JE #1A

I honestly never closely read the character of Speedy Gonzales before my UCLA education. I did not necessarily watch it religiously when I was younger, but I was still well aware of the little brown raton that got away from everything. The material that I read and the episode I saw made Speedy much more significant than I would ever make him, and rightly I agree his existence/creation reveals a lot about the community conditions of Mexicans during the 19^th and 20^th centuries. When watching the “Astroduck” episode, I realized that Speedy was much more diplomatic than a nuisance. If anything Daffy Duck is the invader utilizing his financial privilege to buy “cheap” property. Although the cartoon was limited to about six minutes, it reflected so much on the Mexican resistance to the Anglo invasion and exploitation. Yet I could not help but notice one of the comments from the supplemental material stating, “There evidently wasn't a problem with the Mexican caricatures at the beginning of Speedy's career.” I do not agree with that. There might not have been a problem with the producers of Warner Bros. making stereotypical characters, but who exactly do these producers and artists consist of? Yet ironically I appreciate how well this particular cartoon captures the blatant racism and prejudice that has transitioned into a much more subtle institutionalized medium of attack. As one of the articles states, eventually the cartoon began with a disclaimer stating “these cartoons are being presented as they were originally created, because to do otherwise would be the same as to claim these prejudices never existed.” This is a pretty heavy introduction for a cartoon, but nonetheless it brings about the question of whether to continue airing this material or banning it forever. Which one is more productive in terms of dismantling oppression?