Sanchez, Cassandra (Abstract Pola Lopez)

 Abstracts: Pola Lopez

1: Frontiers: A Journal of Women Studies, Vol. 18, No. 3 (1997), pp. 121-123

Frontiers: A Journal of Women Studies is a respected feminist journal, which explores female and feminist history in the eye of intersectional women. Pola Lopez was featured in Volume 18 of this journal, describing two of her notable works, depicting her own intersectionality through them. She introduces the works, “Who Wins This Game?” and “500 Years of Grinding Corn and Praying for a Miracle.” She describes “Who Wins This Game?” as a work that explores her own identity, and not knowing where she fits best. However, she comes to the conclusion of being mestiza, being of mixed heritage. In her second work, she explains that in the quincentennial of the arrival of Columbus, she explored the way Indigenous folk were forced to adapt to a new form of prayer, from the conquest of the Spanish. She mentions the grinding of corn to be a necessity to the Latin American diet, and using that as a force to connect our culture to its roots. 

2: Washington Times: Exhibit on US Latina ‘cholas’ opens in Albuquerque

The Washington Times is a news source, known to publicly lean center-right, as the counterpart to the Washington Post. In this article, journalist Russell Contreras covers the “Que Chola Exhibition,” which opened in Albuquerque at The National Hispanic Cultural Center. Depicting the newfound, feminist perspective of a chola woman, Contreras explores the change of image of these women, especially through the exhibit. Contreras first mentions Pola Lopez, to introduce the piece featured on the headline, “Coatlicue and Chola,” being very excited to participate in her home state’s exhibition. Lopez and Nanibah Chacon have a feature in this article, allowing a spotlight on their works and thoughts present in the exhibit. Contreras proceeds to explain the changing narrative on Cholo/as through their community work and humanizing these folks through the media as well. 

3: USC News: Latinx Heritage Month banners celebrate the stories of USC students

USC News is a local news outlet, written by USC schools and administrators along with University Communications Staff. In a 2019 article, “Latinx Heritage Month banners celebrate the stories of USC students,” USC journalist Saul Garcia engages in the topic of Latinx visibility on campus, and the partnership with Pola Lopez for the Latinx banner efforts. The banner project was initiated in March through La Casa (USC’s Latinx student organization), in partnership with Pola Lopez as the designer, and collaboration from the students to make their voices heard and heritage seen through these banners. The short article also features some students’ input on the banners and their visibility and “orgullo” in seeing these banners hang from September 15-October 15. Students highlight the need for diversity on campus and the representation that these banners make in being acknowledged.