Reyes 1

Leilani Reyes

Professor Shahrazad Encinias

CAS 115

October 24 2023

The Risk of Transnationalism

The movie Purple Hearts includes a quote that states, “El que no ariesga no gana”.

Translated into English this means, “Who doesn’t risk, doesn't win”. For many Central American

folks, transnationalism is the biggest experience of risk they go through. Even though this is a

journey, to seek better opportunities, more inclusivity, and newer experiences for a better life.

Central American immigrants, immigrants in general are never prepared to be victims of

assimilation. The difficulty with transnationalism is risking to lose or forget one's original

identity, experiences, language, culture and lifestyle from their motherland to the norms of the

United States.

The complex relationship with transnationalism is risking to lose or forget one's original

Identity in order to blend in with the norms of the United States. In the article “Expressions of

Mayan Identity” by Author Giovanni Batz explains, “Children of immigrants, specifically those

of Mayan descent find it difficult to preserve their language, culture and identity because they are

busy assimilating to the education system, and the media, and the culture of the United States.”.

At school, in terms of subjects, all students learn (unless instructed otherwise) heavily about

American history. Also, there is no other language learned more fluently, other than English.

English is a difficult language to understand phonetically compared to Spanish. Spanish is

brought up because many Central American children speak Spanish as their first language.

Which explains why many children of immigrants participate in English learner departments to
 Reyes 2

help them out. English learner departments are helpful with drilling in the practice children need

for school. However, English then becomes overpowered compared to Spanish and it's not until

later when children realize a part of their identity has been almost completely washed out. Batz

goes on to say “Although some Maya children may acknowledge an indigenous past, some may

not fully identify as Maya since they are unfamiliar with the culture or are Ashamed ”. It’s hard

to connect with a culture, when there is not much to connect to.

The complex relationship with transnationalism is the harsh reality and experiences folks

go through, in order to blend in with the norms of the United States. The documentary Maid in

America, showcases a few different women who had to leave their lives behind in Central

America, to seek better opportunities in the United States. Often many women have to leave their

children behind. Risking to gain a strain in their relationship with their children. For example, a

woman from Guatemala Judith had to leave all of her children behind to work as a housekeeper

in the United States. Judith was gone for a very long time, so much so to the point where she

went back home after a few years. Her daughter who was about a year old when she left, and

about 3 or 4 once she returned, couldn't recognize her own mother. In the Memoir High Risk

Homosexual by Edgar Gomez, he too experiences a strain with the relationship he has with his

mom. His mother had to leave Nicaragua in order to find better opportunities with work. Gomez

states, “I'd never been alone with them that long. Even on other trips when mom needed to get

back to work, Hector had always been with me'' (Gomez 13). Gomez feels anxious without his

mother even though he is getting taken care of by two of his close uncles, “I didn't want to go to

the galleria or a bar. I wanted to be left alone. I wanted my mom” (Gomez 13). Gomez was about

13 years old when he spoke about this experience; Judith’s daughter was about a year old when
 Reyes 3

she had to go. These two examples go to show how common transnationalism is. There is no

specific time or cycle for transnationalism, it happens at different times for everyone.

The difficulty with transnationalism is risking to lose or forget one's native language

from their motherland in order to conform to the norms of the United States. In the Article,

“Expressions of Maya Identities”, the text explains how for Central American children, having

their grandparents significantly present in their lives is crucial for transmitting their culture to the

young ones. Specifically, their cultural language. The text dictates, “Maya elders and

grandparents are absent or hold minimal responsibility in children's education in Los Angeles,

which differs from their traditional role in Guatemala where they are a crucial element in

transmitting culture to the youth”. It’s becoming more of a modern situation when the

grandparents aren’t present in Central American Children's lives. But, that could be a separate

issue with the possibility of family conflict. The article “Visibly Hidden: Language, Culture and

Identity of Central Americans in Los Angeles” by Doctor Magaly Lavadenz explains how the

Spanish that is spoken in Los Angeles is becoming more and more similar to Mexican spanish.

Doctor Lavadenz writes, “As language contact occurs between varieties of spanish, and between

those varieties and english in los angeles, the differences become increasingly less noticeable

over time, ” which then means “central american spanish shifts to become more like the

dominant regional variety of spanish in los angeles (Mexican/Chicano Spanish)”. It’s interesting

how much a language can be impacted by its proximity. In this case it is becoming mexican

washed.

