The place of intersectionality in U.S. TV series: what progress has been made in the representation of latinx and queer characters? 3/3

(Original: French)

Written by Lysiane Colin

Translated by Kaouther Bouhi

If the small-screen world is diversifying its representations of latinx^[1]Latinx is a word used by the Latin American immigrant community in the United States to describe themselves in a more gender inclusive way (Latino being used to refer to men and Latina to women). … Continue reading and queer^[2]Queer is a word that refers to all sexual and gendered minorities characters, it is often a one-dimensional or stereotyped portrait. There are few latinx and queer characters, and even fewer queer latin women. However, since 2010, some TV series stand out from the rest by putting forward queer latin female characters^[3]Latina is a term that defines women of Latin American origin who have immigrated to the United States for one or more generations. This term will be used when referring to Latinx female characters.. This article, the last part of a dossier on the representation of intersectionality^[4]Intersectionality is a term developed by Kimberlé Crenshaw in 1989. It defines the experience and identity of any individual at the intersection of several social categories (gender, race, class, … Continue reading in the contemporary U.S. television world, looks back on two TV series (Glee and One Day at A Time) that stood out by their representations of queer latin female characters.

The evolution of the representation of queer characters

Queer identities in cinema and television have long been obliterated^[5]Mar Guerrero-Pico, María-José Establés & Rafael Ventura, « Killing off Lexa: ‘Dead Lesbian Syndrome’ and intra-fandom management of toxic fan practices in an online queer community … Continue reading. Heteronormativity prevailed on the screens, invisibilizing any other sexual orientation. With the 1970s, queer representations began to appear. However, they were caricatural, stereotyped^[6]The queer characters were the antagonists, their sexual identity was ambiguous, they were the butt of the joke, their stories were always linked to AIDS, etc and made impossible the identification of the characters.

In the 1990s^[7]The 1990s was the decade of queer demands., queer characters began to be normalized. However, for the most part, they played the secondary role of the best friend of the main character (e.g. Sex and the City), their love story was either impossible, or one of the two characters died before the end (e.g. Buffy the Vampire Slayer). Today, there is a diversification of the representations even though they are still in minority among the main characters as heterosexuality remains the model. The 2000s has seen an explosion of queer representations (gays, lesbians, bisexuals and more recently transgenders^[8]Guillermo Avila-Saavedra, « Nothing queer about queer television: televized construction of gay masculinities », Media Culture Society, vol.31, n°5, 2009, p.5-8). We can mention the characters of Kurt and Blaine in Glee, the characters of the TV series The L Word, or even Jamie in the TV series Sense 8. Nonetheless, the majority of these queer characters are white.

The weak representation of these colored queer characters can be explained, for instance, by the lack of colored filmmakers, screenwriters and producers. This absence behind the camera inevitably manifests itself in front of the camera, and the stories of characters both queer and colored are made invisible. The possibility to be in charge of a TV show is rarely given to latin or afro-latin women ; which makes the representation of these women extremely rare^[9]Ariana Romero, « In Celebration Of Naya Rivera, Glee’s Queer Afro-Latinx TV Icon », Refinery29, 18 juillet … Continue reading.

However, a varied and multiracial representation of these queer characters is essential as the televisual representation impacts the way the audience perceives itself (or not); recognizes itself (or not) ; is made visible (or invisible).

Santana Lopez (Glee): one of the first representations of a queer latin woman

Santana Lopez is a character from the TV show Glee, broadcasted on the channel Fox from 2009 to 2015. Her creator, Ryan Murphy, is known for introducing stereotyped characters in order to deconstruct them and to demonstrate their complexity.

Santana is played by the actress Naya Rivera. She stands out from other televisual representations by being one of the rare queer afro-latin characters within a TV serie broadcasted on a national channel during prime time in the 2010s^[10]Nicole Acevedo, « Naya Rivera remembered as inspirational Latina who redefined Afro-Latinx representation », NBC News, 14 juillet 2020, … Continue reading. Santana is in second place in the list of queer latin characters with the most screen time ; right after Callie Torres, played by Sara Ramirez, in Grey’s Anatomy^[11]Erika Abad, « Revisiting Naya Rivera’s Santana Lopez: The Afro-Latina who Deserved More Time », Latinx Spaces, 15 juillet … Continue reading.

Santana is introduced in the first season of Glee as a secondary character. She is a sneaky cheerleader, with a fiery temperament, who’s always with the head cheerleader. At the time, she almost doesn’t have any dialogue and doesn’t have any importance in the storyline. This representation matches the negative stereotypes applied to latinas: the sulfurous, aggressive woman who never has the leading role^[12]Op. cit. Ariana Romero, « In Celebration Of Naya Rivera, Glee’s Queer Afro-Latinx TV Icon ».

