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The Chicano Movement: Struggle For Equality

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The Chicano Movement emerged as a response to the systemic racism and oppression by white America against latino and Mexican Americans during the twentieth century. However, to understand the movement, one must analyze the gross inequities and mistreatment that Latino Americans faced during this time in America--some of which still resonate today. These issues include a lack of rights, protections, and appreciation for migrant farm workers; segregation and discrimination in education; and the unfair treatment they faced in general in American society (Muñoz). The preponderance of such systemic oppression leads to the notion that the essence of the movement was rooted in the conflict theory. Through the conflict theory, the ideological roots of the movement can be understood. The movement’s adherence to the conflict theory is exemplified in Dolores Huertas’ and Cesar Chavez’s fight for the improvement of working conditions and the expansion of the …show more content…

Muñoz (2013) begins his paper by describing early waves of Mexican immigration into the United States. Muñoz (2013) states the main reason that Mexican immigrants migrated to America was to take advantage of the vast agricultural labor opportunities. According to Muñoz (2013), this insurgence of immigrants led many Americans to fear that Mexican migrants were taking their jobs. This fear ultimately manifested into racist and xenophobic anti-Mexican legislation and rhetoric, including the segregation of schools, mass deportation, and the perpetuation of the idea that Mexican immigrants were socially and culturally inferior and a threat to the American way of life (Muñoz, 2013). Muñoz (2013) gives a vivid example of the sort of racist rhetoric some Americans spewed during this

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