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  • Carlos Munoz JR - Youth, Identity, Power The Chicano Movement (ch1-3)

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    Carlos Munoz Jr - Youth, Identity, Power The Chicano Movement [ch1-3]

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    VERSO is the imprint of New Left Books BritUh Library Catalopiq in Publication Data (Haymarket series on North American politics and culture)

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    Carlos Munoz JR - Youth, Identity, Power The Chicano Movement (ch1-3)

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    VERSO is the imprint of New Left Books BritUh Library Catalopiq in Publication Data (Haymarket series on North American politics and culture)

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    из 52
    Youth, Identity, Power ‘The Chicano Movement —_+—__ CARLOS MUNOZ, JR. Sieben de TE aes Leen WFO {USA ts Vat Set Naw Yar 002408 ew the pt Ne Lat Bek Brish Library Cataloguing in Picton Data [U8 Libary of Congres Ctalogng in Puieation Date amen igen cota ea hers prt at feats {Bh oot ir 2 tsa om 9187 tan ‘Rr Sern at Dt Seri ‘Prin and ru in ret Bai by Contents Preface Introdetion 1 From Segregation to Melting Pot Democracy: ‘The Mexican American Generation 2 The Militant Challenge: The Chicano Generation 8 The Rise of the Chicano Student Movement snd Chicano Power 4 The Rise and Fall of La Raza Unide Party 5 The Quest for Paradign: ‘The Stragale for Chicano Studios 6 From Chicano to Hispanie: ‘The Polite of a Now Generation ‘Appendix: BI Plan de Santa Barbara (excerpts) Scenes from the Chiceno Movernent Index 19 a 15 wat m 19 208 aia Introduction ‘The history ofthe United Stats has been marked by periods of mass protest and political stragrle against class explitation, unpopalar Iara, aad racial and gonder inequality. The decade ofthe 19608 was Unique however, beeause it marked the frat time that youth ox ‘youth payed a entra ol inthe shaping of oppositional movements ‘ied at thowe in power Tt war also unigue because the pais of thee times were chareterized by mass protest specifically aimed fat the resolution of policy debates traditionally limited to estab- Tished institutions, Young people had never before taken to the treat by the thousand to dramatialy challenge those institutions reoponaible for the perpetuotion of racial inequality al heme and iiltary intervention abroad. ‘Youth protete led tothe creation of stadent movements that Ihelped to shape larger seraggles for social and politcal equality. To the South, Afiean American student protest gave birth tothe St ‘dent Nonviolent Cordinating Committe (SNOO), which beeame & tiajor fore in the development ofthe civil rights movement * From the ranks of SNGC came men and women who played Kay roles in the formation of the Blac stadent unions (BSUs) and the larger Black Power Movement of which Ubey were an integral part. Mexi- can Ameria sadent protest inthe Soathwest led othe formation Sf EI Movimiento Batuianl Chicano de Astin. MECHA and oth Mexican Amerisn student organizations contibulad Reavy tot development ofthe Chicano Power Movenent and the building of @ (Chicano plies! party, La taza Unda Party, In Chicago and New ‘York, Buria Rican stndent actives contributed to the formation of the Young Lords Party and the Puerta Rican nationalist moverent* 1 2 Youth, entity, Power ‘Asian American and Native American student activists wore per- ‘haps less vise, but they were aio participants in the formation of ‘opposition movements in their communities. Stadenis fr « Deme- aie Society (SDS) and Berkeley Free Spesch Movement (FSM) ‘intributed tothe building of « national white student movement ‘andthe New eR They became the major fre behind the develop- ‘ent of the movement againt the war in Vielnam. "The ltorature about the 19609 and in particular abeut student radicalism and pretest hes mushroomed in recent years. By 1968 {elve books and sist far avtiles had been published on the 1968 Berkeley student revolt andthe Free Speech Movement alone, Now there are dozens more books about that tumultuous decade, Some recent works have limited her focus to a single year, 1968, asthe ‘ost dramatic and significant ofthe decade, Nonwhie stadent rad «alia and protest, however, is generally missing fom the pages cf the literature on the 19600. The history