Demanding Social
Equality:
A Feminist Re-Interpretation of
the Virgin of Guadalupe
by Rhonda L.
Barnes
As part of my project for
Chicana Cultural Expressions, I explored a few issues surrounding la
virgen de Guadalupe and especially her social role.
One can see that the religion and culture of Mexico are both
patriarchal.
How unique, then, that the image of a woman brings the people together,
and according to some, gives them their strength. The image of the
Virgin of Guadalupe not only unifies and identifies Mexican culture, it
is also powerful as a liberator for her people, and since the 1970's,
the Chicana artist has taken up the virgin's image in her work. In this
way, the traditional image is used to change the community's
assumptions about women's roles and to challenge them to action.
Though
a far-reaching female figure may seem to give Mexican-American women an
inspiring role model, her image cannot be used for positive change
unless there is also a demand for social equality. Chicana artists are
doing just this. They are raising people's consciousness
with a new
perspective on a traditional image. And now with technology booming on
the
Internet, which you must know if you are reading this now, la virgen
morena has a new place for potential expression.
Images of the Virgin of Guadalupe
Soon after her appearance, la virgen de Guadalupe began to
eclipse all the other male and female religious figures in
Mexico, and eventually in the southwestern United Sates as
well. (Anzaldúa 29) Now people on both sides of the border
between the United States and Mexico consider her to be
their own and her image gives a follower her/his identity.
(Randall 115) "Through Her intercession, a Mexican remains
Mexican in California, an Indian remains Indian in Mexico."
(Martínez 101) Thus her image has many meanings for her
varied believers and it is tied to the indigenous past of a
conquered people.
It is the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe that has the power
to bring people together. Boys and girls in Texas wear her
image on their t-shirts; truck and bus drivers keep her
image with them as they drive; pictures and altars are
created in the homes and workplaces of her followers.
(Olivera)
(DePalma) She is the most
omnipresent symbol of
the Mexican-American people and serves to identity her
followers as an unique community.
The character of the Virgin of Guadalupe is
multi-faceted and has been used for various purposes by all
strata of Mexican and Mexican-American people. When the
Virgin first appeared over four hundred and fifty years ago,
she was morena, brown-skinned like the mestizo race and has
thus been considered to announce "the foundation of a new
race." (Gonzalez 11) Traditionally, the Virgin of Guadalupe
has been seen as a mother, a nurturer, and a mediator. She
mediates between the indigenous and the Spanish, between
Chicanas/os and Anglo society, as well as between the divine
and humanity. (Anzaldúa 30) In addition, the traditional
Virgin protects the family and brings people together.
(Martínez 107-108)
Re-capturing the Image
The image of la virgen de Guadalupe has become a symbol of
hope and liberation for her community. She is no longer a
passive mother figure. Her image gives the oppressed people
dignity and energy to resist assimilation. (Rodriguez 1996,
48) She shapes who the Chicana/o community is and empowers
those who turn to her for guidance. (Cisneros 50; Rodriguez
1994, 146) She is "a role model of strength, enduring
presence and new possibilities." (Rodriguez 1994, 160) Her
image has a liberating effect on women. (Rodriguez 1994,
161) "She’s the woman that puts the Mexican macho in his
place." (Martínez 107) For the women who have searched for
an escape from bondage, turning to la virgencita and
re-thinking her image, has given them a tool for social
change. (Randall 123; Rodriguez 1994, 164)
La virgen hearkens back to an indigenous goddess, and many
feminists, such as Sandra Cisneros and Gloria Anzaldúa, have
re-claimed the indigenous attributes for the Virgin.
Cisneros sees Guadalupe as containing enduring sexual power
and as being both creative and destructive, because within
her is a pantheon of mother goddesses which combine together
to create Cisneros’ own identity. (Cisneros 49-50) Anzaldúa
write eloquently about la virgen de Guadalupe as
Coatlalopeuh, who is descended from "earlier Mesoamerican
fertility and Earth goddesses." (Anzaldúa 27) It is with
these strong Serpent Goddesses that Anzaldúa identifies and
draws strength. Although her image had been manipulated for
the purposes of vanquishing the polytheistic beliefs of the
mexicas, pre-Hispanic elements remain in the Virgin and her
image has been re-claimed and re-vitalized by the Chicana/o
community. (Favrot Peterson)
However, the Virgin of Guadalupe can only be truly
transformative if the demand for social equality is made.
Female divine figures do not insure social justice for
women, as the example of Hinduism with its pantheon of gods
and goddesses demonstrates. In addition, there must be a
"social expectation of equality." (Wessinger 6) One way in
which Chicanas are doing this is through a re-interpretation
of the Virgin of Guadalupe. By asserting the power within
the Virgin, Chicanas are acknowledging the power within
themselves. By creating publicly consumed art and literature
utilizing the powerful Virgin, Chicanas are demanding social
equality for women.
