“because I will have to call us on a lot of shit like our own racism, our fear of women and sexuality. One of my biggest fears is that of betraying myself, of consuming myself with self-castigation, of not being able to unseat the guilt that has ridden on my back for years. These my two hands quick to slap my face before others could slap it1 But above all, I am terrified of making my mother the villain in my life rather than showing how she has been a victim. Will I be betraying her in this essay for her early disloyalty to me? With terror as my companion, I dip into my life and begin work on myself. Where did it begin, the pain, the images that haunt me”?

-Gloria E. Anzaldua , La Prieta

The author battles with her inner self and becomes reflective when it dawns on her that her beliefs of racism and sexuality, and those of her mother’s, are only the results of what they’ve been exposed to. The darker the skin, the more people would think she’s a “dirty Mexican” or indigenous. Living in a white world, so to speak, divides families, with the lighter members receiving better treatment, etc… and because it has been ingrained at such a young age, it becomes part of how they think of themselves and others who look like them, thus the cycle continues.

I chose this text because many people do not realize how much your environment aids in the development of yourself. It’s easy to point fingers and blame your family or close friends around you for making you feel less than you are, but they are in fact victims themselves. They’ve become victims of discrimination, racism, and prejudice from white people who believe that they are the most deserving “race” on the planet. It’s very sad because there is so much to be done to ensure that our sons and daughters know that they are beautiful and that they are worthy. Skin color has nothing to do with potential. People of color have long struggled with not fitting a certain “look” but that’s okay. Women deal with discrimination in other ways. Many are made to feel that men can treat them any way they may and that should be accepted. But I have hope for the future because although slow, progress has come a long way in the last 20 years.