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Historical Writing Assignment
Chapter 5-7 with Select Readings
SPAN 308 Online Class
4/18/14
By Karina Koagedal
A.Andrade

















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CHAPTER 5 MEXIXCAN MIGRATION: 1900-1930
Revolution
The Mexican Migration between 1900-1930 is considered one of the biggest migrations
of people. This migration of was influenced by two factors the need in America for labor and the
factors that pushed these people out of their home country of Mexico. One of the biggest factors
that pushed people out of Mexico and into America is the Mexican revolution. A revolution is
not just a war, it touches everything in a society. This young nation had lots of political strife
after loosing tons of its territory in the West to the Anglos. Corruption was everywhere and
Benito Juarez Profirio Diaz took advantage and took control of Mexico in the form of a
dictatorship. He ruled from 1884 to 1910. While he brought some stability economically overall
most Mexicans and especially the Indians did not have their economic standing improve. This
social upheaval started as a small protest by Francisco Madero (Gonzales). At the Northern
Mexican border is where the revolution picked up. Then Ricardo Magon led the revolution.
Magon also wanted to take back the lost territories from the U.S. He specifically set his sights on
Baja California and the South West and spurred on a working-class movement in the Mexicanos.
When he failed at getting rid of Diaz he and his followers while few fled to the U.S. This all
occurred between 1900-1910.
Progress through Discrimination: The U.S. During Diazs Reign.
While Mexico faced troublesome effects after the revolution, the U.S. frontier felt the
surge of progress. The railroads were being built at an enormous rate. Technology was advancing
fast from cities to the farms. The new advancements brought the age of capitalism and the
wealthy. A true monopoly started to occur. Competition became fierce and our government
failed in its duties of regulation. Laws were passed to protect the rich. All of this progress was at
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the expense of many. Abuse occurred often at the railroads. At that time the Chinese had been
immigrating for quiet some time and faced much discrimination especially when they were
contracted to work on the railroads along the west of the U.S. This discrimination was at its
worst when job competition between white immigrants occurred and thus consequently anti-
Chinese riots happened. This discrimination set the stage for the discrimination of the
Mexicanos. The machine of capitalism while great in the beginning, it was moving fast too
during this period and it was far to willing to step on many groups of people. ("The Anti-
Chinese Hysteria of 1885-1886")
Moving to Texas
Texas soon faced a revolution from the Mexicanos lead by Francisco Madero who rallied
the middle class in 1910 in San Antonio. Madero then jumped for the presidency of Mexico yet it
was not so simple to organize power and many people lost their lives via execution and
corruption while some fled to the U.S. between 1913 and 1916. (Gonzales) The revolution
caused mass destruction for everyone in Mexico. It finally ceased in 1920. Still, Mexico had too
many problems to fix. Another revolution ensued between 1926-1929 based of religious issues in
the Catholic community. During the years after the main revolution many people moved into the
West mostly political exiles. America was a safe heaven and eventually the U.S. would need
these exiles for many generations.
The Economic Development of the Mid West and Beyond: Railroads
California and Texas were the most desire places for people from Mexico to settle in at.
This is due to one the Mexicano settlements already established there and two due to the great
advancement in technology of the area, there were a tons of jobs. By the 1900 the world had
changed very drastically. The economic boom was happening and technology was being created
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and replaced the old ways rapidly. Railroads were built and people moved to cities and good old
American capitalism occurred with the help of the government. Coal, iron, steel, steam
electricity were all resources been used in substantial amounts. The best employment for
immigrants occurred in the mines however. Also the railroad system of the Southwest employed
many. While railroads were popular a booming agriculture society was soon developed and
mostly worked on by the Mexican immigrants. Many immigrants eventually settled in the
Mexicano-agricultural community in California and remained isolated from the Anglo
community and thus main-stream America. This occurred for decades, generation after
generation. The further movement of the Southwest as far away as Alaska for agricultural
workers, was spurred on by taxes via the U.S. government.
The Immigrant
The trek to some disillusion form of freedom, whether it was political, religious or
economic, in American from Mexico was treacherous. This is also true for the first English
colonies on the East Coast. They were called into action by religious persecution and economic
issues and jumped at the chance to settle in a land with new hope. One both ends of history the
Indians got the short end of the stick from both the Mexicanos and the English colonizers
(Anglos). Moving on, like the story of Jose Martinez going back to the status quo was not
possible for many Mexicans. For some America was their last hope of normalcy. When
immigrants finally arrived in America they led cruel and harsh lives typically filled with poverty
and greatly affected by epidemics such as the Influenza in 1918 and the plague in L.A. in 1924.
(Gonzales) Education for this working class was out of the question thus so was social mobility.
Hope and Despair for The Immigrant: A Comparison
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European and Mexican immigrants were both abused and used in America however,
overall the Mexican immigrants had a much harder time. The Europeans immigrant assimilated
better into the U.S. because they could cut ties with their home culture. It is easier to leave a
country behind when so many thousands of miles of water are between you. Humans naturally
adapt to their current situation and adjust and find homes in the most unlikely of places. While
the Mexicans stayed in their exclusive cultural mindset, for their own sanity and protection
against racism. Also The European immigrants became legal faster and they also came over a
