The Chicanos and Mexicans present a marginalized community that has constantly struggled to gain access to various opportunities in the United States. Their efforts to gain some recognition have often been met by contradictions. These contradictions are apparent through the diverse efforts that have been made and maintained by various external institutions. These contradictions present as the hindering factors that have challenged their development. This is in addition to the challenges that these marginalized groups encounter. The essay will evaluate the diverse contradictions that these communities encounter in their various intersectional identities. The internal and external institutions that contribute to these contradictions will be analyzed based on the impact that they have in maintaining these contradictions.
Initially, it is apparent that the Chicano male tattoo artists are among the individuals that embed contradictions. This is in the essence that they hold a rigid perspective regarding femininity, gender, race and ethnicity. Through their views, it is evident that there exist some limitations (Rosas 384). This is regardless of the fact that they are currently living in the modern society. It is acknowledgeable that in the modern society, gender and race should not limit the capacity of a particular gender to involve themselves in certain activities. The male tattoo artists’ effort to limit the capacity in which, their female counterparts can participate in diverse activities presents a contradiction. This is in the sense that they struggle to maintain the tradition perspective in which the male Chicanos are believed to be dominant. This move is a drawback, as it limits the development and recognition that the Chicanos are advocating (Santos 95). In this context, it is acknowledgeable that this aspect present as a contradiction that has been created and continues to be embedded within the Chicano community.
The Bracero family separation is also among the contradictions that the Mexicans and Chicanos continue to encounter. This is in the essence that in spite of the Mexican community, working together to ensure that there is the development of their community, they are seen to negatively influence the challenges that their community encounters. This is in the essence that they are continuously seen trying to limit the females’ ability to make change in their community. This is because the women after being neglected by their breadwinners who are the males seek to feed themselves. This is by making efforts to seek unauthorized entry into the United States in hopes of getting better employment opportunities to support their families. However, their dreams are cut short by the Bracero program that should instead support them to be employed. This is because Mexicans who have a traditional and rigid view about women facilitate the Bracero program. This is in the sense that they tend to believe that women cannot be in a position to be the sole breadwinners in their families. This is because they see this threat towards their dominant nature where the men are required to be the head and sole providers of their families. The extent at which their dominant nature is evident is whereby the Mexicans on deportation may fail to return to their families since they view themselves as failures. This is because their community has male dominance belief, which in turn makes the male feel as failures. This is because they have not been able to live up to their expectations where they are not capable of providing for their families.
Despite the contradictions that Chicano and Mexican communities have continued to witness, there are instances where the contradiction has been affected by other external institutions. This can be witnessed in the instance where the deportation inflation that has been witnessed has been more of racist based rather than economic factors (Golash-Boza, Tanya, & Hondagneu-Sotelo 272). This is whereby the United States has become more concerned with the deportation of Mexicans rather than considering the factors that have resulted in the rates of migrations that have been witnessed. The deportation being gender and racist based should be a wakeup call for the Chicanos and the Mexicans to unite. However, they seem to be radicalized in the sense that they are not willing to put aside their rigid beliefs. This is because putting them aside would be effective in the sense that it would be possible for them to unite towards a common goal. Through this, it would be possible for them to do way with the contradictions that continues to exist between the Chicanos and the Mexicans.
The juvenile justice is among the contradictions that exist in the justice system. This is in the essence that the juveniles grow up based on the environment that they are exposed to as children and teenagers (Rios 152). These are a clear indication that the continuous injustices that continue to be self-inflicted among the Chicanos and Mexican contradict the goals in which they are working to achieve.
Based on the argument that has been provided, it is evident that there are some contradictions that exist in relation to how the Chicano and Mexican communities conduct themselves (Tlapalli 84). These communities should be aware and work hard to address these contradictions, which can enable them overcome most of the challenges that they are currently facing. This would be essential in helping them overcome contradictions that continue to prevail in their community.
Works Cited
Golash-Boza, Tanya, & Hondagneu-Sotelo, Pierrette. “Latino Immigrant Men and the Deportation Crisis: A Gendered Racial Removal Program.” Latino Studies. 11. 3. (2013). 271-292. Print.
Tlapalli, Tlilli. “How To Tame a Wild Tongue.” 77-86.
Rios, Victor. “The Consequences of the Criminal Justice Pipeline on Black and Latino Masculinity”. ANNALS. 623. (2009). 150-162. Print.
Rosas, Elizabeth. “Breaking the Silence: Mexican Children and Women’s Confrontation of Bracero Family Separation, 1942–64”. Gender & History. 23. 2. (2011). 382-400. Print.
Santos, Xuan. “The Chicana Canvas: Doing Class, Gender, Race, and Sexuality through tattooing in East Los Angeles.” NWSA Journal. 21.3. (2009): 91-120. Print.
