Walls and Mirrors

Mexican Americans, Mexican Immigrants, and the Politics of Ethnicity

Author: David G. Gutiérrez
ISBN: 9780520202191

Covering more than one hundred years of American history, Walls and Mirrors examines the ways that continuous immigration from Mexico transformed--and continues to shape--the political, social, and cultural life of the American Southwest. Taking a fresh approach to one of the most divisive political issues of our time, David Gutiérrez explores the ways that nearly a century of steady immigration from Mexico has shaped ethnic politics in California and Texas, the two largest U.S. border states.Drawing on an extensive body of primary and secondary sources, Gutierrez focuses on the complex ways that their pattern of immigration influenced Mexican Americans' sense of social and cultural identity and, as a consequence, their politics. He challenges the most cherished American myths about U.S. immigration policy, pointing out that, contrary to rhetoric about "alien invasions," U.S. government and regional business interests have actively recruited Mexican and other foreign workers for over

Publisher: University of California Press
Publish Date: 1995-03-27

Subjects: History / United States / General, Social Science / Ethnic Studies / General

This book is available in the following Community Centers: Black Resource Center (Location: 2A)