Rasquachismo is a term I have never heard before. However, in Jennifer A. Gonzalez’s critical anthology “Chicano and Chicano Art,” Gonzalez defines the term “rasquachismo” as “an attitude or a taste” (85). But to be more clear, the term itself comes from the word rasquache, which means, in Chicano vernacular, leftover or of no value. However, to further explain this term, it is a term that was used to describe a person of lower-class, but in a negative way. It was negatively used in a way that would make a separation between those people that were higher in income and those who were low in income. It was used in a way to put labels on people of lower-class and therefore, they would automatically place them into these marginalized boxes. Moreso, it was used as a way to identify those “inferior” and therefore that negatively brought some sort of attitude towards people of lower-class. Bad attitude in a way. Thus, during the Chicano movement, rasquachismo was redefined as someone who is “bawdy, spunky consciousness seeking to subvert and turn ruling paradigms upside down— a wait, irreverent, and impertinent posture that recodes and moves outside established boundaries,” meaning that these people (Chicanos) recoined this term into something positive. A bunky person is someone who is highly spirited and brave. Someone who is willing to change something negative, into something positive. And although the term has been redefined by Chicanos, the term itself is still confusing in the sense that it has a lot of definitions. In my opinion, it is a broad term that can mean something, and at the same time, it can mean something else. It is a term I’m not familiar with or aware of its historical context, therefore there seems to be confusion its' recent meaning.
Luis Jimenz, Blue Mustang
This is a great and informative definition of rasquachismo! I didn't know that it was used as an insult or to identify those inferior to others, so thank you for clarifying that. I also agree that it can mean a lot of things, which is why I was a confused at first. However, I think one common thing between all definitions is that they all transform something negative into something positive.
ReplyDeleteHi Marina, thank you for explaining how the word rasquache was used in a negative way to separate people of the lower and higher class. I’m glad that term has been changed to signify someone who is willing to change something negative into something positive using a variety of resources available to them. Rasquache moves beyond boundaries to represent something greater than what meets the eye.
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