Social science: the distortion of Mexican-American history; Racism in America : past, present, future symposium

I magine that everyone here it's aware of the fact that the Chicano population of the southwest is. A largest minority group. And I do and you are all too aware of the plaque that there are in excess of 2 million. I know some California I imagine you are also aware of the fact that not only are the Mexican Americans along the border. When you speak with people they envision the Mexican American as an individual who sort of you know like sneaks across the border and lives in places like Tennessee to Roland Brownsville and Mack Allen and other such a beautiful place to sell Texas. The actual fact of the matter is that not only Mexican-American

the largest minority in Southern California it is also the largest minority in Northern California. There are substantial colonies in Washington and Oregon in Wisconsin in Illinois in Pennsylvania in Michigan. Although no one knows how many are in these northern states. The Chicano population is also old probably the fastest growing definable population in the United States. And while estimates reach between six and nine million Mexican Americans in the United States at the present rate of growth it is estimated that might not by nine thousand seventy five. There will be an accession of 21 million people of Spanish surname in the

United States most of whom will be Chicano. So this is quite interesting. I hope we will have done away with the stereotypes and the application of the stereotypes concerning the Mexican-Americans in the United States. There are certain images in this country that are very widespread. Images of what the Mexican American is usually the most common image concern of the Mexican American as he is seen by the general population and the general population view these people as basically agrarian as people who pick up the cotton here and pick a

great bear and then dash off up to Washington and catch the apple tits are falling off the trees and then he sort of hibernate during winter time waiting for the harvest and the planting of the following sprig. And this is such a common image that it is relatively easy to obtain problems for say rural type programs despite the fact that for quite some time now the chicken the population has been an urban population it is 85 percent urban. In California as well as in Texas but nevertheless this image of the agrarian type remains with us. Part of the root of this image comes from contemporary social science from anthropology from sociology and they're jumping on

the bandwagon. Also from psychology. It is rooted in the fact that this nation tends to buil existence in terms of polarities. Gagan type polarity. It tends to be there for the Mexican-American it's undergoing some kind of single direction change having come from what is called the traditional culture and that he undergoes certain stages of metamorphosis. Ultimately becoming quote acculturated unquote. This current terminology is called the bipolar model of cultural change. It is quite interesting. The bipolar model of cultural change when translated into English means they all come

from the same. They're all changing in the same direction and sooner or later they are all going to disappear and then you can legitimately ask a question really disappear become assimilated integrated acculturated which is quite interesting. As I mention these words I'm reminded of the fact that we have many words to describe this single direction of change. But we don't have anything technical word to describe a Mexican who comes to this country decides that he would rather live in Mexico and return. But if you read the textbooks carefully textbooks like Mexican Americans with Texas you will discover if you read carefully that this is viewed as a form of cultural regression. And so we see the basic racist type attitudes appearing

even in our textbooks in colleges such as this. This is quite interesting you use a bipolar model of change traditional culture to acculturation This is the only model ever used in the social sciences to study only one for the past 40 50 60 years. And this raises interesting questions all to solve it suggests for example that for the past 50 years social scientists have been receiving substantial amounts of money in order to repeat the same thing over and over again. And who can blame them after all. Why rock the boat. Do Mexican Americans really disappear into generalized American society in so far as contemporary sociology is concerned. The answer is No.

When a Mexican-American takes on all the trappings of American society to the point of or denying the language or the food or the music when he reaches that point in the textbooks he is called a culture rated Mexican. So are there still is in the textbooks and divisiveness. You know what do you feel. To ponder the fundamental meaning of the term and acculturated Mexican. I know all of this would be quite interesting if this kind of information found its way into my master's and doctoral theses and then placed in a library because nobody ever reads Ph.D. anyway except the guy that writes it. However the fact of the matter is that this kind of study has made its appearance

