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81
The image of Mexican workers’ conditions recalls a combination of the
penal system and slavery. In addition, Rosales notes that enganchistas
(contractors) stole a part of the Mexicans’ pay (one out of every three
dollars) and withheld a portion in order to ensure that they would not
leave before the end of the season.51 Mexican citrus workers in California
were therefore in a similar situation as the Mexican cotton sharecroppers
in Texas as described by Foley. Given this history, it is not surprising that
land and labor issues have been central to much Mexican American
activism.
The history of people of Mexican descent in California is not simply
a tale of exploitation and discrimination. Mexicans have resisted Anglo
attempts to subjugate them. The landed elite of the nineteenth century
held onto their land and their power as best they could. Mexicans in
America have always maintained ties to Mexico, often crossing and re-crossing
the border first to take advantage of opportunities and then to
escape persecution in the U.S. For example, during the 1910 Mexican
Revolution hundreds of thousands of Mexicans fleeing the conflict settle
in the southwest. However, as Rodolfo Acuña explains, Mexicans in the
U.S. during this period were believed to be Pancho Villa sympathizers.
The situation was exacerbated by the U.S. entry into World War I and the
rising belief that Mexicans in the U.S. were also sympathetic to Germany.
Both of these episodes seem to be evidence of tension in regard to
Object Description
| Title | "As shelters against the cold": women writers of the Black Arts and Chicano movements, 1965-1978 |
| Author | Ryder, Ulli Kira |
| Author email | uryder@usc.edu; uryder@gmail.com |
| Degree | Doctor of Philosophy |
| Document type | Dissertation |
| Degree program | American Studies & Ethnicity |
| School | College of Letters, Arts and Sciences |
| Date defended/completed | 2008-08-27 |
| Date submitted | 2008 |
| Restricted until | Restricted until 27 October 2010. |
| Date published | 2010-10-27 |
| Advisor (committee chair) | McKenna, Teresa |
| Advisor (committee member) |
Sanchez, George J. Johnson, Dana |
| Abstract | This dissertation examines the work of women writers in the Black Arts and Chicano movements during the years 1965-1978. I argue that understanding the intersectional nature of the women's experiences is crucial for understanding their literary output. Further, I argue that Chicanas and African American women of this era challenged homogenous notions of community and racial identity and that we can trace the development of the Third World feminism and multiculturalism that came to the fore in the 1980s to this earlier period. Thus, this study also impacts the way we conceptualize identity formation and the creation of the literary canon. Investigating the ways in which these women integrated nationalist and feminist rhetoric and activism in their work is crucial for a full understanding of this critical period in U.S. history. At stake is an understanding of how Chicana and African American women in the United States have formed identities and communities; struggled for liberation and equality; and become part of the U.S. literary canon. |
| Keyword | Black Power; Black Arts movement; Chicano movement; civil rights; racial identity formation; womanism; borderlands theory; feminism; Third World feminism; nationalism; intersectionality |
| Geographic subject (country) | USA |
| Coverage date | 1965/1978 |
| Language | English |
| Part of collection | University of Southern California dissertations and theses |
| Publisher (of the original version) | University of Southern California |
| Place of publication (of the original version) | Los Angeles, California |
| Publisher (of the digital version) | University of Southern California. Libraries |
| Provenance | Electronically uploaded by the author |
| Type | texts |
| Legacy record ID | usctheses-m1698 |
| Contributing entity | University of Southern California |
| Rights | Ryder, Ulli Kira |
| Repository name | Libraries, University of Southern California |
| Repository address | Los Angeles, California |
| Repository email | cisadmin@lib.usc.edu |
| Filename | etd-Ryder-2415 |
| Archival file | uscthesesreloadpub_Volume40/etd-Ryder-2415.pdf |
Description
| Title | Page 86 |
| Contributing entity | University of Southern California |
| Repository email | cisadmin@lib.usc.edu |
| Full text | 81 The image of Mexican workers’ conditions recalls a combination of the penal system and slavery. In addition, Rosales notes that enganchistas (contractors) stole a part of the Mexicans’ pay (one out of every three dollars) and withheld a portion in order to ensure that they would not leave before the end of the season.51 Mexican citrus workers in California were therefore in a similar situation as the Mexican cotton sharecroppers in Texas as described by Foley. Given this history, it is not surprising that land and labor issues have been central to much Mexican American activism. The history of people of Mexican descent in California is not simply a tale of exploitation and discrimination. Mexicans have resisted Anglo attempts to subjugate them. The landed elite of the nineteenth century held onto their land and their power as best they could. Mexicans in America have always maintained ties to Mexico, often crossing and re-crossing the border first to take advantage of opportunities and then to escape persecution in the U.S. For example, during the 1910 Mexican Revolution hundreds of thousands of Mexicans fleeing the conflict settle in the southwest. However, as Rodolfo Acuña explains, Mexicans in the U.S. during this period were believed to be Pancho Villa sympathizers. The situation was exacerbated by the U.S. entry into World War I and the rising belief that Mexicans in the U.S. were also sympathetic to Germany. Both of these episodes seem to be evidence of tension in regard to |
