Latinos and Asian Americans are among the majority groups in the American society. However, racism, social segregation and other forms of discrimination prevailed in their lives. The rise of anti-racial movements in the mid 20th century improved their lives. The next discussion expounds on the social, political and economic experiences of the two aforementioned minority groups in the late 20th century.
Before the late 20th century, the Latinos and Asian Americans experienced all forms of discrimination because of racial identification. Nevertheless, with the birth of human rights activists/anti-racial groups in the mid 20th century, their experiences greatly improved by the end of 20th century. Socially, most of them achieved the middle-class status because of the accessibility to quality education and jobs. The constitution granted them the right to vote and have a representative in the house of congress (McKay 1965, 50). Both the Latinos and Asian Americans had a house representative who could air out their plights to the government (Bickerstaff 2001, 99). Similarly, they had the right to equal accommodation, intermarry, to immigrate and all other forms of privileges the American constitution denied them in the earlier years. In the 1990s, the Japanese and other people of color like the Latinos who had participated in the World War II did not only receive compensation but also apology from the American government.
In brief, the end of the 20th century sparked a new life in most of the minority groups in America and Latinos and Asian American were not an exception. The two groups played a role in the politics of America by having the right to cast their votes. More over, they had the right to get access to education and health by end of the 20th century. Finally, although racism and ethnicity still prevailed in America (20th century), Latinos and Asian America started living a better life when compared to the earlier years.
Bibliography
Bickerstaff, Steve. “Effects of the Voting Rights Act on Reapportionment and Hispanic Voting Strength
in Texas.” Texas Hispanic Journal of Law & Policy 6, no. 1 (2001): 99-122.
McKay, Robert. Reapportionment: The Law and Politics of Equal Representation. New York: The
Twentieth Century Fund, 1965