The difficulty with transnationalism is risking to lose or forget one's original culture

from their motherland to the norms of the United States. Before Central America was colonized

by Spain, each local area had a different culture, a different name and even a different dialect and
 Reyes 4

religions that still take place today. The Article “Central American Identities” by Carranza,

Douglas, and Beatriz Cortez infers, "Spanish colony, the name of this region was the kingdom of

Guatemala. Before that, it did not have a name to unify it in the modern western sense. However,

each local area has a different name, a different culture, different types of social organizations

and different languages" . Although the moors were kicked out in 1492 their influence still

remains today. Douglas and Cortez go on to explain, "When Leon and Castilla united in the

Spanish peninsula to implement what was called the reconquista or the reconquest of Spain, the

moors became defined as enemy invaders of the emerging nation and were expelled in 1492.

However their influence remains in Spanish culture today". How does their influence still remain

today? The Moors left behind culture, architecture, art, cuisine, music, literature, and scientific

knowledge. Then again culture doesn’t necessarily depend on what the Moors left behind,

Douglas and Cortez describe how, “identity is not as permanent as we might imagine from

examples of our own lives. Identity is constructed through culture and through the daily practices

of people and not through abstract, nation building discourse”.

Often many immigrants have difficulty receiving and exchanging lifestyles from their

motherland compared to the United States. Edgar Gomez from High Risk homosexual was a

homosexual who went on this journey of self acceptance in two completely different countries.

Gomez’s story is a bit different compared to other central american immigrants discussed. He is

gay and on top of that is transitioning from living a life in Nicaragua compared to living a life in

the United States of America. In Nicaragua, he was almost being forced to be a machista and

participate in machismo culture with his uncles making him participate in chicken fights, “Dale,

gallito! Dale!, hijuemadre!”(Gomez 17), drinking at bars “Tio Cesar gave me the end of his drink

to go talk to her” (Gomez 18), and setting him up to sleep with a girl he just recently met “How
 Reyes 5

long does it take for a boy to become a man?”(Gomez 25). None of those things are him at all,

except for maybe the drinking, but drinking can just be a way to drown out all the pain or stress.

The United States legalises gay marriages, we have cities like San Fransisco, caters to the gays,

and various pride celebrations in the month of June. Vastly different from Nicaragua. But what

do these differences mean? Gomez has always been high risk in Nicaragua for his own identity

which is why he repressed it for so long. Yet, now that he is in the United States he is high risk

because of his physical lifestyle, “I could stay on PrEP. We would closely monitor my liver

while I continued my high risk homosexual activity” (Gomez 247). If it’s not one thing it’s the

other, but somehow there is always a way around everything. NIcaragua was homophobic and

made it difficult to have a good living so the United States was a better place. The United States

was a better place for Gomez to be himself and enjoy his life and experiences while being young,

but that meant he had to be cautious and get put on PrEP to have some safety, especially since he

was high risk. In the words of Edgar Gomez himself, “What you do when you’re not afraid

anymore is the same thing you do when you are: keep going.” (Gomez 281).

Who doesn't risk doesn't win anything. Risk is complex. Complex like the relationship

with one's family, the relationship with one's culture and the relationship with one's self identity.

The difficulty with transnationalism is risking to lose or forget one's original identity,

experiences, language, culture and lifestyle from their motherland to the norms of the United

States. One has to live out the toughest worst parts of their lives, that is a disconnection from

what they are used to. In order to connect with a new encounter or experience. Immigrants,

especially Central American immigrants are those of the large percentage who dare to have an

experience that only a courageous person would be willing to take part in. Losing a part of their
 Reyes 6

identity in order to adopt a new one for a better life. What is lost can always be found or regained

again.
 Reyes 7

Works Cited Page

Anayansi, Prado, director. Maid In America, 2004, Accessed 28 Sep. 2023.

Batz, Giovanni. “Maya Cultural Resistance in Los Angeles.” Latin American Perspectives, vol.

41, no. 3, 22 Apr. 2014, pp. 194–207, https://doi.org/10.1177/0094582x14531727.

Carranza, Douglas, and Beatriz Cortez. "Central American Identities." Introduction to Central

American Studies, Kendall Hunt, 2008, pp. 1-4.

Gomez, Edgar. High-Risk Homosexual : A Memoir. Counterpoint Press, 2022.

Lavadenz, M.(2008) Visibly Hidden: Language, Culture and Identity of Central Americans in

Los Angeles. Journal of the Association of Mexican American Education. 2(1). 16-26.