Book
The Mexican outsiders: a community history of marginalization and discrimination in California
University of Texas Press • Austin, Tx • Published In 1995 • Pages:
By: Menchaca, Martha.
Abstract
This is an excellent history and ethnography of ethnic relations in the southern California city of Santa Paula. Through archival research and oral histories, Menchacca, who grew up in the town she studies, uncovers the hidden history of Mexican-Americans in the city and their bitter conflicts and struggles with Anglo-Americans. She documents how the original Mexican settlers were illegally dispossessed of their land after the Mexican War, creating a landless labor force for a growing Anglo-American-controlled citrus industry. She chronicles the often violent labor and racial relations of the city, including the Klu Klux Klan, bracero program, which opened the employment to migrant farm workers from Mexico, and the failed attempts to unionize farm workers. She discusses how racial discrimination continues today through segregated housing, schools, and churches. She also discusses the tensions and divergent attitudes within the Mexican-American community between new immigrants and long-time residents.
- HRAF PubDate
- 2002
- Region
- North America
- Sub Region
- Regional, Ethnic and Diaspora Cultures
- Document Type
- Book
- Evaluation
- Creator Type
- Ethnologist
- Document Rating
- 4: Excellent Secondary Data
- 5: Excellent Primary Data
- Analyst
- Ian Skoggard ; 2001
- Field Date
- 1986-1991
- Coverage Date
- 1769-1986
- Coverage Place
- Santa Paula, Ventura County, California, United States
- Notes
- Martha Menchaca
- Includes bibliographical references (p. [235]-244) and index
- LCCN
- 94046190
- LCSH
- Mexican Americans