This makes more sense than Richard Madden. Yalitza Aparicio, the first-time actor at the center of Roma, and also the first indigenous-Latin American to be nominated for an Oscar, broke through some barriers in the acting world. Alfonso Cuaron, who directed her in Roma, writes up her blurb, and mentions that Aparicio is, by training, a teacher. She auditioned for Roma before she got a teaching position, and there is no guarantee she continues to act. Right now, we live in a sort of beguiling Schrodinger state where Yalitza Aparicio may or may not continue to act. She doesn’t have anything listed for upcoming work. Even if she wants it, we know that it is still a disappointingly uphill battle for women of color in Hollywood.
Did you see the guy who brought a Yalitza Aparicio sign to Coachella? His name is Jesus Nuñez, and he made a sign of Aparicio because she inspired him. He said, “The reason why I was inspired to make the sign with the image of Yalitza was because of her story. It doesn’t matter where you’re from or what your culture is, you can achieve a lot of things as long as you propose to do it.” One, this is lovely, and two, this is why whose stories we tell matters. Also, bringing a sign made from the image of an indigenous person to Coachella is lowkey masterful shade. That festival is overrun with white kids in headdresses, but here is a guy bringing actual indigenous representation to the site of so much cultural appropriation. And he’s doing it with joy, celebrating a ground-breaking performer and indigenous icon, and throwing shade at all the white kids in their inappropriate headdresses. Proof that there are other ways to honor indigenous people than donning their sacred headwear for a concert in the park.
