Premium Essay

Cultural Differences Of Chicanos And Latino Americans

Submitted By
Words 1306
Pages 6
What Chicanos and Latinos have dealt with while living in America has changed their identities and behaviors. Chicanos/nas identities have been impacted positively or negatively due to experiences in school and because of them being aware of their race. In addition, comparing themselves to other minorities and being conscious has affected their identities. Furthermore, there aren’t only Chicanos/nas in America, there are three separate groups which are Chicanos, Mexican Americans, and Latinos. Even though these groups sound closely related to each other, they have their differences. Some of the differences include how politically/socially involved they are, how much education they’ve received, transnational identity, and how much they …show more content…
I believe that not being taught Spanish can impact your cultural identity as you grow up. It can cause other Chicanos/as to judge you just because of the fact that you don’t speak your native tongue. Many people may also not even see you as a “true” Chicano/na or Latino. This can have cause someone to maybe push their Mexican culture to the side and just identify as American because they may feel that they aren’t truly accepted by other Latinos. The text mentions that the use of Spanish by a Chicano or Latino creates an identity that is tied to a Chicano or Latino experience in America (Hurtado and Gurin 9).The cultural identity of someone may be completely different if they have forgotten or do not know their mother tongue. Many Chicano/na scholars use Spanish as a way to feel closer to other Spanish readers, and if you’re not able to communicate in Spanish it may prevent someone from feeling close to the Chicano/na community. This also causes non-Spanish speaking Latinos to not be able to communicate with their grandparents or other family members that do not speak English. I think that not being able to communicate with your extended family may cause an individual to not form a close relationship with grandparents. Hearing stories from grandparents and being close to them helps you shape your identity, because you learn more about the Mexican culture. Hearing about your culture from …show more content…
Whether someone is conscious or not can play a big role on their identity. A great example in the text was Memo Sanchez; he realizes that Mexicans have less power than other groups, so he studies and gets into a university, he later on even goes as far as changing his name from Memo to “Bill” (Hurtado and Gurin 59). In this example it’s obvious that Memo felt some kind of shame with his Mexican side, it’s easy for his Mexican identity to be forgotten because he is now aware that being Mexican doesn’t come with as many advantages as being “white.” This is something that Chicanos/as have to deal with in America because of all the other different groups that are around them and which they are exposed to. On the other hand, I believe that Mexican-Americans don’t deal with consciousness as much because if they grew up in Mexico they had no other groups to compare themselves with. Chicano/as that are born in America have been alongside other groups and seen the benefits and disadvantages that may come with other groups or their own group. In addition, not only is cultural identity impacted but social political behavior of Chicanos/as can be affected when they become

Similar Documents

Free Essay

Latino Culture and Baseball

...William Shakespeare once said, "Some are born great, some achieve greatness and some have greatness thrust upon." In American media the same can be said for the Latino culture. In the eyes of the media, some are born Latino, some become Latino, while others have Latino thrust upon them. Latinos in the media include, politicians, actors, activists and criminals. The vast majority of these individuals create their own personification. Their media image is formed by the causes they support, the roles they play and the words they speak. In this regard, these individuals are either "born Latino" or "achieve Latino". In contrast, athletes are often judged before they ever speak to the media. Our perception is formed based on how these individuals are portrayed or personified by the media. For this reason, it can be said that athletes have "Latino thrust upon them". Of all the major sports, Latinos have had the greatest impact on major league baseball. Today nearly 25% of the players in the major leagues were born in Latin America (Berry, 1). As such baseball provides a unique perspective on Latinos in the media. Players rarely provide insight into their personalities rather our perception is based upon what the media wants us to believe. In this regard, baseball media artifacts enable us to see how differently Latinos were personified in the media over time. In the end it will become apparent that while their growth and achievement on the field has escalated, media perceptions have...

Words: 3631 - Pages: 15

Premium Essay

Mazón's The Zoot-Suit Riots

...It is the usage of these mens quotes from newspaper articles and interviews, and the analysis of their words that makes the book much more impactful. For the first time, it is the analysis of these young men and what they felt during this time of tension, and not just what society thought of them. Mazón mainly uses newspaper articles, specifically the Los Angeles Times, as his sources to be able to show how the public felt about these young men at the time. He uses direct quotations from the newspaper articles and comics to show the anti Mexican-American sentiment and even what Latinos felt during this time. The interviews conducted at the time help further along his analysis of the events and provide his own interpretation of the significance of the Zoot Suit riots. Even though the author doesn’t use many sources, the use of the sources he does use allow for a stronger historical interpretation and analysis of the events. The usage of quotes and thoughts of men allows us to see the sentiments felt by the men and others of the time. The sources Mazón uses help him strengthen his thesis and convince the reader to view his interpretation of the...

