.. U.S. Conquest and Mexican American Communities .

..
U.S. Conquest and Mexican
American Communities
. . . . , U s Southwest can trace their origins to th Several
Mexican communities m today s · · b t bl· h · E e
• 1 r S · Mexico l egan es a is mg uro'Pean Spanish colonial
era. Colonists from 1 vew pain 11 'I .
settlements m New Mexico m the ate sixteen cen · ' 66 · · · l ·
th tury However New Spam struoafed
to colonize its Far North due to resistance from American
Indians and the region's distance
from other Spanish settlements. To overcome these difficulties,
ojficials used missions to
convert Indians into Spanish subjects, forts to defend Spanish
settlements, and towns
to promote civilian populations. Nevertheless, the Far North
remained unappealing due
to its isolation and the danger of Indian attacks. Worried about
its inability to attract colo-
nists and facing advancing French and Euro American
settlements, New Spain allowed
foreigners to settle in its Far North.
Mexico's successful war for independence .from Spain ( 1810-
1821) left the young
nation's economy devastated. During the colonial era, the
isolated northern settlements

lack:d regular communications and dependable trade with
central New Spain, whose
?ffiaals .frequently neglected to pay eq~'.P soldiers. The
devastation caused by the
independence war exacerbated Mexico s inability to provide
military dfi • l
. . an znancza support to its northernmost settlements. Feeling
neglected by their central · h
'd • • . government nort ern res, ents gradually began
estabhshing economic and soda/ ties with E ' .
Mexico's leaders expanded the colonization program by effering
land d uro Amenc~ns.
to foreigners willing to settle in its Far North. Euro A.,,,, . an
tax exemptions
. 11iencans wh • . d into Texas legally and illegally, were the
largest groun to parti' . .' 0 immigrate
. r cipate in Me • , l . zatzon program. They soon outnumbered
Mexican Texans (Ti . . xico s co ont-h C]anos) in Ti t e
newcomers spread U.S. culture, manufactured goods and
1
. . exas, where l ' po itical · ,,11 contra the flood ef Euro
Americans into Texas, Mexico curtai/e . 'f!J,uence. To
program. d Us colonization
The US. conquest of Mexico's Far North began with Texas' sep .
l
aratist reb ll' aunched by Euro Americans and Tejanos. Nine
years later the ad,,,,.• . e ton (18361
. , ,, itsszon ef Tt 'h Union, combined with a border dispute,
triggered the US-Mexican w, exas into the
ar (1846-J848).

34
U.S. CONQUEST AND MEXICAN AMERICAN
COMMUNITIES 35
Although most Tejanos remained neutral during the separatist
struggl:, Euro Ar:iericans
accused them of siding with Mexico . The negative portrayals of
Mexicans resul!ing from
the Texas rebellion combined with the belief in manifest destiny
generated public sup~ort
for the war. "Manifest destiny" encapsulated Euro Americans'
beliefs that the United
States was predestined to expand westward and justified to
spread its "superior" cul~ure,
ideas, and institutions throughout the conquered lands of
American Indians and Mexicans
who had long resided there. . .
The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ended the war and redrew
national boundaries, as
the United States acquired half of Mexico's territory. The
Mexican residen~ of t~e
annexed territory confronted a vastly dijferent environment
under U.S. rule, i~ which
they struggled to defend their property and lost political power.
This chapter examines the
dramatic changes experienced by Spanish Mexican residents
during the first part of the
nineteenth century, as well as the U.S. conquest of Mexico and
its implications for those
made "Mexican American" by the moving of the border.
'3 oocUMENTS

Mexican residents of the distant and isolated northern
settlements grew apart
from those living in central areas of Mexico . In Document 1,
Jose Maria
Sanchez, a Mexican military official visiting Texas, expresses
alarm about U.S.
influence on Mexicans, and about Euro Americans' disregard for
Mexican laws
and customs. Mexicans in San Antonio offer a more optimistic
view in
Document 2, which argues for more Euro American immigration
to augment
the city's population, and promote trade. Such trade provided
the northern set-
tlements with inexpensive and plentiful U.S. manufactured
items. During the
U.S.-Mexican War, the U.S. Congress debated how much of
Mexico's territory
to acquire. In Document 3, Senators John C. Calhoun and John
A. Dix share
similar views of Mexicans but they disagree about the pending
territorial acquisi-
tion. The selected passages from the Treaty of Guadalupe
Hidalgo in Document 4
describe various promises made to the Mexicans who resided in
the annexed
territories. The U.S. occupation of Mexico and the terms of the
Treaty of
Guadalupe Hidalgo generated widespread debate among
Mexican citizens and
politicians concerning the nation's future relationship with its
northern neighbor.
Document 5 contains Mexican politician Manuel Crescencio
Rej6n's arguments
against Mexico's acceptance of the treaty. The treaty