into all kinds of agencies immigration service departments of social welfare schools of medicine psychiatric training centers etc. etc.. It has found its way into a police department that has found its way into departments of employment. So you have major agencies in the United States which you are as authoritative source a series of social studies which are highly biased and historically a product of the distortion of history. When you begin to consider the fact that decades the fundamental Kolosov Pickel constructs of social science studies of Mexican Americans have not changed. And if you place it in the national context it becomes even more and even more unbelievable because when you study or you go into

the studies of minorities in the east you find all different kinds of approaches you find a statistical model that you find functional models you find structural model you find historical models you find cultural models for many models. There is a rich variety of intellectual Perth who in the study of minorities in the ether. When you get west of the Mississippi and you begin to read about that you know you well into of that pool of their own repetition. Now. In order to understand the situation the social scientists have essentially promulgated and perpetuated by basic stereotypes of the Mexican American.

The first stereotype the myth of the Spanish grandee. The second stereotype the stereotype of the emotional Latin. The third stereotype the stereotype of the superstitious past the fourth. The stereotype of the fatalistic and the fit the stereotype that you will not organize. Not long ago I'm in the offices of the United States Commission on Civil Rights and there with a portfolio justifying the existence of the commission's expert on Mexican-American affairs. And then this part. This man had written the Mexican American. It's a direct descendant of the Spanish Grand de.

And as such he has lived in the hypnotic grasp of his religion and is therefore fatalistically resigned to his lot. This is quite interesting. It's a very common deal found not only in the office so the Commission on Civil Rights but in many colleges. No I would like to give you an example. Of this kind of thing which has been dealt with by say Carey McWilliams in his book north of Mexico. He talks about the myth of the Spanish grandee and in fact every year Los Angeles Barbara go to many different cities in the Southwest celebrate something akin to

Founders Day in the great Spanish heritage of the West. In Los Angeles they celebrate the day and on that date people won't dress up in what they think the Spaniards dress alike and they parade up and down the street sometimes on horses on my collar. And as these people march up and down celebrating the great heritage they may have a couple of drinks and after about their third or fourth martini they start saying things like. And thought is great on we just paid to our great Spanish founders de los Angeles.

The founders of Los Angeles were named by an order of the Vegas or say about a year ago I suppose him or you know he looks to be of events he'll say they like you comment on it which are all Spanish names and obviously all Spanish grandees except that one of the founders What's an Indian. And what's a bad idea Gus the first mayor of Los Angeles with an Indian. And Jose Mourinho with some luck and predicts we have events here what's a Spaniard married to an Indian. And will save a lot of it was also married to an Indian I'm telling you Miss I was a negro on if you go there with us with an Indian married to him would not go on and I'm a hundred older Oh so that's what the whole married and Indian people. Apparently I am. Do you know about a rule in this diesel married to him would love to wipe the money on that oil.

So I would suggest that next year when the Celebrate Spanish Founders Day it's time you already dress up like an Indian with just a little breech cloth. And parade up and down the street and instead of saying hey we should say whatever the union said. I had occasion to do some historical research in New Mexico particularly about the great Spanish founding of the New Mexico good which is on one day and all those kind of cats. I run into the same thing. It was mostly MFT full of mud up to us and Indians who were doing the basic work. What I imagine happened in the southwest is that these people and the peons of their day pounded the cities. And then once they were going concerns of the grandees

moved in and took over. Now I have no way of proving this. Aside from world history. So much for the Spanish grandee. And deep emotion. Every time I think about this I just about have a nervous breakdown. I remember a couple of years back. When one body shot hit Johnny Roseboro over the head with a baseball bat and the papers and the TV the radio all were full of accounts of the fiery temper and it's

emotional display. Since then I have seen basketball players each other's seen football players kick each other word hurts the most. I have seen tennis players throw tennis rackets and on and on and on down the line. I have seen people in the audience dash out into baseball fields etc. etc. but these are not Latin or not Latin so you don't call it an emotional display. You don't call it a fiery temper. You merely call it a rhubarb. What I am saying of course is that it is very common in the United States to describe the same behavior in different terms every time it is someone different.

