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. A …show more content…
documentary formulates itself around this notion of informing an audience. After all, a documentary is merely a medium of presenting factual and historical evidence to a particular instance in time or a subject at hand. As such, there are many attributes that can articulately display the intended message. Commenting on the visual elements within Prejudice and Pride, there is some applauding to be made. Even through the exceptional narrating done by Benjamin Bratt, a significant amount in conveying the Chicano Movement was due in reference to the photography applied in the educational film. In the duration of the documentary a number of photographs are incorporated to visually present the viewer an awareness to the deprivation and subjection that had been imposed on Mexican Americans. These photos essentially shaped a profound impact that can hit close to home in seeing the inhumane conditions these people faced. Yet, even though there was a wave of depression that flushed over in the beginning of the documentary, it also evinced a sense of empowerment. It wisely and distinctly displayed this state of hope. In retrospect, this hope produced this chance at creating your own destiny for equal opportunity. Therefore, an enhanced livelihood for the Latino community at large. This is the result that every single significant leader in this movement attempted to achieve, and by the work of photography directors Vicente Franco and Elia Lyssy, it truly exemplified their desired outcome. A tremendous amount of pictures that were used to depict the sequence of events in the time from of the Chicano Movement, but there were also videos integrated in the documentary. Some of the videos that had been introduced in Prejudice and Pride revealed semblance to the photos used, however, as it unfolded it proved to sufficiently demonstrate the altruistic actions carried on in the protest for equality. These videos denoted the anguish of the Mexican Americans as they heavily pressed to be considered the same as any other man. What really supports this sense of accomplishment and progress would have to be the individuals that were interviewed in the documentary. These people contributed to benefit the audience in understanding the struggle and drive dreaded by the oppressed Latino community. At some point, it is crucial to analyze exactly who is interviewed and if they present a form of relevance. People who were important figures and are still alive at the time in the making of this documentary, those who personally knew and worked with central activists, as well as those who had actually engaged in the events occurred during the movement had been interviewed. Interestingly enough was not only bringing in the prime leaders in this time, yet individuals who were participating in the movement. Gathering the interviewees to discuss their experiences was remarkable and in many ways effective. One can merely discourse the information regarding the topic of the film due to their educational background, however, it instills this facet of appeal when someone who had undergone the struggles of that time confers the matter.
Although it is desirable to incorporate personal experiences of others to get a feel of the encounters that occurred to the typical or atypical individual within the Chicano movement, this does not entirely mean that the filmmakers left out those who studied the history of it. Historian Mario T. Garcia was a prominent addition in contributing to the historical experiences within the movement and brings in credibility. The concept of utilizing Chicanos who endured the reign of oppression and discussed their involvements to the impartiality efforts was a thrilling and clever one, there was still a need of a backbone in the factual side of it. By introducing an essence of experience, it generates a personal and emotional aspect in the documentary that can be unfavorable and stray from the informative attitude of a documentary. Having Garcia apart of the documentary grounds this enlightening dimension that insights as preventative measure which is an adept move on behalf of directors Luis Ortiz and Antonio
Davidson-Gomez. A documentary has a duty to utilize valid information to support their claims and ultimately what they are going to entail. Although, there is a vast difference between simply putting information and integrating it to effectively and efficiently. After reviewing the different aspects of Latino Americans – Episode 5: Prejudice and Pride, it is safe to say that content was well rounded and most importantly, empowering.
Harvest of the Empire is a valuable tool to gaining a better understanding of Latinos. This book helps people understand how varied Latino’s in the United States are. The author also helped give insight as to how Americans reacts to differences within itself. It does this by giving a description of the struggles that every Latino immigrant faced entering the United States. These points of emphasis of the book were explained thoroughly in the identification of the key points, the explanation of the intersection of race, ethnicity, and class, in addition to the overall evaluation of the book.
