Watch Out Ese, It's The Border Patrol

OH THE IRONY!
Do you  find this to be comedic or offensive?

Offensive isn't it! For any of you who don't know, "ese" is a Spanish word that literally translates to "that" ("that" key or "that" boat). However, over time this word has come to have another meaning which is equivalent to "dude" or "homie". If it is not obvious by now, ese, used in this sense, is a slang term used by the stereotypical Mexican/Cuban seen is various movies. ["Que pasa ese?" is a common phrase used by what the average Joe calls "chollo" (gangster)] Before i continue on, i should state that the politically correct term that is used to reference Mexicans and Cubans, ect, is Latino. However, many individuals say that the politically correct term is actually Hispanic. This is because it was coined by the US Census Bureau in the 70s and it groups together all Spanish speaking people regardless of race/nationality. However, for this post i will be using the term Latino because i find it to be more PC. (I am truly sorry if this offends anyone.)

Have you ever noticed what the dominant discourse says about the average Latino? It says that they all come from South America, they are are illegals, they steal jobs, they all speak Spanish, all the females work as maids, they all eat tacos/burritos, they are all gangsters and they all have long names (usually the typical ones: Jose, Rodriguez, Jorge ect). Sadly, those were just a few of the many currently circulating throughout society. I would now like you to take a couple of minutes and watch the video presented above. Before you watch, you must know that there is profanity involved in it. You have been warned. The video that i have shown above is not to be deconstructed because there is no need for that. It is not like the video in my previous post where i took it apart and while one could do the same to this, it is not necessary. However, i would like to point out a couple of things. While this video was dramatic for comedic purposes, i do agree with many of the points that it made. It's also interesting to see that the video points out that housekeepers are looked down upon, are blamed for actions they did not commit and are treated very disrespectfully. Before i finish talking about this video, i would like to point out one more thing that i found to be quite intriguing. Did you notice that to exemplify the Latino stereotypes, the video uses Caucasian (PC) stereotypes? The Caucasian woman in the video embodies many Caucasian stereotypes. Some of these stereotypes seen in the video are: Caucasians are condescending, they are close minded, they are stupid and they are rich and conceited. Irony, why art thou so beautiful?

Most of these common stereotypes that media presents to us are shown largely on television. It is sad to see so many programs that have characters that portray the stereotypical Latino. Let's take into consideration the show, Devious Maids. I have presented to you the trailer for the show just to give you a glimpse of what the show is about. There are a few problems that i have with this series and i would like to address them. The first issue that i have is fairly obvious: the lead characters are all maids...who are all Latino. Now, don't get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with working as a maid (the world revolves around money). However, i do have a problem with the American entertainment industry because it constantly tells Latinas that this is all they can ever achieve. Continuing on, i find it to be offensive that in the show the maids are seen to be people who love to gossip, act sassy around their employers and regularly dine is fancy cafes. This does not make sense and not only is it stereotypical but it is also inappropriate to portray Latinos in this way. On another note, although this does not tie in with Latino stereotypes, i should mention that this show also exhibits Caucasian and general maid stereotypes. All the employers in the show are Caucasian and they all are snobby, pompous and loathsome. (Caucasian Stereotypes) Also, the show provides viewers with some maid stereotypes which say that they are all unfaithful, charming, sneaky and that they all wear the same coloured uniforms (black and white).

Let's move away from Devious Maids and go onto a show that most of us know. A show that is comedic, racist, offensive and animated. The name of this nefarious show is Family Guy.  One of the show's characters is Consuela, a Latino maid. She speaks in broken English, cleans all the time and is hardly ever seen in anything other than a housekeeper's outfit. Now, i understand that Family Guy is a humorous show that is meant to be offensive and is meant to take aim at social groups, but the only reason i mention it is for you to get some information on how the dominant discourse portrays Latino stereotypes in television programs. Finally, let's take a look at the show Heroes. The only two Latino characters, Alejandro and Maya Herrera, in the show are shown to be siblings who have crossed the border into America illegally.  While they are shown to be major characters, the brother is killed off early on and as the show goes on their story line becomes erratic and inconsistent. Compare this to the other major characters (even some of the minor characters) and you will see how small of a part they play in the show. It is sad to see that when they are important during scenes, the lines are so cheesy and stereotypical that it makes viewers slightly dislike the writers of the show.

I would like to leave you all with these questions. Ponder upon them, derive an answer and spark a discussion below. Thank you all for reading. Please forgive any grammatical errors and if i need to correct/clarify anything, please tell me (comment).

1. Do you think tv shows like Family Guy and South Park have negative effects on their viewers? If so, then what are they?
2. Have you seen "Devious Maids"? If you have, what do you think of it? If not, then would you like to watch it?
3. In what other shows have you seen Latino stereotypes?
4. Latino or Hispanic, which do you think is more appropriate?
5. Why do you think writers and producers constantly build Latino characters around stereotypes?
6. Other than on television, where else have you seen stereotypes (more specifically Latino stereotypes) being used?
7. Do you think that sometimes writes put in a coloured character not to improve the story line itself, but to prove that the show is culturally diverse? (Wouldn't this get them higher views?)