Mexican Greeting Essay

Ever since fourth grade, one of my best friends have been Taylor Elam. Over the years that we’ve been friends we’ve had some jokes. My mom loves Mexican food; Taylor used to not like mexican food very much. Whenever our families would go out to eat, my mom would suggest something mexican. Whenever mexican was suggested by my mom, Taylor would respond “of course Hope wants mexican,” and whenever someone would ask where we were going to eat Taylor would say, “Hope wants mexican!” which we would always laugh about.

Cinco de Mayo means the fifth of May. It is not an independence day for Mexico like most unknowledgeable people think. Mexican Independence Day is celebrated on the 15th of September. Mexico declared independence from Spain on the 24th of August 1821. Cinco de Mayo is not an American holiday either. Mexico and the United States savor this holiday because it is the day where Mexican peasants/ commoners defeated the French and Mexican traitor army that double them in size in Puebla, Mexico one hundred miles away from Mexico city on the 5th of May, 1862.

The purpose of this paper is to discuss the culture and beliefs of four Hispanic groups. The groups I have chosen to cover are: Puerto Rican, Mexican, Dominican and Cuban. Included in the paper will be each group’s linguistic, social, economical, political, familial and religious ties or beliefs.

Hispanics or Latinos are defined as a people of Mexican, Puerto Rican, Cuban, South or Central American, or other Spanish speaking culture. This term “Hispanics” was created by the U.S. federal government in the early 1970’s to refer to Americans born in a Spanish speaking nation or with ancestry to Spanish territories. Hispanics people are vibrant, socializing, and fun loving people. Among various facts associated to this culture is that they have a deep sense of involvement in their family traditions and cultures.

Becoming Mexican American is George J. Sanchez’s document how Chicanos survived as a community in Los Angeles during the first part of the twentieth century. He goes into detail of how many thousands of Mexicans were pushed back in to Mexico during a formal repatriation. Those that survived in Los Angeles joined labor unions and became involved in New Deal politics.

Mexicans immigrated to the United States back in the 1800's (Stanford, 2006). During 1848 the United States took over a part of Mexico which is now the Southwest (Stanford, 2006). Mexicans living in these areas were Mexican citizens before the acquisition. The United States even went into agreements with Mexico to have Mexicans work in the United States. Mexicans were treated with cruelty, while working the agriculture fields for years. The United States made several agreements with Mexico to have the Mexicans come work in the United States while American soldiers were fighting in the world wars. The labor shortage that the United States went through was reason enough to have Mexicans migrate to the United States as laborers. The United

Growing up I have always been proud of my Mexican roots. I do not believe in hiding who you are, on the contrary, I believe in embracing it. This led me to be a part of a very special group at my high school. I became a member of Alma Folklorica de Oklahoma my sophomore year in high school. It is a Mexican folk dance group, and it consists of dancing traditional dances from Mexico. While the main reason I joined the group was to learn more about Mexico as a whole, I learned much more than I had anticipated. Going in I thought that I would just be learning dances; I didn’t expect to learn such valuable lessons as I have. I joined the group so I would have a better knowledge about Mexico and my culture. It’s been great learning about different regions throughout Mexico; especially about regions that I had never been previously exposed to. However I’ve learned more than I anticipated. I’ve had the pleasure to learn how to change out of one outfit with multiple accessories into another within five minutes and sometimes in less than three minutes. I’ve also had the pleasure of learning that if you mess up, just keep on smiling and no one will ever know. Not only have I learned things about performing. I have also learner life lessons. I have learned how to use jumper cables, how to properly communicate with others, and how to work as a team. Prior to joining the group, I had no idea the importance of communication. I

“Wow...there is no way you’re Latino. You’re way too white!” was the ignorant remark made by a one of my peers during my school’s annual Latin-American Fest. Initially, hearing this claim made me look into the mirror. I began to stroke my face and examine my physical features. Was this true? Was I not Latino enough? Did the amount of melanin or lack thereof deem me as Latino?

One of the largest Hispanic-origin population in the United states are Mexicans (Gonzales-Barrera & Lopez, 2013). Mexican American’s are considered minorities in the United States. There are many reason why I am choosing to explore Mexican Americans for this paper. As a minority myself, I can relate to some of the struggles that Mexican American’s may face. However, there are some things that I will never relate to or know the personal aspect of the Mexican culture. Just like any other population, Mexican Americans have their own culture, values, and challenges.

A mexican american girl coming from an uneducated family going to Stanford University was quite a surprise for many. Getting a full ride scholarship to Stanford university was was even a greater surprise. Who would've thought that she was going to be competing against the smartest kids of America. For many as well as for her getting a full ride scholarship to Stanford University was impossible, but to her surprise she was in and there she went not knowing what to expect. As she arrived her sympathetic nervous system kicked in. Her heart was beating like it had never before as she heard all the places people came from. Germany, Korea, England, Serie, Greece, Spain and many others. China the most common nationality. That mexican american girl is from Salinas were 72.6% of the

Section A: I am a Mexican-American woman, born to Mexican immigrant parents, and by birthright an American citizen. In my phenotype, I do not look like a stereotypical American, with blonde hair, blue eyes, or a light complexion. I have black hair, dark brown eyes, and a light brown skin complexion. While exploring my identity and my sense of belonging in my Mexican-American, or Chicana identity, I can relate to the growth and development described in the Model of Death and Dying. For, I have the privileges of an American, but have witnessed discrimination against my fellow Mexicans counterparts.

I was once told I had the world in my hands by my vice principal. The reason for his statement was because I was a Hispanic young woman with above average grades, and my involvement in extracurricular activities. Why was being a Hispanic young woman so much more special? This is where the harsh reality set in; Hispanic women have the tendency to not achieve their goals.

One of the best examples of this growing Mexican-American pride is the development of corridos, which are folk songs sung to honor various Mexican and Mexican-American folk heroes. They tell the stories of wars, romances, and in this case, border heroes. For Mexican-Americans, the most popular version of the corrido was about the border hero, who is “always the peaceful man, finally goaded into violence by the rinches, [Spanish name for the villainous Texas Rangers] and rising in his wrath to kill great numbers of his enemy…whatever his fate, he has stood up for his right.” For example, “El Corrido de Gregorio Cortez,” written in 1910, followed a well-meaning, honorable, hardworking Mexican-American man named Gregorio Cortez, whose brother

a city where an eagle with a snake in its beak rested on a cactus. This

Mexico is bordered by the United States on the north, the Pacific Ocean on the west, the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea on the east, and Guatemala and Belize on the south. It is characterized by an extraordinary diversity in topography and climate and is crossed by two major mountain chains, the Sierra Madre Occidental and the Sierra Madre Oriental. The high central plateau between these two mountain ranges historically funneled most of the human population toward the center of this region. Mexico features volcanic peaks, snow-capped mountains, tropical rain forests, and internationally famous beaches. Mexico City is an enormous metropolitan area and dominates the rest of the country's culture, economy, and politics. Nearly