period of decades. Next, the European immigrants faced less discrimination due to their coloring
or whiteness of their skin. The Mexicans stayed in the working class where some Europeans
were able to get into the middle class. I think one of the reasons the Mexicano population fell
behind the Europeans immigrants is they held on too tightly to the Old Country. While these two
groups are different, both held the same hope of making better lives for themselves. The
immigrants of yesterday are essential to American culture today. They brought the melting pot
idea to life and keep it roiling.
CHAPTER 6 THE DEPRESSION: CHANGING TIMES:1930-1940
The Depression
It occurred in October of 1929. The stock market crashed. The money of America was
gambled away on credit. Jobs were lost and businesses failed. While the Southwest looked like
it could weather the storm many Mexican immigrants were strapped for cash and had to go into
the fields with ever declining wages. (Gonzales) Still, the depression stopped any new
immigrants coming from Mexico and some even left the land of hope. In fact, 1/3 of the
Mexicano population in the United States left the country. (Gonzales) However they did not
just leave all on their own, many were deported starting in 1931.
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Creating Cities and Killing Education
The Depression was a major part of the push towards urbanization. (Gonzales) Many
urban communities were built by the migratory worker, which dispels the notation that all of the
people who moved to the cities had no choice, and could not leave. Within the cities the living
conditions where terrible, sanitation was an issue as was a lack of housing but also government
assistance was basically non-existent. Still, some did get welfare and it did help. L.A. and its
many barrios is only one of the many areas across the Southwest in the 1930s where Mexican
culture flourished and has lasted until present. The barrios were communities where the hardship
of the depression was felt but a strong long lasting culture of the Mexican immigrants was built.
The immigrants in the Midwest did fare better overall as compared to the Southwest immigrants.
They worked hand in hand with the European immigrants and thus assimilated better and due to
previous urbanization and they even got paid more.
Still overall, education was terrible for those immigrants in the cities due to basically no
money and segregation. Still, education was something to be desired. Anglo children during the
railroad industrial age were essentially brainwashed. It was used to aid the industrial age and
create brainless workers. School was strict and cold. Students were to be trained not taught.
Teachers were not kind and helpful for the rich who gave them no say in what they taught
controlled them. (Zinn) Thus during the depression school still had that cold atmosphere and
didn't really help students. Also many school closed down and kids were forced to find work.
Barb Jenson states by 1933 many public schools closed, leaving three million students with no
school to go to. (Jensen)
The Perfect Storm: The Dust Bowl
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The make the Depression worse those in the lower Great Plains got rejected by Mother
Nature. Droughts and the removal of tops soil made the one rich land bare and useless. Many
people of all races left and the Mexican immigrants moved north only to compete with the
Anglos and racial tensions were on high.
Unions and Strikes
Worker strife and abuse led to the desire for unions. Mexicanos did not get a cut of the
union pie however. Strikes ensued between 1914-1919. (Gonzales) When they failed the
Mexicanos in California picked up them back up again between 1937-1938. Still, they failed
again even with radical communist backing capitalism prevailed. They failed because the people
who needed the unions were to busy trying to scrape by and could not focus, let alone shell out
cash for them. Also a lack of education and English speaking abilities hindered the immigrants
efforts greatly.
CHAPTER 7 1940-1965
War and Opportunity
World War II brought new opportunities for the Mexican immigrant population. It was
one of very few changes this group of people got to improve there standing in U.S. society. Some
were drafted others were voluntary. Many Mexicanos served on the frontlines front and some
ended up being decorated while many were not recognized. For the Mexicanos this war helped
them better assimilate with the Anglos via fighting a common enemy. This was also help create
job opportunities and finally the military contributed to higher self esteem psychlogically. While
the Mexicanas took up the slack in the field or found better options in urban areas. Overall the
war brought jobs and better assimilation for the Mexicanos, which became incredibility
necessary for establishing a better life finally in the country of America.
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Family Life of the Mexican Immigrant.
While the war brought many opportunities overall the Mexicanos did not want to leave
their Old Country behind for a long while. Thus traditional family customs were maintained.
This gave the Mexicanos solace in the hostile foreign country of the U.S. Still, I think these
bonds held the Mexicanos back from improving their socioeconomic status. Thanks to more
urbanization in the 1940s tradition and old ways of thinking were weakened to make way for a
more mixed culture. While it did have its drawbacks of happening too soon, if the Mexicanos
generations before, especially in the southwest, had tried to break out of tradition earlier family
strife and the Zoo Suit Riots could have possibly been avoided. Still, it is no surprise that the
Mexicans were again racially prosecuted given the hysteria that was surrounding the U.S. in the
1940s and became a problem once more.
1960s The Mexican Community in America
The U.S. contracted agriculture workers from Mexico in 1941 until 1962. This helped
protect Mexican national workers and feed the American labor need. This controlled migration
had many more benefits that abuses against the workers, while many were skeptical of it. While
this program was good in the 1960s illegal immigration jumped to an all time high because jobs
and higher wages is what the U.S. promised. While corporations welcomed these illegal
workers, it did not stop the hysteria of the Cold War that brought about mass deportation. Soon
the smuggling of workers from Mexico occurred and brought lots of crime. In conclusion
through out all of the war and discrimination a middle class from the Mexican community rose
from the blood shed to continue to fight for the rights of the Meixcanos.


