ABSTRACT
To understand Latina/o comics or comics with Latina/o content, one has to understand the basics of the American comic book industry and the aesthetics of the medium, as well as some of the issues relevant to the formation of Latina/o identity in the United States. The comic book medium has undergone some key improvements in terms of ethnic representation, linked to the changes in American society that have transformed the older stereotypes and non-inclusive storylines originally published around World War II. Among these developments, it is important to point out the more active participation of Latina/o artists since the 1960s and their acceptance in the English-and Spanish-language canon, as well as the appearance of mainstream Latina/o characters that have finally broken most of the barriers imposed by racial and ethnic segregation in the U.S., and have established a gradually naturalized presence in American popular culture. The process has been slow but the results have begun to have important ramifications that will hopefully expand further with the development of the digital age.