These events are of course, an accurate reflection of what similar groups were going through in other parts of the country such as Texas, California, Arizona and New Mexico, which have been historically highly populated by Hispanics as well. One of the advantages of the video is that viewers are able to listen to first hand accounts of leaders and participants of this important social movement in Colorado. It is especially touching to see and hear Dr. Priscilla Falcon’s recollection of events when she was informed of her husband’s assassination. No doubt, the actions of leaders such as Ricardo Falcon, Corky Gonzales, Lalo Delgado, and Juanita Herrera greatly improved working conditions as well as education opportunities for Chicanos not only in Colorado, but throughout the United
In Pocho, Rubio could not identify with any group because he didn’t want to be categorized. In fact, Rubio didn’t have a hard time fitting in with the Pachucos or queers. Although, Rubio seemed understanding about other peoples chooses he ultimately decided to identify as American. This was seen when Rubio joined the Army, as a means to escape his reality. Another theme presented was in regards to fighting social inequalities. This ultimately led to Chicano protest, which became essential to the Civil Rights Movements. The strong will of these Chicano/a activists were similar to Rodolfo “Corky” Gonzalez and his “Crusade for Justice”. The film “Quest for Homeland” acknowledged Gonzalez as an important figure for the Chicano Movement because he inspired people to demand for equality. Even though the Chicano Movement had a tragic ending with the death of Ruben Salazar, Chicanos made their voices heard. Similarly, the Chicano walkouts were the beginning of “consciousness”. For instance Castro mentions, “Chicano’s have long been sleeping giants” he continues by stating looks like we woke up”. This shows that students living in these areas were oblivious to their ability of obtaining a higher
What exactly does Aztlan mean? There are various definitions, such as the ancestral homeland of the Aztec people and their descendants or everyone’s individual Aztlan which is ones’ personal sanctuary. A place one creates in their own image consisting of features that show what kind of person they are, while at the same time still recognizing their ethnic culture. We all have this place though not everyone’s is the same. Your hobbies, interests, the way you dress all make up this special place. Without it, we would be metaphorically lost. For example, in the essay “Refiguring Aztlan”, it says, “Through Aztlan we come to better understand psychological time, regional make up, and evolution. Without any one of these ingredients, we would be contempo-rary displaced nomads, suffering the diaspora in our own land, and at the mercy of other social forces. Aztlan allows us to come full circle with our communal background as well as maintain ourselves as
Latinos beyond Reel documentary film presented how US news and entertainment media portray Latinos. Latino American is an ethnic minority group of whom origin was from Latin America or Iberian Peninsula. Latino American is the fastest growing population in the United States. However, media has had negative effects for the Latino community. News media and entertainment had strongly influenced the perception of non-Latino about Latinos. These media portrayal of Latinos had implications for real world perceptions of Latinos.
Gonzalez, Juan. Harvest of Empire a History of Latinos in America. New York: Penguin Putnam Inc, 2000.
One can only contemplate why US historians have failed to acknowledge Hispanic contributions to the country. What is certain is that this neglect must be changed. Hispanic Americans, especially the youth, are deserve to learn about these significant contributions to the United states. This knowledge could increase their self-esteem and cultural pride.
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).
The Chicano Movement, like many other civil rights movements, gained motivation from the everyday struggles that the people had to endure in the United States due to society. Mexican-Americans, like many other ethnicities, were viewed as an inferior group compared to white Americans. Mexican-Americans sought to make a change with the Chicano Movement and “the energy generated by the movement focused national attention on the needs of Mexican-Americans” (Bloom 65). The Mexican-American Movement had four main issues that it aimed to resolve and they ranged from “restoration of la...
Cavin, Aaron. "Blowout! Sal Castro & The Chicano Struggle For Educational Justice."Journal Of American Ethnic History 34.2 (2015): 127-128. America: History & Life. Web. 12 Sept. 2016.
Again we would see the celebration of Dia De Los Muertos. In the 1970s, Self Help helped encourage the art that participated. It helped bring to community together and create large ensemble of art, parades, and festivals revolving around in the Chicano community.
During the Chicano movement gender issues led to the Chicana movement for equality because the Chicano movement did not deal with women’s issues or even family issues. Chicana women had limited roles within the Chicano movement because of their gender. Feminism calls for female unity against patriarchy in traditional cultural patterns and Chicanas began to a...
As long as civilizations have been around, there has always been a group of oppressed people; today the crucial problem facing America happens to be the discrimination and oppression of Mexican immigrants. “Mexican Americans constitute the oldest Hispanic-origin population in the United States.”(57 Falcon) Today the population of Mexican’s in the United States is said to be about 10.9%, that’s about 34 million people according to the US Census Bureau in 2012. With this many people in the United States being of Mexican descent or origin, one would think that discrimination wouldn’t be a problem, however though the issue of Mexican immigrant oppression and discrimination has never been a more prevalent problem in the United States before now. As the need for resolve grows stronger with each movement and march, the examination of why these people are being discriminated against and oppressed becomes more crucial and important. Oppression and Anti-discrimination organizations such as the Freedom Socialist Organization believe that the problem of discrimination began when America conquered Mexican l...
During this trivial time period, “La Raza”—a group of people mainly conformed of Hispanics who expressed their racial pride—outnumbered the whites and somehow were still forced to accept the poor living conditions they were being submitted to. “Most of La Raza owned no property and worked as cotton pickers and were locked out of the higher-paying jobs in foundries, machine shops, creameries, cotton oil mills, and small factories” (Orozco 20). The constant belittling of races would eventually lead to a divided society, a society that would soon become segregated. Restaurants, schools, barber ...
I am judgmental. You are judgmental. Everyone is a little judgmental whether they are aware of it or not. This class, American Minorities has most definitely opened my eyes to what I have heard about but never really seen for myself. Learning about different cultures and realizing that there are people who think and see things different than me has brought me great knowledge in understanding why I should be much more grateful to how privileged I am. Developing cultural sensitivity requires, becoming self-aware, becoming conscious of one’s own biases and to learn about and become sympathetic to those who are different.