transformed Mexicans
living in the ceded lands into Mexican Americans with U.S.
citizenship, and
guaranteed them property rights. Throughout the U.S.
Southwest, Mexican
Americans, like Maria Rita Valdez in Document 6, struggled to
defend their
property in courts. The political and social turmoil resulting
from the Texas
rebellion and the U.S.-Mexican War led Juan Seguin, the former
mayor of
San Antonio, to describe himself, in Document 7, as a
"foreigner" who no longer
recognized his native city.
t~
j
J(> J l' A .& •J -
1. Mexican MiJitary Officer Criticizes M .
and Anglos in Texas, 1828 e:ro.cans
BEJAR h ·nhabitants do not cultivate it becaus . · h t e 1 e of th
Although the soil 1s very ric ' ks for months, and even years at .
e dian attac · · · · . . tlllle
danger incurred from In alary or supplies, constantly 1n active .
s,
ithout s servic
[the] troops have gone w r-. their subsistence on buffalo meat
dee e
di d ndent ror . 1 ' r, and against the In ans, epe cure wi th great

difficu ty. The goveni-b able to se . ~• ... .u1ent
other game they may e d h . condition in spite of repeated and
frequ '
h h lpe t eir ent nevertheless, as not e f the people is care-free,
they are enthusia . .
Th character o st1c
remonstrances• • • • e d the worst punishment that can be
inflicte
dancers very fond of luxury,. an . d' 'd 1 f h d ' . btl there are
some 1n 1v1 ua s, out o t e 1 425
upon them 1s work. Dou ess, h f ili' '
h k h tal Popula
tion who are free from t ese a ngs, but they
t at ma e up t e to ,
are very few. . . . · f · all
The Americans from the north have taken possess~o? 0 practic
Y the
eastern part of Texas, in most cases without the penmssion of
the authorities.
They immigrate constantly, finding no one to prevent them, ~nd
take possession
of the sitio Vocation] that best suits them without either asking
leave or going
through any formality other than that of building their homes.
Thus the majority
of inhabitants in the Department are North Americans, the
Mexican population
being reduced to only Bejar, Nacogdoches, and La Bahia del
Espiritu Santo,
wretched settlements that between them do not number three
thousand inhabi-
tants, and the new village of Guadalupe Victoria that has

scarcely more than sev-
enty settlers ....
NACOGDOCHES
. . . The population does not exceed seven hundred persons,
including the
troops of the garrison, and all live in. very good houses made of
lumber, well
built and forming straight streets, which ma~e. the place more
agreeable. The
women do not number one hundred. The civil administration is
entrusted to
an Alcalde, and in his absence, to the first and second regidores,
but up until
now they have been, unfortunately, extremely ignorant men h f
, . more wort y o pity than of reproof From this fact, the North
American inhab ·t ( h
. . . fc d ill . . f h i ants w o are m the maJonty) have orme an
opm10n o t e Mexicans • d . .
their pride, incapable of understanding laws, arts, etc. They' ju
~ng them, 1n
entangle the authorities in order to carry out the policy rno
ton~muaily try to
. s suitable t h · perverse designs. . . . o t e1r
Jose Maria Sanchez, "A Trip to Texas in 1828," trans. Carlos E.
Castaiied
Quarterly 29, no. 4 (April 1926), pp. 249-288. a, Southive•t
J em :t_r ,
r11storica/

% . '.,
'f:: Vyft1 U.S. CONQUEST AND MEXICAN AMERICAN
COMMUNITIES 37
( ~~The Mexicans that live here are very humble people, and
perhaps their
intentions are good, but because of their education and
environment they are
ignorant not only of the customs of our great cities, but even of
the occurrences
of our Revolution, excepting a few persons who have heard
a~out them.
Accustomed to the continued trade with the North Amencans,
they
have adopted their customs and habits, and one may say truly
that they are not
Mexicans except by birth, for they even speak Spanish with
marked
incorrectness ....
2. San Antonio's Tejanos Support North American
Immigration, 1832
What shall we say of the law of April 6, 1830? It absolutely
prohibits immigrants
from North America coming into Texas, but there are not
enough troops to
enforce it; so the result is that desirable immigrants are kept out
because they
will not violate the law, while the undesirable, having nothing
to lose, come in
freely. The industrious, honest North American settlers have
made great
improvements in the past seven or eight years. They have raised
cotton and

