Summaries-Anna,+Leah,+Kamarah

Latino U.S.A.: A Cartoon History Latino USA: A Cartoon History, is exactly what it says it is. It is a book that has the history of the Latinos in cartoon form. It is broken up into four different parts, The Conquest and Exploration: 1492-1890, Into the Cauldron: 1891-1957, Upheaval: 1958-1977, and In Search of a Mainstream: 1878- Manana.

**Part 1: The Conquest and Exploration :1492-1890** Part one of this book talks mainly about the beginning history of the Latinos. It talks about when Columbus came to the "new world". This section also talked a lot about the different explorers that came to South America and how most of them wrote down their experiences in journal form and later had them published. This section went into detail about the Guadalupe Hidalgo Treaty, and how the United States acquired 2/3s of Mexico's territory. **Part 2: Into the Cauldron: 1891-1957** This part of the book talked a lot about the stereotypes that we as Americans have put on the Latino peoples and how most of them have nothing to do with Latinos. This section then went on to talk about the good neighbor policies that were put in place. Which weren't accepted very well then, and they haven't made much improvement in the years following that. From there it went on to talk about Teddy Roosevelt's Rough Riders. This section ended by talking about the famous baseball players and famous actors that were Latinos. It brought the Latino people into a new light, one that was a bit more respected. **Part 3: Upheaval: 1958-1977** This part of the book starts out still talking about some stereotypes we have put on Latino people, specifically dealing with food. The food that we pin as Latino isn't even always Latino based, a lot of the food is Tex-Mex. From there this part of the book took a turn, and started talking a lot about the triumphs and tribulations that the Latino people faced while trying to come to the United States and make a better life for themselves and for their families. **Part 4: In Search of a Mainstream: 1978-Manana....** This is the last section in the book. It talked a lot about how the history of the Latino people does have a meaning, and how it does have an affect on the Latino people of the United States today. This section ended by talking about how the nation started to become a bilingual nation and how that it started becoming a bilingual nation when Cubans started coming over to escape Castro. It started out to just be a temporary thing, but then their stay became perment and so did the bilingual laws in the schools.

Devil's Highway Devil’s Highway is an investigative piece by Luis Urrea. It is about twenty-six men who left Mexico to come to America for a better life. They traveled through the desert in an area called the Devil’s Highway. This highway has claimed many lives in the past. What makes this piece so different is that there were several men at one time who died. This is their story.

Part 1: Cutting the Drag
Part one of Devil’s Highway is more of a background story on the actual Devil’s Highway. It talks about the deaths that have occurred along the route and how the route still takes lives. The first part is also about the Border Patrol. The Border Patrol members all speak Spanish. If they’re good enough they can tell you just about anything about the people crossing. When picking up people they’ve found crossing the border, Border Patrol will sometimes play jokes. They like to get a rise out of people. Pretty much every agent in the Border Patrol has seen some form of death. They’ve discovered bodies throughout the dessert. The Wellton 26 is the worst case that these men have seen.

