In post-World War II America, Americans of Mexican and
Puerto Rican descent had faced discrimination. New immigrants,
coming from Cuba, Mexico, and Central America – often unskilled
and unable to speak English – suffered from discrimination as
well. Some Hispanics worked as farm laborers and at times were
cruelly exploited while harvesting crops; others gravitated to
the cities, where, like earlier immigrant groups, they
encountered difficulties in their quest for a better life.
Chicanos, or Mexican-Americans, mobilized in organizations like
the radical Asociación Nacional Mexico-Americana, yet did not
become confrontational until the 1960s. Hoping that Lyndon
Johnson's poverty program would expand opportunities for them,
they found that bureaucrats failed to respond to less vocal
groups. The example of black activism in particular taught
Hispanics the importance of pressure politics in a pluralistic
society.
The National Labor Relations Act of 1935 had excluded
agricultural workers from its guarantee of the right to organize
and bargain collectively. But César Chávez, founder of the
overwhelmingly Hispanic United Farm Workers, demonstrated that
direct action could achieve employer recognition for his union.
California grape growers agreed to bargain with the union after
Chávez led a nationwide consumer boycott. Similar boycotts of
lettuce and other products were also successful. Though farm
interests continued to try to obstruct Chávez's organization,
the legal foundation had been laid for representation to secure
higher wages and improved working conditions.
Hispanics became politically active as well. In 1961 Henry B.
González won election to Congress from Texas. Three years later
Eligio ("Kika") de la Garza, another Texan, followed him, and
Joseph Montoya of New Mexico went to the Senate. Both González
and de la Garza later rose to positions of power as committee
chairmen in the House. In the 1970s and 1980s, the pace of
Hispanic political involvement increased. Several prominent
Hispanics have served in the Bill Clinton and George W. Bush
cabinets.
|
