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Rasquachismo is a theory developed by Chicano scholar Tomás Ybarra-Frausto to describe "an underdog perspective, a view from "los de abajo" (from below) in working class Chicano communities which uses elements of "hybridization, juxtaposition, and integration" as a means of empowerment and resistance.[1][2][3] Rasquachismo is commonly used to describe aesthetics present in the working class Chicano art and Mexican art movements which "make the most from the least."[4] It has been described as a worldview, the "view of the underdog, which combines inventiveness with a survivalist attitude."[5][6] Artists will oftentimes depict experiences of their own life in the "barrio" or the experiences of being Mexican and Chicano. This art movement has also been defined by artists and scholar Amalia Mesa-Bains "as a survivalist irreverence ('hased on sustaining elements of Mexican tradition and lived encounters in a hostile environment') that functioned as a vehicle of cultural continuity."
Rasquachismo is rooted in the older term rasquache, which is the English form of the Spanish term rascuache,[7] of Nahuatl origin.[8] While the term was widely used as a classist slur, it has been reclaimed to highlight the creativity and uniqueness in Chicano and Mexican working-class communities.[2][8] Beyond being simply frugal, the rasquache philosophy also involves inventing new uses for conventional objects. This may mean giving a new function to something that would conventionally be considered broken or otherwise 'useless.'[5]
- ^ Taylor, Diana (2003). The Archive and the Repertoire: Performing Cultural Memory in the Americas. Duke University Press. pp. 126–127. ISBN 9780822385318.
- ^ a b Hutchinson, Sydney (2007). From Quebradita to Duranguense: Dance in Mexican American Youth Culture. University of Arizona Press. p. 83. ISBN 9780816526321.
- ^ Ybarra-Frausto, Tomás (1989). Rasquachismo: A Chicano Sensibility. School by the River Press.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
LatinoLAwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ a b Mesa-Bains, Amalia (1993). Ceremony of Spirit: Nature and Memory in Contemporary Latino Art. San Francisco: The Mexican Museum. pp. 12–13. ISBN 9781880508022.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
Smithsonianwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "rascuache". Collins Spanish-English Dictionary. Collins. Retrieved September 17, 2015.
(Central America & Mexico) "pobre" (poor), "penniless", "desgraciado" (wretched), "ridículo" (ridiculous, in bad taste), "grosero" (grosero, coarse, vulgar), "tacaño" (mean, tightfisted)
- ^ a b "Rasquache". rasquacheresidency.com. Retrieved April 20, 2018.