We cannot leave discussions and commentary on Latino heritage and cultural history without considering characteristics that have extensively influenced, in both positive and negative terms, the evolution of the Spanish speaking communities that came to colonize and be colonized by European expansion into the Americas.
They begin with stoicism that allowed for so much perseverance in the face of a history of conquest and colonialism in the Americas, the relatively brief moments of violence that ensue when patience reached its limits and the vertical hierarchies laid out in relationships like the patron system.
These topics remind me of my family’s experience in a Texas farm before leaving for Colorado. Since a child, I saw my father as a serious person that accepted without complaint whatever burdens came his way be it in the fields or at home.
I had heard that during the prohibition era and before marriage to mom he lived a somewhat violent life along the border. I am convinced that much of his activities at the time came from the collective effort to contribute to the well being of the families in the Rancho Solis Village in South Texas.
In this instance, we had just moved to a different farm because the farmer at the previous one had cheated us out of the income generated by sharecropping 40 acres of cotton. My father immediately went to work there driving a tractor and cultivating cotton fields from sunup to sundown.
One day during the early part of our stay, my father was leaving the field after sunset when the farmer came by and demanded that he continue to work at night indicating that it was why the tractor had lights.
My father hesitated and the farmer opened the glove compartment of his pickup revealing a gun in what looked like a threat mainly to his manhood. My father immediately got on the tractor and headed home followed by farmer. He went in the house, got his rifle and walked after the farmer who had gone into his house. Along the way, he dragged my mom who was begging him to calm down enough to think things through and find another way. My father’s story illustrates how a stoic tries to order those things that can be controlled and endures those that cannot until it becomes too much. Suffering the pain of conquest and life of a colonized people are things that have left a deep mark on Latino communities.
That tolerance however, can go too far and lead to violence. The Mexican historical experience is a great example of a nation that reached the limits of coping, sparking the uncontrolled conflict that was the Mexican Revolution.
The “overboard” experience can also be seen in Latino soldiers disproportionately wounded and dead in the battle fields. In this instance, the value of life is diminished to the point that, “la vida no vale nada.”
One of the major characteristics of colonial life was a vertical hierarchy of trust and authority among the class. That meant that you do what the person “above” you wants and in return he will protect and look after you. That relationship typified by the patron system has done a lot of damage to the acculturation of Latinos to American life. That is because in this country, we live in a horizontal society where everyone is theoretically equal.
Those characteristics have influenced Latino life over the centuries for both good and bad. Also, not all have enriched the American experience.
The views expressed by David Conde are not necessarily the views of LaVozColorado. Comments and responses may be directed to news@lavozcolorado.com.
