In her article, Chicano Street Murals: A Sociological Perspective, Simpson argues that through street murals, Chicanos are able to visually express their cultural heritage and life experiences. To create these murals, the artists need funding. Beginning around 1970 (the start of the Chicano street art movement), many artists were being paid to create murals in Los Angeles. In East LA, at the Estrada Courts, 125 young people were paid to create massive two-story high murals. In 1974, the City Council of LA used $102,000 to fund the creation of various murals involving Chicanos, African Americans, and Asians. Even smaller-scale, non-funded murals were being painted: the brothers of a 12-year-old boy who died of an overdose painted exotic …show more content…
animals on a community wall. The mural was a way to celebrate the young boy’s life and also mourn his passing. Most of the murals created by Chicanos in LA during the 1970s had a theme that was concretely or abstractly relevant to their creators’ ethnic group and heritage. The murals would depict images relevant to the artist. Most of the Chicano muralists were of the lower-class; so expectedly, the murals they created showed signs of violence, death, and poverty. One artist said that he wants his murals to “capture what is of special relevance” (Simpson 5) to the people of the barrio. A quote from Bright explains why Chicanos painted murals in their communities: “Now the walls of the barrio are talking, because only the artist commands a universal language” (Simpson 5). These murals made the city look nicer in the most meaningful way possible. In his article, Chicanos Paint Their Way Back, Treguer argues that when Chicanos form groups and paint street murals they are discovering a new purpose in life – a good reason to keep on living. During the time of great muralists like Diego Rivera, murals were made to record the social struggles the artists and their people faced. In the 1970s, murals were a way of getting the young Chicanos off the streets and away from drugs and violence, whilst painting images that reflected their shared heritage. These murals served another purpose by showing the rest of the nation that the Chicanos of the barrios were more than just gang members or drug dealers. Because schools do not teach the kids about their culture, painting murals is way of showing them who they are and where they come from. Murals give Chicano children thought-provoking and educational work which allows them to achieve fulfillment within their own culture. Through the painting of murals, these young Chicanos are able to “express their need to be heard and recognized” (Treguer 16) in a peaceful way. In her article, Hombres Y Mujeres: Muralistas On A Mission, Cordova argues that murals are an effective way of entertaining, influencing, and solidifying local communities.
By influence, he could be talking about the fact that the production of these murals gets kids off the street and into groups that teach them about their culture. The Chicano muralists wanted to paint images of their homeland and heritage in order to strengthen the bonds between the people of the barrios. The barrio communities used the creation of murals as a way of expressing their community’s identity and saving their homes from “outsider interests, local speculators, crime, and neglect” (Cordova 359). The fact that the murals painted by the communities were of such great quality probably saved numerous local buildings from being otherwise destroyed to make way for commercial buildings or to be vandalized by gang graffiti. Cordova mentions specific murals, like “Latino America” in San Francisco: it “is fascinating for its complex collage of ideas, not simply paying tribute to motherhood or indigenous roots, but also invoking ideas about race, gender, and political power” (Cordova 367). The murals made in San Francisco visually invoke thoughts about strategies for surviving in the United States; the images also express the local people’s rejection of United States
imperialism.
There are many things in life that can help get a point across, but nothing can quite compare to the way art does. Art can display so many emotions, stories, and an overall feelings with nothing but a simple picture. George Lopez discusses art and how it imitates real life. This statement can sometimes be true, to a certain extent. Through art, there are so many expressions and feelings to be heard. Art can say a lot without saying anything at all. Typically, art likes to lean toward an extreme for every genre. Like discussed in the documentary “George Lopez: Brown is the New Green”, George Lopez brings up the point that he believes the establishment should change its marketing technique toward Latinos, so that it has a more of a realistic
Chapter eight form the book From Indians To Chicanos by Diego Vigil, talks about the intact and stable social order. There are three subtopics in this chapter the first one is the industrialism and urbanization in classes. The second one is assimilation vs acculturation and the third one is the color of the intergroup that has to do with racism. All these subtopics are important because it was what made the social classes get united or separated.
