The Chican@ Movement, of the late l960s, helped spark cultural and historical pride in our people. Chican@s demanded to be treated as equals, denounced acculturation, and assimilation. Chican@s expressed their pride through poetry, literature, art, and the theatre. The contributions of the Chican@ movement are numerous and continue to be valuable to our society.
In March of1969 the Crusade for justice organized the first National Chicano Youth Conference in Denver, Colorado. At this conference the Plan de Aztlan was drafted; giving way to the Chicano movement. This document asserts that Chican@s must work to better the conditions of their communities.
Following the National Chicano Youth Conference, in April of 1969, over 100 Chican@s met together at the University of California Santa Barbara to formulate a plan for higher education: El Plan de Santa Barbara. With this document they were successful in the development of two important contributions to the Chicano Movement: Movimiento Estudintil Chican@ de Aztlan (MEChA) and Chicano Studies.
M.E.Ch.A. is a nationwide student organization. The chapter at Cal State San Marcos is just one of the many in the state of California and in the Southwest. M.E.Ch.A. is composed by students that promote higher education, political involvement, cultura, and historia. MEChA was founded on the principles of self-determination for the liberation of our people. We believe that education is the avenue for bettering the conditions of our gente.
The Chicano and Chicana student movement has been plagued by opportunists that have sought to rechannel the energies of our people and divert us from our struggle for self-determination. The educational plight of Chicana and Chicano students continues to be ignored by insensitive administrators. Overall, Chicano and Chicana junior high, high school and college push-out rates have risen since 1969, forcing many Chicanos and Chicanas to a life of poverty. These factors along with a growing right wing trend in the nation are combing to work greater hardships on Chicanos and Chicanas. New repressive and racist immigration laws are continuously directed at our Gente. The Federal government is campaigning to pacify and assimilate our Gente by labeling us "Hispanic." The term "Hispanic" seeks to anglicize and deny our indigenous heritage by ignoring our unique socioeconomic and historical aspect of our Gente. These factors have made it necessary for Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlán to affirm our philosophy of liberation (i.e. educational, socioeconomic, and political empowerment) for our Chicano and Chicana nation.
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