History 33Assignment 9 – Part 1

By: Victor Valenzuela

MEXICANOS:

A History of Mexicans in the United States

Chapter 1

Spaniards and Native Americans,

Prehistory-1521

The Spaniards The Spanish were the result of a multiplicity

of cultures— As most Europeans were. Christopher Columbus exploited the peoples

and the resources he encountered.

Aztecs

Aztecs believed, Aztlán, to be the site of their homeland.

Aztec people were valiant warriors and master builders.

Tenochtitlán, was the capitol of the Aztec Empire, and was said to have had a population of 400,000 people by 1519

The Conquest of Mexico

The conqueror of the Aztec’s was Hernán Cortez (1485-1547)

The germs and disease’s that the Spanish brought with them made a undeniable impact which favored the Spanish.

In 1520 the smallpox epidemic destroyed close to 90 percent of the Aztec population, and in turn ensuring the victory for the Spanish Conquistadors .

Chapter 2

The Spanish Frontier,

1521-1821

Spanish Exploration

Soon after the Spaniards conquered the Aztecs they turned their attention to exploring the north.

The arrival of Cabeza de Vaca in 1528, was purely out of luck. A tropical storm brushed them to the coast of what is now Texas.

Major Trends

The frontier life was difficult, and this is shown by the number of fatalities.

Mothers often died while giving birth, although the men died at the hands of Indians.

Being a widow was not uncommon, in Abiquiu 1845, 91 out of 338 households were headed by widowed females.

Major Trends

The settlements of Baja, California brought a halt to the northern expansion of the Spanish.

A number of Jewish settlers actually had a significant presence in the new frontier.

Since the conversion of Jewish belief to Catholicism, many Jews went to the “New World,” to gain some sort of religious freedom.

Chapter 3The Mexican Far North,

1821-1848

Mexican Independence

Mexico gained their independence in 1821, from the Spanish rule.

The reasons being was that the Spanish were dealing with the invasion of France, during the Napoleonic wars.

In 1808 when Napoleon invaded Spain, he named his brother, Joseph Bonaparte, as the successor of King Ferdinand VII

California California residents were not able to bask in

the new found freedom Mexico had won. Californians fought with themselves over the

political rights and authorities. The women in California were treated poorly

and were considered second class citizens

Clash of Cultures

The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo brought an official end to the Mexican-American War (1846-1848) was signed on February 2, 1848

The United States paid Mexico $15,000,000 in consideration of the extension acquired by the boundaries of the United States

Chapter 4

The American Southwest,

1848-1900

Gringos and Greasers

The stereotyping of cultures and races overtook the mind of the masses

Irish and Mexicans were looked at as lazy and irresponsible

Seen as incapable to assimilate

California The discovery of gold at Coloma, California

caused much competition on the mining sites. On January 24, 1848 (roughly a week before

Mexicans signed the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo,) gold was found.

New Mexico

The conservation of the Mexican Culture was done so best by the New Mexico citizens.

Hispanos remained the dominant (through numbers,) until close to the time of World War II

When the United States gained New Mexico, they also about forty thousand Native Americans.

Chapter 5

The Great Migration,

1900-1930

Motives For Mexican Immigration After the first World War a number of laws

were passed in which resulted in the culmination of the Reed-Johnson Immigration Act of 1924

The immigrating Mexicans were motivated by certain luxuries they would not be able to have in Mexico, but specifically the southwest region attracted them the most

The Mexican Revolution

Mexicans faced a great deal of racial prejudice and discrimination in coming into the United States

The Mexican revolution was not just a political uprising, it was a “True” revolution which means it impacted every aspect of life including- politics- economics- culture- and society itself

Economic Development of the Southwest Many of the people who came to the United

States would come from the same villages as others, and would come as a group, this would result into settling down as a group.

Chapter 6

The Depression,

1930-1940

The Depression

The 1930’s was a decade of great hardship, Economically, for the United States

The most vulnerable countries were the ones that were the heavily industrialized—United States, and Germany

Urbanization

The farm work, and the railroad work was seasonal which lead to urbanization

Mexicanidad—Mexican Nationalism— was something which was very much embraced, especially because the Mexicans in the Midwestern parts were so far from the native Mexicans and their families (if any were left behind.)

The “Mexican Problem” The collapse of the economy did create

tension and problems, especially towards races.

Many people wanted to keep the United states pure, such as the Ku Klux Klan, and took measures to do so.

Chapter 7

The Second World War and its Aftermath,

1940-1965

Mexicans in the Military

What initially brought the United States into World War II was the attack by Japan on Pearl Harbor, on December 7,1941.

This was an opportunity for Mexicans to try and become mainstream in America.

Approximately 250,000 to 500,000 Mexican (immigrants and native born,) actively enrolled into the military services.

The Bracero Program

The Bracero program was a program which came as a consequence from World War II.

The program recruited Mexican nationals to work in the Western United States on a temporary basis, as a government funded program during and after the war.

Operation Wetback

By the 1960’s the farmers were able to contract undocumented workers, because of the influx of the undocumented immigrants crossing over to the united states

Mexicans rushed towards the opportunities of jobs in the U.S.

It was cheaper for farmers to hire undocumented work, as opposed to the Bracero, because they could give them less money, rights, ect.

Chapter 8The Chicano Movement,

1965-1975

The Mexican Community in the Mid-Sixties The Mexican population in the

1960’s(according to Grebler,) was 3,842,000 And 87 percent of the population was said to

reside in the southwest regions, the additional 13 percent was said to have lived in other areas of the country.

The schooling was averaged 3-4 years less than their Anglo counterparts.

Chavez, Huerta, and the United Farmworkers The National

Federation of Labor Unions was founded to improve the working conditions, wages, and overall lives of the farm workers.

Cesar Chavez is one of the most notable voices for the farm workers

Other Early Chicano Leaders The Chicano/a community has had many

influential and notable civil rights leaders Reies Lopez Tijerina, being one, lead a new cause to regain lost Hispano lands through New Mexico

Chapter 9

Goodbye to Aztlán,

1975-1994

Demographics The high levels of “Hispanics” living in the

United States was backed by the numbers collected by the Census Bureau.

Increase of 61 percent from 1970-1980 And 53 percent from 1980-1990 Mexicans kept a high level of public interest

well after the 70’s Emerging trend of bilingualism Affirmative action.

Immigration High birth rates was one of the main reason

why Mexicans stayed in the medias light, but also was die to the high levels of immigration from Mexico to the United States, this was simply un avoidable to notice.

Feministas: The Second Genertaion By the Early nineties

more Latina women were going to college and graduating, than the Latino men.

This trend followed through, as in the mid nineties indicates that there were more Latina women in professions than there were Latino Men

Chapter 10

The Hispanic Challenge,

1994-Present

Stemming the Tide

Congress, in 1990, increased the penalty for violation of immigration policies, and also increased the funding given to the boarder patrol.

Awakening the Giant: Grassroots Mobilization The threats to the civil liberties of the

Mexican Americans started this political mobilization through the country, which was first seen in California.

The grassroots movement also demanded more rights for the undocumented workers, which was directly correlated with the influx of military presence at the boarder.

The Awakening Giant: Electoral politics In the early twenty-first century the

mobilization for rights was just not taken by the streets, it was thought to be the ample time to create the impact through the electoral political aspect.

This awakened the mindset of future political hopefuls, because they saw that the Latino/a vote was a very important one.