The Struggles of Mexicans in Mexican-American History Essay -- History

The Struggles of Mexicans in Mexican-American History Mexico’s problems originally began upon the arrival of the Spanish in 1492, as illustrated in Major Problems in Mexican American History by Zaragosa Vargas as well as in the video documentary, Chicano!. The sequence of events which date back to the precolonial Spanish days and take place in Mexico’s history eventually provoke the national movement that called for social justice and equality, especially after the signing of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. Then came the question of group and individual identity. Those of Mexican heritage were broken up into the groups "Chicanos," which were the ‘Americanized’ Mexicans or the Mexicans born in the United States, and the actual "Mexicans," who were the native born people which were discriminated against the most. The Spaniards two main goals in invading, conquering and in the conquest of the Mexico region were to maintain political control over the Indians, which populated Mexico at the time and to convert the Indians to Christianity. As Vargas states in her book, Major Problems in Mexican American History, "the Spanish crown pursued its double goal of Christianization and Hispanicization, the world of the Indian was systematically destroyed through a sustained policy of military campaigns and forced labor; disease and malnutrition, which also took a toll on the native populations"(Vargas 91). The Spaniards were able to divide the indigenous people of Mexico and conquer them with the help of other ethnic groups occupying the Mexico region. In planning the conquest, the Spaniards would identify a group that would ally with them to further defeat the ethnic group in power. The collaboration of the Spaniards and the rival ethni... ...his essay on Mexicans, the documentary provides visual sources for facts discussed in Vargas' book (Spencer Anderson). The website is detailed in the way in which it describes the events, and lists the facts leading up to the creation of Chicano Park!. Mexicans have faced problems ever since 1492, when the expansion of the Spanish took on full force. Ever since, they have continued to encounter many more, which involve discrimination and oppression. Their history concerning Spanish conquest and colonization, and their migration into the United States was very troublesome, and it has not improved that much either. Works Cited Vargas, Zaragosa. Major Problems in Mexican American History. Boston, Ma: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1999. Chicano Park Website http://chicanopark.org "Chicano!" Documentary Series Website http://www.pbs.org/chicano/index.html