2. Objectives
• Explain how the Latino population grew after
World War I.
• Analyze the Latino and Native American rights
movements of the 1960s and 1970s.
• Describe the expansion of rights for consumers
and the disabled.
3. Terms and People
• Cesar Chavez − an influential Latino activist who fought
for farm laborers’ rights
• migrant farmworker − a worker who moved from one
place to another to pick crops
• Chicano movement − a Mexican-American effort for
social and political equality
• AIM − the American Indian Movement, which addressed
civil rights issues for Native Americans
• Japanese American Citizens League- worked for
decades to fight for Japanese American’s Civil Rights.
4. How did the rights movements of the
1960s and 1970s expand rights for
diverse groups of Americans?
Latinos and Native Americans worked to secure
their civil rights in the 1960s and 1970s.
Activists also worked to expand the rights of
consumers and people with disabilities.
5. Judith Baca, the daughter of Mexican
immigrants, taught art in public schools in a
rough Los Angeles neighborhood in the
early 1970s. Between her classes, she
watched young Latinos hanging out in parks
and writing graffiti on the walls. Intrigued
by the kids’ graffiti, she developed the idea
of channeling their creative energy into
painting murals. Her idea spread to other
U.S. cities, where kids used murals to
document and celebrate Latino culture and
history. Their work was just one part of a
growing movement that sought to educate,
respect, and politically organize American
Latinos.
A famous Mexican muralist, Diego Rivera.
He is depicted in many murals, most
notably through the Philadelphia Mural
Arts Program.
6. Three factors created a steady stream of Latin
American immigrants to the United States.
1 After World War I, the United States limited
immigration from Europe.
2 Beginning with World War II, the U.S.
experienced a growing demand for inexpensive
labor.
3 At the same time, Latin American countries had
increasing populations and shrinking job
opportunities.
7. Beginning in 1942, Mexican immigrants came to the
United States under the farmhand program, which
granted them temporary guest-worker status.
These Latino farm
workers played an
important role in
U.S. agriculture
during and after
World War II.
8. In 1965, the Immigration and Nationality Act
Amendments made Latino immigration easier.
The U.S. Latino
population has
grown steadily
ever since.
9. Like other minorities,
Latinos fought for equal rights.
Migrant farmworkers worked
long hours in poor conditions for
low pay.
Cesar Chavez organized these
workers to form the
United Farm Workers union,
or UFW.
10. The Chicano Movement worked to promote
Latino culture and political strength.
The movement had several main goals.
• inclusion of Latino heritage in education
• reduce poverty and improve opportunities for
Latinos
• greater Latino representation at all levels of
government
11. Native American activism also grew in
the 1960s and 1970s.
The National Indian The American Indian
Youth Council Movement (AIM)
(NIYC) first formed started as an activist
to address native group for urban Native
fishing rights and Americans and soon
later expanded into became involved with
broad civil rights land, legal, and self-
issues. government issues.
12. In February 1973,
AIM occupied the • Federal authorities
village of besieged the village.
Wounded Knee, • Gunfire killed two AIM
South Dakota, members.
site of an 1890
massacre of After the standoff, the
Sioux. government promised
to reexamine native
treaty rights.
13. Occupation of Alcatraz
• Fall of 1969
• Thousands of American Indians
occupied the abandoned remains of
Alcatraz, the federal penitentiary
that housed America's most
notorious criminals until closing in
1963.
• The occupiers held the island for
nearly eighteen months.
• It was an effort to “restore the
dignity of the more than 554
American Indian nations in the
United States.”
14. • More than 5,600 American Indians joined the
occupation-some for all eighteen months and
some for just part of a day.
• American Indians, like many people of color in
that era, were fed up with the status quo.
• The annual household income of an American
Indian family was $1,500-one-fourth the
national average.
• Their life expectancy was 44 when other
Americans could expect to reach 65.
15. Native American activism resulted in
favorable legal changes.
The Indian Self-
Determination Act The tribes also won
of 1975 granted legal battles over
tribes greater land, mineral, and
control over water rights.
resources on their
reservations.
16. Reformers pushed for measures to
protect consumers and workers.
• Ralph Nader formed
several consumer advocacy
groups to ensure that the
products people buy are
safe.
• The Nixon administration
proposed regulations for
safety in the workplace.
17. By the 1970s, Americans with disabilities
were gaining more rights.
• People with physical and mental disabilities
participated in the Special Olympics.
• The government passed laws guaranteeing
people with disabilities equal access to
education.
