Chicano

“To me, you have to declare yourself a Chicano to be a Chicano. That makes a Chicano a Mexican-American with a defiant political attitude that centers on his or her right to self-definition. I 'm a Chicano because I say I am” (Marin). A Chicano may be defined as a person of Mexican origin residing in the United States, but mostly someone who is politically active. For many years, the Mexican-Americans have been highly discriminated throughout the United States, but mostly in the southwest area. This fact results interesting since this happened in the territory that once belonged to them. One main reason for such discrimination would be the fact that people could not spread their opinions, and even if they could they did not carry any weight.…

Chicano is a very common word in a Mexican American population dense area. Many say that the word Chicano is slang for Mexicano, and others say it’s a unique way to call those first-born Americans that come from Mexican parents. To historians and sociologists, the word “Chicano” was used for those who struggled between identifying themselves as Mexicans or as Americans. This word represents everything that we’ve overcome since WWII and before that. This word first came as a movement, The Chicano…

Professor Cherrie Moraga of Stanford University is considered to be one of the most influential women in the women’s liberation movement. Living in a white, heterosexual man’s world, lesbian Chicana Moraga understood her sexuality would alienate her in a Chicano culture that is highly against homosexuality. She understood her defiant characteristics coupled with her being a woman would naturally raise questions about her sexuality in a Chicano community that has purported strong, defiant women…

To start with, we should focus on the history and origins of the Chicanos. The word Chicano was used to describe people of Mexican origin living in the United States since the early twentieth century. Originally wealthier Mexican-Americans used the term as a pejorative way to describe Mexican-Americans of lower social standing. In order to understand their history is essential to start by explaining the war that Mexico declared to the United States in 1846. This war had as main why the American…

“La raza! / Méjicano! / Español! / Latino! / Chicano! / Or whatever I call myself / I look the same / I feel the same / I cry / And / Sing the same. / I am the masses of my people and / I refuse to be absorbed. / I am Joaquín” (Gonzales, 1969). These powerful words were taken from Rodolfo “Corky” Gonzales’s, poem “I am Joaquin”, which revolutionized the definition of “Chicano” in the late 1900’s. Although many are challenging the traditional definition of Chicano social identity as it was seen…

Chicano Student Program As a result of the most recent election, many minorities, such as hispanics and latinos, are terrified for the seemingly desolate future. Many chicanos panic that their rights as human beings may be taken away and that their daily lives will be even more troublesome. Some fear that there is no safe place for them to go, however there is a inconspicuous source that lies within UCR that acts as safe space for students. A little past beyond the infamous HUB, directly across…

Facing disenfranchisement and exclusion from the mainstream American society as well as political Chicano movements, Chicana activists nonetheless stood up for their rights and mobilized to create their own organizations such as the Comisión Feminil Mexicana Nacional in 1970. Activists such as Martha Cotera also called on LRUP to make room for feminists and helped organize pioneering Chicana feminist meetings in Houston during 1971 and 1972. The efforts of Chicana activists brought to light…

Growing up with a Chicano (Mexican-American) and a Native-American background, I’ve experienced much of the fulfillment of being included with the URMs (Underrepresented minorities) experience. URMs is defined as African Americans, American Indians/Alaska Natives, and Latinos— who have historically comprised a minority of the U.S. population are growing in size and influence (nacme.org). Growing up in a small town, with primarily Caucasians, can really be intimidating, as most minorities are…

The Chicano Movement of the 1960s, also called the Chicano Civil Rights Movement, which fought for Mexican American Civil Right with the stated goal of achieving Mexican American empowerment. Chicano movement goals included many issues like restoration of land grants, improved education, farm workers' rights, and to voting and political rights. Generally, the Chicano Movement addressed negative cultural stereotypes of Mexicans. Chicano movement included many people from different culture to…

The Chicano Movement fought for inclusivity, but unfortunately, the dominant traditional definition of Chicano is associated with machismo and male chauvinism which fails to recognize a Chicana. As a result, this primary characteristic of a Chicano oppressed Mexican American women and excluded them from the customary identity which gave rise to the Chicana Movement in the 1960s. This was one of the first actions that occurred in order to redefine the Chicano identity. Ironically, the Chicana…