Mexican-Americans: The Struggle Of A Chicano

21 October 2009
The Struggle for the Chicano
“Prefiero morir de pie que vivir siempre arrodillado.” Was once said by Emiliano Zapata, which means I’d rather die on my feet than live a life on my knees. This quote has often served as an inspiration to many Mexican and Mexican-Americans throughout history. Several times this quote has been brought to a reality in the struggle for the equal human rights among Chicanos. In this paper I will be illustrating the unfair opportunity at life that Mexican immigrants and Mexican-Americans were given by the United States. Three major themes that persisted throughout the early history of Chicanos were poor education, police brutality, and harsh labor. These three ideas are enough to keep any minority
at a low level in society. It is stated in the declaration of independence of the United States; “All men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” Obviously this was not the case for Chicanos in the United States between the years of 1848-1960.
Having the right to earn an education is a privilege that not many countries still have today. Education may be the most important skill to earn in a lifetime, it can bring you nothing but positive knowledge that can be put to use. In the United States it is a huge privilege to have free public schooling for all children. Although all children are welcome to go to school, they were all not equally benefited. School class rooms were segregated due to the racial tension that was held in those times. It is said that “the pretexts for excluding Mexicans from white schools were that Mexicans were ill-clad, unclean, and immoral; interracial contact would lead to other relationships.” These racial stereotypes are what drove the whites to exclude colored children into their children’s classrooms. Mexican children attended segregated schools which were led by ill-prepared white teachers. While white children were taught in the newer school classrooms, the school board assigned the old classrooms to Mexican children. “Racial stereotypes allowed school boards to track Mexican students in vocational education programs. School districts rationalized that intellectually slower students should be removed from the “normal” population and tracked. Hence, a high percentage of Mexican students were being placed in classes for slow learners or the mentally retarded.” Mexican children were given a test to show where they stand in their education. The problem is the test was written in English, so of course the Mexican children would automatically fail the test. This is what led to the placement of Mexican children in mentally retarded classes. Other methods of keeping the Mexican students at a low standard were by placing them in classes where the standards are very low. So basically the students were learning how to flunk tests and act dumb to Anglo teachers. This ties into the book Rain of Gold when Lupe goes back to school but this time in the United Sates. Lupe is placed in the third grade even though she is about to become fourteen years old. She is made fun of by all the smaller children because she is much older than they are. Then later in the story Lupe is crying due to her teacher screaming and harassing her. The teacher yells at her “You dirty little Mexican Prick tease! Who do you you’re kidding? You’re too old to be in school!” of course Lupe is destroyed inside by the insults of this teacher. Just another way the racial segregation took effect in the school system. The Mexican population was impacted very negatively by this unfair educational system. Anybody would be disappointed if their child did not receive the same treatment as others. One demonstration that took place against the segregation of students was in 1910 against the San Angelo school board. Mexican parents boycotted, they wanted their children to share the buildings along with white students or at least have their buildings on the same ground. Or as in the book Rain of Gold the students took matter into their very own hands. Pedro and Jose pantsed their teacher after being called racial slurs by him. Even though their actions were not correct to do such a thing to a teacher, they were still very aggravated by his words.
As if being deprived of an education wasn’t enough damage to the Mexican community, police brutality rose among the Mexican people. The police was aware of the Mexican Peoples disadvantage in a country that does not speak their language. The police knew Mexicans did not have the knowledge of turning them into the government. Most cases of police brutality recorded are against a person of a minority background, racism plays a role in the police force in the early nineteen hundreds. “A desk sergeant in 1925 readily admitted that he hated Mexicans, and that he had told officers at another station not to take chances with Mexicans.” Due to this sergeant, officers were influenced to arrest Mexicans for no reason what so ever. Police officers would arrest Mexicans at the pool halls and in the streets. The usual charge for an arrested Mexican would be disorderly conduct. Now we have victims in handcuffs being pulled into jail for a false crime. To fight a criminal charge it takes money and lots of it, but that is what Mexicans did not have. Mexican families could not afford a lawyer to fight the case and grant the prisoner liberty. When a person did have enough money to have a lawyer they were usually a very poor skilled one. In the end, the case would be lost and the money down the drain. In the book Rain of Gold Salvador and his brother Domingo experience police brutality. Both were suspected of producing whisky illegally. During that time prohibition was in effect so this was an illegal act. The police wanted to beat the truth out of both men but were unsuccessful. Salvador had no idea why he was beaten so bad, “He could think of absolutely no reason why they should’ve gotten a beaten like they had.” Salvador also thought to himself why the man who beat him and his brother was so hateful of Mexicans. It is now clear and evident that racism did exist in law enforcement. Police officers became abusive and often used racial profiling as a way to lure their victims. By these actions the Mexican community was in fear of the police. Mexican people would be scared to roam the streets and to engage in any activities. Juan Reyna is an example of taking a stand against the police. Juan Reyna had a scuffle with some police officers; meanwhile he disarmed them of their weapons. Juan Reyna shot and killed one officer and also wounded another. Police officers continued his arrest while making racial insults, Juan Reyna was called “dirty Mexican” and “you filthy Mexican.” Juan Reyna later said he wished he had killed all three police men for their racist insults against him. Juan Reyna died mysteriously while in jail.
