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when watching paris is burning, what I found really interesting was how it illustrated what it was like to be a gay black/latino man who did not follow regular social norms back in the 1980s. In the film they showed "ball rooms" which was a safe space where gay/queer people could express themselves without fear of judgement while building a community that encouraged flamboyant/ over the top behavior that was shunned upon during that time. when reading chapter 4, some concepts I found that were applicable in my life is alter and family history because where my family came from and the personal experiences they faced made me into who I am today and shaped certain goals I want for myself in the future.

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ethnicity

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religon

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gender(female)

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sexual orientation

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my culture

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my family

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The reason I chose these specific images for my college is that they represent important aspects that make up my personal identity. My ethnicity and culture come from my two parents, who were born on a small ranch in Michoacan, Mexico. When my parents were both 18 years old, they immigrated to the United States and soon had me to share the many traditions that were passed down through generations, such as los tres rayos magos, dia de los muertos, and la danza de los viejitos. My sexual orientation and gender also play a big role in my identity since I am able to express the way I feel about myself and how I want others to perceive me, while my sexual orientation(bi sexual) describes who I am emotionally, romantically, and sexually attracted to, which does not depend on my gender identity. Religion(catholic) is another important factor for me given that it has been a huge part of my life since a very young age. Being catholic for most of my life has lead me to internalize all the beliefs and traditions that showed me what it meant to be a true catholic, like baptism, first communion, and confirmation, that formed a part of my identity when it comes to a spiritual setting.  Lastly, family has the most impact when it comes to my identity because they provided me a sense of belonging by sharing personal stories, traditions, and values that shaped my perception of how I view myself and the world around me. When reading chapter 4, alter and family history stood out to me the most because I realized how much my family's origins and struggles shaped me into the person I am today. My family came from a place where there were not a lot of opportunities or resources to become successful, and they struggled most of their lives since they didn't have enough money, clothes, or electricity to live a comfortable life. Hearing these stories as a kid really influenced my family values, especially gratitude and perseverance, by always appreciating what I have and pushing myself to strive for a successful life in order to take advantage of the opportunities my parents didn't have access to.

Altering and family history were themes that were shown in “Paris is burning" by connecting how people in the film built new identities and families for themselves in a society that was not socially accepting of their lifestyle. We saw many times in this film that people who identified with the lgbtq community were often rejected by their real family because of who they were and who they strived to be. As a result they searched for places where they could find that support and love they were missing at home causing them to create houses in an area known as ball rooms in order to give people support, love, and a sense of belonging to those who were outclassed by society. These houses gave them an opportunity to create versions of themselves through fashion and extravagant performances while allowing them to express who they truly were or who they dreamed to be, for example being rich, important, beautiful people which the world did not usually grant them to be. Through these new identities and families, Paris is burning showed us how people can build their own identity and history, even if the world does not deem it as right or tries to to take it away from them.