Chicano

Hispanic gangs began forming in California during the early 1920s. They started as loosely knit groups banding together for unity and socializing in the barrios (neighborhoods) where the same culture, customs, and language prevailed. Gang members were male youths ranging from 14 to 20-years-old. Property crimes such as burglary, strong-arm robbery, and vandalism were their crimes of choice. They were very defensive of their barrio, and they would protect it with a vengeance. In our readings,…

have strong reactance towards their discrimination by the white majority. This involves the devaluation of education (Portes and Zhou 1993: 81). For the Haitian child to ignore their belief, this entails the continuation of ostracism and bullying. Chicanos face the same dilemma. These children are familiar with cholos, those who defend themselves from white discrimination by rejecting education because that means they’re acting white (Portes and Zhou 1993: 89). Jamaican immigrants fall prey to…

Variant Identities of 20th Century Latinos Oxnard, about fifty miles north of Los Angeles, is one of many in California’s expansive agricultural regions. A small town, ideally situated on a coastal plane, providing the perfect balance of soil, and moisture from the Pacific Ocean. Great conditions for the strawberry. The desirable low growing fruit is not the easiest to harvest though, requiring arduous labor under the intense Southern California sun. On any given late-spring afternoon, you’ll…

Cinco de Mayo stands for the fifth of May. This is a more minor holiday in Mexico, in the United States Cinco de Mayo has turned into a celebration of Mexican culture and heritage, particularly in areas with large Mexican-American populations. Cinco de Mayo traditions include parades, mariachi music performances and street festivals in cities and towns across Mexico and the United States. Benito Juarez was born in 1806 and died in 1872. He became the president of a country in financial ruin.…

Bless Me Ultima is a chicano critically acclaimed novel. Written by the american author Rudolfo Anaya who is considered to be a founder of the canon of contemporary Chicano written works. This coming of age novel explains the life of 6 year old, Antonio Marez. It takes place in a paltry town in eastern New Mexico. The family takes in an elderly woman named Ultima so she doesn’t live her last days all on her own. Although many believe Ultima was a doer of things evil, it’s important to see the…

a name, some of the fragmented pieces began to fall together – who we are, what we were, how we evolved. We began to get glimpses of what we might eventually become.” (Anzaldua, 43-44), in this passage she is speaking about herself and her fellow Chicanos being recognized as a people through their language, this passage however can be used in more broad of terms as well, as to apply it to all of humanity. A few paragraphs before this she states that “Identity is the essential core of who we are…

to use black and white i would imagine that he's feels that Los Angeles is old school, plain, and simple. The artist Frank Romero was born in 1941, has painted more than over 15 murals in Los Angeles. He was noted as a muralist and pioneering Chicano. He created a mural along the…

“A faith you have suffered for becomes more precious. The more the Crow Dogs and other traditional families were persecuted for their beliefs, the more stubbornly they held on to them” (Crow Dog 105). This quote, from Native-American woman Mary Crow Dog in her autobiography Lakota Woman, describes the desire that Native people had to hold onto their beliefs until a time where it was safe to live them. In the 1950’s, 60’s, and 70’s, Native Americans and other social groups fought for their rights…

ancestors and how I got to the place I am at right now. History is one thing that has affected me both negatively and also positively. I am a minority living in Los Angeles and I am very proud of it. It really makes me feel special that my people the Chicanos have made a change in society. We are always looked upon down on but we have many things many people look up too. One good example of what people look up is the great wall. The wall influences everybody and there are no boundaries to it.…

An author’s literary works are often influenced by the real experiences, whether positive or negative, that they are faced with throughout their lifetime.Sandra Cisneros, a Mexican -American novelist, poet, and short story writer, grew up in Chicago during the 1960’s; she was divided between her Mexican and American cultures. Cisneros focuses her literary works on the Latino experience and women’s experience in the United States as well as topics such as oppression, poverty, and feminism. She…