That does it. It's very very common almost everywhere we go. I remember also that when the Delano marchers arrived in Sacramento. The paper is described as profoundly emotional display and I had just arrived there from Berkeley and to me it was a very quiet display after the Berkeley experience. No one refers to what's going on in Berkeley as fiery emotional. My best example of Latin American and motion all of them I think is our national political conventions of the big Democratic and Republican Party where people gather in one hotel and scream and and and cuss and swear and push for five days on end.

This is not fiery emotionalism just to demonstrate you know we all know that. Much more let in American emotionalism. Myth of the superstitious. Sometimes I have the feeling that anthropologists and sociologists can hardly wait to get past their introductory chapters so they can get to the real heart of Mexican life. Witchcraft. Three chapters in one little 200 page book of witchcraft while. Many people present have read a study of American witchcraft. And not interesting. And there are and have been

for a long long time. Major which Crips in New York in Michigan Chicago Illinois. The recent episode of Anton Levey in San Francisco worth referred tool as a resurgence of witchcraft. This is a lot of bull. You know it's been a rotten time. In fact Berkeley has its own resident witch. Most of the senders of course are middle and upper class. There are major such centers around Los Angeles. Why don't we study there was a fellow from the Department of Anthropology at Berkeley who went to a witchcraft Center in San Francisco in order to make a study of it and I think he decided to give it up when he

encountered some university professors there. I don't know if they were doing a study or what. If you go to England you know of course that witchcraft has been present all along. In fact if you talk to any self-respecting English which she will tell you that what really fought Hitler was not the R. When the German legions were threatening the shores of Dover all the witches in England could got together and went to the center of the little light and joined hands and danced around said little boo boos and mumbled jumbles or whatever it is that which is. And then they all held hands and leaned toward Germany and this they say is what stopped Hitler. So you see if you have read history you have been misinformed.

It is estimated today in the United States outside of the Chicano population there is something like seven hundred and fifty thousand people who adhere to believe in and practice one form of witchcraft or another. And these are rather asked a conservative estimate. So all so much for the superstitious affluent Americans. Probably the most widespread stereotype and probably the most insidious is a type of the fatalistic and for quite some time totally to even discuss this anywhere because it seems absolutely absurd and

fantastically unbelievable that any adult university could write and actually convince himself that any human being could be fatalistic to be resigned to hunger and poverty and to illness and gradation. And yet if you read books like you mad like hell or Mexican-Americans or god you at the crossroads you find these books riddled with this kind of thinking. One often wonders what is the purpose of an adult convincing himself that a mother could be particularly resigned to the death of her child. And yet they write this day and day out day in and day out. And finally the stereotype that the cheap gun will not

organize. Mexican-American. Has a long militant history in the West. Despite the fact that the textbooks have dealt with this population that's basically a fifth or as people who have no history. The opposite is the truth. Aside from the fact that many skirmishes and many battles that were fought in the eighteen hundred were actually examples of guerrilla warfare they are referred to of course in our textbooks as the period of banditry in 1983 or with a large group of college boys from Texas that went on strike a strike with

one goal missed at the beginning of 60 70 years of constant strike for the cheap gun in the United States. There are certain examples and I won't give in order to indicate what I am driving at. In 1983 over 1000 Mexican with Japanese sugar beet workers going on strike in California. And this was followed by a whole wave whole wave a series of strikes in Los Angeles initiated by Mexican Railway workers. This was followed in 1922 by the workers who sought to organize in prison on and up all of the formation of the company that a few on there were new and I thought they had us in Southern California in 1927.

