Tejanos are, "Mexicans in Texas who supported the revolt for independence from Mexico (Ayers G-17).” Tejanos were historically significant because, like Native Americans, they had settled into this new land. The Tejanos built a society and lineage whilst living in the Texas area which was previously unclaimed. The forceful extermination of these people ensured that Texas would become a predominatly Anglo-Saxon territory.
Some of the stereotypes that many Anglos who settled in Texas have about Mexican Americans were that “they were shiftless, lazy, they are dumb, they don’t like to work and they are trying to take your daughter”. These prejudices came from the Southern whites that moved to south Texas.
Flores is a Senior Associate Dean for Academic Affairs at the College of Liberal Arts and a Professor of Anthropology and Mexican American Studies at the University of Texas. Flores says that one of the reasons Texans wanted to gain its independence from Mexico was because of the government Santa Anna had. Texans and anyone going against Santa Anna wanted Mexico to go back to a federalist republic they did not want a centralist government. Stephen F. Austin proposed the idea of making Texas an independent Mexican state that had control of its own affairs to Santa Anna, but he refused the idea which then added on to the Texans desires to become independent. The tension grew between the Texans and the Mexican government when Santa Anna got rid of the Mexican Constitution of 1824. Flores states that saying the Battle of the Alamo was a battle between Texans and Mexicans is wrong. The “Texans” in fact were not truly Texans, only thirteen native-born Texans fought in the Battle of the Alamo (eleven of those were of Mexican descent), the rest were Europeans, Jews, African Americans, United States Americans and Mexicans. Flores discusses the severe effects of the Texas Modern on the Mexicans. He says that most Mexicans were unemployed, lived in poverty, and had little access to public institutions. He also says the Mexicans were maintained by
The history of Africans in Mexico is an oft-neglected facet of the cultural complexities of that country. In 1519, Hernando Cortes brought 6 African slaves with him to Mexico; these individuals served the conquest as personal servants, carriers, and laborers.[1] In the years to come, slavery would become a critical component of the colonial economy with approximately 2,000 slaves arriving each year 1580-1650; it is estimated that a total of 200,000 Africans were brought to Mexico during the colonial period.[2] Given this large number of slaves, the lengthy period of their importation, and the inevitable mixing of races, which took place throughout the colony, the historical and cultural significance of bozales, criollos, mulattoes, and zambos is far-reaching. The colonial period provides an excellent starting place for an examination of the significance of these groups not only because the institution of African slavery was introduced to New Spain at that time, but also because the regular influx of native Africans combined with the close attention paid to color-based castas in official records allows historians to trace the influence of African culture more readily during that period.
Approximately three hundred and thirty-four years ago, there took place an uncommon and captivating story of American Indian History. This historical story was called the Pueblo Revolt, and it included the defeat of the dominant European Spaniards. The Spaniards were defeated by an assortment of Native American tribes that were not able to communicate in the same language. The Pueblo Native Americans resided in the area that is now considered northern New Mexico. This area remained combined with the territory of Spain for about eighty-five years. There were Spanish conquistadors guarded the superior area of Rio Grande. They forced Spanish regulations and brutality upon the Pueblo Indians.
In the years following the Spanish conquests, the southwest region of the United States developed into Spanish colonial territory. Indians, Spaniards, and blacks occupied this territory in which the shortage of Spanish women led to the miscegenation of these cultures. The result of mixing these races was a homogenization of the people of various cultures that came to be called mestizos and mulattos who, like present day Mexican Americans, inherited two distinct cultures that would make their culture rich, yet somewhat confusi...
The Cherokees and the Aztecs were very different people in many ways not only in location but also in ways of living. The Cherokees were southwestern woodland farmers. The Aztecs were also farmers in mesoamerica like the Mayans.