cane and erected gins and sawmills. Their industry has made
them comfortable
and independent, while the Mexican settlements, depending on
the pay of the
soldiers among them for money, have lagged far behind. Among
the Mexican
settlements even the miserable manufacture of blankets, hats
and shoes has
never been established, and we must buy them either from
foreigners or :from
the interior, 200 or 300 leagues distant. We have had a loom in
Bexar for two
years, but the inhabitants of Goliad and Nacogdoches know
nothing of this inge-
nious machine, nor even how to make a sombrero.
The advantages of liberal North American immigration are
innumerable:
(1) The colonists would afford a source of supply for the native
inhabitants.
(2) They would protect the interior from Indian invasions. (3)
They
would develop _roads and commerce to New Orleans and New
Mexico. (4)
Moreover, the ideas of government held by North Americans are
in general
~etter adapted to those of the Mexicans than are the ideas of
European
immigrants.
It is unquestionable that the lack of a government which shall
feel directly
the needs o~ Texas and understand the means necessary to
multiply its population
and p_rotect its welfare has been, is, and will continue to be the
chief source of our

suffenngs.
Eugen~ C. Barker, "Native Latin American Contributions to the
Colonization and Ind
Texas, Soutl1westem Historical Quarterly 46, no. 3 Qanuary
1943), pp. 317-335. ependence of
p
38
MAJOR PROBLEMS IN L
1-1 1s roR Y
ATJNA / O
-r1 tablishes Rights for
J-Iidalgo _pS
3 The Treaty of Guadalupe d 1,ands, 18
48
· . h _Annexe
Mexicans 1n t e
F GUADALUPE
TRANSCRIPT OF TREATY O
HIDALGO (1848)
Article I h United States of America
al
between t e . . .
Th
hall be firm and univers peace . ctive countnes, temtones,

ere s . d between their respe
and the Mexican Republic, an . f laces or persons ....
cities, towns, and people, without exception o P
Article Ill t ty by
the Government of
·fi · f the present rea
Immediately upon the ratl catwn ° ders of their land · d to the
conunan
the United States, orders shall be trans~tte . 1 t desist from
blockading
and naval forces, requiring the latter . . . urunediate y o at the
earliest . . h :6 to commence,
any Mexican ports and requmng t e onner . . . . d St tes and such
moment practicable, withdrawing all troops of the Urute a_ h h.
· · l t . . . hall b 1 ted wit t e eas pos-
evacuation of the mtenor of the Republic s e comp e
sible delay ....
Article VIII
Mexicans now established in territories previously belonging to
Mexico, and
which remain for the future within the limits of the United
States, as defined
by the present treaty, shall be free to continue where they now
reside, or to
remove at any time to the Mexican Republic, retaining the
property which
they possess in the said territories, or disposing thereof, and
removing the pro-
ceeds wherever they please, without their being subjected, on
this account, to

any contribution, tax, or charge whatever.
Those who shall prefer to remain in the said territories may
either retain the
title and rights of Mexican citizens, or acquire those of citizens
of the United States.
But they shall be under the obligation to make their election
within one year from
the date of the exchange of ratifications of this treaty; and those
who shall
remain in t~e _said t~rritories a~ter the expiration of that year,
without having
declared their mtention to retam the character of Mexicans shall
b ·d d . . , e cons1 ere
to have elected to become citizens of the United States.
In the said territories, property of every kind, now belon · M ·
bli h d h hall b
. .
1
gmg to exicans
not esta s e t ere, s e mVIo ably respected The prese t h h ·
all
. · n owners, t e ell'S
of these, and Mexicans who may hereafter acquire said b
all
· · h · property y contract,
sh enJOY wit respect to 1t guarantees equally ample as if th
citizens of the United States. e same belonged to

S
elections from the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo Us C ' · ·
ongress S
30th Congress, 1st Session, 1847, no. 52. (Accessed at www ou
d ' enate Executive Documents
akin
c N . · r ocuments d '
"A Century of Lawm g 1or a ew Nanon: U s C . .gov an at
memory Joe gov: · · ongress1onal D · ·
1774-1875.") ocuments and Debates,
CONQUEST AND MEXICAN AMERICAN COMMUNITIES
U.S . 39
Article IX . f
. . £ . d hall not preserve the character o The Mexicans who, _in
the temtones a 0;:::ab( with what is stipulated in the
citizens of the Mexican Republic, conh y U • n of the United
States,
• • b · t d into t e mo
preceding article, shall e mcorpora e . d d of b the Congress of
the
and be admitted at the proper tlme (to be JU ge . ·ze~ of the
United States,
United States) to the enjoyment of all the nghts of citi . hall b
. . . h C · · . nd in the mean time, s e according to the pnnc1ples
of t e onst1tut1on, a
. . • h fr · t f their liberty and property, mamtamed and protected

