By Stephinie Phan & Mireya Preciado, Staff Reporters
The award-winning author Gabby Rivera stopped by Leo F. Cain Library on Apr. 11 to talk about her life, career, and what she called “radical creativity.” The event – this year’s Primavera Distinguished Lecture – was hosted by the Chicana and Chicano Studies Department in collaboration with the Queer Cultural Resource Center (QCRC), the Women’s Resource Center, and the Latinx Cultural Resource Center (La Casita).
Rivera has received critical acclaim for her work, which explores themes related to Queer identity, race, and unconditional love. In addition to her debut novel, Juliet Takes a Breath, Rivera has written for the Marvel Comics series America. The comic is the first Marvel publication to be headlined by a Queer Latina superhero.
During her talk, Rivera encouraged the audience to embrace their cultural roots and stay true to themselves. She said it was important for people from Latinx and Queer communities to not only learn about their cultures and histories – about the communities and activists who have helped to shape them – but to tell their stories and disrupt the sociopolitical status quo.
“Those are folks that are afraid that if we know more about ourselves, we will become as powerful as we are meant to be, and we will topple this system in its entirety,” Rivera said.
Toros welcomed Rivera to campus by showcasing their own artwork based on Juliet Takes a Breath, a semi-autobiographical coming-of-age story. Rivera told The Bulletin that she had never seen students create artwork inspired by her novel.
“It’s so breathtaking, taking in the artwork,” she said.
Much like Juliet, Rivera was raised in a Puerto Rican household in the Bronx borough of New York City – likewise, she identifies as Queer. Coming of age as a Queer Latina in the early 2000s, Rivera said she sometimes had to manage the hopes and expectations of others with regard to her identity. She not only felt pressure from her family but from society to abide by heteronormative standards of life and beauty.
In an interview with WBUR radio in 2019, Rivera recalled experiencing some dissonance with her identity as a youth.
“When I was coming out during this time, I was very much a part of white lesbian circles,” Rivera told the station. “I wasn’t in the closet, but I just imagined that the way that queerness sometimes is like a secret society, that I would always be in my secret society.”
In the book, Juliet also struggles to fully embrace her Queer identity and balance the expectations of her family. Juliet finds support and encouragement from a barber, who reassures her that no matter what she does with her hair, she’s going to “look like a dyke.”
Juliet attends a party hosted by the queer community, feeling encouraged to embrace her true self. Reflecting what Rivera went through in her real life. When Juliet was asked about her hairstyle, she admits her fear of cutting it short and appearing like a “dyke.” The advice echoed Rivera’s own experience pushing back against “traditional” notions of femininity.
Rivera’s journey of self-discovery helped her to develop a greater appreciation for her cultural roots, which she encouraged Toros to embrace during her talk. Rivera said U.S. history classes tend to whitewash the stories and struggles of nonwhite communities and activists.
“I knew all about Walter Mercado and Jennifer Lopez, but nowhere at home or in a freakin’ textbook did I learn about Lolita and her act of bravery,” Rivera said, adding that Puerto Rican history was another example of academic erasure.
“We get a lot of researchers, artists, and scientists, but they are all white or they are all straight,” Rivera said. “It’s important, but sometimes it doesn’t represent my life.”
The inclusion of characters from nonwhite and traditionally marginalized communities was top of mind for Rivera when she signed on to write for Marvel’s America. Although the series had already established America Chavez as Queer, Rivera felt the character still needed “somebody looking out for her.”
“Her moms were already lesbians so I showed how their passionate love created America Chavez,” Rivera said. “I also made the grandma a badass, to show America the planes of ancestors.”
Mainstream media representation of such characters was important, Rivera said, because nonwhite peoples and communities are often portrayed as one-dimensional.
Rivera found her own inspiration among the writers groups she joined in New York City, which she recalled being “stacked” with Latina writers and poets.
“We all worked together and uplifted each other,” Rivera said. “Those were some of my biggest mentors and inspirations in the writing world.”
Senior Evee Martinez, a student, echoed Rivera’s sentiment, saying one-dimensional characters fail to resonate with “a lot” of people, ultimately.
“This campus is predominantly [people of color] but the celebrity that comes, their representation is white,” Martinez said.
The absence of people representing the general public makes it difficult for them to find role models that fit into their story, which is frustrating. Having the opportunity to see more like-minded people who don’t fit into the cookie-cutter is inspiring
Rivera reminded attendees about the importance of joy and self-care, saying traditionally marginalized communities need to step back from the grind from time to time.
“My whole life I was told to hustle,” Rivera explained. “[but] in order for us to rebel, we must rest.”
Rivera’s wisdom was a breath of fresh air to some students, like Janet Parga, who attended the event as a part of her Chicana and Chicano Studies class. Parga said she was inspired by Rivera’s collection of work, describing it as relatable to a lot of different groups and communities on campus.
“I think it’s great to have someone who’s not only in the Latinx community – somebody who also talks very openly about their queer experience – because I feel like a lot of times, the students who identify with groups who don’t get a lot of representation feel outcasted,” Parga said. “I love that Gabby is here because Gabby brings a lot of groups together.”
Sophomore psychology major Hunter Hernandez was excited to meet Rivera. Chicana and Chicano Studies professor Rosario Martinez Pogar recommended Juliet Takes a Breath to Bananas, who said they fell in love with the book and resonated with the main character.
“I relate to her in a lot of ways,” Bananas said. “To come and meet [Rivera] is, like, probably a once-in-a-lifetime thing.”
Other attendees, like fourth-year student Armand Egere, expressed the same sentiment. Egere said he hopes CSUDH will invite more artists, writers, and screenwriters from different cultural communities to campus.
QCRC program director Edwin Bodney said the stories of people like Rivera “illuminates possibilities” for everyone, but especially people from traditionally marginalized communities.
Bodney said, “It’s absolutely possible for Queer, trans, Black, and brown people all to make it in this world in the way that they want to make it.”
