Chicanx Movements: La Alianza

The Fight For Stolen Land.

Chicano! PBS Documentary: A Quest For A Homeland

Mexican Americans had their sacred land stripped away from them and were now tenants on land they owned. The Alianza, a Mexican American group, fought for their land reminding us of the Treaty that was long forgotten. The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo stated that the people of northern New Mexico legitimately owned the land and “free enjoyment of their liberty and property of every kind.” Reies Lopez Tijerina, leader of the Alianza helped provide a voice for his people and their struggles. After a fight broke out when the Alianza stormed the courthouse to make a citizen's arrest on District Attorney Alphonso Sanchez for violating their right to assembly many others started to get inspired. Their struggle inspired movement activists and urban chicanos and a vision for change was created.

“Although, we are fighting for land, we are fighting for the survival and protection of our culture.”-Reies Lopez Tijerina

Even though the people of Northern New Mexico “legitimately owned the land” they were on according to treaty, they were treated as tenants. Many small farmers got their grazing permits revoked. Many of these people felt like they couldn’t voice their struggles. I feel like due to this, once they got the chance they were more than willing to fight for their land and culture. Tijerina contributed to this because he gave “a vision to people ready to fight.” I also found it incredibly unfair to see that land grants were being defied. Many land grants were taken illegally since only one heir signed the deed. It was never emphasized or even mentioned to us in a regular curriculum that we live on stolen land from Mexican and Indigenous people. If we are going to learn about U.S. history we should learn about how we “got” this land. Instead we are just taught about Westward Expansion and the textbook version about the Alamo. Our education is rigged and was picked and chosen by those in power. I think that it's important to learn a different perspective to history. Each side tells a different side to history but it is often the victims history that is overlooked.