m t e ee eilJoymen o . .
and secured in the free exercise of their religion without
restnctton. · · ·
Article XII
In consideration of the extension acquired by the boundaries of
the United
States, . . . the Government of the United States engages to pay
to that of the
Mexican Republic the sum of fifteen millions of dollars.
4. Congress Debates Incorporating Mexicans, 1848
Mr. CALHOUN said: ... [l]t is without example or precedent,
either to hold
Mexico as a province, or to incorporate her into our Union. No
example of
such a line of policy can be found. We have conquered many of
the neighboring
tribes oflndians, but we never thought of holding them in
subjection-never of
incorporating them into our Union. They have either been left as
an indepen-
dent people amongst us, or been driven into the forests.
I know further, sir, that we have never dreamt of incorporating
into our
Union any but the Caucasian race-the free white race. To
incorporate Mexico,
would be the very first instance of the kind of incorporating an
Indian race; for
more than half of the Mexicans are Indians, and the other is
composed chiefly of
IIDXed tribes. I protest against such a union as that! Ours, sir,
is the Government
of a white race. The greatest misfortunes of Spanisli. America

are to be traced to
the fatal error of placing these colored races on an equality with
the white race.
That error desttoyed the social arrangement which fanned the
basis of society ....
[WJe are the only people on this continent which have made
revolutions with-
out being followed by anarchy. And yet it is professed and
talked about to erect
these Mexicans into a Territorial Government, and place them
on an equality
with the people of the United States. I protest utterly against
such a project.
Sir, it is a remarkable fact, that in the whole history of man, as
far as my
knowledge extends, there is no instance whatever of any
civilized colored races
being found equal to the establishment of free popular
government, although by
far the largest portion of the human family is composed of these
races .... Are we
to associate with ourselves as equals, companions, and fellow -
citizens, the Indians
John C. C,lhoun, ),nu,cy, 4, 1848, Th, Cong,mfon»! Cfob,, pP.
96--!00, ond John A. Dix, Jmu,cy 26 1848, Tiie Congressional
Globe, pp. 250-257. '
40 MAJOR. PROBLEMS IN LATINA/0 HISTORY
. d r such a thing as fatal to our and mixed race of Mexico? Sir,
I should conSl e

institutions . ... . tin her into our Union .... You
I come now to the proposition of mcorpora g • Mexico, and
there are
can establish a Territorial Government for every St~tedm nd
maoistrates y
0 · ors JU ges, a t:r • u some twenty of them. you ca? appomt
govern ' owin them to legislate for
can give the people a subordmate government, all alg b tw thi d
themselves whilst you defray the cost .... There is no an °J,Y }
een s an
our Territ~rial Governments. Our Territories are only an ouset
O oulr ?wn ~eo
1
-
fr h . fr which we came. . . . t 1s entire y ple, or foreigners om t
e same regions om T . . .
different with Mexico. You have no need of armies to keep your
erntones _m
subjection. But when you incorporate Mexico, you must h~v~
powerful armies
k h · b " · y all · tion but 1t 1s a forced annex-to eep t em m su
~ection. ou may c 1t annexa , . .
ation which is a contradiction in terms, according to my
conceptwn. You will
be in~olved in one word in all the evils which I attribute to
holding Mexico as
a province. In fact, it will.be but a Provincial Government,
unde~ th_e name of a
Territorial Government. How long will that last? How long will
it be before
Mexico will be capable of incorporation into our Union? Why,

if we judge
from the examples, before us, it will be a very long time.
Ireland has been held
in subjection by England for seven or eight hundred years, and
yet still remains
hostile, although her people are of kindred race with the
conquerors . . ..
But, Mr. President, suppose all these difficulties removed;
suppose these
people attached to our Union, and desirous of incorporating
with us, ought we
to bring them in? ... Are they fit for self-government and for
governing you?
Are you, any of you, willing that your States should be
governed by these
twenty-odd Mexican States, with a population of about only one
million of
your blood, and two or three millions of mixed blood, better
informed, all the
rest pure Indians, a mixed blood equally ignorant and unfit for
liberty, impure
races, not as good as the Cherokees or Choctaws?
We make a great mistake, sir, when we suppose that all people
are capable
of self-government. We are anxious to force free government on
all; and I see
that it has been urged in a very respectable quarter, that it is the
mission of this
country to spread civil and religious-liberty over all the world,
and especially
o-~er this continent. It i~ a great ~stake. None but people
advanced to a very
high state of moral and mtellectual improveme nt are capable, in
a civilized state,

of m~ntaining free government; and amongst those who are so
purified, very
few, mdeed, have had the good fortune of forming a constitution
capable of
endurance ....
~r. DI~ said: ... Having thus declared myself in favor of the
occupation of
Mexico u~til s~e sh~ consent to make peace, I deem it proper to
say, in con-
nection with this subject, that I have been uniformly opposed,
and that I am still
oppo~ed, to all schemes of c~nquest for the acquisition of
territory ....
Sir, no one :"ho has paid a moderate degree of attention to the
laws and
elements of our mcrease, can doubt that our population is de t· d
d
. . . . s me to sprea itself across the Amencan contment, filling
up, with more or less
1 · f il d li comp eteness, according to attr~ct1ons o so an c
mate, the space that intervenes between the
Atlantic and Pacific oceans . . ..
U .S. CONQUEST AND MEXICAN AMERICAN
COMMUNITIES 41
. · · · Our ~h~le southern line is contemunous, throughout its
whole extent,
with the tem~ones of Mexico, a large portion of which is nearly
unpopulated.

