Distress Patterns from Conquest
I’ve been reading about the Spanish colonization of Mexico. In the early years of the colonization, women were regarded as spoils of war. Rape, forced sexual slavery, and arranged marriage were also used to win favor with the colonizing forces.
I speculate that every culture has incorporated distress recordings from conquest—patterns of dominance, subordination, fear, and self-preservation. Everyone is vulnerable to acquiring these patterns. Some of us, however, have been singled out as examples—for example, Latinos are “macho” and Latinas are “oversexed” and “promiscuous.”
No man should fall into the trap of believing he is exempt from these patterns or smugly decry the irrationality of others—for example, men in the military or men from other cultures.
We all need to reach for our justifiable indignation, while reaching for our brothers and sisters who are caught up in the oppression. We can unite and end this, and all, oppression.
Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA