Reflective Essay: The Chicano Movement

In the 1960’s, the United States went through a period of clarity and diversity in thought, analysis and action for people from Mexico or those who practiced the Mexican culture. Issues of deep resonance and problems both Mexican and American communities faced were brought to light through different platforms that include multiple socio-political mobilizations, art, and music all throughout the country (Cockcroft, 1993). This later ensued into battles of cultural reclamation and self-determination that combined into a national consciousness called the Chicano Movement. The Chicano Art Movement represents the attempts made by Mexican-American artists in establishing a unique artistic identity in the United States. Most of the Chicanos belonged

César Chávez once said “Our language is the reflection of ourselves. A language is an exact reflection of the character and growth of its speakers”.

During the Chicano Nationalist Movement, a well-known speaker, Rodolfo ‘Corky’ Gonzales, delivered a speech titled Chicano Nationalism: Victory for La Raza. In this speech, Rodolfo Gonzales tries to unify the Latin American people within the United States by using the idea of a family and to create a new political organization for the Chicano people. This speech was a cumulation of various ideas which stemmed from his own life, the experiences of the Chicano people, and the Chicano Nationalist Movement in general. Each of these factors contributed to the context of the speech and how the ideas within the speech are presented by Rodolfo Gonzales.

The film prejudice and pride, revealed the struggle of Mexican Americans in the 1960s-1970s. In the film it showed Mexican Americans, frustration by the President discrimination and poverty. In this film I learned about the movement that led to the Chicano identity. This movement sparked, when the farm workers in the fields of California, marched on Sacramento for equal pay and humane working conditions. This march was led by César Chavez and Dolores Huerta. In this film I also learned about Sal Castro. Sal Castro was a school teacher in Los Angeles that led the largest high school student walkout in American history. This walkout demanded that Chicano students be given the same educational opportunities as Anglos students. In Texas, Jose

Cultural identity is an element in a person’s life when one understands their own culture, leading to an understanding and appreciation of other cultures as well. It promotes a vital part of communication between people who come from different cultures. This paper will examine my Mexican American cultural background and how it affects my way of communicating with others.

Hispanic Americans, or Latinos, are a very large and diverse ethnic group in the U.S. Altogether, they make up about 44 million people or 15% of America’s population. Individuals who make up this category can identify with various nationalities and backgrounds. However, the 2010 U.S Census – as stated in the textbook -- reported that 75% of its total Latino respondents identified being of Mexican, Puerto Rican, or Cuban origin. According to the lecture notes, 65% of Hispanics claim to be Mexican Americans, while 8.5% are Puerto Ricans and another 3.5% are Cuban Americans. These are the three most common Hispanic origins and the rest of the Latino population identifies with other Hispanic nationalities. Of the three common nationalities that

They always look up towards me and will always see me working. My parents always tell me stories how they were raised and how they had little money but they continued to work hard and are blessed with all these things. Being hispanic automatically make anything think that you are a hard worker. They may not know where you came from but know you are willing to do anything at any cost. I plan to teach my future children what it really means to be from a hispanic culture and how they should go out and proudly tell the world who they really are. To me, being hispanic and born and raised makes me want to break all negative stereotypes of how must are not educated and do not have any way of succeeding. I want to make my family proud. I have had many experiences were being hispanic has made me work harder than I would have. The main place were I had to exceed was in school. I came into kindergarten with not knowing any english. Spanish was my first language and neither one of my parents knew english. I would go to school and just listen and try to learn every little thing I could get my hands

Las Vegas is where I was born and raised. That doesn’t mean that I just gave up on my Mexican culture. Like many others, I have a culture that is both American and Mexican. My culture has shaped my values, perceptions, and behaviors. The culture of my family, community, and society has made who I am as a person in numerous ways. Culture impacted my personality and how I act and feel. To me, culture is a very important part of every person’s life.

One of the toughest adjustments, having been born to Mexican parents, is migrating to an unknown country where traditions and languages differ from one 's own. Though many pursue an education and strive for a better life, the purpose behind an immigrant, like myself, differs from the typical American. Immigrants strive for a life that was once impossible, going to school is not only to attain an education, but to better prove that we can also become successful regardless of our traditions and skin color. I lived in a country for over fifteen years, fearing deportation, not only losing a home, but potentially saying goodbye to a bright future. Although many feel empathy for Mexican-Americans, it is undeniably difficult to truly comprehend the immense trauma children and even adults undergo  upon experiencing racism and prejudice. Attending a

The environment or culture we are exposed in since we were infants for instance, greatly affects our identity- behaviour, values and actions- as we get older. Imagine two people from different countries, one grew up in Cambodia and the other grew up in the US. The person who grew up in Cambodia would have a different perspective

Chicana/o was positioned between indigenism and indigeneity because it emerged from various forms of creativity and political face during the Chicano movement. In addition, it was established following redeployment of different tools from the initiative of the previous indigenism but having different goals and motives as well as the outcome (Rios, 2013).

It seems as though race is not a substantial issue in the world today like it used to be. Everyone has a different background from where they come from and an ethnicity. Chicanos, Hispanics, Latinos, Mexican Americans whatever you wanna call them. They 're just people, right? Around the 1960s, many individuals in this group were faced with difficult issues throughout their lives. Whites treated these individuals with disrespect, discrimination, and viewed themselves as superior compared to the inferior chicanos. In the year 1848 Mexico lost in the Mexican American War which made them look powerless and weak to the whites, due to them winning over all of the Mexican Territory. Due to Americans winning the war, all property now belonged to them.

societies in the world. These sub-cultures include Whites, African Americans, Asians, Irish, Latino, and European among others. Chicano refers to the identity of Mexican-American descendant in the United State. The term is also used to refer to the Mexicans or Latinos in general. Chicanos are descendants of different races such as Central American Indians, Spanish, Africans, Native Americans, and Europeans. Chicano culture came as result of a mixture of different cultures (Shingles and Cartwright 86). Despite the assimilation by the majority whites the Chicanos have preserved their culture. This paper seeks to prove that Chicano culture has deep cultural attributes that would appeal to the larger American culture, leading to strengthening of

The Chicano movement derives from early oppression of Mexicans. Robert Rodrigo, author of “The Origins and History of the Chicano Movement” acknowledges that, “At the end of the Mexican American war in 1848, Mexico lost half of its territory to the United States and its Mexican residents became ‘strangers in their own lands.’” In stating this fact, Rodrigo exemplifies the United States’ relations with Mexico, that, ultimately, led to their oppression. Moreover, these early relations led to social injustice for the Mexican community. Carlos Muñoz, author of The Chicano Movement: Mexican American History and the Struggle for Equality reports, “As a conquered people, beginning with the Texas-Mexico War of 1836 and the U.S. Mexico War of 1846-48, they have

In the book Chicano Students and the Courts, the author Richard R. Valencia provides a very detailed overlook of the education litigation that the Mexican American students and community went through for education. They fought for education equality and desegregation in schools throughout the country from K-12 and in higher education facilities. The separation of Mexican Americans from their white colleagues around 1848; this started the mistreatment and discrimination of students of Mexican decent. The objective that the author would like to demonstrate is the effort that the Latino community, parents and students, endured for equal opportunities in the educational system. The number of desegregation lawsuits that were created by Mexican