Part 2: Dead Man’s Sign
Veracruz is where most of the Wellton 26 started their journey. The men were meeting Don Moi. Don Moi had the appearance of the going to the United States all the time. He had American clothing, and big stomach that was more than likely full of American food, and he would gloat. Men seeked him out hoping to get a new start in the U.S. and hoping that he could help them make the journey. He would demand lots of money from them; money they didn’t have. When they couldn’t pay it all at that time he would have them takes loans. What difference would it make to them? They were going to get jobs in the U.S. so they would be able to pay it all back. Coyotes drive around looking for people willing to make the trek from Mexico to the United States. They are paid anywhere from $100 to $150 a head. Mendez was the leader of the Wellton 26. He would have made a couple thousand dollars from this trip if he made it back to Mexico. Coyotes look forward to leading big groups. The bigger the group, the more money they make. It doesn’t matter if people die along the way; as long as the coyote stays alive he’ll get his cut. Mendez had taken a group past Ajo to a water tank. The border patrol met up with them there. They saw the rabbit tattoo on Mendez’s arm and asked him about it. The Border Patrol was looking for Mendez, but they didn’t recognize him. If they had recognized him then the Wellton 26 situation never would have happened. They wouldn’t be finding several bodies spread throughout the desert. Being caught at the water tank would affect other trips across the desert. Soon after that trip Mendez came back for the Wellton 26. He got them loaded up on a bus and then got them off the bus. The fateful trip began. At the beginning of the trip spirits were high. Everyone was joking around and having a good time. Then things started getting rough. Mendez got off track. Mendez would say only a couple miles more and then when the couple miles passed they weren’t any closer to their destination. <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">When traveling in a desert it’s important to have lots of water. Without water, chances of survival in the desert are unlikely. Everyone who is going to die in the desert will go through six stages: heat stress, heat fatigue, heat syncope, heat cramps, heat exhaustion, and heat stroke. Heat stress is when you get dizzy from walking in the heat. Heat fatigue is when you’re constantly sweating. Heat syncope is the fever. Words become impossible to say. Heat cramps are where you don’t have enough salt in your body to feed your muscles. Your legs begin to cramp up and people begin to fall. Crying brings you a step closer to death. Heat exhaustion is the flu. Your brain is literally melting away because you have nothing to feed it. Thinking becomes even more unclear. Heat stroke is where thinking becomes hallucinating. Body temps hit 105 or more. Your body shuts done. At this point you’re dead.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Part 3: In Desolation
<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">The men were traveling through the desert. It was clear that Mendez didn’t know where he was going. “Only a couple more miles,” he would say. They knew it would be more than a couple miles. Men were going crazy. Several had already fallen. The men were only keeping track of the people they knew. They didn’t care about the others. It was getting hot. The men were cooking out in the sun. Mendez had decided it would be best if he and Lauro went ahead to find help. He told the men to give him money. How much money he asked for is unclear. The men who lived give different numbers than he does. Mendez and Lauro left. When it became clear that they were not coming back, the other men kept walking. Several had already died at this time. They didn’t have enough water to keep going, and their bodies had shut down. The living men were found by Agent Mike. He found them and found out about the bodies. He called it in. The living men were sent to the hospital while the others were gathered and taken to a coroner. The Border Patrol had never seen this many deaths.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Part 4: Aftermath
<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">The bodies were collected. Most were found with their clothing and accessories around them. They were taken back to the coroner. Some bodies were too far gone to be identified. The bodies were sent back to Mexico. For the men who died, this was their first and last trip on a plane. The men who lived were in the hospital. They were constantly questioned by police. Many things were unclear to them, but the one thing that was clear was that it was Mendez’s fault for all this. He was the leader; he abandoned them and left them for dead. He was trying to save his own life. Mendez was arrested and tried for his actions. He was imprisoned later. Since the Wellton 26 new methods of have tried. Nobody wants to see deaths like this again. This sickened people. It’s so easy for the coyotes to take advantage of people who want a new life. They make money off these deaths. It’s a sick and twisted way to make a couple thousand dollars.

<span style="color: #ff0000; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Articles <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">E. Michael Jones did an article entitled, “The Hispanic Challenge and the Logic of Empire”. Jones discusses Huntington’s view of Hispanics. Huntington criticizes Mexicans as being “increasingly comfortable with their own culture and often contemptuous of American culture.” Jones talks about the fear of the ‘ruling class’ has of being taken over by the minority, and gives historic examples to illustrate this point.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Cindy Carmaco, wrote an article entitled, "Arizona immigration law goes to U.S. Supreme Court next week". In this article she talked about how protestors are coming forward to protest a law in Arizona about immigrants. The most controversial part of the law, SB1070, gave officials the authority to check immigration status of anyone detained by police if there is reasonable suspicion that the person may be in the country illegally. She talked about the law, and how it has influenced other states to create similar laws.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> Donald Kerwin did an article entitled, “ Immigration Reform and the Catholic Church”. In it, he discusses the catholic churches’ position on According to Kerwin, “ The Catholic Church in the United States does not support open borders, illegal immigration, or an “amnesty” that would grant legal status to all unauthorized immigrants.” This is the present view of the situation. The author of this article aslo brings up the historical views, opinions, and perspectives of these issues from our country’s past and tells how they have changed overtime.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> There was an article in Associated Press entitled, “ Hispanic Enrollment in Schools, Colleges Rising”. This article discusses the ethnic shifts in school enrollment and how visible it is in certain states. According to this article, “States such as Arizona, California and Nevada are seeing an influx of Hispanics due to immigration and higher birth rates.” This article also talks about how these numbers have had a huge impact on education laws.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">According to an Author in Los Angeles times, “Historic wave of Mexican immigration at a standstill,” In this article, the author stated, “The number of Mexican migrants to the United States dropped significantly while the number of those returning home increased.” According to this short article, this is most likely due to “the weakened economy, increased border enforcement, a rise in deportations, growing dangers at the border and a long-term decline in Mexican birth rates.”

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> The Pew Hispanic Center is a nonpartisan research organization that seeks to improve public understanding of the diverse Hispanic population in the United States and to chronicle Latinos’ growing impact on the nation. “ Between Two Worlds: How Young Latinos Come of Age in America”, was an article by this organization about a survey of young Latinos in America. The survey dealt with how young Latinos in America prioritize their cultural values, social identities, and the use of their native languages.

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