Th~ geographical area of Mexico is about 1,700,000 square
miles, and her pop-
ulation something more than 7,000,000 souls .... The aboriginal
races, which
occupy and overrun a portion of Califonua and New Mexico
must there as h , ,
everyw ere else, give way before the advancing wave of
civilization, either to
be overwhelme~ ~y . it, or to be driven upon perpetually
constructing areas,
w~ere, from a dimmution of their accustomed sources of
subsistence, they must
ul~ately become extinct by force of an invincible law. We see
the operation of
this law m ev~ry portion of this continent. We have no power to
control it, if
':e would. ~t 1s the behest of Providence that idleness, and
ignorance, and barba-
nsm, s?all give place to industry, and knowledge, and
civilization. The European
:1°d mIXed races, which possess Mexico, are not likely, either
from moral or phys-
ical energy, to become formidable rivals or enenues. The bold
and courageous
enterprise which overran and conquered Mexico, appears not to
have descended
to the present possessors of the soil. Either from the influence
of climate or the
adnuxture of races-the fusion of castes, to use the techmcal
phrase-the conquer-
ors have, in tum, become the conquered. The ancient Castilian
energy is, in a
great degree, subdued; and it has given place, with many other
noble trails of the
Spamsh character, to a peculiarity which seems to have marked
the race in that

country, under whatever combinations it is found-a proneness to
civil discord,
and a suicidal waste of its own strength.
With such a territory and such a people on our southern border,
what is to
be the inevitable course of empire? It needs no powers of
prophecy to foretell.
Sir, I desire to speak plainly: why should we not, when we are
discussing the
operation of moral and physical laws, which are beyond our
control? As
our population moves westward on our own territory, portions
will cross our
southern boundary. Settlements will be formed within the
unoccupied and
sparsely-peopled territory of Mexico. Uncongemal habits and
tastes, differences of
political opimon and principle, and numberless other elements
of diversity will lead
to a separation of these newly-formed societies from the
inefficient government of
Mexico. They will not endure to be held in subjection to a
system, which nei-
ther yields them protection nor offers any incentive to their
proper development
and growth. They will form independent States on the basis of
constitutions
identical in all their leading features with our own; and they
will naturally seek
to umte their fortunes to ours. The fate of Califonua is already
sealed: it can
never be reumted to Mexico. The operation of the great causes,
to which I
have alluded, must, at no distant day, detach the whole of
northern Mexico

from the southern portion of that republic. It is for the very
reason that she is
incapable of defending her possessions against the elements of
disorder within
and the progress of better influences from without, that I desire
to see the inevi-
table political change which is to be wrought in the condition of
her northern
departments, brought about without any improper interference
on our part. I do
not speak of our military movements. I refer to the time when
our difficulties
with her shall be healed, and when she shall be left to the
operation of pacific
influences-silent, but more powerful than the arm of force ....
Acquisition by
,,,.-
I ,
I hi
. l'
I
I,
I/
42 MAJOR PROBLEMS IN LATINA/O HISTOR y
• . . For the sake of the national honor force is the VIce of
arbitrary governments• • • • . . . . ,
11 h f liti.cal institut10ns, I desire not to see It. The as we as t e
permanency o our po nl b t d 'f d

extension of free gove1nment on t is contmen · h' · t can o y e
arres e , i arreste at
all b b · · r: h rt of peace Leave it to itself, and nothing can , y
su stitutmg war 1or t e a s • .
f 1 · the contment. prevent the progress o our popu ation across
5. Mexican Liberal Manuel Crescendo Rej6n Opposes the
Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, 1848
[O]ur national government has entered into those neg?tiations
which ~re so
humiliating to us, thus committing us to grave impu~ations of
perfidy if we
should reject the treaty, which we should surely do. This
_go:7ernment ha_s dem-
onstrated its misunderstanding of the nature of the institutions
by whi~h we
live .... The result is that we are unable to disapprove a
shameful treaty without
rendering our country almost defenseless against the disasters
of a war which has
been so disadvantageous to us because the government has not
prepared the
country to resist and to continue the war to a successful end.
Ultimately, the
very nationhood of the republic will be undermined. Now is our
last chance to
sustain it. Otherwise, it will disappear within ten or fifteen
years with the loss of
the rest of the national territory, without there being either the
means or the
sense of national glory with which to resist.
. . . The social advantages which would accrue to us by

