***  Haus der Kulturen der Welt: Forum1 Archive  ***
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   [Date]: Tue, 12 Oct 1999 07:53:57 PDT
   [From]: "Raul Ferrera-Balanquet" <ferrera98@hotmail.com>
     [To]: forum1@hkw.kbx.de
[Subject]: Forum - one year of existence

Amigos

Time can not erease the history. Although, my experience as a Latino living 
the USA has made me very proud of my cultural heritage,  today the idea of 
race or the "La Raza" becomes an outdated nationalist term that was used in 
the 60's to define our social movement.

As cultural warriors, we must re-interpret history constantly. We need to 
de-construct the old paradigms and propose new approaches. Es nuestra guerra 
de guerrilla. Our own terminology could be appropriated by the colonial 
system to justified its actions.

What is race? We now know that race is a social construction. So, why do 
people keep using that word? And who really use it.

Even though, the brutal rape of the land by the European colonizers marked a 
historical reality, we can not continue playing the victim role. We must 
assumed that the "brutal encounter" brought as a consequence a rich process 
(still colonial) which included the fusion of cultures,  migrations from all 
over the world, and above all a MESTIZAJE,  a mix, una mezcla which is what 
we really are.

Today, I must honor my ancestors, My grandmothers  who  were European, 
African and Arab, my Syrian father, my Haitian grandfather, my mulata 
mother. If something I must be proud of today is of the opportunity of being 
part of a culture who can trace their ancestors all the way to the corners 
of the world.

Raul Ferrera-Balanquet, MFA
Interdisciplinary Artist and Scholar
ferrera98@hotmail.com
http://www.artswire.org/krosrods/curriculum/index.html