Fighting Cholitas commentary

Cholitas are identified as those who wear layered skirts, braids, and shawls, and those of the descents of the ‘Indians’ in Bolivia; these individuals are discriminated among the population, but the activity, the fighting Cholitas, has raised hope and future for these Cholitas to support for their families. The sport of wrestling gives Cholitas to express their own approach to the sport by wearing layered skirts, and also gives them an opportunity to express their own identities with pride. I was very much intrigued in a way that these Cholitas truly appreciate the sport and the training; they do not solely do it for money, but the meaning that the sport gives to Cholitas and their happiness of giving a show to the public was portrayed in the video. Yolanda “the lover” is a single mother of two daughters and she is working hard to give them health living, feed them, give them opportunities for education; she goes to training with one of her daughters which may also be a purpose to show how strong Cholitas can be. Cholitas are the Indian descents, and they are very proud of their history; the Cholitas wrestlers feel that when they are on the ring fighting other wrestlers, they feel the love and jeers from the public which make them feel alive. Even though it was quite surprising to see these Cholitas actually wrestle on the ring and passionately show their dedication even through injuries, I was very much appreciated on how they emphasize on their roots. Even though they realize the discrimination against them, they are proudly representing their own culture and through sports such as wrestling, they are able to continue to share their way of their representations through outfits. Not only these shows are done for financial reasons, but also the passion and the desire to share the strength of their particular culture to others. The wrestling aspect of the Cholitas meant more than sports; they are the activities that kept their culture alive and their pride up to the public. I was very much impressed on their dedication to the sport especially training as they have other jobs and tasks to do in their daily routines. Those professional wrestlers in North America today are paid much more and dedicated to the sport only, but these Cholitas are carrying out wrestling as one of the parts that help them put food on the table; these stunt-like moves such as falling, flopping are not the easiest to perform, and some can be dangerous which can affect their other duties. As an individual who came from a very small city in Korea, I definitely could understand their struggle as a minority in a community; their strength of continuous determination and passion to fulfill and appreciate whatever they can achieve and do should be respected by many. It was great to see that a sport can make them happy in many ways.

Class Questions:

Do you think that these fighting Cholitas present the appropriate representation of other Cholitas?

Do you have any experiences when you were part of the population whom were discriminated against, but through certain activities, you have gained respect?