Enrique Arias Group Profile On Mexican Americans

The Great Depression was a horrible time in US history for all who lived here in the US, although it did not affect everyone the same way. Many rich people felt no impact at all, but for everyone else that lived in the US The Great Depression changed the way they lived dramatically. There were many things that lead to The Great Depression not just the stock market crash. But in my opinion I think the people that were most affected were the most important people to the US because they are the ones that do the jobs require a lot of work for little pay that white people don’t want to do, Mexican Americans. Before the Great Depression Mexican Americans were still the people that would work in farms for long hours and get paid very little and everybody in the US didn’t mind having them around. And during the great depression they were still the same only now they were getting paid less but since they figured that they would still earn more than what they would in there native country. But now they were facing the fact that they could be deported because now they were not wanted there. The Great Depression changed the daily lives of Mexican Americans especially hard. Along with the job crisis and food shortages that affected all U.S. workers, Mexicans and Mexican Americans had to face an additional threat, which was deportation. They were offered free train rides to Mexico, some went voluntarily, but many were tricked into repatriation, and some U.S. citizens were deported simply on suspicion of being Mexican. About 60% of them were actually US Citizens. All of this started to happen because white people started to say that Mexicans were taking all the jobs and that was the reason that real US citizens had no job. Many of the farm owners didn’t care about their workers "When they have finished harvesting my crops, I will kick them out on the country road. My obligation is ended." Even though they were the hardest working class of people they were treated real bad making them live in places were "Shelters were made of almost every conceivable thing - burlap, canvas, palm branches." And they still wanted to kick them out. Since most of them were immigrants and not US Citizens there was nothing they could really do. They had to be careful not to be tricked into getting on the train out of the US. They had to keep working on the farms even though they had to do a lot of work for even less pay then when they started. These times were some sad times for Mexican Americans so sad that they inspired songs. "In these unhappy times depression still pursues us; lots of prickly pear is eaten for lack of other food. No light is seen in the houses nor does water flow from the tap; the people are in tatters and in a deplorable state.” In my opinion I think what the government should do is start, not by giving poor people money but making more jobs available for those who want to work so that they could earn the money. The government should try to help the people that really need help, the poor, instead of the rich. Secondly I also think they should stop deporting the Mexican Americans for no reason because whether they like it or not they are the ones who keep this country running, because they do the jobs that all the white people don’t want to do. Without them this country wouldn’t be the way it is we owe a lot to these hard working people.