Ballroom

In one of my Latin ballroom dance classes, which take place in the ballroom at Pomona's SCC, the instructor was talking about the origins of one of the latin dances (I don't remember which atm). In general, Latin ballroom dances are sanitized versions of dances that have African and Latino roots, born out of interactions between Latin and African dance and music forms. This "sanitization" comes from the ways these dances interact with historically European dance forms, such as ballet and standard ballroom. One important "rule" of Latin ballroom is that the lead and follow cannot ever be to close, especially in the hip area, because the movements are so "sexy," ie. it appears as if the hips move a lot. I'm usually very critical of the language people use because I've studied the ways language literally shapes and influences the way people think about things, ie: positively, negatively, moral, immoral, etc. So using the word "standard" is already problematic. The instructor was describing the difference between the origin movement for Latin dance, and thought I don't remember his exact words, he basically described the European dances as refined and "higher" , and the Latin/African rooted movement as more rooted in the earth and sexual. Viewing dances that come from people of color and their bodies as vulgar and sexual, as needing to be "sanitized," was quite literally a justification for their enslavement, so I noticed this language and I wish people realized the ways they simply continue a harmful narrative.