing a Capstone. A Capstone is usually a 25+ page research paper or project that takes either a semester or your entire senior year to complete. Along with this, there is also Honors. Honors is basically a Capstone project with an oral defense; if you get Honors, you’re awarded special recognition in your department. All departments are different when it comes to Capstone requirements and the Honors process. As a double major, I did a one semester English Capstone and a year-long Religion Capstone my senior year. I was also invited to defend for Honors in Religion. For both majors, I had free range to research and write about any topic I wanted. In English, I explored the representation of African-American and Latinx-American authors and characters in the post-apocalyptic genre. In Religion, I focused on using Mujerista theology to construct a religious social ethic that was based in the voices, experiences, and theories of Latinas. With these topics, I was able to use my personal experiences along with the academic work of Latinas and other scholars of color to create theory. Your Capstone advisor, the professor who works with you throughout the entire process, is super important. You should ideally choose a professor in your department that both knows your topic well and that you have a genuine bond with. When the time comes, I really urge you to put heavy consideration into your choice of advisor. In English, my advisor was amazing. He was enthusiastic about my topic, and introduced me to many of the texts I used in my work. He was also a man of color, who understood the underlying oppressive structures I was working through. My Religion advisor was also a good resource. However, through the process I wished constantly that I had a Latina or another woman of color as my advisor. I often felt like I was putting on a show for her and the other white professor who were reading my work because of how personal it was. Throughout my paper, I used family anecdotes and memories to support my academic theories. I wasn’t just writing for the academy or for a grade; I was writing for my family, my community, and myself. It felt like I was constantly dealing with racist, sexist, and classist microaggressions and defending why my work was important. Maybe it was because my work was so personal, but researching, writing, and revising two Capstones in my fall semester almost broke me. Even though I loved what I was writing, I was stressed out from July (when my research began) to April (when I defended for Honors). It was a constant balancing act between these huge projects, a full course load, my job, and other obligations. I basically lived in the library when I wasn’t eating or sleeping. It was hard work; I had to narrow my topic, decide what research I was actually going to use, create an authentic thesis, write a copious amount, and scrap what seemed like countless pages when I was editing. However, I don’t think I would have done it any other way. Both of my projects were the final works I got to do in my majors; they were the best personal and academic writing I have ever done. It was liberating to write about things I truly cared about. Regardless of whether you chose to do a personal Capstone or not, the most important thing is self care. Something I often forgot was that nothing I did in academia was as important as my personal growth, health, and relationships. One of the best things I did during the Capstone process was surround myself with friends and family, particularly other Latinxs and students of color. My housemates bounced ideas off of me as I complained my way through ethical jargon. My co-op helped me through mock English presentations. My mom was even able to fly out to see me present on my Religion capstone. Having her sit amongst my peers and professors as I shared a family story and delved into my research is a moment I will never forget.

I’m going to be real. You might have to pull all-nighters. You might reach a point where you feel like you can’t go on anymore. You might want to give up a thousand times over and just sit in your bed and cry. But when that happens, remember that’s okay. Remember that you are the most important. Use the resources around you when you need help. Talk to your community when you’re feeling stuck. Turn to your friends when you really need to take a break. When I did those things, I never stopped being excited about the work I was doing. And by the time I defended for Honors, I was never more proud or excited to talk about my project. Although I graduated in May, please feel free to contact me! (through oberlinlatinxzine@ gmail.com) I’d love to talk more about my experiences or help out any way I can.

Images from Fuck Yeah Chicana Power! tumblr

i don’t often get to relate my latinidad to my environmental studies major...there aren’t many Latinx students, or students of color, in class with me. i want us to take our relationship to the earth seriously. the fight over natural resources, removal of indigenous peoples, migration patters, labor, notions of home...we are tied to land, water, places on this earth as much as we are tied to buildings, strip malls, big hoop earrings. i just wanna talk about it.

current Latinx ENVS major

To my Latina Sisters Breathe. and reach out. You are not alone. We are not alone. They say “we were not meant to survive” So I say breathing is easier because I have you. To my Latina sisters. Self-care is the best care. It’s hard. Every day we wake up. But we are not just awake. and We are not just alive. We have to go through another day where people make us feel like we are not good enough. Like we don’t belong. Like we should be doing more. And every day is Another day in a world filled with violence. The violence that doesn’t affect us. but is around us. The violence that is around us and does affect us. The violence that is experienced by the people we love the most. The violence that is perpetuated by the people we love. The same ones we never thought could produce such heartache. We go through it all. There are small communities within our Latina Sisterhood. I know that I am not the only Latina to have heard the words. “Hey Mami” and then “okay bitch” right after. I know that I am not the only Latina who has had to deal with a father who has tried to police not just my body but my mind, and a mother who just can’t get why I am not following similar footsteps. Or why I refuse to allow things to take place in my life. I know that I am not the only Latina to have experienced sexual harassment and sexual violence. I know that I am not the only Latina to have these thick ass walls around my heart, soul and conscious because letting people in is a continuous disappointment. Letting people in just hurts. This is not to say that every Latina has experienced all of the above. But there are small communities within our Latina Sisterhood. there’s something empowering about meeting strong latinas. There’s something empowering about learning the academic language to talk about lived experiences.

There is something empowering about knowing that with few words. You will know and I will know what we’re feeling. There’s something beautiful about Latina sisterhood. There’s something about the shapes and the curves in our bodies and our minds. There’s something beautiful about validating each other’s thoughts and experiences. And all that takes is a shift in your eyebrows a simultaneous skip in heartbeats. A warm hand A strong hug a genuine smile. To my Latina sisters. We are all much much stronger than we give ourselves credit for. Our stories are our own. There’s strength in that. To my Latina Sisters. There is much to learn. To teach ourselves. To teach each other. To my latina sisters, We can do this. Together. To my latina sisters. We will do this. Together. To my Latina Sisters. To the ones I don’t know, will come to know, and whose presence I have already been graced with. I love you. all of you. each of you. My Latina sisters.

