LGBTQ Voices

"Transversos", portada
A pink cover of a cartonera. —— La portada rosada de una cartonera.

Working with small and independent presses allows a greater diversity of voices to be published and disseminated. As we saw in the previous section, there is a need to create more publications in Indigenous languages, yet at the same time, larger publishers often prioritize materials in European languages. Unfortunately, this has been historically true regarding gender and sexuality as well. Publishers have privileged cisgender, heterosexual men of the middle to upper class. Cartoneras present a way to contest that privilege, as seen in the following examples.

"Violências contra existências trans e gênero diversas..."
Fragment of an essay that subverts cisgender binaries. —— Fragmento de un ensayo que subvierte los binarios de genero sexual.

Vivane Vergueiro uses essay to point to dichotomies around gender and sexuality as stemming from European colonization in Brazil. Because these dichotomies create differences through hierarchies, they lead to violence and other forms of oppression.

"La voluntad de la memoria en la obra de José Monroy"
An essay that frames the work of Jose Carlos Monroy Rodriguez within LGBTQ subject matter. —— Un ensayo que posiciona la obra de José Carlos Monroy Rodríguez dentro de los temas de LGBTQ.

Erik Meneses (2021) considers the intersectionality of Indigeneity, gender, and sexuality and seeks solidarity among communities that have been socially and systematically excluded.

"Gay.o", portada
The purple cover of the cartonera "Gay.o" by Manuel Tzoc. —— La portada morada de la cartonera "Gay.o" de Manuel Tzoc.
"¡Peligro!"
A warning, here told as a joke. —— Una advertencia, aquí en forma de un chiste.
"Hay que poner en duda todo"
A poem that questions the categories that exist to talk about sexuality. —— Un poema que cuestiona las categorías que existen para hablar de la sexualidad.
"Gay.o"
A textual piece playing off the word "gay". —— Una obra visual que juega con la palabra "gay".

Tzoc (2015) is more playful with his interrogation of sexuality and labels. However, his message echoes that of the other authors in this section: we must view the current constructions of sexuality and gender as a legacy of colonialism.