Sergio A. Gonzalez
University of Pittsburgh
Abstract
Dr. Sergio A. Gonzalez (University of Pittsburgh) explores the possibilities of Jotería Crit, a joining of jotería and Critical Race Theory (CRT). The concept of jotería is derived from an anti-queer Spanish-language term joto, which Gonzalez reclaims and reimagines as a praxis of critical race counterstorytelling and jotería historias. First cultivated within a Research Apprenticeship Course (RAC) on Critical Race Theory at UCLA, jotería informed and led to the development of new methodologies in Gonzalez’s co-creative work, namely, Queer Pláticas (meaning conversations), to disrupt heteronormative thinking and ways of being.
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The embodiment of Jotería as a form of praxis, for me, developed during my time as a graduate student. In many ways, comunidad was at the center of this growth, nurtured by friends, colegas, professors, courses, and most importantly, an embracing of vulnerability. What is Jotería? Historically, jotería derives from the derogatory Spanish language term joto, meaning sissy, faggot, puto, and maricon, to name a few (Alvarez, 2014). Rather than adhering to oppressive approaches, jotería, as a reclaimed term, signifies a collective of Latinx/a/o individuals who embody non-normative expressions of gender and sexuality (Gonzalez, 2021). It resists colonial categorizations, weaving together race, culture, gender, sexuality, history, and land. In the Critical Race Counterstory tradition (Solórzano & Yosso, 2001), this Jotería counterstory gives an account of my journey through a Research Apprenticeship Course (RAC), which can be described as “a space centered on identifying, analyzing, and challenging race and racism in education… by extending Critical Race Theory (CRT) in the Law to the fields of Education, Race and Ethnic Studies, Women of Color Feminist Theories, and Freirean Critical Theory” (Solórzano, 2022, p. 87). I unofficially enrolled in this course in the Spring of 2020, during the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. I was invited to participate and engage with the RAC, online via Zoom, as a non-UCLA student because Dr. Solórzano, or Danny, agreed to be on my dissertation committee as a student at Claremont Graduate University. With his open invitation, Danny emphasized that the “goal of the RAC [is] to provide an academic and social space where primarily Students of Color [can] critically and collaboratively engage in and support discussions on race, racism, sexism, and classism in research, pedagogy, policy, and activism” (Solórzano, 2022, p. 88).
Throughout my time in the RAC counter space, I found myself critically reflecting on my purpose, more specifically, on my why, whether in the RAC or academia overall. As I delved deeper into my jotería, it became increasingly evident that the RAC was more than just a platform for discourse. The RAC was a transformative space where the conceptualization and methodologies surrounding jotería pedagogy and studies were being redefined and propelled forward. In turn, the RAC helped me explore and co-create the methodological approach of Queer Pláticas, “a methodology that disrupts epistemological boundaries, as well as heteronormative ways of knowing and being” (p. 1741) with my scholar siblings, Drs. González and Orozco (González et al., 2023). Moreover, the RAC cultivated a vulnerable place to make meaning of Jotería Microaffirmations, currently defined as small, positive actions, gestures, or words that nurture Queer and Trans Latinx communities when engaged in jotería (Gonzalez, 2023), as it developed throughout my dissertation study.
In April 2023, I volunteered to present my chapter four preliminary findings of the dissertation during one of the RAC sessions. My goal for this chapter was to center the lived experiences of 41 queer and trans Latinx graduate students, highlighting the importance of belonging, microaffirmations, community building, and critical consciousness through individual pláticas. I unapologetically titled the session, Ch. 4: WTF is Going On? I started off by thanking everyone for the time and space to process where I was at with my thoughts and the development of the chapter. Specifically, I divulged feeling stuck trying to make sense of how much information to add from the pláticas with my co-creators. I remember Danny mentioning that I had not shared this chapter with him yet and that this would be new information for him as well. I asked the RAC to please provide feedback and to let me know if my thought process even made sense. As I narrated the pláticas my co-creators and I engaged in, I could feel my heart beating out of my chest. I felt exposed, susceptible even, to everyone on Zoom and in Moore Hall. Gasping for air while also holding back tears, I leaned into my vulnerability and reminded myself the RAC was my safe space to share, reflect, and grow. I took a deep breath as I proceeded to stop sharing my screen and ask for feedback. One by one, people raised their hands and shared how they felt as I took them on this journey through these pláticas. The feedback I received was full of care, compassion, and most importantly, came from a place of love. This experience is a good reminder that vulnerability and community are powerful tools and when used in affirming ways, lead to untapped potential, or jotería magic, as I like to say.
Finally, the RAC, as comunidad, embraced and supported my scholar hermanx, Dr. Omi Salas-SantaCruz, and I explored the possibilities of Jotería and CRT coming together to create what we are coining Jotería Crit. Through the RAC we were able to show how the focus of Jotería Crit is an epistemic intervention to dismantle colonial violence, racism, and cis-hetero patriarchy within educational contexts. Jotería Crit goes beyond identity-based analysis, emphasizing the co-formation of power at the intersections of race, gender, class, Indigeneity, sexuality, ableism, and settler colonialism. It advocates for decolonizing education by centering healing, cultural resistance, embodied knowledge, and self-determination.
References
Alvarez, E. (2014). Jotería Pedagogy, SWAPA, and Sandovalian Approaches to Liberation.
Aztlán, 39(1), 215–227. https://doi.org/10.1525/azt.2014.39.1.215
Gonzalez, S. A. (2021). Jotería identity and consciousness: Pláticas of co-creation with undergraduate queer Latinx students. Rutgers Graduate School of Education, Proctor Institute. https://proctor.gse.rutgers.edu/sites/default/files/Joteria%20Brief_0.pdf
Gonzalez, S. A. (2023). Jotería identity and belonging: Pláticas of co-creation with queer and trans Latinx graduate students in higher education [Dissertation]. https://www.proquest.com/dissertations-theses/jotería-identity-belonging-pláticas-co-creation/docview/2871709575/se-2
Gonzalez, Á. de J., Orozco, R. C., & Gonzalez, S. A. (2023). Joteando y mariconadas: theorizing queer pláticas for queer and/or trans Latinx/a/o research. International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education, 36(9), 1741–1756. https://doi-org.pitt.idm.oclc.org/10.1080/09518398.2023.2181433
Solórzano, D. G. (2022). My journey to this palace called the RAC: Reflections on a movement in critical race thought and critical race hope in higher education. International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education, 36(1), 87-98. https://doi.org/10.1080/09518398.2022.2042613
Solorzano, D. G., & Yosso, T. J. (2001). Critical race and LatCrit theory and method: Counter-storytelling. International journal of qualitative studies in education, 14(4), 471-495.
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About the Author
