Introduction to Chicano Studies
The 1960’s and 70’s saw an increase in immigration from Mexico to the US. With the new influx of Mexicans, the older Mexicans who had settled in the southwest of the country moved. Not only this, but with this new wave of immigration came the call for more equitable rights for the Mexicans. Out of this struggle for political and social equality for Mexican Americans was born the Chicano movement. The Chicanos believed in political power and were more aggressive than their predecessors who had asked for similar rights at the end of WWII. What set the Chicanos apart was the fact that they took pride in their Mexican identity and deemphasized Americaness or integration into the American society. Ruben Salazar, a Journalist on the periphery of the movement describes the Chicano as “a Mexican-American with a non-Anglo image of himself (Gonzalez, 2009).” The early leaders of the Chicano movement looked towards Mexico for inspiration and set two goals for the community-cultural regeneration and political power. In their quest for socio-economic equality and political power, the Chicanos were divided into two groups-the moderates and the radicals. The moderates wanted to work within the system and the radicals wanted a restructuring of the system and eventually the moderates prevailed. Not every Mexican living in the Unites States were supporters or part of the Chicano movement. The affluent Mexicans and the working class were skeptical and did not join the movement and very few were in the periphery. The Mexicans born in the United States too could find no real connections with the newer immigrants and their struggles. There was also the feminist women wing of the Chicano movements and they called themselves the Chicanas- largely to protest against the chauvinistic tendency existing in the society and within the Chicano movement.
The Chicano movement produced vibrant soundscapes of chants, gritos, prayers, poetry and music that specifically created ambiance, focus, and documentation of social and political existence (Rodriguez, 2002). The Chicano songs have also served to exist as historical documents that detail the struggles of the Chicano movement and the fight for Equality. It also helps the outsiders understand what the movement was all about. The musical component of the Chicano movement drew inspiration from various sources including the labor movement in the United States with singers such as Pete Seeger and Woody Guthrie, the civil rights movements and other social movements from Latin America and Cuba that taught them social struggles on a global scale from ‘below’. The Chicano movement also took musical inspirations from old Mexican traditions such as the Corrido and the carpa, ancient Mexican theatre traditions to highlight their demands and also involve the audience. They used popular songs, tunes and rewrote the lyrics to talk about issues like cheap labor, war and social equity. The Corrido was especially popular and it managed to retain its popularity in spite of having to share air time with Italian operas, French military marches and classical music in the radio stations. Together with the carpa or traditional Mexican theatre the Chicano movement ensured that the recent immigrant and the Mexicans already in the US maintained ties with their ancestral land.
The Corrido in its normal form is a ballad that has eight syllables and stanzas that have four lines. They are usually sung to a simple tune in a fast manner either to waltz time or as in recent times the polka rhythm. The Corrido is usually sung in a high pitch and is accompanied by a twelve string guitar that is famous in Northern Mexico and Texas. The Corrido in the beginning came under the bastion of men who sang it at home, sang it when they were on horseback, they were sung by the troubadours, the blind guitarists sung it in the cantinas, it was sung during the Mexican Revolution and also by migrant workers (Dickey, 1976). These days Corridos can be heard over the radio or during live performances by bands. The Corrido is the most basic of the Chicano music form on top of being their source of oral history. Many a times, the oral history plays an equal part to that of written history in perpetuating a movement. They helped in spreading information within the Chicano community and also outside of it. Some Corridos are comical, while some help in transmitting historical information. An example of such a Corrido could be the ‘El Corrido de Jacinto Trevino’, a story about a man who stood against the Texas Rangers (Dickey, 1976). Most of the Corridos spread the latest information about the movement albeit in a glamorized version. The actual events were dramatized to make the audience understand the struggle and also gain their sympathy. Sometimes Corridos can also have a tragic theme that discusses the horrors and the injustices meted out to the Mexicans by the American Legal system. It was not always about the movement too, as certain Corridos spoke about the menace of drug trafficking and the problems it could bring to those who were involved in it. Such Corridos had a moral lesson running within them.