Words: 1601 - Pages: 7

Premium Essay

Jjjjjjj

...GLORIA ANZALDUA How to Tame a Wild Tongue Gloria Anzaldua was born in 1942 in the Rio Grande Valley of South Texas. At age eleven. she began working in the fields as a migrant worker and then on her family's land after the death of her father. Working her way through school, she eventually became a schoolteacher and then an academic, speaking and writing about feminis t, lesbian, and Chicana issues and about autobiography. She is best known for This Bridge CalJed My Back: Writings by Radical Women of Color ( 1981), which she edited with Cherrie Moraga, and BorderlandsfLa Frontera: The New Mestiza (1987). Anzaldua died in 2004. "How to Tame a Wild Tongue" is from BorderlandsfLa Frontera. In it, Anzaldua is concerned with many kinds of borders - between nations, cultures, classes, genders, languages. When she writes, "So, if you want to really hurt me, talk badly about my language" (par. 27), Anzaldua is arguing for the ways in which identity is intertwined with the way we speak and for the ways in which people can be made to feel ashamed of their own tongues. Keeping hers wild - ignoring the closing of linguistic borders - is Anzaldua's way of asserting her identity. "We're going to have to control your tongue," the dentist says, pulling out all the metal from my mouth. Silver bits plop and tinkle into the basin. My mouth is a motherlode.· The dentist is cleaning out my roots. I get a whiff of the stench when I gasp. "I can't cap that tooth yet, you're still draining," he...

Words: 4793 - Pages: 20

Premium Essay

Race in Entertainment Media

...(1988), and Our Family Wedding (2010), I have found that representation of race in film has largely remained the same, while the acknowledgement of existing stereotypes has become more obvious. The 1960’s-1970’s was a time characterized by Irish Mob Wars (Durney 2000), Hollywood conservative backlash films, and the ongoing misrepresentation of American Indians in film (Larson 2006). One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest is a movie is about a criminal who pretends to be crazy so that he can serve his sentence in the relatively comfortable confines of an insane asylum rather than a prison. We see the results of the historical events represented in characters from this movie such as Randle Patrick McMurphy, Mr. Turkle, the ward’s guards, and Chief Bromden. The Irish have been infamous for their mafia and organized crime, especially in the Cleveland area. Perhaps their most publicly recognized contribution to the media’s fascination with violence is the Mob Wars of the mid-1970’s (Durney 2000). These huge displays of violence prepped the audience of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest to easily accept the character of McMurphy, an Irish American good-for-nothing who has been convicted of gambling and battery, as well as charged with statutory rape (One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest 1975). With coverage of violent crimes being committed by Irish mobs in the news, this character is logically personified...

Words: 2080 - Pages: 9

Free Essay

Social Issues

... but also amplifies those differences with cultural, economical and racial means. This phenomenon can be seen and examined throughout every street, every corner, every building, every landmark and even every person in the city, crossing from east to west as well as north to south. In order to fully experience the impact of this strong characteristic of Los Angeles, I took four bus rides to go around the city: two on Metro Rapid Line 720 from Westwood to Downtown Los Angeles, with one at around 2:30 p.m. on 2014/10/14 and another one at around 2:10pm on 2014/10/27; one on Metro Rapid Line 2 from Westwood to Pacific Palisades at around 2:20 pm on 2014/11/16 and one on Metro Rapid Line 320 from Pacific Palisade to Westwood at around 4:30pm on 2014/11/16. Along my trip, I developed a sense of understanding of this particular city from east to west through observations. At the perspective of cultural development, the east part of Los Angeles far exceeds the west part. Historically, West side of Los Angeles was built earlier as part of Rancho San Vicente y Santa Monica. It was however, never really cultural orientated. Evolving from the rancho, this place later on developed into “wheat fields and orchard lands by Japanese immigrants.” (“West Los Angeles,” Last modified on 13 August 2014 at 00:34, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_Los_Angeles.) Along my bus ride, few cultural landmarks were identified. Constructions along the road were mainly big American chain stores that were built...

