Blog 6: Rasquachismo/Domesticana

Rasquachismo is a Chicano sensibility where one makes do with what’s at hand. In Rasquachismo-A Chicano Sensibility, Tomas Ybarra-Frausto extends on this idea and states, “limited resources means mending, refixing, and reusing everything. Things are not thrown away but saved and recycled.” The reading used the example of discarded coffee containers as flower pots to describe this rasquachismo sensibility. This reminded me of my grandma and the various containers she uses to hold all her plants.

In her backyard she has water jugs, with their tops cut off, holding her aloe vera plants. She also uses coffee containers, candle holders, and tupperware to hold some of her indoor plants. The reading also described this Rasquachismo sensibility as a working class sensibility. Usually associated with working class Chicanos in the barrio. Tomas Ybarra-Frausto described the Chicano middle class as not wanting to be associated with anything to do with rasquache and is a description that has a negative connotation, especially for those who are upper class. In my opinion, I think of the rasquachismo sensibility as being creative and thrifty. On the other hand, Domesticana is described as a Chicana rasquache. In Domesticana -The Sensibility of Chicana Rasquachismo, Amalia Mesa-Bains describes domesticana as a “defiance of an imposed Anglo-American cultural identity and the defiance of restrictive gender identity within Chicano culture have inspired a female rasquachismo.” In an artistic context, the domesticana sensibility deals with references from the domestic life and is seen through a feminist lens.