The Spanish set out to colonize with the aim of mining gold and silver; this made them enslave the native people to work in the mines extracting the precious metals. Upon their arrival, they found the native people surviving on hunting and gathering while others were farming along the rivers. The first colonization of the southwest began with the discovery of silver in Zacatecas and establishment of the mine in the same place. With time, the Spanish brought about their language, religion and customs, doing away with the culture that they found in Southwest. A regional culture came about with its blanket weaving, handicrafts and wood carving. During the two and a half centuries of the Spanish rule, Southwest underwent radical change. They brought about feudalism and over the next decades the cultural change accelerated (Vigil 40).
The driving force for the Mexicans during the colonization was to consolidate the Northern provinces since they were sparsely populated and dominated by the Indian and the foreign powers. They came up with policies that would eventually allow people to settle in the area and promote its development at the same time. These measures allowed for the population to grow and the economy, therefore encouraging more people to take up farming as the main economic activity (Roberts 37).
The Anglo American dominance resulted into creation of large, distinct Spanish speaking community that was well endowed with economic resources that were enough to sustain the Hispanic identity of the other Americans. It is because of the persistent inflow of Hispanic immigrants that would divide the United States people and also divide the culture. Unlike the past immigrant groups, the Hispania’s have assimilated into the mainstream US culture, and coming up with their own political and cultural territories.
Works Cited
Vigil, Phillip A. Early Roads to the Sangre De Cristo Mountains: An Historical Journey of the Vigil Family from Spain to the American Southwest. S.l.: Las Placitas Publications, 2010. Print.
Roberts, David. The Pueblo Revolt: The Secret Rebellion That Drove the Spaniards Out of the Southwest. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2004. Print.
