Enriqueta Longeaux y Vásquez Quotes

Although Sor Juana abandoned her writing, the calibre of the body of work she left Mexico remains unparalleled. Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz soared as the most enlightened daughter of the new world. She challenged the foundation of the European Christian institution in her natural law perspective and understanding of the universe. Fearless, Sor Juana left the continent a mandate regarding the rights of women to think.

Revolution means literally a complete reversal of the old power relationships, with its embedded institutions. So yes, we need a total revolution. It is time for the sacred to come forward, for we are indeed sacred beings. That much is clear from history. For too long we have been told: "That's the way things have always been done." Not true. Our earth and humanity has been around a long time, and there is a peaceful instinct inherent in human beings. There have been harmonious times in the past, and there is no reason for not working to achieve a greater humanity today. I strive to be part of that humanity. In The Women of La Raza, we learn of how much "today's values" have been forced upon us as "traditions" by colonizers who want us to behave within a certain mindset, conforming to the status quo. They consider profits first, despite the global conflicts and suffering it has caused throughout the centuries. It is past time for us to ask the kind of questions that gives us, not only answers, but places us in a quest for solutions to the spiritual and social problems facing the world today.

Today's world needs woman's thinking and a humanitarian approach to solving world hunger, violence, rage, war, environmental, and economic issues. Remember that when women are silent, only one-half of the population is being heard.

I spent much thought getting things to sound right and inoffensive. I am of the belief that a universal stream of consciousness envelopes the planet and people in many places can get the same ideas at relatively the same time. Who knows, there may be women in China, India, Iraq, or Africa doing a project just like this. I hope so.

While Aztlán is debatable to some, the time of enlightenment is taking place in the 21st century, and it is essential that we learn of our ancestry. Nationhood and sovereignty are not a separatist plan, but a tool for decolonizing. We need to DECOLONIZE, DECOLONIZE, DECOLONIZE. Already Emma Perez, Chela Sandoval and other writers have devoted a considerable amount of thought and time on the need to decolonize and resist further colonization in the world.

Both, men and women faced the white, male-dominated world and its blatant racism; women in the workplace and servicemen in the war where they returned to tell stories of Raza and Blacks far outnumbering Anglos in the front lines.

Protesting this war, Chicano/as rose to condemn the killing fields with the slogan "Raza Si, Guerra No,” we wanted our young men here fighting for justice instead of in a faraway war.

When the article, "The Woman of La Raza" came out as a result of the 1969 Chicano Conference, I experienced repercussions because I wrote about The Woman. Instead of being intimidated, I felt it necessary to write a whole book on La Mujer.