Mexican american segregation

Date and country of first publication^[1]

1981
United States

Definition

Mexican American segregation refers to the historical practice of separating Mexican Americans from the rest of the population through various discriminatory laws, policies, and social practices.

During the early 20th century, Mexican Americans faced segregation in many areas of life, including education, housing, employment, and public facilities. In some regions, Mexican American children were forced to attend separate, inferior schools, while Mexican American workers were often limited to low-paying, unskilled jobs.

In the Southwest, where a significant Mexican American population was concentrated, racial segregation was often enforced by law. For example, in states like Texas and California, Mexicans were legally barred from attending schools with white children, living in certain neighborhoods, or patronizing certain businesses.

Segregation was also prevalent in the form of "Mexican-only" establishments like movie theaters, restaurants, and swimming pools, which catered exclusively to Mexican Americans because they were barred from using the facilities frequented by white people.

Over time, civil rights activists and organizations fought against these discriminatory practices and sought to dismantle segregation in Mexican American communities. The landmark Supreme Court case of Mendez v. Westminster in 1947, for example, challenged the segregation of Mexican American students in California schools and paved the way for the desegregation of public education in the region.

While significant progress has been made since the mid-20th century, some argue that forms of segregation still persist today, particularly in terms of educational opportunities, housing patterns, and socioeconomic disparities affecting Mexican American communities.

Related segregation forms

Mexican american segregation is frequently discussed in the literature with the following segregation forms:

residential segregation, school segregation, legal segregation, extralegal segregation

This visualization is based on the study The Multidisciplinary Landscape of Segregation Research.

For the complete network of interrelated segregation forms, please refer to:

First year of publication

Louvain clusters

Betweenness centrality

Disciplines in which segregation forms first emerged (Scopus database).

References

Notes

↑ Date and country of first publication as informed by the Scopus database (December 2023).

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