Chicana hip hop in los Angeles: knowledges and ktruggles of the latin neighborhood in the feminine

Main Article Content

Diana Carolina Peláez Rodríguez

Abstract

This paper aims at bringing us closer to the Chicana hip hop world in the city of Los Angeles. It ilustrates the motivations, strategies, and struggles of chicanas who find their beat through rapping. First, there is a discussion on Chicano hip hop in Los Angeles, how it became relevant for the youth growing up in the postindustrial barrio and the importance of the female production as the missing element for a representation of such experience as a whole; second, it deepens into the conflicts these women live and the strategies they develop in this cultural movement; ultimately, there is a discussion on Chicana hip hop as activism. The arguments throughout the text find support in the testimonies gathered through interviews done to five chicana rappers and some fragments of their songs. 

Author Biography

Diana Carolina Peláez Rodríguez, Colegio de la Frontera Norte

Maestra en Estudios Culturales (con énfasis en Estudios de Género) del Colegio de la Frontera Norte, México. Traductora, docente e investigadora del Centro de Educación para el Desarrollo, Sede Principal, UNIMINUTO.