The first article I have chosen is, “Juncture in the road: Chicano Studies Since: “El plan de Santa Barbara” by Ignacio M. Garcia. I have chosen this particular article for various reasons. One is because reading the first few paragraphs of the article stirred up many emotions within me. I found myself growing angry and once, again, repulsed by the United States discrimination system. The more knowledge I obtain on the United States, on its past and how it develops today, I can finally say that I resent everything it stands for and embarrassed being part of it. I would rather say that I am a country of one…myself. The second reason for choosing this article, was because it was an easy read for me as well as the topic being discussed was intriguing.
The idea that art can be a service to people- most importantly a service to poor and disenfranchised people is one that may be disputed by some. However, Elizabeth Catlett and other artists at the taller de Graffica Popular have proved that art could be made to service the poor. Catlett in particular is someone who has always used her art to advocate for the poor and fight injustices. While her activism and political views were very impactful, they were also very controversial. Catlett`s art and activism influenced African American and Latin American art by changing the narratives of Black and Brown working class women. In their books titled Gumbo Ya Ya, The Art of Elizabeth Catlett, African American Art: The Long Struggle, and Elizabeth Catlett: Works on Paper authors Leslie King-Hammond, Samella S. Lewis, Crystal Britton, Elizabeth Catlett, and Jeanne Zeidler speak of the work of Catlett. In a paper titled -----, ---- also speaks of the work of Elizabeth Catlett and her legacy as an activist.
The Chicano Movement was a time that pressed forth for the equal opportunity of the Latino community and proved to America that Mexican Americans were a force to be reckoned with. In the documentary Latino Americans – Episode 5: Prejudice and Pride, it centralizes on the success of the oppressed community through significant leaders in that period. Union activists César Chavez, along with Dolores Huerta, playwright Luis Valdez, teacher Sal Castro, US Congressman Herman Ballido, and political activist José Ángel Gutiérrez all contributed to egalitarianism of Latinos across the nation. This documentary reflects on the importance of equal prospects within the workplace, the academic setting, and the social and political features in society.
Latino grassroots politics in the academic realm has been considered as predominantly Chicano in nature. However, the geometry of this academic sector is no longer one dimensional, due to the formation of a Chicana feminist consciousness; the rise of an identified gay community within the Chicana/o student populace; and the emergence of “Latinos” in era of Chicanismo, The abrupt growth of Latinos (e.g. Spanish speaking of Mexican, Central or Latin American decent) in the United State’s educational system led the general population to characterize them as subjects on the cusps of political power and influence. But this widespread depiction of Latinos as an untapped potential is intrinsically linked to an impression of civic cohesion within the Latino student population. Although there is a correspondence between these parties in terms of the alienation they have felt and the discrimination they have endured throughout their academic careers, there is a minimal collective effort in confronting against their oppressive status. This is mainly a result of conflicting ideologies and social agendas within the Latino student community, as well as the relegation of Hispanic subgroups into the lower echelons. Latino students, nevertheless, have demonstrated their capacity, when both Chicanos and the marginalized Hispanic subgroups join efforts to reach a communal objective. This debunks the historical notion that Chicano students are the only group of Hispanics in the academic sphere that have been actively challenging the processes of social exclusion, and also displays the capacity of a collaborative effort.
Imagine seeing 10,000 of your classmates walking out of your school because they wanted a better education - a better way of life. In the 1960s’ Chicano students were being “pushed out”(Esparza) of school or being pushed towards vocational programs. East L.A was home to schools were “one out of every four Chicano’s completed high school”(Esparza). Instructors and the school board alike did not have an interest in helping Chicanos finish school to become someone other than a laborer and was expected of them to keep being a laborer. In “Taking Back the Schools”, Sal Castro a high school counselor claims, “I think the bottom line is the lack of concern of the teachers towards the kids and whether the kids were really getting an education or not...the reality set in that the teachers weren’t really concern for the kids.”(Esparza).
