Effects of the Vietnam War on Chicanos - Free Report Example

The clarion call Raza Si, Guerra No! was formed on 29th August 1970 during the anti-Vietnam War demonstration started by the Chicanos people. On the same, day many people mostly Chicanos were involved in a war in Los Angeles that was known as the National Chicano anti-war moratorium. May Chicanos suffered severe effects of the American war in Southeast east Asia. However, this war created an important impact on the history of the United States and on the ethnic group of Chicano which had strong and strict traditions of resistance to injustices and military services.

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Anti-war activists contributed to opposition to the Vietnam War which ultimately resulted in the change of the Chicano's political status. The Chicano anti-war movement was considered the most powerful empowerment and civil rights in United States history. They were therefore the largest groups chosen to take part in the war while a few people from other ethical groups were also chosen. Among the Mexican-Americans living in the United States, the Chicano people were considered to have the best skills in taking part in a war.

The Chicano anti-war movement developed various strategies that would help them while taking part in the war so that their chances of winning would be increased. There were two issues that were focused on during the opposition to the war by the anti-war movements from Chicano (Oropeza, 215). The major concern was that the Chicano people were being killed in the war as opposed to the population of the United States people involved in the war therefore revealing that racism was being carried out during the war.

The Effects of lack of fairness, racism, and oppression in some ethnic groups were clearly visible. A study carried out revealed that twenty percent of the casualties in the Southeast war were Chicanos. The education system among this group was very poor and most Chicanos were school dropouts. Many people ended up not joining a university or college where they would develop their professional skills and lacked a career that they could use to earn a daily living. Therefore there was a large number of Chicanos who took part in military activities.

There were other reasons which also increased the development of anti-war movements among the Chicano people. The Chicanos were poor and needed to acquire enough funds to improve their educational status and the basic requirements in life such as health facilities. There was the development of the anti-poverty movement which came up with these objectives. These arguments went on to make an emerging Chicano anti-war movement which was formed in 1969.

History revealed that the Mexican-American people were very great in taking part in past wars, World War 1 and 2, the Civil War, the Spanish-American War, and the Korean War. However, the participation of the Chicanos during this war revealed the Vietnam War was different from the previous wars that had occurred. The people of Chicano argued that the United States didn’t need to take part in this war which later developed into a civil war.

The Chicanos came up with the idea that it was not wise for them to take part in the war since it only led to many casualties and deaths of their people. Many activists describe the Vietnam War as a war of choice rather than a war of necessity and therefore it was rather unwise to involve themselves in this war (Oropeza, 123). A lot of lives from the Chicano people were sacrificed in a war that did not necessarily involve any kind of interest to the Americans. Out of this major and important factor, they came up with a powerful anti-war message that was aimed at saving its people who were still in a trap of taking part in this war.

The demonstrations pooled out by the Chicano people proved to be more effective than any person would have ever imagined. Police forces attacked the peaceful protest violently and brutally which involved the use of unnecessary force such as tear gas. Looters took this commotion opportunity to carry out their activities and the streets of East Los Angeles were chaotic. The Effects of these demonstrations were severe because they involved the loss of innocent lives.

Despite revealing the strengths and the good work done by the Chicano anti-war movement, the Chicano moratorium also revealed the weaknesses and inefficiency of the police services. It also showed that the Chicanos could no longer take part in wars which only caused disasters as opposed to gains and generally the relationship between the Chicanos and Americans was destroyed and became strained. A new generation of Chicanos evolved with new principles, especially in terms of taking place in military activities.

Chicanos and the Americans should find a way of solving their conflicts since collaboration between these two systems would create a very powerful military system. The decisions made during the occurrence of war should be wise and done with maximum consideration. Oppression of the less fortunate groups such as the Chicanos should not be taken as an advantage and people should not be forced to engage in war unwillingness. The anti-war activities against the Chicanos had a positive impact since they realized their potential and were able to overcome oppression and racism by the Americans.

Works Cited

Oropeza, Lorena. Raza sí! Guerra no!. Univ of California Press, 2005.