JE #1A

To me, Speedy Gonzalez is a representation of old Mexican folklore in some ways. When I think of Speedy Gonzalez, I think about my dad. I think about the sense of humor that is typical among my family. It is often physical humor and sometimes stereotypical or racist. A cartoon like Speedy Gonzalez is important to people in Latin American because of the sentimental value associated with a cartoon they watched in their childhoods. I really liked reading the analysis of Speedy Gonzalez being heroic and not portrayed as a stereotype at all. It makes me wonder what the creator's, writers' and animators' intentions were in creating and animating Speedy for all those years. I think Speedy Gonzalez exists in weird limbo in history where people try remove the cartoon from the air for its misrepresentation of Mexicanos (and rightly so), but not all Latin Americans are thinking about how the media's representation of them will affect them. A cartoon is not just a cartoon, but the stereotypes said about us do not necessarily reflect our view of them. It makes me think of Sofia Vergara's character in Modern Family. I think her character is hilarious and sometimes reflective of people I know, but with that I also know I am not the only one watching. Latino Americanos are not the only ones watching. In fact it is a majority of white folks that are watching these shows and making harmful assumptions about us. That is the context the Speedy Gonzalez exists in. It's complicated, but it can still be appreciated. However, I would probably never show it to a child without talking about it first at length.