The Mexican proverb
"El pueblo que pierde su memoria, pierde su destino" hits home
because I lost my memory. My ancestors’ history has been erased in my K-12
education. Thanks to They Called Them Greasers by Arnoldo De Leon I
understand why being “American” is so frustrating. In
my history classes I had to learn “history” mostly written by historians who “have
overlooked the motivating force of white supremacy and the compelling need of
white America to press ahead with the task of 'civilizing' colored peoples and
what they stood for" (De Leon, 12). The book highlights how major events
in history can be constructed to carry out a racist agenda that attacks my
other identity. I was forced to be proud to be American; and as a
Mexican I am angry that my ancestors’ destinies have been "forfeited"
because Anglos carried out their racist and violent Manifest Destiny to
“purify” and "reclaim" the land from “dirty” Mexicans. The
U.S.-Mexico war and the Battle of the Alamo are meant to remind people that
Mexicans are inhumane and I will not continue to believe this lie. The
picture below reflects my ideas on the land that has been stripped from my
people. I will never support the Migra. They target Mexicans because
they consider them to be illegal immigrants even though the U.S took the land
they want to inhabit from Mexico. The need for the Migra is only one example of
how mainstream media attempts to enforce historical amnesia.
After taking 10A last fall, I was able
to recognize my ignorance of my own history. I became a Chican@ Studies minor
because I do not want to wait to learn my peoples’ history. I came to this
institution that was not meant for me to realize that I have historical amnesia
and this angers me. This anger impassions me to take control of my destiny because
I am tired of learning history from the perspective of the conqueror. Unfortunately,
my historical amnesia is an 8 because I was too busy being “American” to
realize that I’ve been colonized. I am slowly regaining my memory and
decolonizing myself by going back to the roots of so-called “rightful”
destinies.
(I took this photo at Barrio Logan, San Diego)
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