Abstract
This chapter analyses the 2019 music video, ‘Sinca Misa’, by queer feminist hip-hop duo, Krudxs Cubensi, which provides an innovative example of both the dynamic activism that resists sexist abuse, and the resulting mediatic resources. Taking a decolonial approach, I apply theories such as erotic agency, compulsory heterosexuality, and disidentification to show that the violence implicit in gendered policing of bodies in public space reinforces the same system that apologizes for more extreme forms of violence. By considering the specificity of the Cuban context and Lxs Krudxs’ subjectivity as non-binary, I map the subversive potential of this cultural product by combining analyses of lyrics, movement, music, and visual production, asserting that an ethical conversation around gender-based violence must include trans narratives.
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Notes
- 1.
My use of the term ‘trans’ includes all those who are not cisgender, i.e. whose gender identity differs from the one they were assigned at birth.
- 2.
‘Lxs Krudxs’ is a grammatically neutral form of ‘Las Krudas’. See Krudes Cubensi (2018).
- 3.
All translations are my own. I have chosen to transcribe phonetically (omitting letters that have been dropped in speech) to stay as close as possible to the original text.
- 4.
Cuesta and Prendes are still covering their breasts, presumably just enough so that the video is not removed from YouTube.
- 5.
See Wong (2015).
- 6.
In Cuba, no statistics are released on rates of violence against women and media reports do not use terms such as femicide (Padrón Cueto 2019).
- 7.
This lyric is from the video description on YouTube (Cubensi Krudxs 2019).
- 8.
While Lxs Krudxs are not women, they may still be read as such by others.
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Geraghty, C. (2023). Topless in La Habana: Space, Pleasure, and Visibility in Ethically Representing Gender-Based Violence. In: Williamson Sinalo, C., Mandolini, N. (eds) Representing Gender-Based Violence. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-13451-7_13
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