Chicano Midterm Guide

(5)According to Escobar, what is the dialectical relationship between the LAPD and the Chicano Movement from 1968-1971? Define this relationship as described by Escobar and use specific examples of how he argued this point.

Escobar describes the relationship between the LAPD and the Chicano Movement as a conflict where each side's actions affected the other. The LAPD tried to weaken the movement through police violence, arrests, surveillance, and infiltration of organizations such as the Brown Berets and the National Chicano Moratorium Committee. However, these tactics often produced the opposite result. Chicano activists used police brutality and harassment to organize protests, increase community participation, and strengthen Mexican American political awareness, making the movement more organized and politically active.

(6)According to Alvarado, Estrada & Hernández, how do they describe US foreign policy in Central America? What role has the US played in the region? Use examples.

Alvarado, Estrada, and Hernández describe U.S. foreign policy in Central America as interventionist and focused on protecting American economic, political, and military interests. The United States influenced governments, controlled resources, and supported military actions against movements viewed as communist. For example, the United States funded the Contra War against Nicaragua’s Sandinista government from 1981 to 1990, forcing Nicaragua to focus resources on fighting the war. The authors argue U.S. intervention contributed to economic hardship, political instability, and displacement, leading many Central Americans to migrate.

(7)In Mirandé, what was the Bracero Program? Use examples.

According to Mirandé, the Bracero Program was an agreement between the United States and Mexico, established on August 4, 1942, to bring Mexican workers into the United States for temporary labor. The program supplied workers to American farms during World War II when the country needed more agricultural labor. For example, Mexican workers were recruited to harvest crops in California and other agricultural areas. The program continued until 1964, and Mirandé explains how American businesses depended on Mexican labor while Mexican workers often faced low wages and unequal treatment.

(8) In De Leon, what is Prevention through Deterrence? How does he describe this policy and how does it impact migrants at the US-Mexico border? Use examples. 

According to De León, Prevention Through Deterrence is a U.S. border enforcement policy introduced in the 1990s to discourage unauthorized migration by increasing the risk and difficulty of crossing. The policy increased Border Patrol agents and surveillance in urban crossing areas, forcing migrants toward remote regions such as the Sonoran Desert, where the harsh environment became part of border enforcement. For example, Operation Blockade began in El Paso in 1993 and pushed migrants away from the city, while Operation Gatekeeper expanded the strategy into Southern California in 1994. De León argues the policy did not stop migration but made crossings more dangerous, exposing migrants to dehydration, heat, injury, and death.

(9)In Abrego and Villapando, how do they describe mainstream media representation of Central Americans? Use examples.

According to Abrego and Villalpando, mainstream U.S. media often represented Central Americans through negative stereotypes, portraying them as violent, dangerous, and connected to communism. During the 1980s, President Reagan described Salvadoran guerrilla fighters as threats to U.S. security, which encouraged the public to associate Central Americans with communists and violence. The authors also give examples from popular media, such as Lucy, a Salvadoran housekeeper in the 1995 film Clueless, who represents the stereotype of the angry Central American woman. They argue these limited and negative portrayals dehumanized Central Americans and helped justify discrimination and harsh treatment toward migrants and refugees.

(10)  In Barrera, why did Chicana/o student’s walkout in 1968 in California? What were their demands? Use specific examples from the article

According to Barrera, Chicana/o students walked out of Edcouch-Elsa High School in November 1968 because they faced discrimination and unequal treatment from school officials. Mexican American students were punished for speaking Spanish, held to stricter dress codes, and discouraged from attending college. For example, a counselor encouraged Mexican American boys to join the military or pursue manual labor instead of college, while Anglo students received more academic opportunities. The students demanded equal treatment, the right to speak Spanish at school, better educational opportunities, recognition of Mexican American culture and history, more Chicano teachers, and greater parent involvement in school decisions.

(11) In Minero, et al., what are the conditions and treatment of Trans and nonbinary (TNB) people in detention centers? Use examples from the article.

According to Minero et al., TNB immigrants faced dangerous and dehumanizing conditions in U.S. detention centers. They experienced transphobic harassment, abuse by detention officers, poor living conditions, denial of basic needs and medical care, and punishment through solitary confinement. For example, participants reported spoiled food, forced labor, sexual harassment, and interruptions to hormone treatment. Some were placed in solitary confinement for months, often under the claim of protecting them. These experiences caused trauma, anxiety, depression, and suicidal thoughts.

(12) In Abrego, who is Marta and what were her reasons for migrating?

Marta is a Salvadoran woman who migrated from El Salvador to Los Angeles in 1993 at age 21. Abrego explains she left because poverty, limited job opportunities, and domestic violence made life difficult in El Salvador. She had two children and struggled to support them because available jobs paid too little. Her sister Sonia offered to pay for a smuggler and let Marta live with her in Los Angeles while caring for her child. Marta accepted because she hoped to earn enough money to support her children and aging parents in El Salvador.

(13) In Roque Ramírez, what type of research does he conduct and what are the methodologies that he uses?

Horacio N. Roque Ramírez conducts community history research focusing on marginalized populations. His primary subjects include queer Latina and Latino immigrants in the San Francisco Bay Area and Salvadoran immigrant men in Los Angeles. His central methodology is oral history. He records audio interviews with living community members to capture personal memories, testimonies, and life experiences. He also examines archival records and historical documentation to supplement personal narratives.

(14) In López Oro, who are the Garifuna? Use examples from the article to describe who they are.

The Garifuna are Black Indigenous peoples. Their history starts on the island of St. Vincent in the fifteenth century. They descend from shipwrecked enslaved West Africans, Carib people, and Arawak people. They represent a maroon Indigenous Black population born from resistance to European colonialism.

(15) In Ramirez, how do they define UndocuQueer? (hint pgs. 161-164)

The text defines UndocuQueer as an identity category formed by fusing an undocumented status with a sexual orientation. It operates as a shorthand label within political movements and social media. The term seeks to provide political visibility for marginalized individuals. However, authors and subjects argue that the term imposes fixed boundaries. It restricts the fluid expression of the self.