Diamond Lake Room, Erb Memorial Union (EMU 119)
CLLAS Research Series Presentation
“The Femeniños Project: Literature and Visual Media for Queer Latino/x Youth.”
Ernesto Javier Martínez, associate professor, Department of Ethnic Studies, will present his recent work with the Femeniños Project, a multi-genre storytelling initiative that brings together award-winning filmmakers, writers, illustrators, and musicians to help mitigate the severe underrepresentation of Latino/x youth in contemporary cultural production and to proactively challenge the harm inflicted upon queer youth of color when their humanity is distorted in the mainstream imagination.
CLLAS awarded its first Latinx Studies seed grant (2018-19) for research or creative projects to Professor Martinez, for his proposal, “A Child Should Not Long for Its Own Image: Literature and Visual Media for Queer Latinx Youth.” The project included four components: (1) the production of the short film La Serenata; (2) the premier screening of the film at the University of Oregon, followed by a discussion with the director and fellow collaborators; (3) a community conversation about queer Latinx youth with teachers and parents in the Eugene/Springfield area; and (4) free distribution of the bilingual children’s book When We Love Someone, We Sing to Them to local schools, libraries, and community centers.
La Serenata is a film adaption of a children’s book that Martínez wrote, entitled When We Love Someone, We Sing to Them, published in 2018 by Reflections Press. “Both the screenplay and the book,” Martínez said, “tell the story of a Mexican-American boy who learns from his parents about serenatas and why demonstrating romantic affection proudly, publicly, and through song is such a treasured Mexican tradition. One day, the boy asks his parents if there is a song for a boy who loves a boy. The parents, surprised by the question and unsure of how to answer, must decide how to honor their son and how to reimagine a beloved tradition.”