El Plan de Santa Barbara, April 1969
In April 1969, student leaders from around
Aztlan – an Indian name for the Southwest). What follows
are excerpts from its Manifesto.
For all peoples, as with individual, the time comes when they must reckon with
their history. For the
Chicano
the present is a time of renaissance, of renacimiento. Our people and
our community, el barrio and la
colonia,
are expressing a new consciousness and a new resolve. Recognizing the
historical tasks confronting our
people
and fully aware of the cost of human progress, we pledge our will to move. We
will move forward toward
our
destiny as a people. We will move against those forces which have denied us
freedom of expression and human
dignity.
Throughout history the quest for cultural expression and freedom has taken the
form of a struggle. Our
struggle,
tempered by the lessons of the American past, is an historical reality.
For decades Mexican people in the
few,
have. But the cost, the ultimate cost of assimilation, required turning away
from el barrio and la colonia. In the
meantime,
due to the racist structure of this society, to our essentially different life
style, and to the socio-economic
functions
assigned to our community by Anglo-American society - as suppliers of cheap
labor and dumping
ground
for the small-time capitalist entrepreneur- the barrio and colonia
remained exploited, impoverished, and
marginal.
As a result, the self-determination of our community is now the only acceptable
mandate for social and
political
action; it is the essence of Chicano commitment. Culturally, the word Chicano,
in the past a pejorative and
class-bound
adjective, has now become the root idea of a new cultural identity for our
people. It also reveals a
growing
solidarity and the development of a common social praxis. The widespread use of
the term Chicano today
signals
a rebirth of pride and confidence. Chicanismo simply embodies an ancient
truth: that man is never
closer
to his true self as when he is close to his community.
Chicanismo draws its faith and strength from two main sources: from the
just struggle of our people and
from
an objective analysis of our community's strategic needs. We recognize that
without a strategic use of
education,
an education that places value on what we value, we will not realize our
destiny. Chicanos recognize the
central
importance of institutions of higher learning to modern progress, in this case,
to the development of our
community.
But we go further: we believe that higher education must contribute to the
information of a complete
man
who truly values life and freedom.
The destiny of our people will be fulfilled. to that end, we pledge our efforts
and take as our credo what
Jose
Vasconcelos once said at a time of crisis and hope: "At this moment we do
not come to work for the
university,
but to demand that the university work for our people.''
Political Action
Commitment
to the struggle for Chicano liberation is the operative definition of the
ideology used here.
Chicanismo
involves a crucial distinction in political consciousness between a Mexican
American and
a
Chicano mentality. The Mexican American is a person who lacks respect for his ethnic
and cultural heritage. Unsure of himself, he seeks assimilation as a way out of
his “degraded” social status. Consequently,
he remains politically ineffective. In
contrast, Chicanismo reflects self-respect and pride in one’s ethnic and
culturel backgrouond. Thus, the Chicano acts with confidence and
with a range of alternatives in the
political
world. He is capable of developing an effective ideology through action.
Mexican Americans must be viewed as potential Chicanos. Chicanismo is
flexible enough to
relate
to the varying levels of consciousness within La Raza[1]. Regional
variations must always be kept in mind as
well
as the different levels of development, composition, maturity, achievement, and
experience in political action.
Cultural
nationalism is a means of total Chicano liberation.
There are definite advantages to cultural nationalism, but no inherent
limitations. A Chicano ideology,
especially
as it involves cultural nationalism, should be positively phrased in the form
of propositions to the
Movement.
Chicanismo is a concept that integrates self-awareness with cultural
identity, a necessary step in
developing
political consciousness. As such, it serves as a basis for political action,
flexible enough to include the
possibility
of coalitions. The related concept of La Raza provides an
internationalist scope of Chicanismo, and La
Raza
Cosmica furnishes a philosophical precedent. Within this framework, the
Third World Concept merits
consideration.
Campus Organizing: Notes on M.E.Ch.A.
M.E.Ch.A. is a first step to tying the students groups throughout the Southwest
into a vibrant and
responsive
network of activists who will respond as a unit to oppression and racism and
will work in harmony
when
initiating and carrying put campaigns of liberation for our people.
As of present, wherever one travels throughout the Southwest, one finds that
there are different levels of
awareness
on different campuses. The student movement is to a large degree a political
movement and as such
must
not elicit from our people the negative responses that we have experienced so
often in the past in relation to politics, and often with good reason. To this
end, then we must re-define politics for our people to
be
a means of liberation. The political sophistication of our Raza must be raised
so that they do not fall prey to
apologists
and vendidos [sellouts] whose
whole interest is their personal career of fortune. In addition, the student
movement
is
more than a political movement, it is cultural and social as well. The spirit
of M.E.Ch.A. must be one of
hermandad
[brotherhood] and cultural awareness. The ethic of profit and competition, of
greed and intolerance, which the Anglo
society
offers must be replaced by our ancestral communalism and love for beauty and
justice. M.E.Ch.A. must
bring
to the mind of every young Chicano that the liberations of this people from
prejudice and oppression is in his
hands
and this responsibility is greater than personal achievement and more
meaningful that degrees, especially if
they
are earned at the expense of his identity and cultural integrity.
M.E.Ch.A., then, is more than a name; it is a spirit of unity, of brotherhood,
and a resolve to undertake a
struggle
for liberation in society where justice is but a word. M.E.Ch.A. is a means to
an end.