The deeper meaning of hispanic memes

Time isn’t moving any faster

Yet, it feels that way because we can exchange information across the globe in a snap. For me, I find it fascinating to see the diversity and rapid evolution of Latin America’s popular culture as new trends enter and older ones depart. There are many common features that unite and define pop-culture, including music, food, fashion, and of course the topic that inspired me to write this: Latin American graphic design.

Since day one, South America has been a continent permeated by foreign cultures. These influences, instead of removing identity, have actually enriched our self-expression. One of the most important movements of Latino and Hispanic designs came from the need to seek independence, to yearn for our very own space to express ideas and to do it in an impactful manner. This was where the revolutionary era of Mexican muralism found its identity. It became a new way to reach their people and be heard.

From neighborhood walls to the digital space

The need to continue expressing and stamping our culture’s personalities and idiosyncrasies are innate to every generation. It’s why street art became so popular. But, now that we have the internet, the process of discovering and adopting new things has been accelerated tenfold. One of those “things,” was a new format of expression that quickly gained popularity: Memes… Latin Memes, funny Spanish memes, political memes, and so on. At this point, it’s tempting to say there’s a meme for everything.

Memes of all cultures and genres are everywhere, but what’s the origin of their name? “Memes” received their name from a theory developed by a scientist named Richard Dawkins in his 1976 book, The Selfish Gene. In his research, Dawkins concluded that memes replicate and circulate in the same way as genes, because they are the minimum unit of information that can be transmitted and, in his interpretation, is the way in which cultural transmission is done. According to the Dawkins’ hypothesis, following the logic that supports the evolutionary process: “Memes spread through human culture as genes do through genetic heritage.”

Despite the word “meme” originating in the ’70s, we can see how modern-day memes have managed to make this cultural conversion. They follow the same communication code: critical, analytical, and fun, by adapting and making it our own. Thus building and spreading our own Hispanic memes!

Like it or not, popular graphics like street art and Hispanic memes are a cultural product that naturally springs from our societies. They hail from our cultural hybridity, from our social/economic inequality, and from our perpetual struggle between chaos and order. Although popular graphics like memes are created, shared and consumed by every culture of the world, they truly are the perfect representation of Latin American multiculturalism, passion, and ingenuity.