As a child, I would
enjoy watching Speedy Gonzalez because Speedy used the same vernacular as many
of my tios did. I loved seeing a popular cartoon character wear a hat that I
saw around my home. Speedy, to me, represented the underdog, and I felt like a
cool kid when kids at school would say “Hey Speedy Gonzalez” after I ran in a
track meet. It wasn’t until I became older and consciousness that I realized how
problematic the cartoon is. The material just solidified how problematic Speedy
really is. I actually have a Speedy toy at home and I don’t think I’ll be able
to look at it the same way. It angers me how society slips racist ideologies
into cartoons, something that children watch.
In the picture
below, which I found on Wiki, Speedy is represented as the “sleeping and lazy
Mexican,” a common racist stereotype of Mexicans. This image perpetuates an
inaccurate thought of Mexicans. People don’t realize images like this and
cartoons like Speedy Gonzalez affects issues greater than they can imagine.
When stereotypical portrayals of Mexicans are on a grand stage like a popular
cartoon show, it affects real life issues like immigration. Americans don’t
want “Speedy” coming into their country. So cartoons with racist images
subconsciously affect the way people view the target group, in this case
Mexicans. People underestimate the impact media has on our lives. Images we see
on TV affect our real life perception. Speedy Gonzalez is a clear example of
this.
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