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Acholo orchola is a member of aChicano andsubculture or life-style associated with a particular set of dress, behavior and philosophy which originated in Los Angeles.[1] Aveterano orveterana is an older member of the same subculture.[2][3][4] Other terms referring to male members of the subculture may includevato andvato loco.[5][6]Cholo was first reclaimed by Chicano youth in the 1960s and emerged as a popular identification in the late 1970s.[1][7] The subculture has historical roots in thePachuco subculture, but today is largely equated with antisocial or criminal behavior such asgang activity.[8][9]
Cholo was originally used to denote aracialized individual of lowersocioeconomic status. It first emerged in the early 17th century as a term used bySpanish colonizers. "The children of these they callcholos. Cholo is a word from theWindward Islands; it meansdog, not of the purebred variety, but of very disreputable origin; and the Spaniards use it for insult and vituperation."[10] In the latter part of the 19th century, it referred to "culturally marginal"mestizos of Native American origin,[11] being applied to "peasant mestizos as apejorative ethnic label to distinguish the rich, the upwardly mobile, and other aspiring members ... from the working class."[7]
Clearly the origin is complex, Jose Cuellar writes in 1982:
Racial and cultural status, along with social class, are reflected in the term cholo itself, which was adopted in California in the 1960s by youth following the pachuco tradition, as a label for that identity (Cuellar 1982). In 1571, Fray Alonso de Molina, in his Nahuatl vocabulary (Vocabulario en Lengua Castellana y Mexicana Y Mexicana y Castellana), defined the word xolo as slave, servant, or waiter. ThePorrúa Dictionary defines cholo, as used in the Americas, as a civilized Native American or a half-breed or mestizo of a European father and Native American mother. The word has historically been used along the borderland as a derogatory term to mean lower class Mexican migrants, and in the rest of Latin America to mean an acculturating Indian or peasant.[12]
During the 1930s and 1940s, the Chicano look known aspachuco appeared and was associated with the zoot suit andhep cat subcultures.[13] The press at the time accused thepachucos in the U.S. of gang membership, petty criminality, and a lack of patriotism duringWorld War II leading to theZoot Suit Riots.[14] Continuing until the early 1970s, the typical Chicano hairstyle was a variant of thepompadour, piled high on the head and kept in place with large quantities of wet-look gel.
In the 1960s, theChicano Movement turned the termcholo into a way to express Chicano pride and identity.[1][15] Since then, it has been more widely reclaimed among Meso-Americans ofmixed heritage.[6]
Cholo style is often associated with wearing some combination of atartan,flannel, orPendleton shirt buttoned at the top over a whiteT-shirt ortanktop, ahair net over short hair combed straight back or a shaved head, abandana tied around the head and pulled down just above the eyes, reversebaseball caps, darksunglasses, loose-fittingkhaki pants (chinos) or shorts, long chains, long socks, white tennis shoes, and stylized tattoos.[8][16][17] The style has been described as both a necessity and a style of empowerment.[1] Cholo style represents a large part of cholo subculture, although it does not represent it in its totality.[5] Cholo style has been identified as combining the loose-fitting comfort of the traditionalhuipil and baggy draping of thezoot suit donned by thepachuco.[7]
Adopting cholo style has also been identified as a way for youths to assert their Chicano identity, especially for those who are onlyEnglish-speaking. James Diego Vigil analyzes how somebarrios in the United States that were predominatelySpanish-speaking in the 1960s became mostly English-speaking by the 1980s. Some use cholo style to deny theiranglicization orcultural assimilation as well as to separate themselves from affiliating with Mexican migrants. As stated by Vigil, "much of this interethnic friction revolves around ... competition for scarce job resources, especially between members of the depressed underclass and desperate immigrants."[11] However, it is also cultural, with "Mexicans making fun of a Chicano's inability to speak 'proper' Spanish and conversely" Chicanos and cholos sometimes using interethnicpejoratives against Mexican migrants, such as "chuntaro" and "wetback."[11]
Cholo style graffiti is a unique writing and lettering style.[18] The artistChaz uses acalligraphic variant in his works.Retna's work is inspired by Cholo letters. This designation may also be associated with black inktattoos, commonly involvingcalligraphy and art. A cholo might also stereotypically own alowrider. Another staple of cholo fashion is long hair tied into braids as depicted by actorDanny Trejo.
The cholo/a subculture has spread to cities in the United States with large Chicano or Latino populations, including New York City. It has also been adopted as a subculture in Thailand as well as in Japan[19] and has been introduced to Mexico (such as inNogales, Sonora, and Mexico City) in a modified form as documented in the 2015photo documentary bookCholumbianos by Amanda Watkins.[20]
Chola style is often associated with wearing some combination of a long white T-shirt or tanktops, sometimes worn under plaid shirts, baggy jeans, flat black shoes, long hair, spiked bangs, dark or heavy eyeliner, and dark lipstick and lip liner.[1] Chola style has been identified as exhibiting "a radically criminalized femininity, situating them in the purview of official and unofficial policing as well as legal and extralegal sanctions." Chola style is perceived with less menace than cholo style, although it has been described as more directly challenging to the gendered expectations placed on women.[1]
Chicano/a youth who adopt acholo orchola culture endure criminalization, with police and other institutions equatingcholo style with a 'gang member'.[9] While older residents inbarrios initially embracedcholas andcholos as "a larger subculture not necessarily associated with crime and violence (but rather with a youthful temporary identity),law enforcement agents, ignorant or disdainful ofbarrio life, labeled youth who wore clean white tennis shoes, shaved their heads, or long socks, as deviant."[8]
Gilberto Rosas describes the fashion of cholos as a style which has become criminalized–"a radically conditioned choice to be visibly and self-consciously identified with a criminalized class"[1] Because the way cholo style has been criminalized, it commonly excludes cholos from employment opportunities while opening them up to routine police harassment and arrest.[1]
In a study ofcholos in aSouthern California community renamed "Riverland" (to protect the confidentiality of the participants),[21] Victor Rios and Patrick Lopez-Aguado discuss howcholos are marked as "human targets" and come to understand their own perceived criminality.[9] Rios and Lopez-Aguado identify thatcholos experience routine harassment and arrest by police. As stated by Rios and Lopez-Aguado,cholos remain "steadfast in their stylistic stance because their visible opposition appeared to be the entire point," as it is "intentionally oppositional to the mainstream."Cholos are aware that their style will not grant them social mobility and often maintain their style after having been rejected by multiple institutions, including "family, schools, police, and the labor market." Rios and Lopez-Aguado explain:
Nonetheless, the feeling of dignity and affirmation often outweighed the punitive consequences meted out by the state... Conscious of the few opportunities to find legitimate career paths, Latino youth adopted appearances they knew would block them from the low-level service positions they were expected to fill. They tapped into racist fears of their inherent criminality to create a public impression that would counter the image of the submissive, stigmatized servant. In a racialized, hyperexploited service economy, these youths deliberately put themselves out of service to retain their dignity.[9]
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