Post #8: From Black and Brown Solidarity to Afro-Latinidad panel discussion

Screenshot of "3 Pillars of Gender Justice"

Favianna Rodriguez is an Afro-Latina of Peruvian descent who lives in Oakland, California. She is a 1st generation woman of color who is also an environmentalist. Living in Oakland has led to her fighting against the fossil fuel industry because of the amount of pollution the city endures because of the freeways. She also incorporates messages about the body in her work. She openly talks about abortion and womb trauma and believes they should be openly discussed topics as opposed to being the “taboo” that the culture thinks they are. I found Favianna’s talk incredibly interesting because of how candid she was with topics that are usually seen as taboo within the culture and with her experiences of traveling due to her mother being a travel agent (pre-Internet, as she states). She lived in Mexico City and noticed that her people, such as her Afro-Latino father and grandmother, were not represented in the novelas. She also traveled to Peru and reconnected with her culture as well. 

I also remember that one of the readings, “Chicanx Graphics in the Digital Age” from pages 138 to 139 had mentioned Favianna and her website that has resources such as shareable graphics and art downloads. One of the questions that the moderator, Kaelyn Rodriguez, asked was about entrepreneurship in art and Favianna had mentioned sharing resources. I cannot remember exactly how she phrased her answer but “sharing resources” had reminded me of the reading and her website that does in fact do so. She also talked about gentrification in Oakland and the displacement that comes with it. She was discussing how, compared to her younger years living in Oakland, the community currently is not the same as it was when she was younger. Favianna also incorporated how her community, or those of the Black and Brown community, are suffering from high rates of COVID. All in all, I really enjoyed hearing her speak. She touched upon many different topics and I would enjoy listening to another of her talks in a panel.