Latinos in the Making of the United States

by James D. Cockcroft

Looks at the history of Hispanic Americans, describes their contributions to American agriculture and industry, and discusses education, politics, and civil rights

191 pages, Library Binding

First published March 1, 1999

About the author

Historian, sociologist, political analyst, poet, and bilingual award-winning author of 50 books on Latin America, Latinos, US hidden history, culture, migration, and human rights. He was politically active from anti - VietNam war movement in the 60s and 70s, human rights activism in opposition to the shah in Iran, to solidarity movements with the struggles in various countries in Central and Latin America, especially Mexico, Cuba and Venezuela.

Reviews

[Teri Weaver · Rating 4 out of 5]

Highlighting the vital role that Latinos have played in the United States, this author carefully documents the plight and victories of Latino-Americans. The skills and talents of many immigrants have secured our status as a nation and Cockcroft is careful to discuss exactly who these Latinos are: Mexicans, Puerto Ricans, Dominicans, Cubans, Central Americans, and South Americans who immigrated here. The term “Hispanic” is explained as becoming an official term due to its use on the 1980 census. The author states that it was introduced in the 1970s as a way to “package” and de-politicize Latino social reform efforts. He mentions that few Latinos agree with the use of the term because it relates Latinos to the country of Spain who Latinos fought against for their freedoms. Using this book to accompany a novel such as Esperanza Rising would introduce the historic efforts that Latinos made to form unions and secure civil rights. Teachers could provide a follow-up to Esperanza by showing students how Latinos formed a successful grape boycott (due to DDT use), and how “by 1969, 17 million adult American refused to buy a single bunch of grapes forcing all the grape growers to settle with the UFW.” I think it is important for students to see that although Esperanza and other immigrants suffered throughout the book, some significant gains were made through the efforts of worker strikes. Understanding that our culture continues to depend on a Latino agricultural workforce to provide food for our tables is important. Recognizing the stereotypes and labels that pervade Latinos is valuable. After reading Esperanza, I think one of the goals of the teacher should be that students understand that “Latinos… sacrificed so much to build a well-fed, environmentally safe and healthy America.” By teaching this, the ending of Esperanza is much more hopeful and students will gain an historic viewpoint of one of the Latino victories in America.