Presenter discusses Latino civil rights

By David Rojas/reporter

Monica Rankin, a history associate professor at the University of Dallas, gave students an overview of the Hispanic civil rights movement Feb. 4 as part of the SE Campus Changing America series.

Rankin said the Hispanic movement paralleled the black Civil Rights Movement.

When the United States gained the southwest from Mexico in the 19th century, many issues arose, including discrimination, segregation and even violent backlash from white supremacist groups.

In the 1960s, Hispanics looked to their leader, Cesar Chavez, a labor activist who used peaceful, nonviolent tactics for Hispanic farm laborers to be treated equally, Rankin said.

“Policy comes first, and ideas come afterward,” she said, adding that U.S. society still needs to learn a lot more.

For more information about the series, contact the SE library at 817-515-3081.