In American history, civil rights movements have played a major role for many ethnics in the United States and have shape American society to what it is today. The impact of civil rights movements is tremendous and to an extent, they accomplish the objectives that the groups of people set out to achieve. The Mexican-American Civil Rights Movement, more commonly known as the Chicano Movement or El Movimiento, was one of the many movements in the United States that set out to obtain equality for Mexican-Americans (Herrera). At first, the movement had a weak start but eventually the movement gained momentum around the 1960’s (Herrera). Mexican-Americans, also known as Chicanos, began to organize in order to eliminate the social barriers that prevented them from progressing in American society (Bloom 47). Throughout the years of the Chicano Movement, Mexican-Americans had a “desire to integrate into the mainstream culture while preserving their own identity” (Bloom 47). The Chicano Civil Rights Movement was a progressive era when Mexican-Americans had goals that they wanted to accomplish and sought reform in order to be accepted as a part of the United States.
Each and every day is hard to live through since whatever that can happen to my family absolutely terrifies me. Being a Chicana in the late 1960s hasn’t been a bed of rose petals, but I’m seizing every opportunity America will grant me. One of the biggest challenges is arriving home one day and my family is no longer there and they’re deported back to Mexico. Another huge obstacle is discrimination, we’re often called demeaning terms by complete strangers and it’s difficult to understand why or how they could be so cruel to someone they don’t know. It’s been tough to also learn a whole new language than the one I had been accustomed to. English is difficult with their pronunciations and strange spelling
A significant part in being Chicano is embracing your roots and fighting for your rights. Chicano culture was at its peak in the 60’s and 70’s when Chicanos were exhausted of being oppressed. Chicanos young and old, decided that it was time to take a stand by not only expressing their feelings but their pride. This inspired the rise in Chicano art coming out at that time as well as a bunch of sayings going around like “Brown pride” and “We didn’t cross the border, the border crossed us”. Most of my mom’s side identify as Chicano, especially the ones that were growing up at that time. They appreciate the movement, the art, and the lifestyle. In fact, I know that at least one of my tias participated in the school walkouts for Chicano rights. When I’m at a family party, I still notice that Chicano pride even in my older cousins who were born years after the peak. I understand that to some, Chicanos are perceived as cholos. There are some but not all, but all the older ones do show off their pride as I’ve seen.
The 1960s was a very progressive era for the mexican americans that inhabited the United States, It was very a progressive era but with every progressive era there are also a lot of hardships leading up to it there were also a lot of tough battle to be fought. The 1960s was a tough time for Mexican Americans living in America, They were discriminated for their cultural differences and were stripped of their rights because their parents weren 't Native born.
Child rearing and family structure within the Hispanic culture is noticeably different than what is present in the mainstream Western culture of today. One apparent difference is in gender roles. There exists a vastly different expectation in Hispanic culture for males and females. The male is considered to be the independent breadwinner, and the head of the household. Accordingly, the female role is one of submission and provider of childcare. In contrast, it is more than acceptable in Western culture for a female to maintain a non-traditional role. Hispanic culture additionally differs from Western culture in the traditional makeup of the family. Within Hispanic culture the extended family plays a huge role
Another form of expression and bringing awareness was through the way of art. The style of art and representation solely raised from the Chicano movement. Murals played a big part in the activism and progression people wanted to see. Most, if not all murals represented native Mexicans and their struggles of being oppressed. All murals told a story whether it was Mexico’s poverty or the farming industry. Many popular symbols and images were used again in the Chica...
Latinos have struggled to discover their place inside of a white America for too many years. Past stereotypes and across racism they have fought to belong. Still America is unwilling to open her arms to them. Instead she demands assimilation. With her pot full of stew she asks, "What flavor will you add to this brew?" Some question, some rebel, and others climb in. I argue that it is not the Latino who willingly agreed to partake in this stew. It is America who forced her ideals upon them through mass media and stale history. However her effort has failed, for they have refused to melt.
Female muralists during the Mexican Muralism movement was not as common as male muralists, but they still had an influence as much as the male muralists did. A female muralist, in particular, was Diego Rivera’s assistant, Rina Lazo, originally from Guatemala (Ángel). Lazo had helped Rivera in numerous of famous paintings as being his assistant. Fortunately, Lazo was able to paint along with Rivera, a very rare privilege, in the piece Gloriosa Victoria (Glorious Victory). The piece was about the terrible Guatemalan coup of 1954 that had U.S involvement (Ángel). It shows the Guatemalan colonel Castillo Armas, shaking hands with U.S. Secretary of State John Foster Dulles, holding a bomb with Eisenhower’s face on it over dead bodies, while being