And like the snow on the ground, work has begun to pile up and annoyingly poke at my face. So, I was able to read Peter Wade’s piece and only start Vasconcelos’. I will add my response to Vasconcelos once I have finished the piece.
Wade, Peter. “Rethinking Mestizaje: Ideology and Lived Experience”.
I am a mestiza from the Philippines and the United states but was born and raised in Indonesia. The Philippines was also colonised by Spain and the term mestiza/o is also used very commonly to describe people with Filipino and foreign ancestry (Initially only Spanish/Filipino but the term broadened). This mix has led to my many questions regarding identity in relation to blood, experience, environment, location and culture. Furthermore, it made this a very interesting read for me. I have been given the term mestiza to describe my origin and growing up it was just a term that identified that I am of two lineages, my mother’s and my fathers. I did not think too much of it until I understood the historical implications and connotations as I grew up; but I couldn’t help but feel that many connotations have begun to hold less weight with time (at least in the Philippines). It also really depends on lived experience and individual situations (personal encounters with varying ancestries).
I felt the truth of mestizaje “ be[ing] understood as the interweaving of two processes, both of which have symbolic and structural reality.. at the level of the embodied person and family as well as the nation” (240). Wade recognises that it is important to prfioritize the lived experience and acknowledge the past and the present in order to see the full picture (which is always changing/growing). I agree with Wade in that ideologies and lived experience influences one another. I also feel that most people will agree with this as well, it might even be quite common knowledge. To me, it will always come down to the individual’s history and experience making it impossible to fully encompass in generalisations.
Mestisaje is powerful in the sense that it can ‘alienate indigenous and black people or as a liberating force that defies colonial and neo-colonial categories of ethnicity and race’.
It is interesting to me that physical attributes are always at the forefront of human interactions until proven otherwise through experience or personal connection. Additionally, throughout this piece I noticed the importance of expression in times of loss/tragedy. Dance and music expressed history and stories beyond words, that moved souls and bodies. Music and dance transcended skin as it continues to do everyday!
This is the definition I found most accurate: “Mestizo-ness is not simply opposed to blackness and indigenousness; rather blackness and indigenousness are actively reconstructed by mestizo-ness.” (245)
I agree with your expression that “physical attributes are always at the forefront of human interactions until proven otherwise through experience or personal connection.” That can also prove that “lived experience” is quite important. We can learn a lot from our daily life through dance, music, etc.
And you can definitely have a deep understanding since you are a mestiza(no offence :)). I’m also grateful for being who I am. I hope you treasure this special experience and maybe make a contribution to it.
I appreciate your gesture towards lived experience, “To me, it will always come down to the individual’s history and experience making it impossible to fully encompass in generalisations.” That was a major point of interest within the Wade piece for me as well. The term is “mestizaje” is exceptionally nuanced and you navigate this concept well, bringing your personal identity to your writing.