accepting a peace
now have been exaggerated, as well as the ease with which we
would be able
to maintain our remaining territories. It would be necessary, in
order to sustain
such illusions, to underestimate the spirit of enterprise of the
North American
people in industrial and commercial pursuits, to misunderstand
their history and
their tendencies, and also to presuppose in our own spirit less
resistance than we
have already shown toward the sincere friends of progress. Only
through such
illusions might one maintain that the treaty would bring a
change that would
be advantageous to us-as has been claimed.
With the borders of our conquerors brought closer to the heart
of our
nation, with the whole line of the frontier occupied by them
from sea to sea,
with their highly developed merchant marine, and with them so
versed in the
system of colonization by which they attract great numbers of
the laboring classes
from the ol~ worl~, w~at can we, who _are so backward in
everything, do to
arrest them m their rapid conquests, their latest invasions?
Thousands of men
will come daily to establish themselves under American
auspices in the new ter-
ritories with which we_ will have obli~~d them. There they will
develop their
commerce and stock~il~ large quantit~es of merchandise
brought from the
upper states. They will mundate us with all this, and our own

modicum of
wealth, already so misera~le and deplete~, will in the future
sink to insignificance
and nothingness. We will not accomplish anything by lowering
our maritime
i1 R b . on ed The View from Chapultepec: Mexican Writers on
the M • A .
Cec o ms , ·, 95 97 ex,can- mencan War (Tucson: . . f Arizona
Press 1989), pp . - · Uruvers1ty o '
U.S. CONQUEST AND MEXICAN AMERICAN
COMMUNITIES 43
duties, abolishing our internal customshouses, or suppressing
our restrictive laws.
The Anglo Americans, now situated so close to our populated
provinces, will
provide these areas with the marvels of the world, passing them
from the frontier
zones to our southern states, and having withal the advantage
over us of attract-
ing our own merchants as well as our consumers, who will favor
these foreigners
because of the low prices at which they will be able to buy
American goods.
6. Los Angeles Board of Land Commissioners Confirms
Mexican Woman's Land Title, 1852
Case No. 371 SD San Antonio (o Rodeo de las Aguas), Maria
Rita [V]aldez,
Claimant.

Petition to Land Commissioners. Nov. 4, 1852.
. "Valdez . . . claims . . . [ name of ranch] containing one square
league . . . she
clauns the same under a title from the Mexican government in
long ownership
~rstly by virtue of property in the said tract of land acquired
under a temporary
title extended to herself and Luciano Valdez in 1831 and
constant occupancy
under the same in conformity with the Mexican customs until
1838. Secondly
by virtue of a grant under the Mexican Government on 1838 by
[Governor]
Alvarado. . . since which time the claimant and those under her
have been in
constant occupancy with this date and without any knowledge of
any interfering
claimant .... " Henry Hancock, Attorney for Plaintiff.
Deposition of Valdez.
" ... That she after receiving the [title] from Monterey ... [no
date] always
kept it stored in a certain trunk of hers which was left with
other things in her
house at the time of the political disturbances of 1846 at or
about the time of the
Americans corning to this place .... That on their approach
herself and family fled
and her house had been pillaged and the said trunk rifled by
some unknown part
either of Californians Indians or Americans since which time
the deponent has
not been able to find the said grant ~apers] .... " Nov. 11, 1852.

7. San Antonio's Former Mayor Juan Seguin Identifies
Himself as a "Foreigner in My Native Land," 1858
A native of the city of San Antonio de Bexar, I e~braced the
cause of Texas at
the sound of the first cannon which foretold her liberty, filled
an honorable role
· h. h k of the conquerors of San Jacinto, and was a member of
the wit m t e ran s . . .
· 1 · b d f th Republic In the very land which m other trmes
bestowed legis at1ve o y o e ·
. . s Southern District, Bancroft Library, Berkeley, California
Case No. 371,
U.S. D1stnct Court, Land Cdase1, A ) Maria Rita Maldez,
Claimant, November 4, 1852. SD San Antonio (o Rodeo e as
guas '
M · ,rj / N Se•ou/n From the Year 183 4 to the Retreat ef
General , emo1rs OJ om . ,. ,
Juan Nepomuceno Segum, Pers~na 842 S Antonio· Ledger
Book and Job Office, 1858) . Copy from Woll from the City of
San Anto~10, R (band· Tiie M~moirs and Selected
Correspondence ef Juan N. Seguin
, F d 1 TeJ·a A Revolution emem ere .
Jesus • e a • 73-74 90
(Austin: State House Press, 1991), PP· ' ·
J 44 MAJOR PROULEMS IN LATINA / 0 HI ST O RY
on me such bright and repeated evidences of trust and e_steem,
I no w find myself
exposed to the attacks of scribblers and personal enenues who ,