of that dacade has been largely presented asa history of white middle-class youth radiealism and protest. ‘Much has been published sbout the cv rights movement, bat it is the SDS, the PSM, and the white New Laft that have been per ‘xiv as the major outh protagonists ofthe 1960s. In addition, ‘hase who have writen sboat the evil rights movement from 200. shite perspective largely ignore the role af normite youth and st Gents init Their role has been overshadowed hy She figure of De Martin Luther King,Jr, and the role played by Black midle-las cul rights organizations like the Natnal Astocition for the Adt ‘vancoment of Clored People (NACCP). Clayborne Carson's book on SSNCC, Tn Struggle i the oly substantial work available on the ale of students inthe making of the civil ight movement. ‘Various explanations have been offered by white scholars and former sixties radicals fr Uheir failure to incorporate nonwhite youth radicalism into their work. Sociologist Richard Flacks, « funder of 3S and one of the most quoted suthortes on student retest, explsined his focus on whit yout in Ue way Given ey experienc, research an background, have fount aconsary {@ eacude some fare of reat importance, In parca, { have been ‘ale write with any utr on he saan ad cine of Hack ‘nd othr rd wel youth, Sma, {have fled to come to pe ‘pata with the prions of merkingaws white youth. Thun ‘Wht you wil Gnd bare won ethos (a mach of wade Seclogy ad contemporary whit rete) [sould not bing pel to theres abut atere tat were tayo my Sie experence™ Introduction 3 Another scholar explained his exclusion of nonwhite youth from hig esearch on the grounds that twas abnermally diel fr him to discover’ how they speated since, for example, membership in the Black student unions was exclusively reserved to blacks thet meetings were ‘desed, and their communication with other black troupe was secret ‘Yet anther expert gave a different explanation fr his exclusion of nonwhite student radicalism. Seymour Martin Lipsst believed that the Black stadent movement was not radial engugh to merit Serious consideration. In his mind, white student radealism advo fated potentially revoltioary changes in society, whereas Black sadent activists represented a reformist polities: ‘Ther principal ejects ae soto change the fundamental character cf the set oto engage in epresv personal potent, ut rater fo Improve te pation of Hacks wihn te lrg woot generally and Sethe utr in parte. Although to achiev er ojctien {hey fen Ged Te rennnry to engn® itt, neines vient farms of peer the gal ay bt i, more one, ob ssh higher seta, mal ty Other scholars have flowed Lipset’ example. David Westby, or example, did not view Black student radicalism as worth ‘nde. pendent anlysa because it was simply n ‘extension or oatronch of the ghetio revels and ose revs ia his mind aimed only a open ing up opportunities for Afacan Americans ‘hat or ead rote grerly thar ban ast gurer cos trae caly super trplyteense, dept the rar nd conten ‘Shon hes teen dood or eo fot i harmony eh rvercan ata ain, not prec." Without any critical examination ofthe Black student movement, Westby concludes that ts leadership resisted alzempts to align with whe tadials because of the ‘danger’ such an alliance would pose {othe ‘ypcally Limited, reformist goals of Black student protest "The work of New Left ecolarsn the 19808 continued ta promote the fale image thatthe history ofthe 1060s wes a history entered fn whito radical middleclass youth. One example was a bok by 8 Collection of former ssi radicals, The 60s Wuhout Apology. I was ‘claimed asthe most serious overall assesment of the 60s yt to opear because t'aptares the dversy of te experience ofthe de- de® Nevertheless, the Boole narrowly focuses an the white New 4 Youth, Identity, Power Left. There are only two pieces on the Black experience and one on [Native American students out often chaptrs and forty aix sword personal stacoments by sites radials. The Mexican American and ‘ther nonwhite experiences were excluded. Another example ls the highly praised The Sixtus: Years of Hope, Daye of Rage hy ancther ‘DS founder, Todd Gitlin. Gitin promotes the ide o the whita New Let as the dynamic contr of the decade’ Athough he briefyae- ‘knowledges the importance of African Americans in the making of ‘hat history, Glin des net even fetnote the contributions made by ‘Merican American or