Chicano Youth Movement
By Julia Roldan, Kerry James, Colton Koehler
Background
The Chicano Youth Movement was a result of Mexicans wanting civil rights in the United States. It began in New Mexico with Reies López Tijerina and the Land Grant Movement and the movement was defined by Rodolfo "Corky" Gonzales in his epic poem I Am Joaquin. It embraced the struggle of Chicano youth in America, and outlined the growing political awareness of the movement itself. One of the most important leaders of the movement was Cesar Chavez. Chaves worked to organize farm workers in California and highlighted the importance of faith and prayer in obtaining his goal of civil liberty for Mexican-Americans.
Legislation/Court Cases/Gains
The LA 13 - Thirteen Chicano students organizing a peaceful walkout and were arrested for conspiracy to disturb schools and the peace. The students were released for incarceration, but afterwards schools began to hire more Chicano teachers to create a strong political force for the Los Angeles Chicano community.
June 5th 1967 - Reies conducted an armed raid in Tierra Amarilla on the Rio Arriba County Courthouse in New Mexico. Landowners were attempting to regain their land from the US government. This was one of the most traumatic events of the Chicano Movement in the 1960's.
Strike X - In San Francisco State College, the Third World liberation Firm organized strikes against inequality within the college. It yielded the creation of Black, Asian, and Raza study departments. It led to the proposal of other colleges to have ethnic study groups.
Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Act - Passed in 168, this was the first legal fund to pursue protection of the civil right of Mexican Americans.
U.S Voting Rights Act - Revised after it's original version in 1965 only pertained to Blacks and Puerto Ricans, this act helped Mexican Americans have language assistance at the voting polls. This increases the political representation of Mexican Americans in the United States.