to serve political
purposes and engender strife , falsify historical fact with which
they are but imper-
fectly acquainted ....
I have been the object of the hatred and passionate attacks of a
few trouble-
makers who, for a ti.me, ruled as masters over the poor and
oppressed population
of San Antonio . Harpy-like, ready to pounce on everything that
attracted th e
notice of their rapacious avarice, I was an obstacle to the
execution of their vile
designs. They therefore leagued together to exasperate and ruin
me, spread
malignant calumnies against me , and made use of odious
machinations to sully
my honor and tarnish my well earned reputation.
A victim to the wickedness of a few men whose false pretenses
were favored
because of their origin and recent domination over the country,
a foreigner in
my native land, could I stoically be expected to endure their
outrages and insults?
Crushed by sorrow, convinced that only my death would satisfy
my enemies,
I sought shelter among those against whom I had fought. I
separated from my coun-
try, parents, family , relatives and friends and, what was more,
from the institutions
on behalf of which I had drawn my sword with an earnest wish
to see Texas free and
happy . In that involuntary exile my only ambition was to
devote my time, far from
the tumult of war, to the support of my family who shared in my

sad condition.
Fate , however, had not exhausted its cup of bitterness. Thrown
into a prison
in a foreign country, I had no alternatives left but to linger in a
loathsome con-
finement or to accept military service .
On one hand, my wife and children, reduced to beggary and
separated from
me; on the other hand, to tum my anus against my own country .
The alterna-
tives were sad, the struggle of feelings violent. At last the fathe
r triumphed over
the citizen; I seized a sword that pained my hand. (Who among
my readers will
not understand my situation?) I served Mexico ; I served her
loyally and faithfully .
I was compelled to fight my own countrymen, but I was never
guilty of the
barbarous and unworthy deeds of which I am accused by my
enemies . ...
***
I will also point out the origin of another enmity which , on
several occasions, endan-
gered my life. In those evil days, San Antonio swam1ed with
adventurers from every
quarter of the globe . Many a noble heart grasped the sword in
the defense of the
liberty of Texas, cheerfully pouring out their blood for our
cause , and to them ever-
lasting public gratitude is due . But there were also many bad
men, fogitives from their
country who found in this land an opportunity for their criminal
designs.

San Antonio claimed then, as it claims now, to be the first city
of Texas. It was
also the receptacle of the scum of society. My political and
social situation brought
me into continual contact with that class of people . At every
hour of the day and
night my countrymen ran to me for protection against the assa
ults or exactions of
those adventurers. Sometimes, by persuasion, I prevailed on th
em to desist; some-
um. es also, force had to be resorted to . How could I have done
otherwise? Were
' l h 111 C the victims my own countrymen, friends , and
associates? Could I eave t e
no . h h were defenseless, exposed to the assaults of foreigners
who , on th e pretext t at t ey
U .S . CONQUEST AND MEXICAN AMERICAN
COMMUNITIES 45
Mexicans, treated them worse than brutes? Sound reason and the
dictates of
humanity precluded any different conduct on my part.
~ESSAYS
rv:iexican citizens living in Texas and California faced complex
choices in the early
mneteenth century. By the 1830s, Tejanos had forged social and
economic ties with
Euro American immigrants, grown dependent on U.S.
manufactured goods, and

become disenchanted with the policies of their central
government. Mexico sus-
pended Euro American immigration into Texas and the
centralists gained control of
the presidency during the early 1830s. Both developments had
far-reaching repercus-
sions in Texas as Raul Ramos, professor of history at the
University of Houston,
explains in the first essay. The outbreak of the separatist
rebellion in Texas forced
Tejanos to make a choice among siding with the rebels,
remaining loyal to Mexico,
or attempting to stay neutral. An individual's class, social
contacts, and political ideology
influenced this choice. Ultimately, the outcome of the Texas
conflict affected Tejanos'
identity, in which ethnicity increasingly played a larger role
than nationalism.
American property laws introduced significant changes to
landownership prac-
tices throughout the U.S. Southwest. As a result, Mexican
Americans lost property
as they struggled to have their Spanish and Mexican land titles
confirmed in U.S.
courts. Their loss of land was uneven-it occurred more rapidly
in regions with a
large Euro American presence, and more slowly in majority
Mexican American
areas. The reasons for the loss of property included the owners'
unfamiliarity with
paying property taxes (which did not exist under Mexican law),
and their inability
to weather economic downturns and natural disasters. In
addition, Mexican
Americans lost land to pay for legal fees in lengthy property

