The State of Chicano Nationalism

What does nationalism mean for Latinos and Latinas in the United States? Latin American nationalism often focussed on the culture of the people of whatever country the people were in, eschewing European and American influences where they were seen as unneeded or intrusive. There is a strong sense of the peoples of many of the Latin American countries that had strong nationalist movements in the late 1800s and early 1900s trying to stand on their own as a culture. The focus on mestizo heritage seems to help make the people of these places feel united in their relative newness as a people; not European, but also not Indigenous anymore either.

But again I ask the question what does nationalism mean for Latinos and Latinas in the United States? If we look at Chicano culture, we see the lingering effects of Mexican nationalism’s artistic and cultural movements; murals on the sides of buildings that reference the style of Diego Rivera, for instance. We see a sense of nationalistic pride among Chicanos and Chicanas, even though many have never been to Mexico. It would appear that their sense of identity is connected to a sense of nationalism of where their people originated. This has lead to good relations between Chicanos and Mexicans politically, strengthening US-Mexican relations. This interview with Jorge Bustamante and Jose Lopez Portillo, experts on the subject of US-Mexican relations, sheds light on the pattern of strengthening Chicano-Mexican relations. 

Yet not all Chicanos and Chicanas feel such a strong attachment back to Mexico and its culture. In some areas, Mexican-descended people are identifying less and less as Chicano or Chicana. Declining interest in Chicano Studies at San Diego State University demonstrates this change in attitude rather well. At a time when Latino enrollment is up campus wide, the department concerned specifically with Chicano studies is seeing fewer and fewer students, yet at the community college in the same city enrollment in the Chicano Studies department is nearly over capacity. This seems to point to a socio-economic component to Latino-American nationalism. As Latinos and Latinas become more affluent, perhaps the need for the unifying force of nationalistic pride is less necessary? It does track with how many nationalistic movements in Latin America were in response to neoliberal oppression in those countries, creating a social pressure for mutual support that was relieved through the outlet of nationalism. 

So where does this leave nationalism for Latinos and Latinas in the United States? Does Chicano or Dominican or Cuban ethnic nationalism mean what it used to? It seems to represent a resistance to assimilation, either on the part of those trying to assimilate, or the larger receiving US culture. Are the dual reactions of increasing national pride for some and decreasing national pride for others indicative of a shift in Latino Culture, or of an increasing polarization of the political culture of the United States? Time will tell.