David and Mary Hunting Graduate Fellow
About
“Wild Tongues that Lash: Race, Citizenship, and Gender in Latina Stand-Up Comedy”
"Wild Tongues that Lash" documents how members of Las Locas Comedy, a performing collective of Puerto Rican, Mexican, and Latin American women, challenge exclusionary norms in the stand-up comedy scene. By doing so, Las Locas channel a distinct performance of class, race, and international perspectives into a unifying project. This research demonstrates that Latina stand-up comedy in Chicago is a forceful entry point to complicate, play with, and parody notions of race, class, citizenship, and gender. During an historical moment marked by continuing misogyny and immense anti-Latinx hostility, Las Locas encounter simultaneous successes and setbacks throughout maintaining their performing collective. By acting as a collective and performing as individuals, Las Locas demonstrate that humor is a critical and contested intervention—critical because they use their platform to confront anti-Latinx violence and contested as they use comedy to address moments of that Latinx experience.
Julianna Loera-Wiggins is a PhD candidate in American Culture.
