Tú Lucha Es Mi Lucha
Tú lucha es mi lucha - your fight is my fight.
I hesitated on what to say about the current conditions in the U.S., namely with the murder of George Floyd and the subsequent riots currently taking place in Minnesota and across the world, when there are so many horrific issues facing Latinos in America daily. It is real, and pervasive and seemingly never-ending. So what do we do when it’s all too much? We create.
I began this 2 days into the riots, today will be day 4. So many new moments I have fiery opinions about and so much historical context I want to add into said opinions. However, I’m going to take this moment to really dive into how art is a reflection of the world around us and how now more than ever we need to consume what our community is creating.
if you’re like me you love the show Vida. In this show, they write about the local LA community versus the local owners who are debating whether to sell to “the man” or fight it out and try to make it on their own. There are scenes with protestors projecting their rage at the co-lead Latina business owners who are trying to balance their own internal struggles and the very loud opinions of their neighbors. This is (what I assume to be) a direct response to what the creators have seen in their own backyards. A similar fight is reflected in the show Gentrification.
When I look at the crowds of the protestors and the faces and the police and business owners whose livelihoods are being destroyed I can’t help but see the human struggle from all sides. Let me be clear, the current cultural situation is in direct reply to the #BlackLivesMatter movement, and I am not here to take away from that. I’m merely trying to make marginal sense of what’s really going on.
Everyone is struggling. Even before the current pandemic, life was hard and now not only do we have to live in fear of a disease with no cure, we have to fight louder than ever for minorities to be treated and seen as equal.
And as reflected in the art put out by own own community we know even when on the ‘same side’ there lies divisions of morality. As such, we resort to shouting over each other with impassioned arguments that have festered within for far too long. We don’t know when this particular moment will have an ‘ending’, but one thing is certain: we will always have to fight the good fight and with a community as diverse as Latinos the African American struggle is very much our fight. So to my Afro-Latino and African American readers know we will not be silenced as tú lucha es mi lucha. ✊🏽✊🏼✊🏿✊🏻✊🏾
To find out how you can help your community we recommend you connect with your local leaders - cuidado! 💕
Sign the petition to keep Vida on air here.
