reply to post by jedimiller
Illegal immigrants. Where do you start? A lot of Mexican-Americans want to start in 1846. Mid-19th century Americans not only believed the
dubious doctrine of
Manifest Destiny but they practiced it with gusto! The War of 1846-1848 was of doubtful legitimacy. The boundary dispute
certainly offered the occasion to reach an accommodation with Mexico without waging war. But Americans preferred war. And with war, the acquisition of
more Mexican territory! We were about to see the largest land grab in our own land-grabbing history!
American emigrants into Mexico’s northeastern territory - Texas - soon wanted to be free of Mexican governance from a far off capital, Mexico
City - over 700 miles from San Antonio. More bothersome was government by a laid back Spanish Catholic culture imposing their values on an unlettered,
uncouth, ambitious and eager people of The Book Protestants. By a military fluke, the Texicans as they were called then, won their independence at the
serendipitous Battle of San Jacinto in 1836. A place now in Harris County with Houston as the county seat.
After an acrimonious legislative struggle in Washington, Texas was admitted into the Union as the 28th state in the last days of 1845. War with
Mexico was now almost a certainty. In the 1819 treaty with Spain ending their claims on Florida, the US gave up its claims on the province known then
as Texas. When we annexed Texas in 1845 as a state, it was in defiance of international law in violation of our own prior agreement. Texicans claimed
the Mexican border ran along the Rio Grande River. Gen. Santa Ana consented to that southern border at San Jacinto in exchange for his life. A calmer
and less intimidated Mexico City argued correctly the traditional border was the Nueces River, about 75 to 100 miles north of the Rio Grande.
The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ratified in 1848 ended the dispute over which river would divide the US and Mexico. The Rio Grande was the new
boundary. The US also got - or took - California, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico and part of Colorado. Finally, chicanery was afoot. The treaty as
negotiated and signed by the negotiators contained 10 Articles. The 10th article guaranteed recognition of Spanish and Mexican land grants made prior
to 1846. When the Treaty made it to Washington and was debated in the US Senate, Article X was missing!
The coup d'grace was found in Article VIII, a 2-sided coin. On our side - we “granted” - forced - citizenship on any Mexican national
remaining for 1 year in the territory. On the other side, we TERMINATED the Mexican's birthright citizenship and took away their rights after 1
year, on our terms.
In all too many instances, white Americans forced Mexicans off their property then when the Mexicans went to court to recover their land, while
judges and white juries always found for the white Americans. Under “color of law” much of the property owned by Mexicans was “stolen” from
them. Between Article VIII and the missing Article X, we had taken about 550,000 square miles - not counting Texas - from Mexico. We did pay Mexico
$15 million in compensation. But not a dime to the former owners!
Until World War 2, people crossed back and forth across the entire 3,141 km (1,947 miles) US Mexico boundary at will. Many relatives lived in
the US and would go south for celebratory occasions. Weddings. Birthdays. Christenings. Graduations. The same was true of people in Mexico going north
to do similar things. Family reunions. And just plain visiting. Extended families still exist in the Mexican-American culture. Something we Euro types
have lost long ago.
In World War 2, because of the labor shortage, Mexicans were permitted to come here and stay “for the duration.” As long as we needed them.
At the end of the war, 13 million men were released from the Armed Forces in less than 6 months. Millions of jobs were terminated when 95% of war
contracts were cancelled before the end of 1946. Women who had worked for the first time in their lives did not want to stop work and go back to the
former days of mother and housewife chores. A new day had been born and it took us a generation to realize it. Old ways die hard.
In 1946, we asked the Mexicans to go back home. If we need you, we’ll call. And thus began by chance and not by plan, a policy that was NO
policy. And here we are today, with 12 million people living here who did not ask permission to come. More than the population of Ohio. Nearly the
population of Pennsylvania. But scattered into all 50 states. I estimate half are in the border states plus Florida. I estimate the other half are to
be found in the remaining states but their numbers are most likely in inverse proportion to the distance to the border. The further away, the fewer
you’ll find.
The issue now for us is how to LEGALLY integrate those 12 million people into our society. Not all want to be citizens. ALL do want to be here
legally. It is to our distinct ADVANTAGE they be legal. It is to our distinct DISADVANTAGE they not be legal. There are too many of them for us to be
punitive. It is silly to talk of $5,000 fines. It is even more silly to ask them to LEAVE the country and get on a waiting list for a visa back. No
matter how much anyone hates the word AMNESTY that is the only word we have open to us.
Vive la Mexico! Long Live America!
Foot Note. Several movements have begun to urge justice for descendants of those people. One is “Chicanismo” a cultural movement begun in
the 1930s in the Southwestern United States by Mexican Americans to recapture their Mexican, Native American culture.
[edit on 10/2/2007 by donwhite]