The Similarities Between Mexican American And Chicano Cultures

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When one identifies culture we as sociologist include many characteristics such as: beliefs, behaviors, objects, language, values, etc. It is through our culture that we can identify ourselves and through this we conform into specific areas in our society. The term culture can be used interchangeably, for example; if one says “you are well cultured” we identify this as well rounded and looked at with a higher prestige. When we think of culture and specific ethnicities and their cultures we begin to categorize them based off a rank “well cultured to having no culture.” Culture is set on the boundaries of learned behaviors and beliefs that then will allow us to classify them amongst different societies. A few of the cultures I will be discussing …show more content…

and the connotation they use will not always be the same. The terms Mexican American and Chicano refers to the decedents of Mexicans who were imported to the United States (1930’s – 1940’s) as they were used as cheap free labor. “The term then was appropriated by Mexican-American activist who took part in the Brown Power movement of the 60’s and 70’s in the US southwest as they united in their quest for basic equities for Mexican Americans” (Chicano/Latino Movements History and Geography, n.d.). Descendants from Mexico, majority of Chicanos often speak the native language Spanish and English. It is a fusion of their ancestry history and where they live today (America). As I spoke to six families of Mexican American descend, I asked what they considered to be Chicano and furthered their answers to enriching culture facts. Majority of the family members of greater age (mother’s, father’s, grandmother’s, etc.) identified simply as Mexican, whereas their children, the millennials; identified as Chicano’s. When speaking to these family members I was able to see a great correlation of their lifestyles, very warm and welcoming, both parents worked fulltime jobs, and some were even undocumented. The ripple effect I learned from interviewing these Chicano families was the correlation between low socioeconomic backgrounds and a negative trendline in providing “less than optimal parenting through family stress” (Emmen, R. A. G., Malda, M., Mesman, J., van IJzendoorn, M. H., Prevoo, M. J. L., & Yeniad, N.

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