Los Comanches and other cultural manifestations of the genízaro (mixed Spanish-Indian) culture of New Mexico is widely recognized and belittled as a mere hybrid of the „authentic" Spanish, Puebloan and Plains Indian cultures. The politicization of identity in contemporary America promotes traditionalist revitalization movements and the genízaros seem to be caught between a rock and a hard plače, not accepted by either of the politically well established ethnicities of New Mexico. They are denied authenticity and consequently are also denied access to funds which have become available for groups that have made successful ethnic claims and achieved state recognition. In spite of this difficult situation, the genízaro culture continues to live, representing a very unique cultural complex. The case of the genízaros of New Mexico may help us better understand the politics of (self-)identification and the process of ethnogenesis as a response to material and political opportunities created by a state reluctant to endorse a common national culture.
An intriguing element of the Pueblo and Hispanic villages of New Mexico is the Matachines Dance. It is performed on different, mostly religious occasions and requires a great personal and financial commitment on the part of the participants. Where the dance tradition disappeared in the past, it is being revived in the present, and where it continues to be danced in an uninterrupted tradition, it is becoming ever more costly and exuberant. The dance draws on European Middle-Age dance dramas, but it is heavy with indigenous layers of meaning. On face value, its key protagonists - Montezuma, Malinche, Abuelos, Montezuma’s entourage and the Bull - reenact the victory of Christianity in the New World. That is the meaning the dance has for the Hispanic villages, in addition to a number of place- and time-specific meanings. While seemingly identical, the dance often carries a different set of meanings in the Pueblos, symbolizing the banishment of foreign elements and the restoration of indigenous rule. In both the Pueblo and Hispanic villages, aside from the religious and mythical significance, the dance serves to delineate and reinforce ethnic boundaries while promoting a sense of community and solidarity. The Matachines Dance thus serves as a fascinating and paradoxical example of a shared cultural praxis which reinforces perceived cultural difference.
This article focuses on the intersection of gender, class and racial/ethnic inequalities. The intersection theory draws on the feminist critique of traditional class theory and on the challenge to feminism posed by ethnic women. The article develops thinking about various configurations of the intersection of inequalities and addresses mainly the case of marginalized women. However, the argument goes that the intersection of gender, class and racial/ethnic inequalities is not just a matter for disadvantaged groups because it has an impact on all groups in various relations. Class, gender and race/ethnicity should be understood as interlocked systems of both disadvantage and privilege. The intersection of inequalities is an approach intertwined with the development of social movements (women’s, labour and civil rights movements) in the USA and Western Europe. The article looks at why the intersection theory elaborated in the West mainly in the 1990s has not been reflected in Czech gender studies. Is it possible to connect the study of gender in a post-communist East European country with the predominantly American intersection theory?, Marta Kolářová., and Obsahuje bibliografii