Following your Tumblr has had me having several privilege check moments…I knew in theory that I had the privilege of people assuming as a feminist that I’m a white American girl but because its never brought up in a way that I need to call anybody out on it (because I am a white American girl) seeing how often you get called out as racist to Latin issues really brings it to light…I didn’t know really why I wanted to say that other than thanks for unconsciously helping me recognize some privilege, I thought the Fox post was funny in a way born out of your experience and sorry that your background is often erased and recast as white. Did that make sense?

I really, really appreciate your message.

And yes, I know I am usually perceived as white. Moreover, I am a light skinned Latina who does have white skin privilege in some parts of the world (particularly in Latin America, where I am originally from). Where I live, I am cast as either Arab or Turkish (I am neither, but apparently, for the untrained eye I look like one).

And online because I write in English quite fluently, I am defaulted as Anglo. Which again, I am not.

I sincerely do not care much for people’s assumptions because if I did, I would have to continuously censor myself and wonder how the stuff I write is going to be perceived or read. I want to think that most of my readership is regular and has context and those who do not have context will dig around a bit and find out that their assumptions weren’t correct.

And yes, I did write that post humorously because Fox News has contributed so much to the demonization of minorities in general and immigrant Latin@s in particular in the US that I either laugh about it or curl in a corner and cry. Since I am not one to cry over media representations, I write about them hoping that people will see them for what they are: bigoted rhetoric and ideologies that further “Other” us into more oppression.

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