The problematic of identity-memory in the Cuban-American fiction of Cristina García and Achy Obejas

Cuban-American authors Cristina García and Achy Obejas denote in their fictional works concerns regarding the fragmented memory of second-generation Cuban-American immigrants. Owing to the turbulent political origin of this exiled community, the characters of these works have identity conflicts related to the difficulty of accessing the historical memory of their ancestors’ land and community. However, as the narratives progress, the source of these conflicts proves to be the nationalist approach to identification which they end up challenging by relating themselves to history, memory, and identity in alternative postnational ways. The protagonists of these works, thus, contest traditional postulates in the study of memory like those of Maurice Halbwachs, who believed that the historical memory of a nation had an important role in determining the individual’s identity.

Recursos para expresar conflictos de identidad de género en tiempos de censura: El caso de “Mi querida señorita”, de Jayme Armiñán (1971)=Narrative resources to express gender identity conflicts in times of censorship. The case of Mi Querida Señorita, by Jaime de Armiñán (1971)

<p align="left"><strong>Resumen</strong></p><p>En los años finales de la censura franquista se estrenó una película, <em>Mi querida señorita</em>, de Jaime de Armiñán, que a pesar de tocar un tema tabú en aquello momentos, como era el cambio de sexo de una persona de 43 años, logró sortear los mecanismos censores. Esta primera película española sobre la transexualidad y la intersexualidad contó con unos recursos narrativos que le permitieron llegar al público sin llamar la atención de la censura. Un fino simbolismo, una inteligente utilización de las elipsis, un montaje preciso, y una incorporación audaz de la extradiégesis permitieron trasladar a la sociedad mensajes adelantados a su tiempo, llenos de novedad y carga crítica.</p><p align="left"><strong>Abstract</strong></p><p>In the final years of Franco's censorship, a film was released, <em>Mi querida Señorita</em>, by Jaime de Armiñán, despite touching a taboo subject in that time, such as the gender transition of a 43-year-old person, managed to overcome the censorship mechanisms. The first Spanish film about transsexuality and intersexuality had narrative resources that allowed it to reach the public without drawing attention of censorship. A fine symbolism, an intelligent use of the ellipsis, an accurate edition and a bold incorporation of extradiegesis allowed to convey to society messages ahead of their time, full of novelty and critical load.</p>

LGBTQ Immigrant Exclusion: An Introduction

Based upon personal experience, existing literature, original data from Toronto 211 and key informants, this research paper identifies the need for the development and implementation of settlement services that meet the needs of lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and queer (LGBTQ) immigrants and newcomers. These sources of evidence suggest that these especially marginalized immigrants and newcomers receive a cool and minimal welcome and their service options are limited to a very select few agencies that may only meet some, not all, of their needs, and may exacerbate identity conflicts. This paper argues the importance of providing a wider range of settlement agency options to LGBTQ migrants through the intergration of LGBTQ services into both mainstream and culturally specific settlement agencies. With a critical eye to transferability to a multicultural and multi-faith sector, recommendations for ways in which settlement agencies can build or improve their accessibility and services for LGBTQ clients are inspired by research into 'culturally competent and 'safe space' practices discussed in existing academic and practical literature.

LGBTQ Immigrant Exclusion: An Introduction

Based upon personal experience, existing literature, original data from Toronto 211 and key informants, this research paper identifies the need for the development and implementation of settlement services that meet the needs of lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and queer (LGBTQ) immigrants and newcomers. These sources of evidence suggest that these especially marginalized immigrants and newcomers receive a cool and minimal welcome and their service options are limited to a very select few agencies that may only meet some, not all, of their needs, and may exacerbate identity conflicts. This paper argues the importance of providing a wider range of settlement agency options to LGBTQ migrants through the intergration of LGBTQ services into both mainstream and culturally specific settlement agencies. With a critical eye to transferability to a multicultural and multi-faith sector, recommendations for ways in which settlement agencies can build or improve their accessibility and services for LGBTQ clients are inspired by research into 'culturally competent and 'safe space' practices discussed in existing academic and practical literature.

The Effect of Sense of Movement in Audiovisual Media: A Study on Kineticism as a Formant of Expression in Globo News’ Institutional Motion Sequence Intolerância

This article analyzes the Brazilian cable television channel Globo News’ institutional motion sequence Intolerância. Israeli designer, Noma Bar, illustrated and directed Intolerância, which reveals in its discursive structures how the gaze of a Latin American country hegemonic media on the identity conflicts between West and East is aligned with Western powers. In the wake of Floch’s theoretical developments in plastic semiotics and Bergson’s postulations on the mechanism of the philosophy-centered filmmaking movement, this study aims to consider kineticism as a constitutive formant of visuality in audiovisual texts. The analyzed motion sequence is a notably exemplary object of establishing such hypothesis.

Dissociative fashion practices and identity conflicts: local resistance as a response to clothing acculturation in the context of rural–urban migration

PurposeThe purpose of the present study is to examine how local consumers disassociate themselves from migrants' acculturative practices and negotiate their identity through the symbolic consumption of fashion.Design/methodology/approachData for this interpretive study were obtained via phenomenological interviews with locally-born Chinese youth in Guangzhou, China, to examine their acculturative consumption practices as well as their subjective experiences of perceived threats to their lifestyle imposed by the influx of outsiders. Snowballing and purposive sampling methods were adopted in recruiting the research participants.FindingsData analyses revealed that local consumers adopt three dissociative strategies (stigmatization, avoidance and self-assertion) in order to ascribe meanings to their fashion consumption practices as a means of resolving identity conflicts and differentiate themselves from the migrant consumers.Research limitations/implicationsThis research offers a single perspective (i.e. that of local-born young consumers residing in Guangzhou) on the locals' attitudes aimed at distinguishing and negotiating their identities in an intercultural setting via specific fashion-clothing choices. This research has theoretical implications for the consumer acculturation theory and identity negotiation.Practical implicationsFindings yielded by the present study have important implications for commercial companies focusing on fashion consumption, in particular for marketing practices aimed at rural-urban identification and youth market segmentation.Social implicationsThis study contributes to the existing discussion on consumer acculturation by offering an intracultural perspective to the understanding of local consumers' responses to migrants' acculturation. It also provides managerial insights for fashion retailers, prompting them to rethink their market segmentation strategies to address population mobility in the marketplace and better understand how it alters the in-between social relationships that result in different consumption patterns and practices.Originality/valueThis study contributes to the existing discussion on youth consumer acculturation theories by offering an intercultural perspective to the understanding of local consumers' responses to migrants' acculturation attempts. It also offers managerial insights for fashion retailers, prompting them to rethink their market segmentation strategies to address population mobility and better understand how it alters the social relationships that result in different consumption patterns and practices.