Words: 1279 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

Mexican-American Mental Health

...One of the largest and fastest growing minority groups in the United States consists of Mexican-Americans. The Mexican American history is riddled with discrimination, injustices, deportation, ethical cleansing, and suffering (Bravo, 2005). Many of the individuals among this group have been identified as being a particular concern among psychologists. Throughout the United States, there is a population of 20.8 million Hispanics in the United States, 13.3 million are that of Mexican American origin, 2.2 million are Puerto Rican, 1.1 million are Cuban, 2.8 million are Central and South American, and 1.4 million among other Hispanic groups (United States Bureau of the Census, 1991) Overall, working with this culture it is important for the psychologist...

Words: 1909 - Pages: 8

Free Essay

Head Start

...Head Start 1 Running Head: HEAD START Social Policy Study Improving Head Start Act of 2007 Kristin Sancken University of Minnesota Head Start 2 I. Introduction Head Start is a beloved program and one of the few social welfare programs that continues to garner strong support from both sides of the aisle. It has seen very little shift in public perception over the last 44 years since it’s creation as part of President Johnson’s Office of Economic Opportunity, and politicians have framed it essentially the same way during that time, namely, a way to provide the least fortunate with a chance at educational opportunity. Every few years, the Head Start Act must be reauthorized by the U.S. House and Senate in order to continue receiving federal funding. The Head Start Act itself states that its purpose is to, “promote the school readiness of low-income children by enhancing their cognitive, social, and emotional development”(U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2008). Head Start focuses on growth in a variety of areas such as acquisition of language, literacy, math, science, social and emotional functioning, creative arts, and physical education (Kildee, 2007; U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2008). To reach these lofty goals, Head Start provides a holistic blend of services to low-income children and their families, based on family needs (Kildee, 2007; U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2008). The latest reauthorization...

Words: 5123 - Pages: 21

Premium Essay

Hispanic American Diversity

...Hispanic American Diversity ETH/125 November 20, 2011 Hispanic American Diversity Introduction The purpose of this discussion is to identify the differences and similarities among four different Hispanic American subcultures. When most people think of Latino or Hispanic Americans, they tend to believe that they are all part of the same native background because they speak the Spanish language. Despite their similarities, there is much diversity in each group’s social, economic, educational, political, and religious interests. The Spanish culture has grown immensely in the United States over the years and they live in many regions of the country. The Hispanics introduce new customs and traditions to the American Society. By exploring their ethnic background Americans can heighten their understanding of the Hispanic culture. Mexican Americans Language Mexican Americans also called “Chicanos” make up nearly two-thirds of the Hispanic Americans in the United States (Schaefer, 2006). Bilingual speaking is common among Mexican Americans as they tend to speak both English and Spanish within their household. Mexican Americans seem to be using English more dominantly than their native language because they are constantly trying to advance far above the other Hispanic groups in the American society (Alba, 2006). Education Very few Mexican Americans are pursuing a higher education. A survey conducted during the late 1980s displays that roughly 10 percent of Mexican Americans...

Words: 2019 - Pages: 9

Premium Essay

Career Interest Profiler

...Running head: HISPANIC AMERICANS Paper Title Author Author Affiliation [CLASS SUBJECT HERE] [PROFESSOR’S NAME HERE] Feb 18, 2009 Since 1970, United States of America has seen a considerable amount of immigration because of economic chaos and civil wars in Latin American countries. The fight between the government of El Salvador and leftist guerrillas in 1980 brought about 500,000 immigrants to United States. They settled primarily in California, Florida, Massachusetts, and Washington, D.C. The civil war in Nicaragua in the year 1980 drove an estimated 800,000 Nicaraguan immigrants to the United States Mexican Americans are the most prevalent Hispanic group within the United States. Their history can be dated to four centuries within America, contrasting in different regions. In States like California, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and Nevada have great amounts of Mexican Americans. (Mexican Americans, 2007). Most of Mexican Americans residing in the United states converse in their own native language. Spanish is usually the solitary language that they use .But english is the universally unrestricted language in the general community. As many generations have passed, a new verbal communication has emerged, called Spanglish, which is a blend of both Spanish and American. America has always been harsh on Mexican Americans. Mexican Americans had a hard time elevating their financial...