Untitled from the Skin Land Comparison series

RESOURCES Readings (some available in LAL lib wilder 331) - “Guadalupe the Sex Goddess” - Sandra Cisneros - All About Love: New Visions - bell hooks - The Sixth Declaration of the Lacandon Jungle - The EZLN - Medicine Stories: History, Culture, and the Politics of Integrity - Aurora Levins Morales - The Brief and Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao - Junot Diaz - The Latino Threat - Leo Chavez - Matters of Choice: Puerto Rican Women’s Struggle for Reproductive Justice - Iris Lopez - This Bridge Called my Back: Writings by Radical Women of Color - edited by Cherrie Moraga and Gloria Anzaldúa - Borderlands/La Frontera: The New Mestiza - Gloria Anzaldúa - Bodega Dreams - Ernesto Quiñonez - Open Veins of Latin America: Five Centuries of the Pillage of a Continent - Eduardo Galeano - Unspeakable Violence: Remapping U.S. and Mexican National Imaginaries - Nicole Guidotti-Hernandez - The fiction of Solidarity: Transfronterista Feminisms and Anti-Imperialist Struggles in Central American - Transnational Narratives - Ana Patricia Rodriguez - Dividing the Isthmus: Central American Transnational Histories, Literatures, and Cultures Ana Patricia. Rodriguez - Latino Spin: Public Image and the Whitewashing of Race - Arlene Davila - The Taylor Report - The State of Diversity in Environmental Organizations by Dorceta E. Taylor (goo.gl/AEnFff) - Open Letter from the Oberlin Coalition in Support of the Dartmouth Student Sit-in (goo.gl/ H28adq) Online Resources - In Solidarity, a biannual art publication for students of color at Oberlin College (goo.gl/ afb5Wi) - Oberlin Microaggresions, a blog primarily for marginalized students at Oberlin (goo.gl/ QQ4b48) - ColorLines - produced by a multiracial team of writers who cover stories from the perspective of community, rather than through the lens of power brokers (goo.gl/V87ZTM) - Black Girl Dangerous - a reader-funded, non-profit project that features voices of queer and trans* people of color (http://goo.gl/uYrOR5) - CultureStrike - a national initiative to produce visual, written, video and other works to educate the public about the devastating effects of our nation’s policies toward immigrants, while mobilizing communities to fight discriminatory immigration laws nationwide (http:// goo.gl/0J0Z1t) - Negro: A docu-series about Latino identity (http://goo.gl/R5Zbn5) (the creators also have a resources page for Blackness/being part of the African diaspora in Latin America: http://goo. gl/dBglQB) - Latino Americans documentary on PBS (also a book) (http://goo.gl/i9QwkC) - Latino in America (http://goo.gl/je7wPe) and Black in America (http://goo.gl/hFCBNz) by Soledad O’Brien on CNN U.S. - Tumblr blogs: Angry Latinxs United! (http://goo.gl/17OnGC) Caribbean Civilisation (http://goo.gl/GIsHLz) Diaspora Dash (http://goo.gl/tboCPM) F*ck Yeah Queer Latinxs (http://goo.gl/srvxs5)

F*ck Yeah Xicana Power (http://goo.gl/00lHYb) The Latin-Negr@s Project (http://goo.gl/8xga1m) People of the Diaspora (http://goo.gl/x7OIA2) Reclaiming the Brazilian Tag (http://goo.gl/9uIHMd) Reclaiming the Latina Tag (http://goo.gl/mstX21) This is Not Latinx (http://goo.gl/yMlT0Q) You Don’t Look Latino! (http://goo.gl/rSpP2n) Women of Color, In Solidarity (http://goo.gl/lfCOAP), co-moderated by Oberlin alumna Jen; one of their projects is a list of PoC Tumblrs (http://goo.gl/8XRTGA) which could be helpful (updated every month or so) “Safe” Spaces at Oberlin are places dedicated to providing marginalized students with space and time to breathe, vent, and collect themselves. While the role of safe spaces vary based on the needs of each individual, they are usually intentional spaces for marginalized people to validate one another’s experience in addition to challenging each other’s ideas in a supportive way. See also: Andrea Smith’s “The Problem with Privilege” (http://goo.gl/WZ11eZ) and the short essay “Privilege Politics is Reformism” (http://goo.gl/G1DobA) - Multicultural Resource Center (the MRC) - Edmonia Lewis Center for Women and Transgender People (the ELC) - Third World House - Third World Co-op (TWC) - Baldwin Cottage Student Organizations - La Alianza Latinx - Asian American Alliance (triple A) - ABUSUA - for Black students - Zami - for queer and trans* people of color - The Brotherhood - for male students of color - Mexican American Students Association (MASA) - Filipinx American Students Association (FASA) - Students of Caribbean Ancestry (SOCA) - Sexual Information Center (the SIC) Faculty & Staff - Julio Reyes, Latinx Community Coordinator in the MRC - Dio Aldridge, Africana Community Coordinator in the MRC - Kris Surla, API Community Coordinator in the MRC - Danielle Stevens, LGBTQ Community Coordinator in the MRC - Dean Adrian Bautista, Associate Dean of Campus Life and Director of Residential Education - Dean Eric Estes, Vice President and Dean of Students - Professor Gina Perez, Comparative American Studies (CAS) - Professor Pablo Mitchell, History & CAS - Marcelo Vinces Ph.D., Director of the Center for Learning, Education, and Research in the Sciences (http://goo.gl/vDQKCQ) - OSCA Sexual Offense Policy Advocates (SOPAs)