Latino Family Roles Essay

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Children who grow up in traditional Latino families can have harder time when they are raised in America. There is large number of expectations and roles that their family expects them to follow. The roles and expectations their parents have in their native country are different from the ones of American society. Many Latino families are religious which sets a way of lifestyle that the family has to follow and abide by. There religious traditions and beliefs often does not accept homosexuality and the lifestyle they live. Traditional Latino men are often machistas, Latino often see themselves as dominant men and believe in patriarchal society. Patriarchy and machismo set roles that women and also the men in the family. It defines in a Latino community what a real successful women and men should be. Due to there religious believes Latino families are against homosecuality, although there religious believes can help them understand and accept it; there is still evident prove of the believe of a patriarchal system, sexism and machismo in the family. Sexism is still present and there are stereotypes that are tied to the word “women.” There are strict expectations on how a woman should live her life. …show more content…
When talking about her grandmother, Cisneros states “she looked out the window all her life, the way so many women sit their sadness on an elbow.. Esperanza. I have inherited her name, but I don’t want to inherit her place by the window” (16). Latino women are expected to get married, have children and be housewifes. Many women like Esperanza 's grandmother have to live unhappy while following these roles, that are an expectation. Esperanza like many other women have decided not to take these roles that define them as women in the Latino community. Women are faced with sexism when they try and take what are considered male roles. Sexism is not only displayed in the household, but in politics and jobs. Many people believe that a women should have a higher position than a man, women are often not seen as authority figures. Today in 2015 the number of women in politics is very low compared to men, and an even lower number of Latino women in politics. Women are trying to break hse stereotypes and roles that have been inherited from generation to generation, but are still not treated equally to men. Being Latino makes it harder for Latin women, because of the traditional roles in their family and because of the color of their skin. Latino men have a mentality where they strongly believe in a patriarchal system. Women in a Latino family are taught to idolize men and to below them. Women live in man 's world. Cisneros states “being an only daughter in a family of six sons forced me by circumstances to spend a lot of time by myself because my brothers felt beneath them to play with a girl in public” (97). Male children grow up in a patriarchal society and grow up believing that females are below them. Cisneros brothers view themselves above female. These can be because they grow up with fathers like Cisneros, she says “Being an only daughter for my father meant my destiny would lead me to becomes someone 's wife.” Men believe that they have the power to choose their children

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