other nonwhite youth. George Ketsafea i the only white Now Left scholar who has produced book, The nag. ‘nation of the New Left, that places the New Left and the 19608 nto ‘global anelytieal framework thet incorporates oth whive and non ‘white youth radiealiom "| ‘Not surprisingly, Hollywood has yet to produce a film with a focas on nonwhite youth activiem in the 1960, Counties movies have ap- ‘peared, ranging from The Big Chill to mare recent ones like 1968 {tnd 195 all with white middleclass youth es protagonist. Even ‘the fist major motion picture tobe made about the cv rghts move- ‘ment, Mississippi Burning has a white herein what was the strug le of a Southern Black commianity for cv rights. To add insult Sajury the unlikely her of Misssippi Burning isan PBL agent The cord shows thatthe FBI id very tle to protec the lve f Black people in the South. On the contrary, the FBI's counter-intelliger=e| or COINTELPRO program attempted to dettray the civil rights ‘movement and undermine the positions of Martin Luther King and ther lenders Commemerations of the 1960s inthe mninstream print media Ihave also flowed the sue patter, promoting it as a decade of ‘white political activists, Time magazine, for example, in its 1 ‘January 1988 issue called 1968 the year that shaped a generation lus headline story and dramatic photos capture many ofthe events ‘and movements in the news ofthat year, but the focus is on white ‘beral and radical politcal figures and celebrities from Robert F. Kennedy to Tock singer Janis Joplin to white stdeat leaders Ike ‘Mark Rudd. The assuasinaion of Dr King ie mentioned, and the ‘iu rights and Black Power movements revive want atanton. Bat the Chicano movement is ignored, as are Mexican American political leaders Interestingly, even Cesat Chaves is nc ncadd in spite of the fict that he appeared onthe cover ef ime in 1968. ‘More politial and ntllec tal public events commeraorating the decade ofthe 1960s have forthe most part als focused onthe legacy ofthe white student movement and the New Left. Two examples Introduction 5 ‘ome readily to mind The fist was the twentieth anniversary ofthe Free Speech Movernent, held atthe Berkeley campas ofthe Univer- sy of California, in which I parcpatad. Mario Savio, one of the former FSM leaders, once agnn spoke eloquently on the saps of ‘Sproul Pasa to thousands of raudent surrounding and on the rot: {ops of buildings overlooking the ‘ree speech plaza area. Later, hundreds more jammed into Whealer Auditoriam, te largest lee" fare hall on campus, to listen atontively t ober ex FSM faders and their stones about how thie straggl came tobe. Nostaially, they recountod how the whale world watched them making Mistry ‘One evening was devoted to athird world panel of former sixties radicals fom the Chicano, Black, Asian, and Native American move: tents. They had been invited to speak about ther experieness and how they had contibuved to the making of the history of the 1960. ‘Thay addressed near empty hal. Most ofthe few in attendance vere people of elo This panel did ot get the lcal and national ‘edi coverage common to FSM events during that wesk. There were no reporters or television cameras. ven the laf eaning su dent newspaper, The Daly Californian, didnot assign reporter ‘ver the panel, nor did the paper mention the event in the next ays edition. “The second event commemorating the 1960s was a symposium held in 1987 in San Franciaco, Ie was entitled "The Sinton, It Leaders and Its Logcy” The featared speakers were white radical Sixties celebrities, including Abbie Hoffman, drug gure Tymothy ‘Leary, and feminist writer Bety Friedan, When ated ia Mexican American had been invited, Iwas tld that none had because they ‘were probably not involved in the struggles ofthe sited Ironically, the symposium was organized by sprfessor of istry at San Fran: isco State University, the site of the fret major college student Strike of th 1960s led by Aion American and Merican American stadent activi, ‘Tho twentivth anniversary commemoration events for the 1968 ‘San Francsce State strike and the 1969 Berkeley Third World strikes were completly ignored by the media. At Berkeley, for ex ‘ample, che commemorations were largely dents es Third World strike voters tanditoriums. Avally at Spral Plaza, he free spech aren, drew only fo hundred stadents compared to the thousands who had over- flowed