8/19/2019 A Brief Summary of Latino-American History

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ALTO AP US HistoryA Brief Summary of Latino-American History

“Latin America” refers to the Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking regions of the Caribbean, Central America, and

South America, and Latino/Latina are the terms used to refer to the people (male/female !ho trace their ancestr"

to those regions# Latino-American histor" focuses on the interactions among the go$ernments and people of the %S

and Latin America and on the role that Latinos ha$e pla"ed in the de$elopment of the %S#

&he oldest 'uropean-founded cities in the %S !ere St# Augustine, lorida ()*+*, and Santa e, e! e.ico()*01before the 'nglish founded 2amesto!n in )+34# 5o!e$er, !hen these t!o places !ere anne.ed b" the %S

(lorida in )063, &reat" of 7uadalupe 5idalgo in )080, their populations !ere small compared to those of the

e.isting states, so these anne.ations did not dramaticall" transform demographics on a national le$el#

Places that did ha$e a significant Latino ma9orit", like e! e.ico and Ari:ona, did not ;uickl" become states#

&hose t!o !ere onl" made states in the )63s, partl" because of racial fears1the belief that Latinos could not

assimilate into the !hite Protestant mainstream in American life# of these people !ere actuall" %S citi:ens? &his polic", called

“Repatriation,” has recei$ed far less historical attention than the internment of 2apanese-Americans, e$en though

)3 to 63 times more people !ere affected b" these deportations#

Since the )@3s, immigration polic" has fluctuated significantl"# rom the )83s to the earl" )+3s, the %S

go$ernment ran the “Bracero Program,” !hich allo!ed e.ican peasants to !ork legall" in the %S on a

temporar" basis# ( Bracero means “one !ho !orks !ith his arms#” '.ploitation of these raceros !as !idespread

and a %S Labor =epartment official critici:ed it as “legali:ed sla$er"#” e$ertheless, immigration through that

 program and outside of it continued until mechanical cotton pickers replaced man" human !orkers in the south#

Cold Bar conflicts also brought 5ispanic immigrants into the %S, such as during Cubas re$olution, !hen man"

!ealthier Cubans fled the onset of communism# (Some of these e.iles !ere used in the ill-fated )+) a" of Pigs

in$asion# At the same time, !a$es of deportation occurred, such as in the )*3s, !hen “Dperation Betback”

resulted in the deportation of @#0 million people, some of !hom !ere again %S citi:ens#

Some presidents ha$e granted amnesty to illegal Latino immigrants, such as a )0+ act that ga$e a path to

citi:enship for millions of undocumented immigrants !hile simultaneousl" strengthening punishments for

emplo"ers of illegal immigrants# Currentl", more than )3 million (about @> of the %S population people li$ing in

the %S are illegal immigrants and debate continues bet!een conser$ati$e nati$ists !ho fa$or deportation and

stronger border securit" and liberals !ho fa$or amnest" and relati$el" open immigration#

&ensions bet!een !hites and Latinos ha$e periodicall" erupted, starting along the frontier in the mid-)033s# or )3nights in )8@, the “Zoot Suit Riots” occurred in Los Angeles# =uring this poorl"-named e$ent, sailors in the %S

na$" rampaged through 5ispanic neighborhoods in LA, seeking out and attacking "oung e.ican bo"s !earing

the bagg" “:oot suits” that had become fashionable at that time# (&ension had been gro!ing bet!een LAs large

e.ican population and the arines stationed in that cit", fueled b" media that tended to sensationali:e crimes

committed b" 5ispanics#

Cesar Chavez !as a "oung “:oot-suiter” !ho gre! up to become an important labor leader# ounder of the nited

!arm "or#ers, Cha$e: organi:ed the “Salad o!l Strike”1the largest-e$er strike of farm !orkers in the )43s

and the “o"cott 7rapes” mo$ement, !hich brought greater attention to the poor !orking conditions of farm

!orkers# 5is acti$ism led to the recognition of the %B b" ma9or agribusinesses and to policies that ended the use

of to.ic pesticides on grapes and other crops handled b" farm !orkers#

Since the )43s, Latinos ha$e been the fastest-gro!ing part of the %S population, and both legal and illegal

immigration from Latin America remains high (e.cept during economic do!nturns# En the )3s, the birthrate

among Latin Americans double that of non-5ispanic !hite, nati$e-born Americans, a ma9or reason !h" se$eral

states alread" ha$e “minority ma$ority” populations (5E, &F, CA, and the entire %S !ill b" perhaps 63@3#