Understanding Economic Struggles of Mexican-Americans

What are some key things you have learned about this culture through reading the scholarly sources?

I am curious to learn the history as to why Mexican Americans were not able to advance economically, considering that they constitute the largest group of Latinos in the United States and have lived in the U.S. the longest. Mexicans still remain below the poverty line. I learned that many Mexican Americans have a history of cruelty and unfairness where they lost their land, language, and culture after the Mexican War. I also learned that many Mexican Americans who live in the United States have assimilated and may not identify themselves as Latino (McGoldrick et al., 2005).

I also had some questions about why many Mexican-Americans work hard for little pay at jobs with low prestige or status in the United States. I learned that poverty is a way of life for a majority of Latinos, including Mexican-Americans, and they inaccessibility to resources keeps them locked in an oppressive cycle. Without the ability to speak English, it lowers their potential to earn higher wages and to obtain higher-paying jobs.

The statistic that surprised me was the rapid increase in participation of Mexican American women in America’s workforce. The census reported that the number might be near that of American women. These statistics were surprising as they contradict the stereotype of Mexican machismo in Latino culture. The machismo emphasizes the man’s reluctance in asking for assistance. McGoldrick et al. suggest that therapists should view machismo as the father’s dedication to family and responsibility to the family wellbeing (2014). Research suggests that this acculturation towards more egalitarian gender relationships may create riffs within marriages as husbands response to the loss of economic power while wives are focused on economic empowerment (Flores et al., as cited by McGoldrick et al.,