In the reading “The power of Identity politics”, it states how identity politics is used to describe the experiences lived out by “people who are not white, heterosexual, cisgender men.” The reading states that the white people and their culture and experience can be considered the control group of an experiment, while the rest of the cultures and individuals would be the group which gets experimented on. Therefore, the control group is a representation of how white individuals are at the center, the core of America. I found it interesting how the reading is able to point out the way society will center whiteness, and have it primarily represented in various brands, while people of color would not be as highly represented. Furthermore, the reading brings up how identity politics were developed by black feminists. These black feminists were committed to fight against simultaneous oppressions that they face, such as racism and sexism. The reading states “they coined the term ‘identity politics’ to mean that they would form a politic based on their own experiences and the desire for their own liberation, as opposed to a politic that focused on the liberation of someone else. The reading is stating how these women had to stand up for themselves because they had come to a point where they realized that no one else would fight for them.

The reading “Too Latina to be Black, Too Black to be Latina”, is a reading that really left an impression on me. I think that on a personal note, I grew up with a diverse community however there would still be issues regarding Latino’s who were Afro-Latinos and those who have a darker skin tone. They would be outcasted and often questioned for their skin and how it related with their culture. In the reading I can see how they faced these types of critics. The author states how “Even now as an adult I find people are constantly trying to restrict me into a specific mold and identity. My home language is Spanish so this must mean I eat tacos. I have kinky hair so this must mean I bang to Meek Mill. For many, I am too black to be Latin and too Latin to be black”. They are constantly being labeled, where society wants them to fit in a certain area. However, that is not the case they outgrow that, and they outgrow the stereotypes that are placed on them. The snapshot of Vanique, shows a picture of Amara, she is a woman who was able to be a voice for the Afro-Latina community, she is able to directly state how colorism and inclusiveness is a big issue. In an interview that I seen of her she talks about how when auditioning for a novella, (show) she was denied because they needed someone who appeared more Latina. Meaning a Latina women who wasn’t Afro-Latina, with a lighter complexion. Honestly speaking, it’s very rare to see an Afro-Latin person in Latino media especially with novellas which is a huge part of Latino media.