Thursday, 27 September: Mexican Americans: Immigrant / American Dream story, or Minority?

·        Poetry reader: Robin Tupa

Poem: Pat Mora, “Immigrants,” UA 119

Pat Mora

*Known as a great Hispanic poet

*Born January 19, 1942 in El Paso, Texas

*Grandparents descended here during Mexican Revolution

“Immigrants” pg 119

Objective 2 – To chart the dynamics, variations, and stages of the immigrant narrative

The poem is written in third person. The subjects of the poem are the first generation immigrants, while the poet, Pat Mora, is the third generation, or assimilated, telling the story.

Stage 2 – Journey to the New World (USA and modern culture)

          The poem starts off in this stage…

“wrap their babies in the American Flag”

          This line, as well as the rest of the poem, gives the indication that the journey has already been made. The setting is America.

Stage 4 – Assimilation to dominant culture and loss of ethnic identity

          “feed them mashed hot dogs and apple pie, name them Bill and Daisy,

buy them blonde dolls that blink blue eyes or a football and tiny cleats before the baby can even walk”

          This is the epitome of America/Americans. Blonde hair & blue eyes (we touched on this a little in “Blonde White Women”). Hot dogs & apple pie. How much more Americanized can they get? The dominant culture practically screams all around them.

Stage 5 – Partial reassertion of ethnic identity

          “whisper in Spanish or Polish when the babies sleep”

That desire to hold on to their roots is still there. There is still that pull back to the old country. Yet, the effort is made not to talk their first language in front of their children.

Stage 3 – Exploitation and discrimination

          “whisper in a dark parent bed, that dark parent fear, “Will they like our boy, our girl, our fine American boy, our fine American girl?”

          That fear of their children not being accepted is there. Fear of discrimination creeps in.

Overall theme is that need to blend in or “melting pot”. There is such a strong desire and longing for acceptance (immediate assimilation). The mind set seems to be that if they act American that will make them American.

Questions:

1) The poem ends on fear of discrimination. Does this show less certainty on the part of Mexican Americans? How does this differ from the immigrant narrative?

2) How much of their identity have they lost or forsaken to “fit in”? What do they gain or lose by assimilating?