The modern Corrido used by the Chicano movement has its origins in the Spanish romance, a ballad that has an abcd rhyme. Corrido means a rapid song without refrain. The Corrido usually relates the tale of a hero, the exploits of a bandit, news of national and local importance, information about a natural disaster or a story. Corridos with little narration can also be called Corridos if they have the musical and literary form. In his work, the ‘La lírica narrativa de México’, Vicente Mendoza explains the six primary formal characteristics of the corrido. They are: (1) the initial call of the corridista, or balladeer, to the public, sometimes called the formal opening; (2) the stating of the place, time, and name of the protagonist of the ballad; (3) the arguments of the protagonist; (4) the message; (5) the farewell of the protagonist; and (6) the farewell of the corridista (Mendonza, 1963). Not all Corridos have the same form and it may vary from region to region. The one thing common that all Corridos have is the despedida or the goodbye. Even when the singers skip the introduction and dive into the issue to gain audience interest they never forget the despedida.
The Corridos had an element of appropriation in them, they were taken from the traditional Mexican culture and tweaked to be put to use in the later struggles of the Mexican people. The Corrido music form existed much before the Chicano movement appropriated it and people in Mexico used it as a social commentary or as an interpreter of the Mexican-American experience. It was also a music form that was passed down various generations and it was the music that those people could call their own. Similar to the appropriation of the African music forms during the civil rights struggle, the Chicano movement too appropriated a traditional music form and through this appropriation they set about telling Mexicans about their struggles during the sixties. Corridos such as La Adelita, Lavaplatos, Yo Soy Chicano, Corrido de Aztlan, Corrido de Cesar Chavez and Corrido de Sal Castro are evidence of the social and political role that expressive culture has played within the Mexican American and Chicano historical experience (Mendoza, 2012). Corridos thus acted as a tool that was used to bring attention to the work of the Chicanos as it was usually neglected in the telling of the national history or other narratives of Mexican-American history.
Mexican-American author Trevino says that the Corridos strengthened the relationship between memory and personal identity of the Chicanos thus bringing in a legitimizing factor to the struggles. Through Corridos the Mexicans could feel the cultural thread that ties them to their ancestors and use it in their contemporary struggles. Before the Sixties, the Corridos were hugely commercialized owing to the integration of the Mexicans into the American culture. More than a social appeal, they were performed for commercial interests. All these changes however with the Kennedy association. With the assassination of Kennedy, the Corridos took on the earlier tradition of hero worshiping. A lot of Kennedy Corridos were formed and sung by the Mexican-Americans and they became every popular. The new immigrants saw in these ballads and through Kennedy a kinship with their struggles and calls for equality. Once the Chicano movement took over the Corrido form, the Corridos soon became about the Chicano leaders and the pride of the Mexican-Americans in their culture and other social struggles.
The Corridos after the Chicano movement were not completely about the Chicano struggles. Rather the content of the Corridos changed according to the times. Narco-Corridos were all the rage a few years ago with Corridos singing praises of the Narco traffickers and their wealth. There were also political Corridos that sung praises of politicians, especially in Texas like Cisernos. There are also Corridos about the 9/11 terrorist attack, the space mission and numerous other issues. Although Corridos are famous in the internet and have less censorship issues, the main source of their popularity is derived from being played on the radio. Corridos continue to exist to this day with many Chicano bands performing throughout the United States. These new bands appeal to the youth thus keeping the tradition alive for future generations too.
The Chicano movement was a struggle for social equality and a better lifestyle for the Mexican immigrants and music played an important role in spreading the news of the struggle to the people. Corridos served as a popular entertainment and helped recruit new members to the Chicano movement. They are an integral part of the Mexican-American tradition.
Works Cited
Gonzales. G. Manuel. Mexicanos: A History of Mexicans in the United States. Bloomington: Indiana University Press. 2009.
Dan W. Dickey, "Tejano Troubadours." Texas Observer. July 16, 1976.
Dan W. Dickey, "Corridos," Handbook of Texas Online. Texas State Historical Association. 2010.
Rodriguez.C. Russel. “La Causa Cantada: Singing to the Movement.” GIA Reader No. 2, Fall 2002.
Treviño. S. Jesus. Eyewitness: A Filmmaker’s Memoir of the Chicano Movement. Houston: Arte Publico, 2001.
Vicente T. Mendoza. Lírica narrativa de México: El Corrido. Mexico City: Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Instituto de Investigaciones Estéticas. 1964.
