Hispanic American Diversity

Hispanic American Diversity

David Wynn

ETH 125

July 31, 2011

Bryan Williams

Hispanic American Diversity

A majority of Mexican Americans speak Spanish as well as English, though the percentage varies widely by state; from about 1% in Maine and Vermont to over 40% in New Mexico. In 1960, The Mexican American Political Association (MAPA) was finally implemented; this organization is intended to be non-partisan and only interested in placing qualified Mexican Americans into political office. Socially, Mexican Americans are under a lot of scrutiny right now, in part because of the number of illegal aliens residing in the U.S.. They have been subjected to profiling and discrimination in many states, Arizona is one that has had mainstream publicity of late. A large segment of Mexican Americans, working in the U. S., send a portion of their earnings home to Mexico, which drains the American economy of resources and is an indication of the movement towards a global economy that our society is heading for.

Because of Hernan Cortes’s influence, a majority of Mexicans are Catholic and have been since the 1500’s. The story of La Virgen de Guadalupe figures as one of most sacred of the Mexican Catholic religions. According to the story, the Virgin Mary appeared to a man named Juan Diego four separate times, on the hill of Tepeyac, just North of Mexico City. She identified herself as Guadalupe and asked for a basilica to be built honoring her. Juan Diego told the Bishop Juan de Zumarraga, who demanded proof, which was provided on the fourth visit. Juan Diego had a tilma, which is a cloak made of cactus fibers, which had a portrait of La Virgen with five-petal, bi-colored Castilian roses adorning it. When Diego removed his tilma for the Bishop, roses fell to the floor and suddenly the portrait of the Ever Virgin Holy Mary appeared in the fallen roses.

Mexican Americans have a long history of close family ties and convictions, some of which might be contributed to...