the plaza in 1963, ‘Scholars in Chicano studies have not done much to correct the lgnorance about Mexican American student protst and reicalism dhring the 1960s. Mescan American historians, for example, have 6 Youth, entity, Power {Yet to produce book on the sites, and enly two of them, Juan Gimez-Quitones and Rodelfo Acute, have touched on it, though they have diferent interpretations ofthe importance of Mexican ‘American youth daring that ers. Gémes-Quisonee argues in i ‘essay on the history of the Chiano student movement in Southern California that ‘stants were central othe polital vortex of 1966 ‘through 1970 Aca, on the ether hand, cnclades that iti a fervor to characterize Chieano youth inthe 19608 a rebelious oo attribute the Chicane movement to Une." OF eours, not all Mex: lean American youth in the 1960e were rebellous, But thousands Were. Ie is also tru that the Chicano movement was net rextited {othose under the age of chirty, but the fact ie that the overmbelming majority af those who identified with it were, Mexiean American youth and particularly students wore central to Uh balding o the ‘Chicano movement and especialy tothe shaping of its iealogy. ‘The lack of substantial and eriial history of Merican American struggles inthe 19605 has realtd inthe romanticisation ofthe Ch ‘ano movement. For the most prt, the polemic by frelance arma jst Armando Rendon, Chicano Manifesto is a case in point™ The true neture of te Chisato movement as a ovement of working: lass youth rooted inthe polities ofthe 1960e has gone largely sm acknowledged. The prevaling interpretation ofthe movement that it was simply an extension of previous srugaes. cut for ex- ample takes the postin that those who pace the birth f Ue move ment ‘during the second half of ee 19608 are wrong In his ve ‘Mericans inthe United States have responded to injustice and op- presion since the US wars of aggressian that tok Texas and the ‘Southwest from Mexico" ‘Based on Acua's analysis and that of ther, the Chicano move ment was simply any policial activity involving people of Mexican dace in the United States since the US-Mexieo wars of 1950 and 1846-48. Most who have referred tothe movement have viewed # in those terms. Merican American leaders, regardless of doo}ogy, have been referred to a leaders of te Chicano movement. Organ zations tht predate the rise of the movement ar referred to as par. of the movement. The same has held true fer onganizations that tree lng after the movements decline. The League for Revelation try Strugee(LRS), multiracial commonist part ew ase n point identities tse as part, fot the vanguard ofthe Chicana move ‘ment. The more liberal leaders ofthe League of United Latin Amer ean Gitizens (LULAG) a middle-las organisation founded in 1929, Ihave also considered that organization part of the Chicane move. ‘ment. Bot eritcal examination shows that neither the LRS nor Césow Craver Introduction 7 LLULAC promotes the ideology or the original goals ofthe Chicano ‘The term Chicano han been nppiedsncritclly by both Mesican “American scholars and poiiealaetvist sinc twas popularized in the at 19608 thas come to mean simply those who are of Mexican descent, whether bora in the United States or ln Mexico. The pelt ‘al and ideologieal sgnieance attached othe term by the founders ‘the Chicane movement has ben largely lst. or modified to icon temporary politeal ruses “The farmworker struggle le hy César Chaves as been the most flaring example of misinterprtation. Chives is consistently re- ferred tous the leading Chicano movement lender. According to Acufa, “César Chaves gave the Chieano Movement a national lender in fact Chaves hasbeen and remains the leader of labor ‘movement and later a union struggle that was never an integral par Use Chicano movement. He made i cleat, especially daring the ‘movement's formative year. that ha anion didnot support Chino nationalism, conte himself tobe a Chicano leader tthe anganizer of union preening « MuMMEM ante fran worker itis arate wee ‘Tar Valles and his TestroCampesino left the farmworker? move. ‘men pessely because Chaves id ot agree with Welders els to ecaa the une in the framework of Chicano nanos ie: slog Chives andthe UPW have epreseted a farmworker ove: ‘ment with largely Mexican American rank andl, bat they never veld inthe sntast ofa gurl for Chicano ienty and power (Chavez never sppored La