Resistir Para Existir: "Giving Power Back to the Community"
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY SAN MARCOS THESIS SIGNATURE PAGE THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE MASTER OF ARTS IN SOCIOLOGICAL PRACTICE THESIS TITLE: Resistir Para Existir: "Giving Power Back to the Community" AUTHOR: Luis M. Higinio DA TE OF SUCCESSFUL DEFENSE: THE THESIS HAS BEEN ACCEPTED BY THE THESIS COMMITTEE IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS IN SOCIOLOGICAL PRACTICE. Sharon Elise ~ /c, l,"1 THESIS COMMITTEE CHAIR ~ Christopher Bickel s/1Ir) THESIS COMMITTEE MEMBER DATE Richelle Swan THESIS COMMITTEE MEMBER ,-GNATUREfrtJd"CWv Resistir Para Existir: “Giving Power Back to the Community” By Luis M. Higinio MASP PROGRAM DEPARTMENT OF SOCIOLOGY CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY SAN MARCOS THESIS COMMITTEE Dr. Sharon Elise, Chair Dr. Christopher Bickel Dr. Richelle Swan Abstract My research question asks how, in Fallbrook, California, Mexican@/Chican@s mobilized to create Mexicanos Unidos en Defensa del Pubelo (MUDP), challenge white supremacy ideology and give a voice to the Mexican@ community. In a time of racist repression fueled by Tom Metzger’s White Aryan Resistance (WAR) ideology, hyper policing of youth, surveillance by Border Patrol and intense everyday racism, a counter resistance organization emerged. Given the racially antagonistic relationship toward the Mexican@ population in Fallbrook, the narrative of MUDP reveals the shape and form of resistance against white supremacy in this rural community. I conducted six in-depth focused semi-structured interviews with former and current MUDP members, 4 men and 2 women. The counter narrative uncovered in these interviews captures the years of struggle in this community and their liberatory practice, one built on transparency, education, self-determination, and liberation. Keywords: Resistance, racism, grassroots organizing, Chicano Sociology, empowerment, Internal Colonialism, counter narratives, protest, liberation, historical accounting, identity, Mexican@, Chican@ 1 Acknowledgements Para Estevan Huitzilli, Mijo espero que continúes siendo libre Y siempre recuerda que te quiero. From the moment, I heard your little heart beat I knew that I had to make you proud. Hope I don’t let you down! To Morayma: You are my strength and biggest supported, I love you. This MA wouldn’t be possible without you. It was you who introduced me to la resistencia. You allowed me to reach a level of, social cultural, and political understanding that has continued to shape me. You are an inspirational woman and I’m blessed to have you. Thank you for understanding all the late nights away from you and Estevan. This MA has been a family effort. Los quiero mucho. Para mis padres: Los quieros Mucho! Gracias por traerme a este mundo. Admiro su fuerza de migrar y de luchar por una vida mejor. Les agradezco que me hayan enseñado a ser humilde y luchar. To my brothers and sister: This is only the beginning. Our family has endured a lot and we continue to push forward. We have a story to share, let’s share it. Para mis suegros: Gracias por creer en mí. Sus palabras siempre me ayudaron cuando las cosas se ponían difícil. “las cosas más difíciles de la vida son las cosas buenas de hacer.” Los quiero mucho. To the Flores Brothers: You have inspired me to continue my education. Thank you for the love, advice, and wisdom you have shared with me. You are the epitome of the Toltecayotl. To my MUDP Comrade brothers and sisters: Your impact and knowledge have forever shaped how I look and interact with the world. I continue to learn from each one of you. Your commitment to the liberation of our gente is inspiring. I will forever be grateful for the opportunity to organize alongside each of you. MUDP has truly been the foundation of my life and now my scholarly work. To my committee members: This research started out as an idea. It was the hours of conversation that shaped it into this MA. Dr. Sharon Elise thank you for pushing my work forward, your feedback and critical perspectives transformed this MA. Dr. Chris Bickel, thank you for believing in me and my work. I truly appreciate your edits, “show don’t tell” will be ingrained in my writing forever. Dr. Richelle Swan when I took your class I knew that I wanted you to be part of this project. I truly appreciate all your knowledge. The pro-seminar was informative and helpful and you taught me to believe in myself as a scholar and researcher. This was a collective effort and I thank you all for turning my idea into this beautiful MA. Gracias! Dr. Xuan Santos: 2 It was that fateful day that we ran into each other in San Marcos. I am a strong believer in being at the right place at the right time, we were. You pushed me to come back and made me believe that I could return and finish the program. Thank you for believing in me. It’s professor like you that are needed in the academy. I will forever be grateful for your words of encouragement. To the many cohorts I was fortunate to be a part of: Thank you for allowing me to learn from you. You are all some dope scholars. Stay grounder, stay humble and believe in your work. Stalin: You believed in my work when I first came back to the program. I appreciate your friendship and I admire all your tenacity. You are a Chican@ Sociologist. Vámonos recio! Guillermo: Thanks for the writing sessions. Let’s continue producing some critical work. 3 Table of Contents Abstract ................................................................................................................................... 1 Acknowledgements ................................................................................................................. 2 Introduction ............................................................................................................................ 5 Statement of the Problem ....................................................................................................... 8 Literature Review: Resistance Movements .............................................................................. 9 The Creation of a New Identity and the Resistance to Colonialism ................................................. 10 The Chican@ Movement in Los Angeles Proposed a New Model for Resistance ............................ 11 A Resistance Tactic Emerges to Embrace Community Control ....................................................... 12 The War on the Power Movements of the 1960s and the Weakening of Community Control .......... 14 Chican@ Park and the Centro Cultural: Taking Control of Our Own Spaces ................................ 15 May Day 2006: Moving towards the politics of inclusion ............................................................... 16 Theoretical Frameworks ........................................................................................................ 18 LatCrit: Sharing Narratives ........................................................................................................... 19 Internal Colonialism ...................................................................................................................... 19 Chican@ Sociology: A Chicano looking at the Chican@ Experience ............................................. 21 Methodology ......................................................................................................................... 22 Interviews ...................................................................................................................................... 22 Participant Profiles ........................................................................................................................ 25 Reflexivity ...................................................................................................................................... 26 Findings ................................................................................................................................. 30 Fallbrook: Growing up in the Groves, Suburbs, Barrio Neighborhoods of apartments and trailer parks. ............................................................................................................................................ 31 Facing Racism at School: “Hey Wetback” .................................................................................... 35 Facing Racism in the Community: “No más, Aquí!” .................................................................... 39 Facing Racism: Fallbrook Sheriffs and La Migra ......................................................................... 42 History of Organizing: M.E.Ch.A, United Pride, Aztlan Creation, and the Zapatistas ................... 45 The Beating: “He was brutalized…by cops” .................................................................................. 50 From I to We: “All this struggle… went to form Mexicanos Unidos en Defensa del Pueblo” ........ 53 The March: “My protest sign was my middle finger” .................................................................... 56 The Struggle for Bilingual Education: “La Escuela Popular Rogelio Favela” .............................. 60 The trailer park struggle: “We have the right to determine our own housing situation” ............... 64 Back to Theory: Making Sense of Narratives .......................................................................... 68 Conclusion: La Lucha Sigue .................................................................................................... 70 Appendix ..............................................................................................................................