The Chicano Movement: Struggles, Goals, and Accomplishments Essay examp

In American history, civil rights movements have played a major role for many ethnics in the United States and have shape American society to what it is today. The impact of civil rights movements is tremendous and to an extent, they accomplish the objectives that the groups of people set out to achieve. The Mexican-American Civil Rights Movement, more commonly known as the Chicano Movement or El Movimiento, was one of the many movements in the United States that set out to obtain equality for Mexican-Americans (Herrera). At first, the movement had a weak start but eventually the movement gained momentum around the 1960’s (Herrera). Mexican-Americans, also known as Chicanos, began to organize in order to eliminate the social barriers that prevented them from progressing in American society (Bloom 47). Throughout the years of the Chicano Movement, Mexican-Americans had a â€Å"desire to integrate into the mainstream culture while preserving their own identity† (Bloom 47) . The Chicano Civil Rights Movement was a progressive era when Mexican-Americans had goals that they wanted to accomplish and sought reform in order to be accepted as a part of the United States. The Chicano Movement, like many other civil rights movements, gained motivation from the everyday struggles that the people had to endure in the United States due to society. Mexican-Americans, like many other ethnicities, were viewed as an inferior group compared to white Americans. Mexican-Americans sought to make a change with the Chicano Movement and â€Å"the energy generated by the movement focused national attention on the needs of Mexican-Americans† (Bloom 65). The Mexican-American Movement had four main issues that it aimed to resolve and they ranged from â€Å"restoration of la... ...tory: Postwar United States, 1946 to 1968, Revised Edition (Volume IX). New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2010. American History Online. Facts On File, Inc. Web. 12 February 2012. Tejada-Flores, Rick. "Fight in the Fields - CESAR CHAVEZ | PBS." PBS: Public Broadcasting Service. Web. 12 February 2012. Tenes, Angel. "SYLVIA MENDEZ GETS HIGHEST U.S. AWARD & HONOR."MENDEZ V. WESTMINSTER. 25 February 2011. Web. 10 March 2012. United States and Mexico. "Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo." From Treaties and Other Agreements of the United States of America, 1776-1949. Compiled by Charles I. Bevans. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1968-76. American History Online. Facts On File, Inc. Web. 10 March 2012. Woo-Sam, Anne. "Mexican Americans and the Chicano Movement." Encyclopedia of American Social Movements. Sharpe Online Reference. 2012. n. pag. Web. 12 February 2012.