Cultural fear

The protests do not serve just the function of a protest though. They also serve to act as a unifying form of expression around which the people in the culture can rally. They enumerate the fears of the people and help the culture define its fears. Sobek notes this when she explains several of the reasons that the Mexican immigrants write canciones and corridos. She claims the songs act as symbolic reflectio

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This fear of racist forces at work during the case displayed itself through numerous rumors which appeared in the black community.

The use of the rumors to help mobilize blacks throughout America is probably their greatest contribution. " (89) What has happened in the case of the canciones and corridos is that the songs not only express the peoples fears, they also serve as a way of informing the other culture what those fears are, and help the Mexican immigrant to unify. She explains convincingly that the black perceptions of the FBI were integral in associating the enforcement agency with the murders.

Was the black community in this situation given reason to fear that the white community, or white supremacist groups had anything to do with the murders? The answer is yes, and because they had a compelling reason they expressed their cultural fear of this. This directly linked the songs with a form of protest, which has become a function of the songs ever since. Rather they also clarify fear of future deportation through the medium of song.

The Mexican immigrants have dealt with these fears much in the same way the black community did with the Atlanta child murders. It also stimulated the writing and producing of many more of the songs, and helped the songs gain a foothold as the "traditional form of expression. They have created a verbal way of expressing their fears and concerns, using a traditional form of verbal communication, namely the songs. Turner points out that the KKK was the primary suspect in the murders, and adds that the Klan has often been cited by the black community as a "plausible source of conspiracy" (79) This is an expression of cultural fear, where the rumor elucidates what many blacks feel to be a primary source of concern. Maria Herrera-Sobek analyzes the Mexican immigrants reactions and fears towards immigration via their Canciones and Corridos. While this is probably true, the songs had existed long before then as protest songs, and have continued to do so ever since. Thus it makes sense that they would eventually focus on the body as being a symbol of their fear.

Common topics in this essay:
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Approximate Word count = 2598
Approximate Pages = 10 (250 words per page double spaced)

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