Mexican culture is perhaps the largest influence on the state of Arizona, affecting the cuisine of Arizona quite heavily. Mexican food is widely popular in Arizona, meaning that there are plenty of local Mexican restaurants, each giving a unique experience. Mexican culture also has strong ties to the history of Arizona, as it was once territory belonging to Mexico. Mexicans who inhabited the region over a century ago fought with tribes native to the land in order to wrest control from them. However, war erupted with America on April 25, 1846. The war, now known as the Mexican-American War, resulted in the Mexican Cession. The Cession effectively indoctrinated the states of California, Nevada, most of Arizona, and various sections of other current day states. The war’s start can be contributed to many things, one such reason being the acceptance of Texas as a recognized state by the U.S. This created a great deal of tension with Mexico, as Texas was once their territory, until Mexicans and Americans overthrew the governor of the region and appointed their own leader, Samuel Houston. Houston then brought Texas in as a state to the U.S. in order to assuage any aggressive acts by Mexico. However, tensions soon flared when several small incidents along the border of Mexico and Texas lead to the war. Many politicians in the northern states opposed the war, claiming that it was an attempt of the southern slave owners to gain influence in the new territory. While most of the territory of Arizona was obtained by the end of the war, it was the Gadsden Purchase that attained the rest of the state, along with the southwesternmost part of modern day New Mexico. The purchase gets it’s name from the United States ambassador to Mexico, James Gadsden, who signed the treaty approving the purchase of the territory in the year 1853, not all too long after the
for a revolution of the world. The American Settlers were tired of Mexican dictatorship and wanted the same freedoms they enjoyed back in America. So with a little bit more influence from America, a revolt was formed. Eventually Texas would capture Santa Anna the Mexican. dictator and independence for Texas.
Mexico’s problems originally began upon the arrival of the Spanish in 1492, as illustrated in Major Problems in Mexican American History by Zaragosa Vargas as well as in the video documentary, Chicano!. The sequence of events which date back to the precolonial Spanish days and take place in Mexico’s history eventually provoke the national movement that called for social justice and equality, especially after the signing of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. Then came the question of group and individual identity. Those of Mexican heritage were broken up into the groups "Chicanos," which were the ‘Americanized’ Mexicans or the Mexicans born in the United States, and the actual "Mexicans," who were the native born people which were discriminated against the most.
...Gaffney, Jeannette. Between Aztlan and Quivira: Europeans and Indians in the Southwestern United States. (1991) Yale-New Haven Teachers Institute. www.yale.edu
With Santa Anna moving to control Mexico, and taxes increasing, Texans grew restless and rowdy. A Texan, William B. Travis, and a small group of Texans attacked a squad of Mexican troops in Anahuac with the motive that “taxes should not thus be collected from them to support a standing army in their own country” (SOS 1) and soon drove them back. Travis retreated to San Felipe and was assisted by Bexar. Skirmishes and the threat of war with Mexico soon followed. Come 1835, the idea of independence was extremely popular within the territory of Texas.
Name ways that the Spanish have influenced the culture in TX- language, architecture, celebrations, food, etc.
Texas has a rich and long history and much of it has passed through the state over the years to become a part of its folklore. This Texas folklore is part of many cultures within the state and has even filtered outside the state. The first cultural influence on Texas was from the Paleo-American Indians. When these Indians arrived they were in a bit of a culture shock when they met the Spanish in the 16th century. In the following centuries, more people began to arrive in Texas and they brought new ways of talking, believing and doing things. The Spanish and the Mexican set the patterns south of Nueces and along the Rio Grande. Anglos brought their ways of life from the British Isles to the South and Eastern part of Texas. African Americans who came to work on the plantations on the Brazos and Trinity bottoms brought songs, stories and beliefs that came with them from Africa. Germans came directly from the Old World to the Hill Country, Cajuns came from France and eventually through Louisiana and settled in Southeast Texas. The Dutch, Danes, Polish, Czechs, Norwegians who also came here brought with them their ways of life and they all became bound together to become part of Texas. By the year 2000, Texas was made up of 54.5% Anglos, 31% Hispanic, 11.4% African Americans and another 3.1% of other ethnicities.
Moses Austin was a Connecticut born farmer sent to colonize Texas with the Americans with a large land grant. Alarmed that its grip on the area was weakening, the Mexican government in 1830 annulled existing land contracts and barred future emigration from the United States. Stephen Austin led the call from American settlers demanding greater autonomy within Mexico. General Antonio López de Santa Anna sent an army in 1835 to impose central authority. Rebels formed a provisional government that soon called for Texan independence. The Alamo was stormed by Santa Anna’s army, and an army under Sam Houston vowed to “Remember the Alamo” and routed Santa Anna’s army at the Battle of San Jacinto. Texas desired annexation by the United States, but neither Jackson nor Van Buren took action because of political concerns regarding adding another slave state.
The history of Mexican Americans goes back to the War over the land of Texas. The Mexican American War was started upon disagreement in a border line. Before joining the U.S as a slave state, Texas had been owned by Spain, part of Mexico, and an independent Republic. The new Mexican Americans were a hug part in the development of this territory for the United States. In many cases they were exploited and underpaid. Many Mexicans have found