Words: 1440 - Pages: 6

Free Essay

House on Mango Street

...Simon Adelle UCOR 102 Paper 3 Professor Marcum Making It in A Man’s World April 29, 2013 “The House on Mango Street” by Sandra Cisneros exposes the life of the main character, Esperanza, for one year as she struggles with trying to find her place in America as a Chicana young girl while also coming of age. The novel starts the day Esperanza and her family of six move into a house on Mango Street, and immediately she expresses her antipathy for not only the house, but also for the area in which they move into and the people around who judge them because of their ethnicity. The story is not told in the traditional format of a continuous story divided into chapters, but rather Cisneros uses forty-four vignettes to allow for the reader to fully understand why Esperanza has the struggles that she has. Along with Cisneros’ illustrating Esperanza’s looking for her identity through images of Esperanza’s thoughts and female obedience, symbolism of violence, legs, the Statue for Liberty, and Nenny, and diction of Spanish words, not using quotation marks, and a maturing tone, she also uses these them to permeate Esperanza’s desperation to leave Mango Street throughout the whole novel. Cisneros’ use of vignettes highlights important moments in Esperanza’s life that emphasize how she develops over the course of a year. Cisneros uses the brevity of the vignettes to enhance the imagery to give the most vivid image through her limited amount of words for...

Words: 3794 - Pages: 16

Premium Essay

Diversity

...opportunities to develop diverse leadership. 4 Beyond representation: Building diverse board leadership teams Maria Gitin OVER THE YEARS , dialogue on board diversification has evolved from focus on the importance of representing constituents, to “doing the right thing,” which is characterized by opponents as “political correctness,” to the current widely held view that a nondiverse board is missing key potential donors and opinion leaders. Diverse leaders can expand knowledge, create new resources, and open doors to partnerships necessary to fulfill an organization’s mission. Recommended strategies for board diversification must be understood in the context of the deeply divided society of the United States. Although North American cultural issues are the result of a unique history, most elements of diversity planning will apply in other countries as well. By the year 2015 the nonwhite portion of the U.S. population is expected to increase to 30 percent NEW DIRECTIONS FOR PHILANTHROPIC FUNDRAISING, NO. 34, WINTER 2001 © WILEY PERIODICALS, INC. 77 78 DIVERSITY IN THE FUNDRAISING PROFESSION (Changing Our World, 2001). In many communities, including large areas of California, the nonwhite population is already at 50 percent (Changing Our World, 2000). Despite heroic efforts on the part of diverse public and nonprofit sector leaders and their allies, gaps between rich and poor, and between people of color and whites, have increased over the past decade: • Poverty...

Words: 7371 - Pages: 30

Premium Essay

Where Do You Want to Be

...the Four Types of Groups? Does Race Still Matter? How is Biracial and Multiracial Identity Defined? How Is Sociology Applied to the Study of Race and Ethnicity? What Leads to the Creation of Subordinate-Group Status? What Are the Consequences of Subordinate-Group Status? How Does Change Occur in Race Relations? ISBN 1-256-48952-2 2 Racial and Ethnic Groups, Thirteenth edition, by Richard T. Schaefer. Published by Merrill Prentice Hall. Copyright © 2012 by Pearson Education, Inc. Exploring Race and Ethnicity Minority groups are subordinated in terms of power and privilege to the majority, or dominant group. A minority is defined not by being outnumbered but by five characteristics: unequal treatment, distinguishing physical or cultural traits, involuntary membership, awareness of subordination, and ingroup marriage. Subordinate groups are classified in terms of race, ethnicity, religion, and gender. The social importance of race is derived from a process of racial formation; any biological significance is relatively unimportant to society. The theoretical perspectives of functionalism, conflict theory, and labeling offer insights into the sociology of intergroup relations. Immigration, annexation, and colonialism are processes that may create subordinate groups. Other processes such as extermination and expulsion may remove the presence of a subordinate group. Significant for racial and ethnic oppression in the United States...