Rasa Unda Par, for example. Instead, has long maintained direct conection withthe Kennedy family td close tes othe Democrate Par Ie is nevertheless true that mary Mexican American student ac ivi, inclaing tis author, were iapred ty Chive and many ‘ankeandle unin members came to Senly withthe gala he Gano movement. And Chaves was certainly the frst Mexican ‘American leader o receive naoalresognion and supper. is eis Lipes Tein, anther charismatic leader of Mexican de- scent has ben refered to by Acai and oar as lade ft Chicano movement iis toe at he was a sure of ext apie: tion to many movement militants and redial asa ect con- Sequence of te armed take-over of county courtoase in Tierra ‘Anneril, New Mess by members this Aine de Publ Libres (lines of Free Peoples). But Torna, ke Chive, never advo ‘ated Chicano netionlisn, Terna's objectives were reset 8 Youth, Identity, Power ‘the land grants issue, a struggle that he did not originally place in he contat of quest for Chicano identity and politcal power. Al- ‘ough Tern himaelf was of Mexican descent, his ensttueney ‘was largely from Uh ‘Hispand rural class Some were direct desc dants ofthe celanizers who were given title to land by the king of Spainin th teritary which became the state of New Mexico” Ter ina aod his followers refered to themselves as indohispanos and ‘otas Chicanos Like Now Mexicans in gneral, they de-emphasized ‘heir Mexican rete, ‘Nevertheless activists with quite diverse ideologies have claimed their political projects to be part of the Chicano mover. Simi larly, Democratic Par politicians of Mexican descent who never Participated in the movement and who in fst disagreed with it ide- ‘logical objectives have placed ther polities nthe context ofthe Chi ano movement. Merizan American members of communist and Scialist parties have promoted heir party lines as part and parcel ofthe Chicano movement. For a Ume, for example, the Socialist Workers Party maintained a dinect relationship with the Crasade for Justice in Denver, Colorado and promoted La Raza Unida Party in the pages ofthe party newspaper, The Militant. Framework for Analysis: The Politics of Identity ‘The Chicano movement needs tobe placed in the contest of what I call the pois of identity or the identity problematic. Merican ‘Americans, more than anyother eine or racial group in the United ‘States, have been given a mlttade of identity labels In contrast tthe experience of other nonwhite groupe, dhe question of Merican ‘American Wentty has been rooted in regional cltaral coaters. In ‘avery eal sens, diversity has marked Mexican Amaricaneultare "This diversity has buen furbher complicated by Qe fct Unt Merican ‘Amerians are among the mest racially mixed nonwhite people i US society. They are indeed rainbow people dificult to define a traditional race and ethnic relations tarme. The mslcalaral real. {ies ofthe Mexican peopl in both the United States and Mexico thus ‘ed wo be addrensedeitialy. Tn Meric, the orignal metizae ecrurrd between the colonizing Spanish sonqustadores and the indigesous women from various {mbes or nalens. But ovr time other races and cultures have mod ified this original mixing. African slaves were brought othe eastern ‘seaboard of Mexico, mosty in the area of Vera Cruz. Asians and ‘other white Buropeans fllowed, In the United States, this mulicul- Introduction 9 tural end multiracial mixture has been complicated by inter- ‘marriage between people of Mexican descent, Affean Americans, ‘Aslan Americans and white Americans or Anglos as Uy sre com ‘monly called by Merisan Americans. “Mexican Americans with names like Joe Kapp and Jim Plankett or Maria Smith and Elona O'Reilly, are becoming more commonplace ‘ti more Menicen American women marry not~Mexean American ten. The revit that ment drop thei Spanish surname in favor oftheit husbands name In addition, men have anglicized their ‘amas inthe past inorder to obtain better obs, Children who are products of such marriages find i dificle to identify a» Mexican ‘mercane gional and eueulturl relies are related tothe fact thatthe nvegration of Mexican Americans inte the poltieal economy’ ef the United Staves has historically been an uneven process. The result hasbeen diferent levee of assimilation int both the cass structure fd dominant culture. In addition te clase diferences, thre have than and continue tobe internal cultural