Nevertheless, season 2 and the following ones give to Santana’s character more depth and her storyline becomes central: Santana has feelings for her best friend Brittany, she then questions her sexual identity and confesses her attraction for her, however without being able to tell it to the other characters^[13]Dana Piccoli, « Naya Rivera is missing no more. But the ‘Glee’ star’s queer legacy will last forever », NBC News, 14 juillet … Continue reading. The public becomes then an accomplice to her storyline, experiencing with her the acceptance of her sexual identity. The conflict between her sexual and racial identity is explicit: the TV show highlights the difficulty for colored people to make their coming-out because of their family and religious origins. Santana’s coming-out scene in front of her grandmother in season 3 is an example of this: it makes sense for all latinx who, having grown up in a religious environment like Santana, are disowned by their family because of their non-heteronormative sexual orientation^[14]Alicia Ramírez, « Naya Rivera Opened Doors for Many Latinas Like Me », Oprah Daily, 15 juillet 2020, https://www.oprahdaily.com/entertainment/tv-movies/a33326828/naya-rivera-latina-impact/.. 

Yet, Santana is not only defined by her sexual orientation, this one intertwines with her personality, reinforcing her multi-dimensionality and her narrative complexity.

The other positive representation offered by Santana is her portrait of a woman of color. She fights through all the TV serie to make people recognize and legitimize her afro-latina origin. In an episode, she denounces the perpetuation of negative stereotypes applied to latin culture, taken as universal, such as sensuality, tango, sombreros, etc^[15]Op. cit. Ariana Romero, « In Celebration Of Naya Rivera, Glee’s Queer Afro-Latinx TV Icon ». Her character also demonstrates that a latina woman can succeed in life by her own terms, even though she is a colored woman evolving in a very white world: she succeeds in life as much professionally as personally. Finally, Santana marries Brittany in the last season, offering a love story between an interracial and lesbian couple that lasts and destroys the negative representations of homosexual couples. Moreover, the episode of their wedding is broadcasted in television three months before the law authorizing gay marriage comes into force in the United States^[16]Ibid..

Even though Santana’s character is not devoid of caricatural features, Glee goes beyond those in order to construct a character which breaks the myriad of stereotypes applied to latina and queer women^[17]Op. cit. Erika Abad, « Revisiting Naya Rivera’s Santana Lopez: The Afro-Latina who Deserved More Time ». At a time where the number of queer characters are killed, Santana doesn’t follow the same destiny. Her hypersexuality – a stereotype about colored and queer women – brings her to her emancipation from stereotyped roles usually reserved to latina women and to an understanding of herself and her sexual identity. She distances herself from the traditional stereotype of the young latina studying to succeed (for example, Ugly Betty or Jane the Virgin^[18]Lysiane Colin, « La place de l’intersectionnalité dans les séries TV états-uniennes : la nouvelle génération de représentation des personnages Latina 2/3 », 14.10.2021, Institut du Genre en … Continue reading and prefers to follow her dream in the show-business world, denouncing the lack of representation of colored people in it. Santana is therefore a character writing a different story for latina and queer women. 

Finally, the impact of the character on colored and queer individuals shows the importance that Santana had in the small-screen world. Her character echoes the reality of young latina women and has helped them to understand what they were feeling and to see themselves represented on TV^[19]Michael Baggs, « Naya Rivera: Why Glee’s Santana was so important to young LGBT women », BBC News, 14 juillet 2020, https://www.bbc.com/news/newsbeat-53406664. She became a model for many lesbian teenagers when there wasn’t any character like her^[20]Lesley Goldberg, « Emmys 2012: ‘Glee’s’ Naya Rivera on Playing a Lesbian Role Model », The Hollywood Reporter, 28 juin … Continue reading.

In conclusion, Santana’s portrait is pioneering in her way to present the queer and afro-latin community. Her character doesn’t make excuses for who she is and offers a growing complexity. She embodies the emancipation of a colored woman outside of the stereotypes linked to her community and her artistic journey within a mainly white environment, and introduces a new possible path for latinas and queer women in order to make their own place in society.

Elena Alvarez (One Day At a Time): queer and latin identity from adolescence

In the continuity of the character of Santana Lopez, that of Elena Alvarez offers a positive and complex representation of Latina and queer identity. She is from One Day at a Time, a sitcom by Gloria Calderón Kellett and Mike Royce, which aired from 2017 to 2020.

This series, which features a Cuban-American family, has been widely praised by critics for its multiculturalism and the innovative and progressive nature of the fictional portraits it offers to the public, notably through the main character of Elena^[21]Nicole Acevedo, « Netflix cancels ‘One Day at a Time’ after third season », 14 mars 2019, NBC News, https://www.nbcnews.com/news/latino/netflix-cancels-one-day-time-after-third-season-n983371..

