Chicano Movement: Difference between revisions
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Socially, the Chicano Movement addressed what it perceived to be negative [[ethnic stereotypes]] of Mexicans in mass media and the American consciousness. It did so through the creation of works of literary and visual art that validated the Mexican-American ethnicity and culture.Chicano nationalism through its affirmation of cultural identity grounded in Aztec myths such as that of Aztlán, the mythical Chicano homeland. |
Socially, the Chicano Movement addressed what it perceived to be negative [[ethnic stereotypes]] of Mexicans in mass media and the American consciousness. It did so through the creation of works of literary and visual art that validated the Mexican-American ethnicity and culture.Chicano nationalism through its affirmation of cultural identity grounded in Aztec myths such as that of Aztlán, the mythical Chicano homeland. |
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The term Chicano is a term used in describing Mexican-Americans. It was originally used a derogatory label for Mexicans who had recently arrived in the United States. In the 1960’s, militant and Mexican Americans accepted it as a symbol of self-determination and ethnic pride. |
The term ''Chicano'' is a term used in describing Mexican-Americans. It was originally used a derogatory label for Mexicans who had recently arrived in the United States. In the 1960’s, militant and Mexican Americans accepted it as a symbol of self-determination and ethnic pride. But the term fell from popular usage in the late 1970's when the Chicano movement died down, but has increased Mexican-American political involvement. |
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The Chicano Movement also addressed discrimination in public and private institutions. Early in the twentieth century, Mexican Americans formed organizations to protect themselves from discrimination. One of those organizations, the [[League of United Latin American Citizens]], was formed in [[1929]] and remains active today.<ref>[http://www.lulac.org/about/history.html History | LULAC-League of United Latin American Citizens<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> |
The Chicano Movement also addressed discrimination in public and private institutions. Early in the twentieth century, Mexican Americans formed organizations to protect themselves from discrimination. One of those organizations, the [[League of United Latin American Citizens]], was formed in [[1929]] and remains active today.<ref>[http://www.lulac.org/about/history.html History | LULAC-League of United Latin American Citizens<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> |
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Mexican American civil rights activists achieved several major legal victories including the [[1947]] [[Mendez v. Westminster]] [[Supreme Court]] ruling which declared that segregating children of "Mexican and Latin descent" was unconstitutional and the [[1954]] [[Hernandez v. Texas]] ruling which declared that Mexican Americans and other racial groups in the United States were entitled to equal protection under the [[Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution|14th Amendment]] of the [[United States Constitution|U.S. Constitution]].<ref>[http://www.latinola.com/story.php?story=432 LatinoLA - Latino Hollywood - On Screen and Behind the Scenes<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref><ref>hhttp://www.oyez.org/cases/1950-1959/1953/1953_406/</ref> |
Mexican American civil rights activists achieved several major legal victories including the [[1947]] [[Mendez v. Westminster]] [[Supreme Court]] ruling which declared that segregating children of "Mexican and Latin descent" was unconstitutional and the [[1954]] [[Hernandez v. Texas]] ruling which declared that Mexican Americans and other racial groups in the United States were entitled to equal protection under the [[Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution|14th Amendment]] of the [[United States Constitution|U.S. Constitution]].<ref>[http://www.latinola.com/story.php?story=432 LatinoLA - Latino Hollywood - On Screen and Behind the Scenes<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref><ref>hhttp://www.oyez.org/cases/1950-1959/1953/1953_406/</ref> |
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There were several leaders throughout the Chicano Movement. In New Mexico there was Reis López Tijerina who worked on the land grant movement. He fought to regain control of ancestral lands. He became involved in civil rights causes within six years and also became a cosponsor of the Poor People's March on Washington in 1967. In Denver, Rodolfo “Corky” Gonzalez helped define the meaning of being a Chicano through his poem I am |
There were several leaders throughout the Chicano Movement. In New Mexico there was Reis López Tijerina who worked on the land grant movement. He fought to regain control of ancestral lands. He became involved in civil rights causes within six years and also became a cosponsor of the Poor People's March on Washington in 1967. In Denver, Rodolfo “Corky” Gonzalez helped define the meaning of being a Chicano through his poem ''I am Joaquin''. In California, [[César Chávez]] and the farm workers turned to the struggle of urban youth, and created political awareness and participated in ''[[La Raza Unida]]'' Party. Although it is important to recognize the leaders mentioned, it is also important to recognize the machismo that existed in the Chicano Movement. The inequality amongst genders in the movement was great. Women were rarely given jobs or tasks that were not secretarial or domestic. |
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The most prominent civil rights organization in the Mexican-American community is the [[Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund]] (MALDEF), founded in 1968.<ref>[http://www.maldef.org/about/index.htm MALDEF - About Us<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> Although modeled after the [[NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund]], MALDEF has also taken on many of the functions of other organizations, including political advocacy and training of local leaders. |
The most prominent civil rights organization in the Mexican-American community is the [[Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund]] (MALDEF), founded in 1968.<ref>[http://www.maldef.org/about/index.htm MALDEF - About Us<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> Although modeled after the [[NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund]], MALDEF has also taken on many of the functions of other organizations, including political advocacy and training of local leaders. |
