How Did The Pachucos Influence The Mexican-Americans

In the book “The Pachuco & Other Extremes” Paz touches upon how pachucos represent their difference from both Mexicans and Americans. In the book, Paz states “the pachuco does not want to become a Mexican again; at the same time he does not want to blend into the North America”(Paz). The Pachucos feel like they do not fit into their environment so they flaunt their differences and reject any opportunity to fit in. They self-identify themselves as Pachucos because they do not want to be identified as Mexican-Americans. Paz mentions that the pachucos lost their whole inheritance including language, religion, customs, and beliefs, leaving them with only a body and a soul. They see Mexico as a country that has been influenced by other countries

The plight of Chicanos as an oppressed people was not in the: public spotlight”(The Struggle). The struggles of the Pachucos have influenced the Chicanos by being a group they can look up to as a group of people who have made themselves acknowledgeable and different. The Chicano population have witnessed that they can represent they're different and represent themselves through their own name. In relation to the Pachucos, the Chicanos have formed gangs and still show hostility. The Pachucos were proof that chosen self-identity is something that is possible, which to the Chicanos was assurance that their own group would make a difference. Both groups were representing and made themselves the public spotlight. They saw that there is a way to get away from becoming listed as a Mexican, so they followed in the Pachucos footsteps. The Chicanos have gone further than the Pachucos in fighting for their rights and opportunities even though they are part of their own world. Therefore, the Pachucos struggles have reflected the Chicanos because they both fight to represent themselves as a different culture, not in a Mexican-American