Unlike Glee, Elena Alvarez is a main character from the start. She is a young girl who, like any teenager, gets to know herself by questioning her sexual orientation. She comes out during the first season, introducing a never-before-seen portrayal on television: a young Latina teenager coming to terms with her queer sexuality and organically integrating it into her identity. She also chooses the moment of her coming-out, unlike Santana. This evolution in the representation of queer Latinas is a new step forward: the possibility for them to take charge of their destiny and the decisions that concern them.

However, both character face the same family rejection linked to their sexual orientation, throwing back to reality many young latinas.

Another aspect that differentiates Elena concerns her relationship with Sid. This is the first time that a teenage couple made up of a queer Latina and a non-gendered teenager has been brought to the small screen. It introduces new portraits and initiates the plurality of representations within the queer Latinx community^[22]Mey Rude, « Losing ‘One Day at a Time’ Is a Major Blow to Queer Latina Stories », Out, 9 décembre … Continue reading. Thanks to these characters, a whole section of the population, invisible until then, can finally see themselves represented and recognize themselves on the small screen, exploding the frames and normalizing their sexual identity^[23]Geraldine Cols Azócar, « Proud to be Latinx and represent: ‘One Day at a Time’s’ Isabella Gomez », NBC News, 21 septembre … Continue reading.

An important number of queer latinas highlight the importance of Elena’s character in their life and the way it echoes with their own experience^[24]Op. cit. Geraldine Cols Azócar, « Proud to be Latinx and represent: ‘One Day at a Time’s’ Isabella Gomez ».

One Day at a Time goes even more further in its representation of queer latinas by inviting the actress Stephanie Beatriz^[25]Stephanie Beatriz is best known for her role as Rosa Diaz in the series Brooklyn Nine-Nine for one episode. Stephanie Beatriz is mainly known for her role as Rosa Diaz in the TV serie Brooklyn Nine-Nine. Her character, Pilar, helps introduce the question of queer sexuality within the latinx community, beyond Elena’s (mostly) positive experience. Pilar is introduced as a cat person, riding a motorcycle and living with her flatmate in a one-bedroom apartment, all the stereotyped characteristics of a lesbian ; however no member of her family seems to know that she is a lesbian^[26]Manuel Betancourt, « ‘One Day at a Time’ Spotlights How Latino Families Use Silence to Keep Their Queer Relatives in the Closet », ReMezcla, 26 février … Continue reading. The reason is as follows: no member of her family wants to recognize Pilar’s sexual orientation, highlighting the explicit chosen silence by some latinx families facing homosexuality^[27]ibid. This episode allows to draw attention to two realist ways to live its sexual orientation: claiming it loud and clear in its intimity despite the external stereotypes. Thus, the tv show offers multiple keys for understanding queer sexuality, by valuing them at the same level.

Conclusion

Santana Lopez and Elena Alverez call into question the televisual representations of queer latinas proposed until now. The impact of Santana on the TV characters is huge: through the exploration of her queer sexuality, she brings a new and unprecedented storyline to the tv show. The complexity of her character as well as her happy ending make Santana a rare queer latina representation on our screens.

Elena Alvarez represents, as for her, a new generation of portraits within which the queer latin characters are represented in a complex and multidimensional manner. Through her latino family, her queer claim and her relationship with a non-binary character, Elena opens the door to a new type of character in which many young people recognize themselves.

Even though there are still disparities in the televisual representation, the program is diversifying and is letting a bigger place to TV shows staging queer latinas with positive, complex and multidimensional portraits, going beyond the stereotypes. These representations are vital so that everyone can recognize themselves in the screen as well as to normalize the multiplicity of sexual and racial identities. Although this is a long journey, the train is moving: the intersectional representations have been exploding these past years, especially with TV shows such as Pose or Superstore.

Therefore, these representations follow the line of those precedently analyzed in this dossier on the place of intersectionality in U.S TV series. The portrait of afro-american latin or queer women is constantly evolving since the 2000s. TV series like Grey’s Anatomy, Jane the Virgin or even One Day at a Time drop the stereotypes generally applied to these characters in order to rethink them and propose new ones echoing the real and diversified experience of American women.

It would be interesting to analyze how these representations have opened the way to more examples of intersectionality on the screen, through TV series like The Bold Type, Little Fires Everywhere or Sex Education.

To quote this article: Lysiane Colin, “The place of intersectionality in U.S. TV series: what progress has been made in the representation of latinx and queer characters? 3/3”, 26/01/2022, Gender in Geopolitics Institute.

The views expressed in this paper are solely those of the author.