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Conclusion
The Anglos boxed the Mexican population into a silent minority during the agriculture
and railroad age. There was even racism within their own community via the already established
settlements in the late 1800s. The racism towards the Mexican immigrant population only
increased when the depression hit. Still, this racism had its roots all the way back when Manifest
Destiny was the talk of the town. I think this racism towards the immigrants never stopped and it
still with us today despite all of our advancements in society. The concept of keeping America
pure is still a topic brought up in the news world of today and many people still hold anti-
Mexican sentiments, stating they are taking our jobs. There has always been this question of
whether or not Anglos needed or wanted the Mexican immigrants for progress of the South West
and Midwest frontier. Without the Meixcano I think the U.S. would not have been so successful
agriculturally as it is now. With new technology comes the need for a new labor. Overall the
fight will never end for the Mexicanos whether it's a fight for jobs or a fight against racism.




















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References

"The Anti-Chinese Hysteria of 1885-1886." Harpweek. Harpweek, n.d. Web. 21 Apr. 2014.
<http://immigrants.harpweek.com/ChineseAmericans/2KeyIssues/TheAntiChineseHysteria.htm>.

Blumenfeld, Sam. "Life and Education During the Great Depression." The New American. The
New American, n.d. Web. 21 Apr. 2014.
<http://www.thenewamerican.com/reviews/opinion/item/
10883-life-and-education-during-the-great-depression>.

Gonzales, Manuel G. Mexicanos, Second Edition: A History of Mexicans in the United States.
Second Edition ed. N.p.: Indiana University Press, 2009. Print.

Jensen, Barb. "Education During the Great Depression." Yahoo Voices. Yahoo, n.d. Web. 21 Apr.
2014. <http://voices.yahoo.com/education-during-great-depression-823239.html?cat=37>.

"Porfirio Diaz." PBS. PBS, n.d. Web. 21 Apr. 2014. <http://www.pbs.org/itvs/ storm-that-swept-
mexico/the-revolution/faces-revolution/porfirio-diaz/>.

Zinn, Howard. A Peoples History of the United States. N.p.: Harper Perennial Modern Classics,
2005. Print.