ETHNIC REALITIES OF MEXICAN AMERICANS

Book excerpt: The goal of this book is to examine the ethnic experience of the Mexican American community in the United States, from colonialism to twenty-first century globalization. The authors unearth evidence that reveals how historically white ideology, combined with science, law, and the American imagination, has been strategically used as a mechanism to intimidate, manipulate, oppress, control, dominate, and silence Mexican Americans, ethnic racial minorities, and poor whites. A theoretical and philosophical overview is presented, focusing on the repressive practice against Mexicans that resulted in violence, brutality, vigilantism, executions, and mass expulsions. The Mexican experience under “hooded” America is explored, including religion, the Ku Klux Klan, and the Mexican American Civil Rights Movement. Local, state, and federal laws are documented, often in conflict with one another, including the Homeland Security program that continues to result in detentions and deportations. The authors examine the continuing argument of citizenship that has been used to legally exclude Mexican children from the educational system and thereby being characterized as not fit for the classroom nor entitled to an equitable education. Segregation and integration in the classroom is discussed, featuring examples of court cases. As documented throughout the book, American law is a constant reminder of the pervasive ideology of the historical racial supremacy, socially defined and enforced ethnic inferiority, and the rejection of positive social change, equality, and justice that continues to persist in the United States. The book is extensively referenced and is intended for professionals in the fields of sociology, history, ethnic studies, Mexican American (Chicano) studies, law and political science and also those concerned with sociolegal issues. Description Here