The Mexican American Experience, a radio program produced by the Longhorn Radio Network, includes interviews, music, and informational programs related to the Mexican American community and their concerns. Program summary: Historian Shirlene Soto discusses the role of women who participated in the Mexican Revolution, and writer Marta Cotera discusses the legacy of one such woman, La Adelita, and what she symbolizes for the Chicano community. Soto first discusses the historiography of women in the Mexican Revolution. She explains that traditionally historians have ignored women's participation in wars, and female historians are now uncovering their contributions. Her work has found that during the Mexican Revolution, women from all class and ideological backgrounds participated in the war effort, from producing materials to working as nurses and fighting alongside men. Many women also served as soldaderas who traveled with the troops, fighting with their partners and providing them with food and other provisions, while simultaneously raising their children. Cotera then discusses the symbolic power of La Adelita. Cotera explains that La Adelita is an archetype of the female leader who defends her people, which originated in pre-colonial times with the Toltec queen, Xóchitl, and has been embodied by all of the women who fought during the War for Independence and the Mexican Revolution. La Adelita has also inspired the Chicano Movement and spurred women like Emma Tenayuca and Dolores Huerta to continue fighting on behalf of their community. Keywords: Adela Velarde, Adolfo Lopez Mateos, Alfredo Villegas, Alvaro Obregon, Antonio del Rioarmenta, Archetypes, Battle of Torreon, Benito Juarez, Carabina 30-30, Chicano Movement, Chihuahua, Constitutional Army, Corridos, Cruz Blanca, Cuba, Diosa y Hembra, Doña Juana Torres, Dolores Huerta, Emiliano Zapata, Emma Tenayuca, Gertrudis Bocanegra, Gustavo Diaz Ordaz, History, Insurgent Mexico, John Reed, Josefa Ortiz de Domínguez, La Adelita, La Valentina, Marta Cotera, Mexican Revolution, Mexico, Nueva Cancion, Nurses, Pancho Villa, Petra Luis Echevala, Rafael Velarde, Red Cross, Rosa Linda Fregoso, Salinas Valley, Shirlene Soto, Silvio Rodriguez, Social Movements, Soldaderas, Sor Juana Ines de la Cruz, South Texas, Toltecs, Transnationalism, Venustiano Carranza, White Cross, Xochitl. Broadcast date: 1981-06-19.
Creator/Contributor:
Longhorn Radio Network (creator), Fregoso, Rosa Linda. (host), Cotera, Martha (interviewee), and Soto, Shirlene Ann (interviewee)
Date Created/Date Issued:
4/2/1981
Owning Repository:
Benson Latin American Collection, LLILAS Benson Latin American Studies and Collections, The University of Texas at Austin