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A major element of the Movement was the burgeoning of Chicano art fueled by heightened political activism and energized cultural pride. Chicano visual art, music, literature, dance, theater and other forms of expression have flourished. During the 20th century, an emergence of Chicano expression developed into a full-scale Chicano Art Movement. Chicanos developed a wealth of cultural expression through such media as painting, drawing, sculpture and printmaking. Similarly, novels, poetry, short stories, essays and plays have flowed from the pens of contemporary Chicano writers. Chicano, Mexican-American, and Hispanic cultural centers, theaters, film festivals, museums, galleries and numerous other arts and cultural organizations have also grown in number and impact since this time. The Chicano Art Movement also opened a gate women for Chicanas who felt oppressed by Chicano men, or the Chicano Movement in general. Chicanas used art to express their frustrations and freedom dreams. In a way art was a form of liberation for Chicana women all over the U.S. |
A major element of the Movement was the burgeoning of Chicano art fueled by heightened political activism and energized cultural pride. Chicano visual art, music, literature, dance, theater and other forms of expression have flourished. During the 20th century, an emergence of Chicano expression developed into a full-scale Chicano Art Movement. Chicanos developed a wealth of cultural expression through such media as painting, drawing, sculpture and printmaking. Similarly, novels, poetry, short stories, essays and plays have flowed from the pens of contemporary Chicano writers. Chicano, Mexican-American, and Hispanic cultural centers, theaters, film festivals, museums, galleries and numerous other arts and cultural organizations have also grown in number and impact since this time. The Chicano Art Movement also opened a gate women for Chicanas who felt oppressed by Chicano men, or the Chicano Movement in general. Chicanas used art to express their frustrations and freedom dreams. In a way art was a form of liberation for Chicana women all over the U.S. |
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The Chicano Movement still continues today. Many of the organizations above still exist. Chicanos all over the education system are still fighting to get Mexican-American or Chicano classes and Studies on their campuses. Chicanos today still suffer discrimination and prejudice. The movement will not end until not only Chicanos but all People of Color achieve equality. |
The Chicano Movement still continues today. Many of the organizations above still exist. Chicanos all over the education system are still fighting to get Mexican-American or Chicano classes and Studies on their campuses. Chicanos today still suffer discrimination and prejudice. The movement will not end until not only Chicanos/Latinos but all ''[[People of Color]]'' or racial minorities in the U.S. achieve equality. |
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==Student walkouts== |
==Student walkouts== |
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Revision as of 13:01, 18 May 2008
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The Chicano Movement of the 1960s, also called the Chicano Civil Rights Movement, also known as El Movimiento, it is an extension of the Mexican American Civil Rights Movement which began in the 1940s with the stated goal of achieving "social liberation" and Mexican American empowerment.
Introduction
The Chicano Movement encompassed a broad cross section of issues—from restoration of land grants, to farm workers rights, to enhanced education, to voting and political rights as well as emerging awareness of collective history. Socially, the Chicano Movement addressed what it perceived to be negative ethnic stereotypes of Mexicans in mass media and the American consciousness. It did so through the creation of works of literary and visual art that validated the Mexican-American ethnicity and culture.Chicano nationalism through its affirmation of cultural identity grounded in Aztec myths such as that of Aztlán, the mythical Chicano homeland.
The term Chicano is a term used in describing Mexican-Americans. It was originally used a derogatory label for Mexicans who had recently arrived in the United States. In the 1960’s, militant and Mexican Americans accepted it as a symbol of self-determination and ethnic pride. But the term fell from popular usage in the late 1970's when the Chicano movement died down, but has increased Mexican-American political involvement.
The Chicano Movement also addressed discrimination in public and private institutions. Early in the twentieth century, Mexican Americans formed organizations to protect themselves from discrimination. One of those organizations, the League of United Latin American Citizens, was formed in 1929 and remains active today.[1]
Chicano Movement has been fomenting since the end of the U.S.- Mexican War in 1848, when the current U.S-Mexican border took form and hundreds of thousands of Mexicans became U.S. citizens overnight. Since that time, countless Chicanos and Chicanas have confronted discrimination, racism and exploitation. The Chicano Movement that culminated in the early 1970s took inspiration from heroes and heroines from their indigenous, Mexican and American past.
The movement gained momentum after World War II when groups such as the American G.I. Forum, which was formed by returning Mexican American veterans, joined in the efforts by other civil rights organizations.[2]
Mexican American civil rights activists achieved several major legal victories including the 1947 Mendez v. Westminster Supreme Court ruling which declared that segregating children of "Mexican and Latin descent" was unconstitutional and the 1954 Hernandez v. Texas ruling which declared that Mexican Americans and other racial groups in the United States were entitled to equal protection under the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.[3][4]
There were several leaders throughout the Chicano Movement. In New Mexico there was Reis López Tijerina who worked on the land grant movement. He fought to regain control of ancestral lands. He became involved in civil rights causes within six years and also became a cosponsor of the Poor People's March on Washington in 1967. In Denver, Rodolfo “Corky” Gonzalez helped define the meaning of being a Chicano through his poem I am Joaquin. In California, César Chávez and the farm workers turned to the struggle of urban youth, and created political awareness and participated in La Raza Unida Party. Although it is important to recognize the leaders mentioned, it is also important to recognize the machismo that existed in the Chicano Movement. The inequality amongst genders in the movement was great. Women were rarely given jobs or tasks that were not secretarial or domestic.
