Reply #53: Arizona was part of Mexico, therefore, Mexicans were there before us . . .!! [View All]

[defendandprotect]

This after all, was the true underlying intent of the Arizona law. A large contingent of the Arizona Republican Party descends from the pro-slavery forces who waged the Mexican-American War in 1846 to turn the Arizona Territory into a slaveholding region-- seizing it from Mexico, which had outlawed slavery throughout the country (of which Arizona, California, Texas and New Mexico were a part).



What present USA States were part of Mexico in the past?
In: United States History, Mexico

The whole states of California, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas, as well as parts of Wyoming, Colorado, Oklahoma and Kansas. The original US-Mexico border was defined by the Sabine River north from the Gulf of Mexico to the 32nd parallel north (32°N), then due north to the Red River, west along the Red River to the 100th meridian west (100°W), due north to the Arkansas River, west to its headwaters, north to the 42nd parallel north (42°N), and finally west along that parallel to the Pacific Ocean.

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_present_USA_States_were_part_of_Mexico_in_the_past




Defining "Mexican-Americans"

Mexican-Americans are a subset of the Hispanic ethnic group. Mexican-Americans may be recent immigrants or the sons and daughters of immigrants, descendants of those who came to the United States decades ago or who settled there when the land was either an independent republic or under Spanish or Mexican rule. Mexican-Americans can either be bilingual or monolingual (or, indeed, multilingual), their primary languages being English and Spanish, harking back to the Spanish colonizing efforts starting in the 1570s.

Mexican-Americans have been called the first "hyphenated Americans" but their designation comes from real political events. After the signing of the Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo ending the U.S. - Mexico war, more than half of Mexico's territory was ceded to the U.S. Estimates range from 70,000 to 200,000 Mexican citizens living in these territories who became Americans "overnight." The terms of the treaty gave these Mexicans one year to accept their American political status. The treaty granted them full rights of citizenship as well as protection of Mexican-Americans along with the Spanish language, Catholic religion, culture and land, although the articles dealing with land protections were later removed prior to ratification by nowllws.

Before the founding of the United States
Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada, Utah, California, Colorado, and Wyoming were part of the Viceroyalty of New Spain and later formed part of the newly independent Mexican Republic. The Spaniards first entered the region in the late 16th century, starting small settlements in what is now New Mexico.

In California, Spanish ; Franciscan friars formed a string of missions designed to convert the Indians to Christianity. Along with the system of forts and land grants to favored associates of the king, the missions enabled small-scale Spanish settlement of the coastal California by a few hundred Spanish immigrants. Very small Spanish-speaking settlements were established near missions and forts in Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado and Texas by the mid 18th century.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Mexican_Americans#Defining_.22Mexican-Americans.22

New Mexico
A state of the southwest United States on the Mexican border. It was admitted as the 47th state in 1912. Site of prehistoric cultures that long preceded the Pueblo civilization encountered by the Spanish in the 16th century, the region was governed as a province of Mexico after 1821 and ceded to the United States by the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo in 1848. The original territory (established 1850) included Arizona and part of Colorado and was enlarged by the Gadsden Purchase of 1853. Sante Fe is the capital and Albuquerque the largest city. Population: 1,970,000.

http://www.answers.com/topic/new-mexico