Abdel Rahman Elsaka

Professor Aisha Sidibe

English 110

6 May 2019

Cofer in her essay “The Myth f the Latin Woman” describes the struggle of Latin women and the way both societies the Latin and the American judges them. She also describes the difficulties they face every day. The hardships of controlling the way the dress, the way they talk the way and the way should behave for them to be a “proper señorita.” On the other hand, American society judging them and objectifying and shaming them. Whereas many people who are against feminism degrade Latinas think that they’re only useful in the kitchen and sexualize them, Latinas prove their abilities every day in the American society in their Latin community, and they show women’s strength by proving how ignorant these people are.

In Latin society, Latinas face as many difficulties as the face in American society. Women in Latin society are kept under rigorous control. Every act in their lives was subjugated. Starting with the way they dress to the way they should act to achieve virtue and honor for her self and her family. And that shows in her piece when she said “As a girl I was kept under strict surveillance, since virtue and modesty were, by cultural equation, the same as family honor. As a teenager I was instructed on how to behave as a proper senorita” (Cofer 204). The clothes Cofer was supposed to wear as a Latin woman were usually embarrassing and humiliating for her and her Latina friends. This shows how unjust Latin women are treated just because they’re thought of them as weak women.

Latinas were most sexualized and thought of them as criminals in American society. As Cofer showed us in her piece when she said: “For them, life is a struggle against the misconceptions perpetuated by the myth of the Latina as whore, domestic, or criminal” (Cofer 207). Most men in American society’s inability to accept other cultures and the degradation of other communities women is mostly the reason for these assumptions. Most of these assumptions are very often based on stereotypes, and usually, they make it just to make up for lack of confidence and to show off their masculinity. However, these behaviors show ignorance and also it does not fulfill their lack of confidence. All of this leads to misjudging Latin women which guides to humiliating women in general and Latinas specifically.

The media focusing on the lack of education some Latinas had was the main reason to generate the stereotype of all Latinas are ignorant and have a lack of education. Cofer friend’s doctor “still shakes his head in puzzled amazement at all the “big words” she uses” (Cofer 207) even though she had a Ph.D. in philosophy at a major college. Cofer herself was mistaken for a waitress in her first public poetry reading. The humiliation they get exposed to is one of the ugliest things to be seen in a well-developed society. And some people would say that This mentality that a lot of men had for centuries that is engraved in their minds can’t be changed. However, Latin women’s rights aren’t something that should take a lot of time to be given to them as the rights of everyone else.

In conclusion, Latin’s women skills and powers are what proves the wrongs of men’s mentalities and cultures. And shows the injustice of the society that sexualizes Latin women and degrades them. Nonetheless, Latin women should not care about any judgments and know their value and worth.

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