One of the major reasons Mexicans left Mexico in the first place was to find work to support themselves and their families.
Mexico at the time was not a place suitable to raise a family. Times were tough and the revolution was fully in effect. Families were going hungry and had no means of obtaining food. Mexicans headed north to the United States to find employment in order to feed their families. Little did they know what was in their near future. A large migration of Mexicans to the United States was from 1900 to 1920. More than a million Mexicans arrived to the United States during this time span. Mexicans found employment, but they were given low end jobs. These low end jobs consisted of the most undesirable positions such as mines and unsafe factories. When The Great Depression came around in 1929 whites began to blame Mexicans for causing The Depression. Whites demanded the deportation of all Mexicans in order for them to have jobs and end the Depression. The whites felt Mexicans were taking all of their jobs away, due to this the California Legislature passed the 1931 Alien Labor Law. This law forbade contractors from employing alien workers on public projects. The sugar beet industry was a huge one; Mexicans compromised sixty five percent of the labor. The work in the sugar beet industry was strictly segregated. Whites planted, irrigated, and cultivated, meanwhile Mexicans got the back breaking work of weeding, hoeing and topping the land. The workers would be forced to shop at the company store which had abusive pricing. The wages that were paid to the Mexican people were way below the poverty line. The Mexican workers were becoming a form of slavery, they worked all day for a couple cents and spent that same money in the company stores. They were making no progress in the United States, the only thing growing bigger and richer were the farms they worked for. The unfair treatment and pay were having a toll on the people. They all decided to come together
and make several strikes for their well being. The strikes consisted of demand for higher wages for their harsh labor, for example at the El Monte strike workers were paid an average of fifteen cents to twenty cents an hour. This was a very poor paid wage. The strike went on but later it failed, the growers proposed an even lower rate cause of the strike. Another strike was the San Joaquin Valley cotton strike where workers were paid forty cents per hundredweight. They wanted and demanded to be paid one dollar per hundredweight. This strike involved about twelve thousand workers. Soon the growers had an agreement to raise the rate to seventy five cents per hundredweight. Although this was not the rate they demanded it was a better one. This strike had a big success even though it was not what they wanted. The mine industry was a massive one also, in this work Mexicans also had the most undesirable jobs. These jobs consisted of mining underground at extreme temperatures for up to twelve hours a day. The workers were paid poorly and unfair. The mining business had the Dual Wage system intact where whites were paid fairly and Mexicans were paid half of that. Strikers came together but were ignored by the company. Mexican unions also formed, they too were ignored to be recognized. Soon strikes took place all over the states, ninety percent of workers were on the strike lines. After some time of strike, Phelps Dodge came to recognize the Mexican union and established equal pay, benefits, and pensions for miners. This was a huge victory in the life for Mexican immigrants. In the book Rain of Gold when it is Lupe’s turn to receive her pay for her labor she only receives half her pay. Lupe of course is outraged and begins to question the foreman. Lupe asks why she only got half her pay. The foreman simply replies “Because you made too much money, and the other men will get angry at me if I give you as much as you made.” This was some kind of dual wage system also but in a sexist form. Juan Villasenor was at working at a rock quarry, because of his English he was able to work with the white men drilling. Juan was a very skilled worker he knew his abilities well. When Juan is at work with the other white workers him and one of them start to become competitive at who can drill one more hole the quickest. Juan went at a steady pace and beat the big white man. The next day Juan went back to work as was denied work with the whites because he beat a white man. “Hey, you, Vil-as-enor-eeee!” “we ain’t got no work for you today…unless you all want to work with the other Mexeee-cans.” Labor was one of the main reason Mexicans came to the United States but it was not what they had expected for their future.
The rationale that was used by the general population to validate their ideas about Chicanos were several. Most of them where extraordinarily exaggerated. U.S. Merchants said that Mexicans were bandits and savages. It was said by a desk sergeant to be careful and not take and not to take any chances with Mexicans. “They are quick on the knife and are hot tempered.” From these assumptions the general population got the idea that all Mexicans were violent savages with hot temperatures. Racial stereotypes let the school boards track Mexican students in education programs. So this allowed the school board to place the Mexican students in classes for slow learners or the mentally retarded. Then by the nineteen thirty’s Mexican students were learning how to qualify for these classes. They were taught how to flunk tests and how to act in front of instructors. From these ideas the general population began to believe that Mexicans are stupid people who will not amount to anything. Another stereotype used by the general population was that Mexicans were dirty. Mexicans were excluded from white schools because they were ill-clad, unclean, immoral people.
In conclusion the rationale that was used by the general population to validate their ideas about Chicanos was that they were violent, stupid, immoral, and filthy people. Mexicans did not want to leave their country but they had to in order to survive. The Mexican people never expected to be treated with so much cruelty. They too were humans with the same necessities as any other. Education was deprived from the Mexican children. Mexicans were victims of Police brutality. Harsh labor and unfair pay was also brought upon the Mexican people. Although these ideas were tough on them, they fought back and resisted the hate. The Mexican people never gave up and soon they were granted the rights they have always deserved.