The American citizenry hails from diverse geographical and cultural backgrounds from all over the world. The diversity has paved the way for unique contributions by the individuals who will always identify with their origins and lobby for their space in the United States landscape. This essay aims at undertaking an analysis of two individuals with Mexican backgrounds with the aim to highlight how they identify with their ancestry. The study will also dwell on their contribution to the development of the United States. Cesar Chavez and Rodolfo “Corky” Gonzalez will be the focus of the essay whereby their participation and connection to the community will be unearthed.
Cesar Chavez hailed from a Mexican-American family and grew up among the farm workers who provided cheap labor in California after his family lost their land in the Great Depression. Chavez strongly identified with the Latino community especially after he had dropped out from school at an early age to serve in the farms. At the workplace, he was vocal in advocating for the rights of the workers (Pawel, 2015). This earned him a high place in the Latino civil rights group in California and later in the whole of the United States.
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It was Chavez who reminded the Latino community of their democratic rights. Although he had little education, he was able to convince his people to register as voters and participate in the electoral process. He made public addresses all over the state of California to enlighten the people on how their participation as voters would enhance the enrichment of their lives, especially the workers whose plight he closely identified with (Pawel, 2015). The development of his political involvement got him voted the national director of Community Service Organization (CSO).
Chavez’s national influence heightened when he organized strikes and boycotts that spread all over the country (Pawel, 2015). While identifying with the Latino community, he informed the workers that they had the numbers and a say in the wages they should receive. Chavez was at the forefront of the strike by the grape harvesters of California convincing the government side to sympathize with their plight during the hearings. With time, his influence spread to other communities with the Americans of Filipino origin embracing his support when they asked for higher wages. The workers’ strikes were to spread like bushfire with Texas and Wisconsin coming up with organizations that borrowed his support. Chavez is also credited with organizing the Sadal Bowl Strike under cover of United Farm Workers (UFW), an organization he had formed after leaving CSO. It was the most massive strike in the history of the United States, and again the government was convinced to raise the wages of fruit pickers.
Rodolfo “Corky” Gonzalez was an American of Mexican descent who identified with the Chicano movement (Kosena, 2009). The movement’s uniting factor was a sense of pride in a unanimous culture, ethnicity and community identity. The advocates of Chicano had observed the stereotyping they were being subjected to and embraced their common factors to overcome their prejudices. Gonzalez, therefore, was a central figure among his people and a reminder of their ancestry with a sense of pride.
Born and brought up in the state of Colorado, Gonzalez barely remembers the Great Depression owing to high poverty and his childhood status. His mother died when he was two, and his father raised him in the background of his ancestral land’s fight against Spanish domination. Gonzalez had earned the alias “Corky” from his sweltering attitude, a thing that made his family observe that he was prone to pop off like a cork. It was, therefore, not a surprise that he joined the boxing career (Appleman, 1987).
At the boxing ring, Gonzalez became an icon for the Chicano movement. His success in the sport was taken as a success for every American of Mexican origin (Appleman, 1987). Although he never collected any titles, it was the time he spent in the ring as a professional boxed that propelled him to popularity among the Chicano disciples. His induction into the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame further cements his position as the cultural icon for the people of his ancestral land, home state and America in general.
Gonzalez was also involved in political activism all along. This was another front that the Chicano movement applied to make its effect felt. He campaigned with the Democratic Party for the mayor of Denver and was also instrumental in the “Viva Kennedy” campaign (Castellanos, 2013). Gonzalez managed to convince many Latinos to register as voters and also participate in bringing John F. Kennedy to power. More so, he is revered as one of the pioneers of the Chicano Movement especially because he convened the first Chicano youth conference. It was at this conference that the subsequent Chicano idealists were nurtured.
Gonzalez was also influential in the birth and development of Chicano art. He was a renowned poet who used the pen to communicate to the Latino masses on the importance of taking pride in their identity. In his poem titled “I am Joaquin,” Gonzalez presents his idealized view of the Chicano who is in a myriad of conflicting identities that go beyond the general Latino stereotype (Castellanos, 2013). Critics have taken his writing as politicized and historicized meaning a “Chicano.” Others view it as a spiritual awakening or therapy to come to terms with the disadvantaged status as one of the United States’ minorities.
A keen educationist, Gonzalez founded a private school in 1971 to help enhance the self-esteem of the Americans of Mexican ancestry (Appleman, 1987). Among the school curricula, the school was also expected to be culturally relevant to these minorities. This new mode of education and not been experienced anywhere in America and it helped greatly in forging a conducive environment for the Latino people. The school’s name also reminded the Latinos of their ancestral land’s pride in dual cultural heritage. This move helped in producing academicians who had developed without feeling like outsiders in a society that they strived to uplift.
Despite his calculated moves to elevate the Latinos, Gonzalez’s record was upset in 1973 when an arrest outside his crusade headquarters triggered protests that were marked by violence, gun battles, and bombing. Accusing the authorities of trying to frustrate his excellent work on the Chicano, Gonzalez retired from frontline politics and opted to serve from a low profile. His service to his last days saw him branded as the “fist” of the Chicano movement (Appleman, 1987).
In conclusion, the Americans of Mexican origin form the minorities in states such as Colorado and California. This has brought about the stereotyping of these minority groups whereby in the past they were subjected to demeaning job positions, low pay, and less say in the nation’s political affairs. It is from these settings that there have arisen the various activists that have reminded the people of their rich shared heritage. Cesar Chavez is an excellent example of the forefathers of civil rights activists who fought for the betterment of the lives of Latinos in the state of California before going national. Rodolfo “Corky” Gonzalez, on the other hand, was a political activist who was central in founding the Chicano movement. He used the expressed the power of the Latino vote by propelling John F. Kennedy to power.
References
Appleman, M. (1987, July 7). Rodolfo Gonzalez was once on top of the world: Now he helps others on their way up. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved from http://articles.latimes.com/1987-07-07/
Castellanos, M. (2013, November 22). Viva Kennedy Clubs: Looking back at how JFK and Jackie resonated with Latino Voters. Latin post. Retrieved from http://www.latinpost.com/articles/
Kosena, J. (2009, March 21). West High, 1969. The Denver Post. Retrieved from https://www.denverpost.com/2009/03/21/
Pawel, M. (2015, September 16). 50 years ago, Cesar Chavez led a crusade to unite and empower farm workers. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved from http://www.latimes.com/opinion/op-ed/
