Essay Sample on Mexican American Women's Rebellion Against Social Conventions During WWII

Introduction

Social conformity is as times thrown through the window to pursue a struggle for a just cause. Mexican American women joined the “Pachuca” and “zoot suiter” subculture during World War II. By so doing, they were in a blatant rebellion of the social conventions of their community back then. More often than not, the media ran sensationalist campaigns that negatively depicted the Mexican American people. However, Escobedo (134) argues that it was not always a case of the media creating a wind of negativity around them; the Mexican American culture was changing. In a colossal way, Escobedo justifies that the wartime environment catalyzed the change of Mexican American culture to adopt the Pachuca and zoot suit subculture; however, there seems to be a missing link.

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Brewing Rebellion

Amelia Venega was a perfect case example of the brewing rebellion by Mexican American women. The social conventions held women as polite and humble peacemakers; however, Amelia rose to defend zoot suiters who were being harassed by police officers. As such, she became a sensational media story, making headlines for all the wrong reasons. They did not see her from a sense of bravery and confidence. Instead, they slandered her for her actions and associated her with criminal gangs. Amelia became the first of many Mexican American women of the second generation to stand up against the system's evils. These evils were subduing the community.

Mexican American women increasingly adopted the Pachuca persona, which initially drew associations with juvenile delinquency and gang activity (136). However, the view changed with time, and it was associated with defiance against the social norms. All norms were broken when six hundred youths associated with the Pachuca culture were arrested for the murder of one Sleepy Lagoon in 1942. For the first time, young girls, aged 13 to 21 years, were investigated for the murder. It showed a changing landscape of crime, with young women joining the fray of crime and delinquency.

Escobedo (140) is convinced that wartime leisure culture lured the young Mexican women from homes into the public space. As such, their morals and way of life were eroded by their newfound freedom and social placement. Around this time, young Mexican American women began earning wages, as they participated in different jobs. With such income, they found it fashionable to experiment with what was happening in the social space. Using the money she was making in a small defense factory producing incendiary bombs, Aida Loya’s perfect idea was to make a tailor-made fingertip coat and matching mini-skirt. She would flirt with this Pachuca-affiliated image. Her mother never forgave her, as she believed that brought shame to her family.

Trail of Events

The trail of events and adoption of the zoot suit culture is demonstrated as a rebellious act by the young women. The society believed that whatever those women were doing was wrong, and should not be allowed at any time. However, the women felt that it was time to experiment with a new culture. The authorities associated the culture with gangs and crimes, but some of the women who adopted the subculture took it as just a fashionable approach to life. Consequently, there was a crash between the social morals gatekeepers, the authorities, and the female Mexican American zoot suiters.

Escobedo’s argument that the wartime environment created the Pachuca and zoot suiters challenge is not entirely convincing. From the descriptions in her article, Escobedo paints a picture of a society that exercised systemic discrimination, especially institutionalized discrimination. When Sleepy Lagoon was murdered, the police apprehended six hundred young people of the zoot suit subculture. What this means is that they were targeted. The law enforcement institution believed that only the zoot suiters could commit such a crime. Escobedo (139) reported that the courts had a disdain for the female zoot suiters. This means that if any case of a zoot suiter landed in court, there would be an almost instant bias against the zoot suiter, which is a compromise to justice.

Escobedo's argument is impressive and could be used as the yardstick in evaluating the Pachuca and zoot suiter subculture among female Mexican Americans. However, she seems to evade a very fundamental pattern that is revealing in her article. There were already existing cracks in society, with premonition against the zoot suits. The concept of supremacist races and discrimination against minorities was deep-rooted, and the Pachuca subculture could have been used as an excuse to discriminate with justifications. It is a grey area in her argument. If she could iron that out, she could probably convince many people with her perspective. She needs to convince the audience that the elements of discrimination were not invoked in concluding that zoot suiters were rebellious women who lacked feminine decorum.

Stereotypes

Another reason to not be convinced that the young Mexican American women in zoot suits were blatant rebels is the fact that stereotypes surrounded them. Walking out of the house in a zoot suit already made one associated with a criminal outfit. The media portrayed them as bad and labeled them as hyper-sexed degenerates. The girls were presumed to be in sexual relationships with boys gangs. The view raised another sensationalist campaign by the media against zoot suiting girls, deeming them sexually promiscuous barrio women (141). Such stereotypes and unfounded claims painted the female Mexican Americans in a bad light. On that account, the negative view of branding them rebels and women of improper feminine decorum was subject to the stereotypes already in existence about the zoot suits.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the wartime environment may not be the only reason that the female Mexican Americans adopted the new culture. Rather, it was a part of emerging patterns in society at that time. There is no justification that in the absence of World War II, the women could not have started wearing the zoot suits that were synonymous with the Pachuca. It is important to remember that it was around this time that women empowerment was undergoing a great revolution. Women had ceased being second class citizens and were rising in society. Even from the article by Escobedo, it is clear that women were not necessarily being influenced by war events, but other factors locally. Therefore, Elizabeth Escobedo may contrast her argument to other social forces that were escalating amidst the world war that was not associated with the war.

Work Cited

Escobedo, Elizabeth R. “The Pachuca Panic: Sexual And Cultural Battlegrounds In World War II Los Angeles”. Western Historical Quarterly, vol. 38, no. 2, 2014, pp. 133-156. Accessed 26 July 2020.