The Feminist Chicana Artist Re-Claims la
virgen
In the 1970’s, the Chicano movement experienced a
surge in women artists, partly as a result of the
privatization of Chicano art. (Goldman and Ybarra-Frausto
90) Not only that but women no longer felt obliged to take
passive or secretarial roles in el movimiento. Chicana
feminists became ever more visible through their art work
and their activism. (CARA 322) "From the beginning, positive
images of active women appeared." (Goldman and
Ybarra-Frausto 90) Chicana artists focused on their cultural
identity and made art that is self-affirming and empowering.
(Mesa Bains 131)
One such artist is Yolanda Lopez, whose re-making of the
Virgin’s image defies tradition and orthodoxy. (Ehrenberg
176) Lopez’s work uses feminine images in a way that
emancipates women. (Mesa Bains 137)
Portrait of the Artist
as the Virgin of Guadalupe shows the Virgin in running
shoes. The image is one of an active woman in control of her
surroundings. Snakes have a strong traditional meaning in
indigenous cultures, as Cisneros’ and Anzaldúa’s writings
attest, and this portrayal of the Virgin plays on the notion
of Guadalupe as the incarnation of Caotlalopeuh, "She Who
Has Dominion Over Serpents." (Anzaldúa 27) By holding the
snake in her hand, Lopez demonstrates that Guadalupe is
still Coatlalopeuh and thus ties Mexican-Americans to their
indigenous roots. By making la virgen active, Lopez
demonstrates the power that all women have, that they no
longer need to be passive. Her painting calls women to
action and reminds them of the power in their indigenous
past.
Yolanda Lopez also has a series of paintings of the
Virgin of Guadalupe as an older woman, perhaps a
grandmother. Margaret
F. Stewart: Our Lady of Guadalupe
depicts an older mestiza, sitting on a bench which is draped
in the Virgin’s blue cloak, as she holds the skin of a snake
in her hand. Again, the image hearkens back to the Serpent
Goddess of pre-Contact Mesoamerica that Chicana feminist
writers describe. Not only does this abuela-as-Virgin have
dominion over serpents, but she has actively killed and
skinned the creature. Viewers see her as an active woman, a
woman with whom they can identify better than with a
virginal, celestial mother of god.
In
Victoria F. Franco: Our Lady of Guadalupe a middle-aged
mestiza is mending her blue cloak at a sewing machine. The
little angel is sitting at her feet, looking bored as a
child might while waiting for his mother to fix his clothes.
One of the most recognizable symbols of la virgen morena, a
bunch of roses, is lying on the floor beside the angel. The
impression a viewer may get from this painting is that of a
back stage preparation. The woman is mending things as if
she were getting ready for an important event - maybe la
fiesta on December 12th. The Victoria F. Franco portrayal of
the Virgin is much more realistic to women’s every day
lives, and thus makes a better role model for women in a
practical society.
Through her re-interpretation of the
image of la virgen de Guadalupe, Yolanda Lopez is
constructing a new ideology and is re-defining "the feminine
in a feminist context." (Mesa Bains 137) She is re-claiming
an image to which all Mexican-Americans identify and using
it to challenge their assumptions about women’s roles in
society and calling women to be active.
The Virgin on the Internet
A new forum for interpreting the Virgin’s image is the
fast-growing Internet. The World Wide Web provides nearly
infinite space which Chicana feminists can utilize in their
social critiques and evaluations. However, most of the web
pages devoted to Our Lady of Guadalupe are religious
and
support the traditional view of the Virgin. They are mostly
faith-based and anti-choice and do not represent the Chicana
feminists interpretation of the Patron Saint. Chicanas have
not taken advantage of this new medium of expression and
placed their thoughts on the information superhighway.
Clearly as
technology becomes increasingly more important in every day
lives, the re-claiming of the Virgin must extend onto the
web. The next generation must be aware of what was
illustrated and asserted before them, so that they can build
on the foundation of Chicana feminist interpretation and
continue to demand a social expectation of equality.
Conclusion
Despite Christianity’s patriarchal nature, the image of a
woman has gained considerable strength and power among
Chicanas/os and Mexicans. The Virgin of Guadalupe, Patron
Saint of Mexico, and the incarnation of the goddesses of
indigenous culture, unifies and identifies her people. Her
followers see her as wielding power and as a part of who
they are. But rather than maintaining her traditional image
as the virginal, nurturing mother, Chicana feminists have
re-claimed her image. Without their demand for social
justice, la virgen would not command and inspire change --
both for the Mexican-American community and for the women
themselves. By re-interpreting her image, artists like
Gloria Anzaldúa and Yolanda Lopez are challenging society’s
assumptions about women’s roles and are demanding justice
for women. The next step, then is to integrate technology
and the Internet into their work and to bring the new images
into a new medium of communication.
Send any comments,
suggestions, etc. to
Rhonda L. Barnes.
Last
modified 18 Decmber 1997