This volume in the Major Problems in American History series chronicles the history of Mexican-Americans from the pre-Colonial era through the present.

Designed to encourage critical thinking about history, the Major Problems in American History series introduces students to both primary sources and analytical essays on important topics in US history. This collection is designed for courses on Latina/o history. Important Notice: Media content referenced within the product description or the product text may not be available in the ebook version.

This book uses a micro-narrative structure to explore the assault on the collective memory of Mexican Americans in the Southwest United States from 2010–2016. These communities’ survival depends on their histories and identities, which are being quickly erased by gentrification and dispersal, neoliberalism and privatization. This issue is most apparent in the education system, where Mexican American students receive inferior educations and lack access to higher education. Avoiding the overly-theoretical macro-narrative, this book uses case studies and micro-narratives to suggest possible changes and actions to address this issue. It also explores how the erasure of Mexican Americans’ history and identity mirrors society as a whole.

Latinos in the U.S. are a major political, economic, and cultural force that is changing the national identity of this country. In fact, statistics show that by the year 2100, half of the U.S. population may be Latino. And two out of three of America's Latinos are Mexican. Mexicans are theoldest settlers of the United States and the nation's largest group of recent immigrant arrivals. Their population is increasing faster than that of all other Latino groups combined. The growing importance of this minority group - which will be felt strongly in twenty-first-century America - callsfor a fresh assessment of Mexican American history.The second edition of Crucible of Struggle: A History of Mexican Americans from the Colonial Period to the Present Era includes a new final Chapter 12: Latinos and the Challenges of the 21st Century. This chapter examines such issues as increased anti-immigrant activity after 2006, the crucial roleof Latinos in the election of Barack Obama, increased border enforcement and deportation in the wake of the U.S. Senate's failure to pass amnesty legislation, Latinos and private detention centers, the role of individual states in immigration reform, the surge of unaccompanied children from CentralAmerica, and more.