Tías and Primas: On Knowing and Loving the Women Who Raise Us

Activist Mojica Rodríguez (For Brown Girls with Sharp Edges and Tender Hearts) pays homage to the wonderful women in her life, including matriarchs, tías (aunts), and primas (cousins). She argues that portrayals of Latinas in Western media are misleading, unhelpful, and stereotypical, such as the grateful and obedient maid; the curvy, hotheaded prima donna; and the crime-adjacent member of Chicano subculture. Each chapter focuses on a different real embodiment of Latina womanhood that, thanks to Mojica Rodríguez’s love of these women, doesn’t come across as reducing them to labels. Instead, she portrays Latinas as multidimensional, with traits to emulate. For example, she describes matriarchs as ones who keep the family unified; they’re resourceful, skilled at compromise, and often exemplary with high standards and a forgiving heart, while tías are confidantes who make adulthood look more adventurous than laborious. Some sections also address the systemic issue of aspirational whiteness, when society shows that “proximity to whiteness is the key to power” and success.