This had 20 locals and well over 3000 members its first strike was called in the Imperial Valley in 1928 and scarcely two years after the fall of the Mexican peel workers were on strike in the Imperial Valley for the second time. In 1933 just three years later the largest agricultural demonstration to date in the history of California took place when seven thousand people of Mexican descent were demonstrating in the Onion the celery and the berry peeled off Angeles County. Later in the same year there was a large strike in the southern area of the town hocking Valley. And during that same year there was a third consecutive large strike in the Imperial Valley and only three more years had passed when two thousand Mexican workers were on strike outside of Los Angeles. And at that same year. Twenty five hundred more tied up. A

20 million dollar a citrus crop in Orange County. Now this is almost a continuous period of striking up and down California. These were only the California airports during the 30s. For example there were similar large strikes on earth phone in New Mexico and Texas in Colorado and Washington and Michigan as well as in California and eight different states at the same time. Mexican were fighting for a better life. These were primarily agricultural straight. Their results so sheepherders strikes in West Texas and so on and so on you. It's well it's a demonstration in South Texas in the mid 30s in New Mexico where they formed a Go

ahead of the other left by mule you know it had a membership of over 8000 members in nerd zone of the story with the same beginning in 1915 when 5000 likes going to workers went out on strike. This Arizona situation with the mines has lasted even up to the present day big. So here we have a beginning. Eighteen eighty three. Mexican and Mexican American French gunnels or whatever they chose to call themselves and even some like to call thrown in. We're demonstrating the Lenten brand bred of this country then World War Two Canaan and many of the children of these people went overseas to fight injustice. After World War 2. Less than five years after the last of these massive

demonstrations there was a book written titled Not with by Ruth a sociologist and in this book he said and I quote For many years the Mexican immigrant and his son made no effort to free them. They bring good reason. Some slight but they did roll in price. This has got to be one of the world's most blatant prostitutions of history in the annals of American history and it is not enough that he wrote this. But this was picked up by Leonard by Rubel like mad

like hell or my roof landed and all of the others and learned to clock on all of the others written about the Mexican American and what they have done in effect is to wipe out the history of the Mexican in this country so that as a consequence up and down this country very few people know anything about this population and many people know a lot about what founders wrote and about what TDA Heller wrote and about what Bill Matt wrote No. What happened during the strikes. What happened was that the police were called out.

Sheriff's parties were formed. The Rangers were called out the National Guard was called out and the army was called out. And the striking microcosms were broken by massive military force. Almost were raided in the night. It was a rather common sight to see them in barbed wire enclosures just as happened last year in New Mexico 140 families were herded into a barbed wire enclosure in northern New Mexico. There began a period of mass deportation and it made little difference where people were born. And the mass deportations where competition by one of the marbled of modern industrialized society. Cattle cars

and cattle both estimates of how many people were deep or did run between 100000 and 300000. Nobody is sure how many no other population in the United States except they had been told be parted from their own land. And if I go away if the protests continue and they continue today on me. You don't read about them. I would buy a couple of nights ago and with a group of people and we started talking about one many things have happened that we have not read about in the papers and we filled a blackboard including who didn't

abuse etc cetera and so that as a consequence of the nonexistent. In the news media of the Mexican American There have been de appearing of many Chicano newspapers throughout Iraq in Los Angeles and my check day and some who say you know what it means in the open and puppet in Albuquerque and I'm not going to go on and one up and walk home one in Michigan and a guy in Denver and all different places chic on the floor publishing their own papers and telling their own history and it seems to me that if we are ever to reach a period of enlightenment. It should be in modern society. The fundamental basic right of any

people to write their own history and it is I think to this end that these papers are dedicated. There is also an AI Journal a Quarterly Journal of contemporary Journal of Mexican American thought titled anybody thought coming out of Berkeley. So if you are interested in pursuing a different kind of information you might go to your neat near the Chicano newspaper office and look up the address of the chick on the Press Association. This is a mutually cooperating group of move papers in exchange Nova throughout the country and you'll be amazed at how different what appears on their page if from what you read in the fan from fifth go Chronicle. Thank you very much. Thanks for a

cup of tea.