diferences Mesieen Amer- ‘ean in south Tesae have difred from those in other parts of the ‘tat; thos n the Merican border and rural areas difer fom those ine large rn area of central and northern Texas. The differ nots have bean reflected in culral forms, notably musical forms. ‘The same hols tron for Mexican Americans in California: hose fium Southern California have differed fom those in the central and torthern parts of the state. Tho living in Los Angeles have been ‘more the product of « Merican American urban culture, whereas those in Fresno have been producta of rural culture, Trove inthe San Francisco Bay Area are products of amore mixed Latino cultare that reflect that area's diversity and the presence of large numbers sf Nicaraguans, Salvadorans, Chileans and other people of Latin, ‘American devcont: in this aren, alsa end not Mexlean ranchero ‘music precomina Th addition ta lea caltural differences, broader regional difer- ences have been important. "The majority of Mexican Americans in Now Mexico, especially those in the northern part ofthe sate, for Mexican Americans in Calorado. Spaniah-Amercon has been cqually as commen Higpano in bot states ‘Mexican Americans in California nd Texas have alo evolved in Asparate ways. The former have historically been Tess Mexican’ 10 Youth, Identity, Power than their counterparts in the Texas borderands; there, Mercan ‘identity has remeinod strong because of proximity to northern Mes: jean norte clare: In general California Mexican Americans have historically been more astmilatd and Americanized. Even when Califia was pet ofthe Mexiean nation it was divorced fom the ‘mainstream of Mexican clture and society, given ite distance from ‘the heart of Mexico. This parly explains why Use Chicano stent ‘movement in California emerged ass quet for identity and power, ‘whereas the student movement in Texas didnot place as much em phasis on the plies of entity. ‘Ava rsul, the mulcultural, multiracial, regional, generational, and cass character ofthe Mexican American people has contributed fo the uneven development of paliteal consciousness. entity has therefore beens central problem in polite organising, The leaders of middle-class organizations have generally promoted a white stn identity for Mexia Americans inthe shaping of tactic and ftrateges for politics of assimilation, integration, and aecammo- dation. The leaders of working-class organizations, on the other hand, have largely forsaken the question of etic identity and pro- ‘moted the class intrests of warkers inthe organization of strikes ‘ind unions "Inthe mid-1970s Mexican Americans acquired yet another iden tity label The term Hisponi reflects a continued polities of white etn identi, which de-emphasizes, if it doesnot rjet, the Mex- Scan caltural base of the people The term Hispanic eriginated in the corridors ofthe federal bureaucracy and in the office ofthe ft Mexican American and one Puerto Rican member of Congress after the dele ofthe Chicano movement. For buresusrat twas acon ‘venient term to apply to all Spanish speaking people inthe United ‘States, epecalyin the context of helt edueston, and welfare programs. For the poltiians, ie was a convenient label with which {promote a coalition polities among her constituencies that wosld enable them to form an inflential enue a Congress, The Hispanic (Caucus wes subsequently the result this efor ‘The major problem withthe term Higpanteis thet it ignores the complexities of « multitude of different eatural groupe, each with its own unique history, class realities, and experience inthe United States. Although they tay all share the common deneminator ofthe Spanish language, cannot be anid that they all suffer from the same degree of racial and lass disrimination ~ot for that matter, the same prospects for upward ease mobility. Mexican Amcericant after Native Americans, the ldat inhabitants of North Amer: fea They are products of imperialist wars waged by the United Introduction 11 States agninst Moxic in 1836 and 1846-48, which renuted in the loss of half of Mexico tervitary tothe United States and in what was then northern Mexico becoming the southwestern United States. To complicate matters, they ae also products of conterpe- ‘ary Mexican migration into the US. Some ean therfore trace ‘her rots to the 1500s when the Spaniards slnized New Mesica, hers to their ancestor’ arrival