III. ETHNIC MINORITIES

LATINOS

Growth of the Latino Presence

• Latino is a term that includes people from– Mexico– Puerto Rico– Cuba– Dominican Republic– Central America– South America

• During 1960s Latino population grew from 3 million to more than 9 million

• Today, 1 in 6 Americans

Mexican Americans• Largest of the Latino population• Live mostly in the Southwest and California• Many are descendants from Mexicans who lived in

the area before it was ceded to the U.S.• A wave of Mexicans came to the US in the 1910s

after the Mexican Revolution• Another wave began to arrive in the 1950s as

temporary laborers

Puerto Ricans

• Began immigrating to the U.S. in 1898 after the US took control of the region

Cubans

• Many intellectuals fled from Cuba to the U.S. in the 1959 to escape Fidel Castro’s communist rule

Central Americans

• Thousands of people from Central America immigrated to the U.S. in the 1960s to escape civil wars occurring in countries such as– El Salvador– Guatemala– Nicaragua– Colombia

Conditions in the U.S.• Many Latinos face ethnic discrimination in jobs

and housing• Most lived in Spanish speaking neighborhoods• During the 1960s the unemployment rate for

Latinos was 50% higher than that of white Americans

Latinos Fight for Change

• As number of Latinos grew in the U.S. they began demanding more political representation and better treatment– Including respect for

their cultural heritage

Farm Worker Movement

• Many Latinos in California worked on farms for little pay and few benefits

• Farm worker Cesar Chavez believed the workers needed to unionize to increase their bargaining strength– He established the National Farm Workers Association in

1962– In 1966 the union merged with the Filipino union to form

the United Farm Workers Organizing Committee (UFWOC)

• Chavez insisted that California’s large farm companies accept the union as the bargaining agent for farm workers

• When grape growers refused to accept this Chavez sent workers across the country to convince grocery stores and shoppers to boycott grapes – Chavez also went on a hunger strike

• In 1970 the California grape farmers negotiated a contract with UFWOC for higher pay and benefits

Cultural Pride• Chavez’s activities inspired “brown power”

movements throughout the US• NY: Puerto Ricans demanded Spanish speaking

class and programs about Latino cultures– Bilingual Education Act of 1968• Provided funds for schools to develop bilingual programs for

non English speaking children

• CA: – Mexican Americans began calling themselves

Chicanos/Chicanas to express cultural pride– Brown Beret (a community action group) organized

walkouts in East Los Angeles high schools to demand• Smaller class sizes• More Chicano teachers and administrators• Programs to reduce drop out rate among Latinos

Political Power

• Mexican American Political Association– Helped elect Latinos to Congress

• League of United Latin American Citizens– Filed lawsuits to desegregate schools in the

Southwest– Helped win the right for Mexican Americans to

serve on juries

NATIVE AMERICANS

Background

• Like Latinos, Native Americans are often seen as one group of the same– In fact are extremely diverse

• Have faced years of discrimination and a lack of autonomy to control and govern themselves

Seeking Autonomy• Native Americans have historically been the poorest

Americans and have faced the highest unemployment rate– In 1960s infant mortality rate was twice as high as the national

average– High rate of alcoholism

• In 1961 representatives from 61 Native American groups wrote the Declaration of Indian Purpose– Creation of programs to create economic opportunities for Native

Americans on their reservations• In 1968 President Johnson created the National Council on

Indian Opportunity to ensure that programs for Native Americans reflected their needs and wants

Voices of Protest• Young Native Americans were often unhappy with

the slow pace of reform• Fueled the growth of the American Indian

Movement (AIM)– Began as a self-defense group against police brutality– Demanded• Land, burial grounds and fishing and timber rights be restored• Respect for culture

Confronting the Government

• 1972 AIM leaders organized the Trail of Broken Treaties protest march in D.C.– Restoration of 110 million acres of land– Abolition of the Bureau of Indian Affairs• Believed to be corrupt

• In 1973 a group of Sioux Indians took the town of Wounded Knee, South Dakota hostage– After negotiations and a shootout with the FBI (two were

killed) the government agreed to reexamine the treaty rights of Native Americans

Native American Victories• 1972 Indian Education Reform Act• 1975 Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance

Act• Each gave tribes greater control over their affairs and their

children’s education• Regained territory promised in old treaties by taking the US

government to court• 1971 Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act– Gave natives 40 million acres and $962 million

• Throughout the 1970s and 80s tribes won settlements providing land and financial compensation