Latina Superheroes: You'll Never Guess Their Roots
Women's empowerment and representation in different media is essential. They symbolize strength and equality.
Women should be valued, and it is for this reason that they must have a special place in all aspects. Even though they are now slowly recognized and given attention by society, it is still challenging for them and, most notably, women of color to be fully acknowledged in the entertainment industry.
In recent years, the success of Wonderwoman movies and Netflix's Jessica Jones has paved a way more for women to be recognized and be part of superhero-themed movies. These popular hits also became an avenue for more Latinas to be part of the big comic series.
Moreover, the creators of Aza Comics are now becoming more diverse by introducing more Latina superheroes called Jalisco. However, many do not know the roots of these superheroes and why they were created.
Here are the backgrounds of some of the Latina superheroes that you might know according to a recently published article:
1. Firebird (1981)
Bonita Juarez, also known as Firebird, is a devoted Roman Catholic who was born in Taos, Mexico. She got her power from the radioactive meteorite fragments while she was walking the deserts of Albuquerque. She has her fiery costume design and took the name Firebird because of her ability to generate flames.
2. Wildcat (1985)
Wildcat is a popular superhero, but did you know that her roots are from Mexico? Yolanda's mother and her sister were given an experimental drug by the mad gynecologist Dr. Benjamin Love. He tracked them every day, but he lost contact with the sisters when they traveled to Mexico, and one gave birth on the same day.
It was when they returned to America where Yolanda manifests her superhuman powers, but she is unaware she was born a mutant. The original Wildcat Ted Grant was her godfather, and when Grant became disabled, Yolanda stepped up and assumed the identity of Wildcat to honor her godfather.
3. Touch-N-Go (1986)
Amelinda Lopez, also known as Touch-N-Go, was a young street thief living in Chicago, Illinois. She was struck by a truck after a robbery and was killed instantly. However, she was subjected to Promethium, a radioactive chemical. Following that, she gained the power to steal the kinetic energy of everything that she touches.
4. Green Lantern (1994)
Jessica Cruz, also known as one of the Green Lanterns, played a significant role in the Green Lantern Corps. Her story all started when her friends were murdered, and because of this, she locked herself in her room for four years. She got her power from the Ring of Volthoom, and it took over her body.
She was uncontrollable, and she even attacked her hometown. She was later confronted by the Justice League and Doom Patrol. It was only Batman who was able to help her gain control and have dominion over the ring.
5. Risque (1996)
Gloria Dolores Munoz, also known as Risque, was the daughter of Cuban parents. However, her family was not perfect. She left her father and mother after they got divorced and started living on her own at the age of 16 in Miami. At this time, she manifested her power and began calling herself Risque. She joined Charles Xavier's X-Corporation to protect the rights of mutants. She is based in Hongkong along with other mutants.
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