Words: 17357 - Pages: 70

Premium Essay

An Exploration of the Reproduction and Perpetuation of Socio-Historical Oppression in U.S. Schools: Pre-Prospectus

...RUNNING HEAD: Pre-Prospectus An Exploration of the Reproduction and Perpetuation of Socio-historical Oppression in U.S. Schools: Pre-prospectus La’Quaria Barton Georgia Southern University Dr. Delores Liston, Dissertation Chair Dr. Daniel E. Chapman, Committee Member Dr. Lorraine S. Gilpin, Committee Member Dr. Robert Yarbrough, Committee Member TENTATIVE CHAPTER OUTLINE Chapter 1: Introduction * Background of the Problem * Statement of the Problem * Purpose of the Study * Research Questions * Importance of the Study * Scope of the Study * Definition of Terms * Limitations Chapter 2: Theoretical Framework Chapter 3: Review of the Literature Chapter 4: Research Methods * The Qualitative Paradigm * Qualitative Methods * The Researcher's Role * Data Sources * Data Collection * Data Analysis * Ethical Considerations Chapter 5: Research Findings Chapter 6: Conclusions, Discussion, and Suggestions for Future Research * Summary * Conclusions * Discussion * Suggestions for Future Research Towards A Phenomenology of Liberation From the very start, I am thus fully endorsing the premise that no account of race can be dissociated from a critique of power and a social historical ontology of ourselves (de Oliveira, 2010, 209). INTRODUCTION I grew up in rural North Carolina. When I was in the third grade, I watched as five of my white peers were pulled from class to attend gifted courses. I always wondered why, I, who had always worked...

Words: 6268 - Pages: 26

Premium Essay

An Exploration of the Reproduction and Perpetuation of Socio-Historical Oppression in U.S. Schools: Pre-Prospectus

...RUNNING HEAD: Pre-Prospectus An Exploration of the Reproduction and Perpetuation of Socio-historical Oppression in U.S. Schools: Pre-prospectus La’Quaria Barton Georgia Southern University Dr. Delores Liston, Dissertation Chair Dr. Daniel E. Chapman, Committee Member Dr. Lorraine S. Gilpin, Committee Member Dr. Robert Yarbrough, Committee Member TENTATIVE CHAPTER OUTLINE Chapter 1: Introduction • Background of the Problem • Statement of the Problem • Purpose of the Study • Research Questions • Importance of the Study • Scope of the Study • Definition of Terms • Limitations Chapter 2: Theoretical Framework Chapter 3: Review of the Literature Chapter 4: Research Methods • The Qualitative Paradigm • Qualitative Methods • The Researcher's Role • Data Sources • Data Collection • Data Analysis • Ethical Considerations Chapter 5: Research Findings Chapter 6: Conclusions, Discussion, and Suggestions for Future Research • Summary • Conclusions • Discussion • Suggestions for Future Research Towards A Phenomenology of Liberation From the very start, I am thus fully endorsing the premise that no account of race can be dissociated from a critique of power and a social historical ontology of ourselves (de Oliveira, 2010, 209). INTRODUCTION I grew up in rural North Carolina. When I was in the third grade, I watched as five of my white peers were pulled from class to attend gifted courses. I always wondered why, I, who had always worked...

Words: 6229 - Pages: 25

Premium Essay

Jumanji

...Multiple Choice Questions 1. How did the Girl Scouts change to meet the needs of Hispanic families? A) Training focused on how to address a Hispanic woman. B) Training focused on the importance of building a relationship. C) Brothers were encouraged to attend some events. D) Las Posadas, a Hispanic Christmas tradition that pays homage to Mary and Joseph's search for an inn, is being conducted by Girl Scout troops in some areas. E) all of the above Answer: E Page: 157 Difficulty: easy 2. A segment of a larger culture whose members share distinguishing values and patterns of behavior is known as a(n) _____. A) market segment B) subculture C) ethnic group D) reference group E) subgroup Answer: B Page: 158 Difficulty: moderate 3. Many companies develop special marketing mixes for a segment of a larger culture whose members share distinguishing values and patterns of behavior. These segments are known as _____. A) subsegments B) subgroups C) secondary markets D) subcultures E) reference groups Answer: D Page: 158 Difficulty: moderate 4. The degree to which an individual behaves in a manner unique to a subculture depends on _____. A) the extent to which the individual identifies with that subculture B) how long the individual has been in this country...

Words: 5884 - Pages: 24