#PHSTMU This week is a free week so I want to talk about something I think is really cool. The alternative history of La Llorona. #creepyhistory To most she is a boogeyman but to others she is a hero.

The story begins in Mexico, where a native woman had children with a Spanish conquistador. He decides to leave her and she kills their children in retaliation and is cursed to wander the rivers for her crimes. However, some believe in a different version. 2

Josefina Lopez is an activist and author who wrote the play "Unconquered Spirits" about a feminist version of La Llorona. In this version she is raped and sacrifices her children to give her people the strength to repel the Spanish. She is a martyr, a hero. 3

"Thus the weeping woman is not a murder, but a martyr who sacrifices her children to save her people. In the second act we are in San Antonio, Texas, 1938. We see Xochimilco as a grown woman becoming a modern day La Llorona.” The play also features Emma Tenayuca as a character.4

La Llorona is the boogeyman for Mexican children. She is also a woman who faced unmeasurable pain & used her strength to help others. She experienced horrors that are unfortunately all too common: rape, murder, grief. She represents the terror that can happen to all of us. 5

We can see the impact La Llorona has made on our lives through literature as well as natural landmarks. Woman Hollering Creek is located not far from San Antonio and is named after the legend. "Woman Hollering Creek and Other Stories" is a famous book by Sandra Cisneros. 6

La Llorona is immortalized in many Mexian folk songs. The movie Coco features a song about La Llorona and the musical group Grupo Mono Blanco has songs about her as well. 7

If you'd like to learn more about the things I mentioned in this thread here are the links!
https://www.dramaticpublishing.com/unconquered-spirits
https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/27847/woman-hollering-creek-by-sandra-cisneros/


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