Paper Example on The Chicano Movement: A Success

Introduction

Just like the other social movements that sought to promote social justice at the time, the Chicano Movement aimed at raising awareness of the injustices Mexican Americans were facing in the country. The movement aimed at bringing changes in various sectors of the country and the economy. The Chicano Movement was a successful political and cultural movement in the country. As this paper points out, the movement ensured equal access to education and other political empowerment in the country and ensured Mexican American farmworkers' rights were observed.

Is your time best spent reading someone else’s essay? Get a 100% original essay FROM A CERTIFIED WRITER!

Save 25%

First, the Chicano Movement brought an end to the exploitation of Mexican Immigration farm laborers who had traveled to the USA looking for better wages. Before the movement took place, many farmworkers in the USA received little amounts of wages, and most of them lived below the poverty level. Despite the low wages, immigrants were unable to stay in a specific location for longer periods of time. This made it hard for their children to get a quality education. As a result, most of them would attend school for not more than three years and would then start picking crops for growers. As such, both children and adults were often exposed to poisonous farm chemicals and the harsh sun for a long time.

To bring an end to this situation, these farmworkers cofounded the National Farmworkers Association (NFWA) which helped them fight for their rights. The workers under the union protested the employment of undocumented immigrants as this undermined their effort of seeking justice and fighting for their rights (Escobar, 79). Even though the union failed at its attempts during its initial years, it gained its strength in 1964 when the USA government brought an end to the bracero program, which imported temporary labor into the country from Mexico. As such, the number of farmworkers in the USA reduced and this made growers grow desperate for the limited workforce available; hence enabling the union to effect its desired changes. Since then, it became easier for documented and undocumented Latino farmworkers to fight for their rights through the union.

The Chicano Movement also ensured that immigrant Mexicans in the USA had the same quality of education as the natives and other people in the country. During the movement, immigrant Mexicans became aware of the social injustices in the learning sector. Statistics show that only 25% of immigrant Mexicans graduated from high school. As such, students became awakened by the need to fight for more chances in the learning institutions across the country. They perceived the unequal learning positions in the schools across the country to be as a result of discrimination. Unequal access to schools and poor education quality made many students drop out of school and join their parents in the farms. Apart from that, Chicano students were students were recruited into the army to fight in the Vietnam War and died at higher rates as compared to others in the army. Despite these sacrifices, the United States did not acknowledge them. Chicanos argued that the government was keeping them powerless and impoverished.

Learning of the oppression, Chicano youths became the source of energy for the Chicano Movement and fought for their cultural pride, and brought about radicalism and activism. They organized the Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlan and walked out of learning institutions demanding for reforms in the system and asked for the inclusion of Mexican American history into the curriculum and hiring of more Mexican American counselors and teachers. Apart from this, other Chicano youths formed several groups such as the Brown Berets which was a militant group that fought for farmworkers' working conditions and educational reforms, and also fought against police brutality (Vargas, 65).

In order to bring about the desired social changes, Chicanos found it important to enter into the political scene and galvanize their community. Because the community was growing enchanted with the Republican and Democratic parties, Chicanos saw it important to form a third political party. The party was supposed to refuse to compromise with the other two in matters that would see the Mexican American society oppressed or disadvantaged. The community also formed the Raza Unida Party to bring the values and needs of Chicanos under a single political banner. Even though the party later on failed, it provided a strong ground through which Mexican Americans found their way into the political scene.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the Chicano Movement was successful in pushing for its agenda. Even though the movement and its leaders faced several challenges during its initial stages such as persecution, Mexican Americans now have access to equal schooling opportunities in the country. Before the movement, many of the Mexicans Americans could not graduate from highs school. However, the situation changed and now many of them can now access quality education and pursue their dream careers. Also, the movement was successful in ensuring that the rights of farmworkers in the United States were adhered to and Mexican Americans could fight for their rights and received justice when offended.

Works Cited

Escobar, Edward J. "The dialectics of repression: The Los Angeles police department and the Chicano movement, 1968-1971." The Journal of American History 79.4 (1993): 1483-1514.

Vargas, Zaragosa. "Chicanos and the Shaping of the Left." Science & Society 65.1 (2001).