Latino Youth and Machismo: Working Towards a More Complex Understanding of Marginalized Masculinities

Abstract

Academic and mainstream discourses have discussed Latino youth machismo in overwhelmingly negative terms, defining it as misogynistic, reckless, and violent. Even the sociological studies that have conceptualized machismo as a byproduct of social marginalization posit it as inherently destructive. Some emerging American literature has sought to consider the positive aspects of Latino masculinity through explorations of familism and caballerismo, but these have been set in opposition to, as opposed to a part of, machismo. This study aims to address post-structuralist calls for a more positive exploration of machismo by considering the ways in which Latino youth in Toronto conceive of their masculinities in relation to familism and social integration. Data emerging from focus group discussions suggest that these youth rely on machismo to assist in their integration into the Canadian labour market, their survival in the streets of their communities, and that there is a gendered basis to their adherence to familism.