Confronting “America”

Responses to Mexican Immigration

• Restriction & Deportation

• Americanization– Melting Pot Ideology– Targeted women & especially children– Church– School

Americanization Projects

• Emphasized classes in:– Hygiene– Civics– Cooking– Language– Vocational education (e.g., sewing, carpentry)

Messages of emulation & assimilation were promoted

Ways Mexicans Interacted with El Paso Settlement

• Utilizing selected services

• Claiming “American” identities

• Using Clinics for immunizations

• Becoming missionaries

History

• In 1900, El Paso’s Mexican community numbered 8,748

• By 1930, population had swelled to 68,476

• From 1930 to 1960, only 1.8% of workforce held white-collar occupations

Goal of Missionaries

Convert Mexican women to Methodism

Summary

Mexican women blended their options and created their own paths