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ANTI-COLONIALISM IN THE MICHIGAN CHICANO MOVEMENT By Nora Salas A DISSERTATION Submitted to Michigan State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of History – Doctor of Philosophy 2015 ABSTRACT ANTI-COLONIALISM IN THE MICHIGAN CHICANO MOVEMENT By Nora Salas In this dissertation I argue anti-colonial thought in Michigan’s Chicano Movement was a response to a domestic/migrant colonial discourse that operated on a local and state-wide level. Between 1962 and 1967 Mexican-Americans and other Latinos lobbied Michigan’s elected officials to gain the rights of industrial workers for seasonal agricultural workers. Their efforts were stymied by growers and the Michigan Farm Bureau. The MFB and its allies reinforced their opposition with a domestic/migrant colonial binary that defined all Mexican-Americans as foreigners and justifiably colonized. By 1968 Chicano anti-colonialism emerged in Michigan to counter this colonial discourse through organizing, literature and art. I contend that the development of anti-colonial thought amongst Chicanos in Michigan demonstrates that Mexican-Americans experienced colonialism not only in the immediate aftermath of the Mexican-American War or in former Mexican territory. This dissertation demonstrates the viability of a different history wherein colonialism was not contained in the Southwest as a short-lived exception to American liberalism. By situating Michigan Chicano Movement anti-colonialism as a response to a locally based colonial discourse I emphasize the ways in which a critique of American imperialism was central to the Chicano Movement nationwide. Furthermore Michigan Chicanos and Chicanas experienced multiple forms of colonial domination. They were not only workers excluded from the public sphere of benefits and rights but also lived as families whose private sphere was compromised. In addition to racializing Chicanos as foreigners the domestic/migrant colonial binary gendered Chicano families as dependent, needy and ultimately female. Chicano anti-colonialism also presented a gendered narrative whose history has often been seen as synonymous with patriarchy. Instead I argue that Chicana and Chicano uses of anti-colonial ideals, especially la familia de la raza, included more liberatory possibilities. Copyright by NORA SALAS 2015 For Rosalinda Salas (1978-2014) No necesitamos pedir permiso para ser libres. v ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I am thankful for the support and guidance of my committee members, Dr. Lisa Fine, Dr. Theresa Melendez, Dr. Susan Sleeper-Smith and my chair, Dr. Dionicio Valdés. Dr. Theresa Melendez recruited me to become a PhD student through her unparalleled leadership of the Chicano/Latino Studies Program. I would never have entered a doctoral program without her example of what an engaged scholar could accomplish. Dr. Lisa Fine and Dr. Susan Sleeper- Smith helped to retain me as a doctoral student through their timely advice, incisive commentary and flexibility. My chair, Dr. Dionicio Valdés, possesses a depth of knowledge of Midwest Chicano History and colonialism that has been invaluable. I appreciate his willingness to share this knowledge with me and his persistence in doing so. In addition the Department of History at Michigan State University provided important academic and financial support. I am also grateful for the critical support I received through a Bentley Library Travel Fellowship and the American Dissertation Fellowship from the American Association of University Women. A dissertation is both a professional and personal accomplishment. On a personal level I would like to thank everyone who has struggled for justice beside me, especially in recent efforts to preserve and expand Ethnic Studies. Amongst these Todd Mireles has been my dearest friend and partner in la Xicanada for more than twenty years. We have passed through many crucibles together and doctoral work is another that I was exceedingly fortunate to go through with him at my side. There are many other people who contributed to my arrival at this point in my life; far too many to be thanked here. Suffice it to say that I owe more than I could ever return to la raza who have been my nest, my shield and my sword. vi My family deserves a special thanks. My siblings Rosa, Matt, Sean and James have always believed in me and suffered through unrequested historical lectures on numerous occasions. My parents Pam and John possess a boundless faith in my abilities that has been a tremendous source of strength. I owe so much to my mother, but most of all an unwavering belief that a better world is possible at both an individual and societal level. This belief guides my life and work. My deepest thanks go to my husband Tim and our daughter Lucia. Tim has been there with me, more than anyone, in my most difficult and darkest moments. I am grateful he was there to endure my trials with me and I am elated we can now share our joy at completing this work. For Lucia, more than anyone, I have been working on my dissertation “forever.” Throughout this process she has been a constant reminder that our humanity is a treasure worth fighting for. vii TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF FIGURES ...................................................................................................................... x INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................................ 1 CHAPTER ONE: “PABLO’S PROBLEM” ............................................................................ 16 Cold War Colonialism: The Peasant Menace .......................................................................... 19 Keeping la Raza Down on the Farm ......................................................................................... 33 New Frontiers ............................................................................................................................ 49 “Radical Group May Demonstrate” .......................................................................................... 56 “Chavez-paid Organizers” and La Raza ................................................................................... 65 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................ 81 CHAPTER TWO: “WE ARE A DISTINCT PEOPLE” DIFFERENCE IN SCHOOLS .... 85 Education as Alienation ............................................................................................................ 86 Schooling and Nationalism ..................................................................................................... 104 Chicano Movement Interprets Schooling ............................................................................... 113 Desegregation and Bilingual Education .................................................................................. 119 Conclusion .............................................................................................................................. 136 CHAPTER THREE: “THE HISTORICAL RHYTHM” ..................................................... 140 Anti-Colonial History and Literature ...................................................................................... 141 La Raza and Anti-Colonial Thought in Michigan .................................................................. 144 “Te llamen ‘militante’ y lo eres, como un Tolteca es” ........................................................... 151 Mi Nación Is Aztlan: History as Self-Determination ............................................................ 160 La Adelita y el Rebozo ........................................................................................................... 171 The Historical Rhythm ............................................................................................................ 177 Conclusion .............................................................................................................................. 184 CHAPTER FOUR: PRIVATE SPHERES AND PRIVATE PROPERTY ......................... 189 Individualism, Upward Mobility and the Family ................................................................... 190 Access to Schooling ................................................................................................................ 193 Gendered and Colonized Labor .............................................................................................. 201 “. Some area will have to care for the migrants . .” .......................................................... 207 Private Sphere, Private Property ............................................................................................. 218 Conclusion .............................................................................................................................. 224 viii CHAPTER FIVE: LA FAMILIA DE LA RAZA Y MUM ................................................... 228 “Loyalists” and “Feminists” ................................................................................................... 229 “It’s not just your family” ....................................................................................................... 241 A Tu Lado, Siempre a Tu Lado .............................................................................................. 254 “Con Mis Ojos al Horizonte Iluminoso” ................................................................................ 266 Conclusion .............................................................................................................................