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The treaty ended the Mexican American War and transferred large parts of Mexico (including present-day CA, AZ, NM, TX, NV, UT, and CO) to the United States.
Around 80,000 Mexicans suddenly became U.S. residents and were promised citizenship, but they immediately faced discrimination, land loss, and pressure to assimilate.
Key Players: U.S. Govt., Mexican Govt., Mexican residents living in ceded territories.
Source: https://www.archives.gov/milestone-documents/treaty-of-guadalupe-hidalgo -
Despite treaty protections, Mexican Americans lost land through taxes, court rulings, and discriminatory legal practices.
Land loss pushed many into poverty and reinforced their lower social status, slowing assimilation and increasing inequality. Mexicans were embracing a new kind of music called border ballad which tell stories.
Key people: U.S. courts, Anglo settlers, Mexican American landowners.
Source: https://www.loc.gov/classroom-materials/immigration/mexican/land-loss-in-trying-times/ -
A California law targeting "vagrants," specifically Mexican people and Mexican Americans.
Reinforced racist stereotypes and criminalized Mexican identity, making assimilation more difficult.
Key players: California state legislators
Source: https://retrospectjournal.com/2019/11/10/the-19th-century-california-genocide/ -
Violence from the Mexican Revolution caused many people to migrate into the United States for safety and economic stability.
This migration helped shape long-term Mexican American communities, but newcomers faced discrimination and pressure to assimilate.
Key players: Mexican migrants, U.S. border authorities, local communities.
Source: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0014498321000218 -
During the Great Depression, U.S. local, state, and federal authorities pressured or forced up to 1-2 million people of Mexican descent, including many U.S. citizens, to return to Mexico.
The repatriation shattered families, fueled fear in Mexican American communities, and disrupted social stability, undermining trust in govt.
Key players: U.S. officials and Mexican American families.
Source: https://www.history.com/articles/great-depression-repatriation-drives-mexico-deportation -
U.S. program allowing millions of Mexican men to work temporarily in agriculture.
Increased Mexican migration and strengthened Mexican cultural presence, but workers faced exploitation and lacked pathways to citizenship.
Key players: U.S. and Mexican governments, agricultural employers.
Source: https://braceroarchive.org/about?utm_source -
The Zoot Suit Riots were mobs of U.S. servicemen, off-duty police officers and civilians brawled with young Latinos and other minorities in Los Angeles. "Zoot suits" were baggy suits worn by many minority youths during that era, but the violence was more about racial tension than fashion.
Highlighted racism, segregation, and resistance to Mexican cultural expression.
Key players: Mexican American youth, U.S. Navy servicemen, LAPD
Source: https://www.history.com/articles/zoot-suit-riots -
Supreme Court case ruling that Mexican Americans were a protected class under the 14th Amendment.
Major civil rights victory granting legal recognition and protections, supporting political and social assimilation.
Key players: Pete Hernandez, Gustavo Garcia, U.S. Supreme Court.
Source: https://www.oyez.org/cases/1940-1955/347us475 -
A civil rights movement demanding equality, cultural pride, better education, and labor rights.
Helped Mexican Americans assert cultural identity and fight for full inclusion in American society.
Key players: Cesar Chavez. Dolores Huerta, Chicano student activists.
Source: https://prologue.blogs.archives.gov/2021/09/23/el-movimiento-the-chicano-movement-and-hispanic-identity-in-the-united-states/ -
Law granting legal status to millions of undocumented immigrants, many from Mexico.
Provided a major pathway to citizenship and accelerated assimilation for Mexican American families across the country.
Key players: U.S. Congress, President Ronald Reagan, immigrant communities.
Source: https://guides.loc.gov/latinx-civil-rights/irca