Mexican American history

Claiming a Latino Place in Chicago

by Mike Amezcua

Like their African American contemporaries, ethnic Mexicans in Chicago have a long history of organizing to overturn residential segregation. 

The Power and Betrayal of Cross-Ethnic Solidarity in the 1903 Oxnard Beet Strike

by Frank P. Barajas

The Japanese Mexican Labor Association overcame the deliberate ethnic division of the farm labor force in Oxnard, California to win a major strike in the sugar beet fields in 1903, overcoming violent repression. Anti-Asian prejudice in the broader labor movement ended this successful experiment to the detriment of generations of workers. 

Prof. Trinidad Gonzalez Seeks Truth and Reconciliation from Texas Rangers

The historian at South Texas College is seeking acknowledgment by the state legislature and elected officials representing the Rio Grande Valley of the atrocities committed under the color of law by the Texas Rangers after Texas independence. 

The Virgin of Guadalupe is a Constant on the Changing Streets of Los Angeles

The image of the Virgin Mary is both a protector of small businesses and a symbol of ethnic pride across Los Angeles; photographer Oscar Rodriguez Zapata has been documenting her appearances for a decade. 

Latino Activists Changed San Antonio in the 1960s

by Ricardo Romo

San Antonio in the 1960s faced many of the same challenges of cities throughout the South; its emerging Mexican American political leadership helped steer the city in a progressive direction. 

The History of Mexican Americans in Austin

by Cynthia E. Orozco

A historian works to develop a chronicle of Mexican American community events in the city of Austin with a local community newspaper. 

A History of Violence in the US/Mexico Borderlands

by Brian Behnken

Policing both the border and Mexican American communities in the Southwest has always been entangled with white supremacist violence, the author argues in a new book. 

Immigrant Education in America is a Series of Stories of Courage

by Jessica Lander

One in four K-12 students today is an immigrant or a child of immigrants. A high school history teacher in an immigrant-serving school argues that we need to remember the examples of past educators who defied law and prejudice to make schools places where immigrants became Americans. 

Texas Prof Wins John Lewis Award for Work Recovering History of Anti-Mexican Border Violence

Trinidad Gonzalez of South Texas College discovered his own family's connection to "la Matanza," the killing of several hundred ethnic Mexicans in the Rio Grande Valley in 1915, while researching the broader history of racist violence along the Texas-Mexico border. 

Decades in Making, San Diego Museum will Honor Chicano Community and Movement

"Organizers and community members hope the museum will document the history of Chicano Park and continue educating future generations about Barrio Logan’s history."

The Wartime Service and Postwar Activism of One Latino Veteran

by Ricardo Romo

For Veteran's Day, a historian shares photos, and the history, of his father's wartime experiences. Like many of his compatriots, Henry Romo was reluctant to discuss those experiences, but drew on them to work for equal citizenship at home. 

Black-Brown Solidarity has been Elusive in Los Angeles

by Erin Aubry Kaplan

For decades, the increasing Latino presence in previously Black neighborhoods in South Los Angeles has raised concerns about political representation and hopes for a cross-racial movement for a more just city. Recent leaked city councl tapes show things are far from settled. 

How US Latinos Resurrected the Day of the Dead

by Ricardo Romo

American Latinos have transformed the day from a private ritiual of communion with ancestors to a public affirmation of heritage. 

Marfa, TX School to Become National Historic Site Preserving Story of Segregated Mexican Americans

The segregation of Anglo and Mexican students in Texas was not always enforced by law, but local custom and prejudice was sufficient in many places. 

At its 50th Reunion, La Raza Unida Asks How to Pass the Torch

La Raza Unida grew out of civil rights mobilization in the 1960s and worked to mobilize the large, complex, and internally divided communities of ethnic Mexican Texans, focusing on education and voting rights, and struggling to bridge radical and moderate political outlooks. 

The Chicano Moratorium in East LA and Ventura County

by Frank P. Barajas

Chicano Moratorium commemorations continue today in communities in and out of East Los Angeles as they mark a history that centers on the experience of ethnic Mexican and Latinx peoples in the US to inspire and reinspire the young and old, to continue their struggle to realize the ideal of justice for all.

Kelly Lytle Hernández on the Linked Histories of Mexico and the US

"Many Americans don’t know that the histories of the United States and Mexico are inseparably intertwined. But historian Kelly Lytle Hernández says you cannot fully understand one without the other."

Before the Tragedy, Uvalde Was the Site of a Major School Walkout. Will That History Be Lost?

In 1970, ethnic Mexican students at Uvalde High School staged a six-week school boycott to protest persistent segregation and pervasive disrespect from teachers and administrators. 

Monica Muñoz Martinez on the Border, Violence, and Uvalde

Michelle Garcia, journalist, essayist, Soros Equality Fellow and Dobie Paisano writer-in-residence, and Monica Muñoz Martinez, associate professor of history at the University of Texas-Austin, talk about the border security apparatus at Uvalde, and the history of violence and discrimination at the South Texas and Mexican border.

The Issue of Visibility in Latino Art

by Ricardo Romo

"The moment is ripe for bringing Latino art to public spaces and public museums. The number of talented Latino artists has multiplied over the past two decades, and the opportunity to make their work visible is now."