during the Metiean revolution of 1810-20, while other are children of more recent arrivals from Me fen, Puerto Ricans, on the other hand, became colonial subjects and titizons afer the United States waged an imperialist war against Spain in 1808 Puero Rico remaina colony although ie oftaly tlasiid es a US commonwealth Puers Ricans have ‘emigrated to the US mainland as «consequence of poverty in ther homeland ‘Ant-Castro Cubans Grt arrived inthe United States in sgnieant ‘numbers afer Necing the Cuban revolution in 1959. Central Azer. tans, notably Salvadorana, are the more recent immigrant, Most te inthe United States asa consequence of political repression {hd cil war in Bl Salvador, ‘The erm Hispanic also compliatas the question of identity for ‘ench of the group i inclades. In very real sense I isa concept ‘ote in the old melting pot theory of assinilaten that was rst Applied to white Buropean ethnics and, before the 1960s, also ap- Bled to US nonwhite ethnics. Tt impliily emphasizes the white European culture of Spain atthe expense of the nonwhite cultures {hat have profoundly shaped the experiences of ll Latin Americans. Hispania was the name the Romans gave tothe Ibrian peninsula, most of which became Spain. There ie nothing inthe term thal re. Inte to any ofthe nonwhite indigenous eltares of the Americas, Affica,and Asa, which hstorieally have produced mulueultural and multiracial peoples in Latin Ameriea and the United States. Tn an tzample of such blindness ta the multiracial reality of Mexican ‘Americans, recent Census Bureau study by Prank Bean and Marta ‘Tienda, The Higpanie Population ofthe Unied Stote, argues tht ott Hispanics are white “The diversity of ulares represented by ‘Hispanic peoples makes Je diticaly if not impossible, to effectively mobile them according tw one racial or ethnic political consciousness, Heslogiealy fore amples, Cuban Americans ae far more conservative than Mexican “Americans The former are largely Republicans and members of the ‘middleclass, whereas the later are primarily Democrets and work: Ing elas "The diversity of rabeultural differences wthin the Moiean Amer- Jean population has historically elected diferent levels of plical 12 Youth, Identity, Power ‘consciousness, The fac that most have heen Democrats has not ‘meant thet they heve been united sdeologically Among Mexican ‘Americans, dhe selection ofw particular identity and label fori es ‘beens politeal choice related to location in a particular eubealeure ‘and class, Also refeeted in heir choles isthe fact hat, ke most ‘other US clusens, Mexican Americans have been conditioned by the School, the church, and other US insttations to belive in the ‘myths of the American Dream, "The Chicano movement was «historic rt attempt to shape & polities of nifeation on the basis oa nonwhite identity and eatare ‘tnd on the interests ofthe Merian Amerian working cass. The ‘ovement rejected all previous identities, and thus repreenied & Ceunter hegemonic poliscal and cultural projet. Framework for Analysis: The 19608 ‘The Chicano student movement and the larger Chicano Power “Movement which it generated alo need tobe placed inthe context ofthe history of the 1960s, Mexzan American youth were a inte tral pat of the youth rebellion that emerged t become a plitieal free during thet period. I therefore place my book in Une cntert of what consider to be the two major ~ and confleting ~ schools of hought hat permeate much of the literature on youth radealsm sand the 19608 "The fiat is what I cll the mainstream academic approach. It, seer errata student movements i lly negate erms ‘The paradigms of there scholars are rooted inthe peyeho historical readian methed, tractaral fonetinaliam, pluralist democratic theory ora combination theret. Youth radeaiom is seen as an ex- pression of father-son, love-hate relationships and stadent move- ‘lente ne manifestation of erational behavior that eontrbte ‘cil und politcal ineaiity Lewis Feuer, distinguished member ofthis school of thought, writes With a melanhnlyanifority the Risto esr shows pay how {ne and gui tho siden most sealite movetent an cmverted ‘oie and, roel power ott itera demoerei velaet or student movements have tu far ben too legly ap aang Siprpetive plier Fever ena the sense that thay ave ber ‘afy domed by uncenons dives; the wt eat sgn the

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