The most prominent civil rights organization in the Mexican-American community is the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF), founded in 1968.[5] Although modeled after the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, MALDEF has also taken on many of the functions of other organizations, including political advocacy and training of local leaders.
A major element of the Movement was the burgeoning of Chicano art fueled by heightened political activism and energized cultural pride. Chicano visual art, music, literature, dance, theater and other forms of expression have flourished. During the 20th century, an emergence of Chicano expression developed into a full-scale Chicano Art Movement. Chicanos developed a wealth of cultural expression through such media as painting, drawing, sculpture and printmaking. Similarly, novels, poetry, short stories, essays and plays have flowed from the pens of contemporary Chicano writers. Chicano, Mexican-American, and Hispanic cultural centers, theaters, film festivals, museums, galleries and numerous other arts and cultural organizations have also grown in number and impact since this time. The Chicano Art Movement also opened a gate women for Chicanas who felt oppressed by Chicano men, or the Chicano Movement in general. Chicanas used art to express their frustrations and freedom dreams. In a way art was a form of liberation for Chicana women all over the U.S.
The Chicano Movement still continues today. Many of the organizations above still exist. Chicanos all over the education system are still fighting to get Mexican-American or Chicano classes and Studies on their campuses. Chicanos today still suffer discrimination and prejudice. The movement will not end until not only Chicanos/Latinos but all People of Color or racial minorities in the U.S. achieve equality.
Student walkouts
After World War II, Chicanos began to assert their own views of the history and status of Mexicans in the United States and critically analyze what they learned in public schools.[6]
In the late 1960s, when the student movement was active around the globe, the Chicano movement brought about more or less spontaneous actions, such as the mass walkouts by high school students in Denver and East Los Angeles in 1968 and the Chicano Moratorium in Los Angeles in 1970.[7] There were also many incidents of walkouts outside of Los Angeles County. Both Covina7 [alhambra], California at a high school named Northview and Alhambra students marched to fight for the rights of their people.
Student and youth organizations
Chicano student groups such as United Mexican American Students (UMAS), Mexican American Youth Association (MAYA) in California, and the Mexican American Youth Organization (MAYO) in Texas, developed in universities and colleges in the mid 1960’s. [8] At the historic meeting at the University of California, Santa Barbara in April of 1969, the diverse student organizations came together under the new name Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlán (MEChA). Student groups such as these were initially concerned with education issues, but their activities evolved to participation in political campaigns and to various forms of protest against broader issues such as police brutality and the U.S. war in Southeast Asia. [9] The Brown Berets, a youth group which began in California, took on a more militant and nationalistic ideology. [10]
Bibliography
- Yolanda Broyles-Gonzalez, El Teatro Campesino: Theater in the Chicano Movement (University of Texas Press, 1994).
- Ignacio M. García, Chicanismo: The Forging of a Militant Ethos Among Mexican Americans (Tucson: University of Arizona Press, 1997).
- Mario T. García, Mexican Americans: Leadership, Ideology, & Identity, 1930-1960 (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1989).
- George Mariscal, Brown-Eyed Children of the Sun: Lessons from the Chicano Movement, 1965-1975 (Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 2005).
- Carlos Muñoz, Jr., Youth, Identity, Power: The Chicano Movement (New York: Verso, 1989). ISBN 0-86091-913-7
- Juan Gómez Quiñones, Chicano Politics: Reality & Promise, 1940-1990 (Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1990). ISBN 0-8263-1213-6
- F. Arturo Rosales, Chicano! The History of the Mexican American Civil Rights Movement (Houston: Arte Publico Press, 1996). ISBN 1-55885-201-8
- F. Arturo Rosales, Testimonio: A Documentary History of the Mexican-American Struggle for Civil Rights (Houston: Arte Publico Press, 2000).
Notes
- ^ History | LULAC-League of United Latin American Citizens
- ^ American GI Forum - About Us
- ^ LatinoLA - Latino Hollywood - On Screen and Behind the Scenes
- ^ hhttp://www.oyez.org/cases/1950-1959/1953/1953_406/
- ^ MALDEF - About Us
- ^ http://www.denver-rmn.com/millennium/0921mile.shtml
- ^ Our PLACE Called Home - The Chicano Student Walkout
- ^ Moore, J. W., & Cuéllar, A. B. (1970). Mexican Americans. Ethnic groups in American life series. Englewood, Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall. p. 150. ISBN 0135794900
- ^ Moore, J. W., & Cuéllar, A. B. (1970). Mexican Americans. Ethnic groups in American life series. Englewood, Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall. p. 150. ISBN 0135794900
- ^ Moore, J. W., & Cuéllar, A. B. (1970). Mexican Americans. Ethnic groups in American life series. Englewood, Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall. p. 151. ISBN 0135794900