Cora DowOn Wednesday evening, the Latin American Student Organization (LASO) hosted critically acclaimed writer Gabby Rivera in Kresge Auditorium as part of its celebration of Latino Heritage Month. Rivera is the author of the young adult novel Juliet Takes a Breath, a semi-autobiographical coming-of-age story starring a queer Latina woman. Rivera came to Kresge to share her experiences as a Latin American writer and member of the LGBTQ+ community.
Rivera has collaborated on a comic book series published by Boom Studios titled Lumberjanes. Rivera is also the creator of the 2017-2018 Marvel Comic “America”, which features America Chavez, Marvel’s first Latino LGBTQ+ character to have her own solo comic series. America is written as smart, tough with a big heart and a determined fighter to protect and uphold justice.
Over the summer, the LASO board met with Assistant Dean of Student Affairs for Inclusion and Diversity and Director of Multicultural Student Life Eduardo Pazos to discuss possible event ideas for Latinx Heritage Month, with an appearance by Rivera in mind.
“This year we wanted to cover some of the topics that aren’t talked about much within the Latin American community, a group of people that are just lumped together with huge differences and unique experiences, such as queerness as a taboo subject.” LASO President Fransisco Adame-Perez ’24 said.
With the help of Pazo and the Center for Multicultural Living along with the Center for Sexuality, Women and Gender, LASO was able to schedule an event with Rivera. The goal of the event was to encourage students to take inspiration from Rivera’s accomplishments.
“We were inspired by the importance of Gabby’s role in representing a queer Latina of color in the Marvel universe, an area dominated by white superheroes,” said Adame-Perez. “So we hope this inspires students to blaze new trails in their respective interests whether it’s related to one’s career, passions or hobbies.”
One of the main reasons for the popularity of America Chavez is its relativity. She’s an unstoppable superhero, but she’s also a very human character.
Angela Delgado, a member of the Class of 2025, was in attendance at the event and was inspired by Rivera’s personal and professional journey as a Latino author.
“She is a huge inspiration … Her speech was so empowering and I related to a lot of her personal experiences. I’m so happy that I was able to meet someone who overcame so many obstacles that I feel I’m facing right now,” said Delgado. “Seeing Gabby live her best life despite her past struggles with such a vibrant and cheerful personality makes me feel like I can overcome anything.”
Rivera’s writing has resonated with so many readers by creating characters for those who have been denied representation for so long.
“As a broader message, we hope the Bowdoin community will be able to appreciate and appreciate [influence] that the Latinx community has both historically and currently in shaping the society we live in today,” said Adame-Perez. “We often isolate the history of communities of color in the United States as separate rather than framing it as part of the cultural shaping of our country today.”
