Introduction
The period of 1965 to 1970 recorded significant historical marks emergent from Chicano Movement. Very notably was the struggle by young people to attain communal identity, acquire unique power. The desire for youths to be engaged explorations formed fundamental roots for the beginning of youth Chicano-radicalism in the US. Very prominent in the lead to the movement was Carlos Munoz, who lead the movement in the Nineteen Sixties and gave the movement a broad political image that sank quickly into the lifestyle of Mexicans through to their children in the United States. Restructured throughout the United State’s history, the quest for youth to have a place in power and public identity has subsumed America’s political protest. This contributed very significantly to the traditional growth and popularity of the Chicano Movement.
This paper will review elaborately three different newspaper issues on the topic of the Chicano Movement (1965-1970) with a particular interest in imagery, constructability, identity, and idealism as presented by the paper.
History of the Chicano Movement
Latin America’s Political and civil rights activism in America has a notable history traceable to the 1848 Northern-Mexico-annexation. Shortly after the time, Americans of Mexican descent adopted the use of labor unions, defense organizations, and courts to fight racism of all forms which Jim Crow had contended with. Towards the end of the 1960s, there sprang a new form of battle racism as young activists conducted themselves into a Chicana and Chicano file absorbing energy from Chavez Caesar. During the time, the movement waxed with heat, very strongly and consequently created new forms of the struggle such as the movement that emerged from the integration of farmworkers.
The impact of the movement on Washington was huge. The population of farmworkers had swollen resultant of the ‘bracero’ influx at the time of the Second World War. Soon, the movement had split into Yakima Valley and Seattle. A clear reflection of the split geographically was a brace of campaigns and support which the groups enjoyed. Major groups were Brown Berets, UMAS, MWChA, KDNA, and several others.
The Chicano Youth Movement in the Northwest
Black American students constituted themselves into a union (BSU) at the University of Washington to effect military activities that promoted Chicano greatly on campus. Elements of the movement, on the 20th day of May in 1968 betrothed the office of Charles Odegaard, the president of the University in a four-hour-visit. They made clear their demands for relevance and a sense of fairness to colored people through proper accordance of intake for students from minority races, the uplift of intake for black students, better funding of programs for minority students as well as the design of study courses relevant to black students. BSU opined the creating the groundwork that would help student recruitment all through Washington. Thus Chicano and BSU collaborations began in the university. When 55 students were absorbed into the university in 1968, many of them were Yakima Latinos. Two Yikiman Students, Villanueva Tomas and Gamboa Guadalupe were stimulated by UFWOC to take a trip to Delano in the year 1967 to meet Chavez Cesar. When they returned, they co-birthed the UFWC in Washington.
Thus UFWC became the first Chicano activist organization to emerge from Washington amid combating poverty, it was entirely non-governmental. In 1968’s summer, the organization –UFWC- sort the support of the ACLU for the aid of farm-work projects. A report which had come from the request placed Chicanos in the light of the economy and political subjugation. Consequent to the ACLU filing several law cases, the County in Yakima was pushed to allow and accord Chicanos the right to bilingual ballots and to vote. By the mid of the 1980s, results had begun yielding completely for the benefit of colored people.
We shall now discuss the following newspapers:
- Seattle Post-Intelligencer Wed., June 11, 1975 S* A3: Chicano Staff To Stay at UW: this was written by Solveig Torvik
- Mexican-Americans Tell Opposition To Grapes, by Cathleen Curtis: A university of Washington Daily published on Wednesday, January 22, 1969; and
- Protestant Flares Over Grapes On HUB Line.
Seattle Post-Intelligencer Wed., June 11, 1975 S* A3: Chicano Staff To Stay at UW
This newspaper article was written by Solveig Torvik, a P-I Writer on Education. Torvik began the write-up on a sad note of the resignation from working at the University of Washington by Chicano class staff and Administrative staff. The writer presents the view of Jesus Rodriguez who is a minority staff adviser that at most, a 31 – 33 Chicano staff strength would be retained in the University. Consequent to talks with the administration, the resignations are rescinded, and Gary Padilla contends on the retention of the Chicano staff. The decision to stay by Chicanos is urged by their conviction that the new provost would intervene in giving Chicanos a ‘proper place’ in affairs and decisions in the school. In the end, the writer emphasizes that the decision of Chicanos to resign from work at the University of Washington had nothing in common with nationalist issues.
Mexican-Americans Tell Opposition To Grapes, by Cathleen Curtis
This is written by a Daily Writer Staff called Cathleen Curtis, and the article appears in the University of Washington Daily on Wednesday, January 22, 1969. Curtis begins by stressing the appropriateness of the time when the University ought to express an intense responsibility and concern towards the alleviation of poverty rather than pay lip services or conduct studies on the matter. This, the writer says is a statement made by a student of Mexico-American descent who is a member of the University Committee on Grape Boycott. The paper proceeds on discussing issues that hinge on the well-being of Chicano students in the University.
Protest Flares Over Grapes On HUB Line
This article is written by a Daily writer staff, Charleen Hurson. The writer begins the paper by exposing SDS members’ discovery that grapes were marketed to encourageHUB promotion. A representation of SDS who sold grapes took a position
That supported growers of grapes at the expense of workers. Bob Lint, Sander Richard, and Young Republican opined that grapes be sealed on lines of HUB for food. The paper continues in the direction and discusses a protest in which Sanders sends a telegram message to Governor Evan Daniel demanding the intervention of the governor. No nationalist issues have been emphasized.
Conclusion
The emergence of The Chicano Movement brought into US history a clear push by young people for the realization of equity and freedom for minors in the US. This paper has attempted to discuss how Chicano youths achieved this.