litigation and prop-
erty confirmation. According to Miroslava Chavez-Garcia,
professor of Chicana/ o
Studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara, these
losses were most acute
for Mexican American and Native women, as described in the
second essay.
Tejanos and the War of Texas Secession in 1836
RAUL A. RAMOS
In early fall of 1835, the citizens and government o~cials of
Bexar gathered to
prepare for the upcoming Independen_ce Day ce~~bratlo~ .... A
mo~th before the
celebration, fifty Bexarefios gathered m the political chiefs
council hall to elect
the junta patri6tica, ~r patriotic commissi~n, in _charge of
organizing th~ event:.:.
. . . The men elected to serve in the Junta mcluded the most
promment civil
and military elite in Bexar . ...
From BEYOND THE ALAMO: FORGING MEXIC!'N
_ETHNICITY IN _SAN ANTONIO , 1821-
1861 by Raul A. Ramos. Copyright© 2008 by the Umvemty of
North Carolina Press. Used by pemus-
sion of the publisher. www.uncpress.unc .edu
1
Human Resources Management Policies and Procedures
Chapter 3

Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
2
Learning Objectives
Explain the difference between HR policies and HR procedures.
Identify the steps managers use to develop HR policies and
procedures.
State the importance of conducting a legal review before
implementing HR policies and procedures.
3
Learning Objectives
Assess the impact of advanced technology on HR-related policy
and procedure development.
Explain why HR managers must develop, implement, and
maintain effective recordkeeping systems.
4
HR Policies & Procedures Activities
Policy and Procedure Development
HR policy(ies): A course of action selected from alternatives
and designed to guide future decision-making.

5
HR procedures: The methods or steps used to effectively
develop and apply HR policies
6
7
Areas of Policy and Procedure Development
Staffing the Organization
Developing staff
Motivating staff
Maintaining staff
8
Recruitment and Selection of Employees
Identify the specific skills, knowledge, and abilities needed in

the organization
9
Ensure an adequate pool of qualified applicants to maximize the
operation’s chances to hire an outstanding candidate
Provide sufficient job information to discourage unqualified job
applicants to avoid wasting time and resources in the
interviewing process
10
Be sure not to illegally exclude potential candidates for non-job
related reasons

11
Refer candidates to the individual who will make the hiring
decision, or make the actual hiring selection
Provide the candidate with a good deal of job-related and
organization-related information to encourage the desired
candidate to accept the position
12
Developing Staff
New Staff Orientation
Training for Current Staff
It is the role of the HR manager to ensure legally defensible
policies and procedures are developed

13
Motivating Staff
Two factors are commonly agreed to affect worker motivation:
A worker’s ability to do a job
A worker’s willingness to do a job
14
Motivating Staff
Theories of employee motivation
Needs hierarchy (Abraham Maslow)
Theory X and Theory Y (Douglas McGregor)
Motivation/Hygiene Theory (Frederick Herzberg)
15
Motivating Staff (cont.)
Theories of employee motivation
Three Need (Achievement, Affiliation and Power) Theory
(David McClelland)
Expectancy Theory (Victor Vroom)

16
Maintaining Staff
Major areas of concern include worker health and safety, and
development employee assistance programs (EAP).
EAP: The term used to describe a variety of employer initiated
efforts to assist employees in the areas of family concerns, legal
issues, financial matters and health maintenance.
17
Steps in HR Policy and Procedure Development
Identify the HR issue to be addressed
Consider on-site factors affecting implementation
Consider off-site factors affecting implementation
18
Steps in HR Policy and Procedure Development
Draft policy and procedures and submit for (legal) review
Develop related documentation and record keeping requirements
Communicate finalized policy and procedures to affected parties

19
Review for Legal Compliance
A policy that is already flawed or illegal from the outset simply
should not be implemented.
In most cases, a legal review of a policy proposed by
experienced managers will not indicate that the proposed policy
is illegal; but such a review must still be undertaken prior to the
policy’s implementation.
20
Review for Legal Compliance
For example, in the case of dress codes, a legal review will help
a HR manager ensure dress code requirements do not violate:
Sex discrimination laws
Race discrimination laws
Religious discrimination laws
21
Applying Advanced Technology to HR Policies and Procedures
Information Dissemination
Changes in policies and procedures should be accompanied by a
written (hard copy) document detailing the new policy or
procedures. The hard can be signed by employees, and then a
copy of the signed document can be placed in the employee’s
personal file.

22
Personal File: A record of information about a single
employee’s employment. Typically, this file includes
information about the employee’s personal status, application,
performance evaluations, and disciplinary warnings.
23
Employee Handbook (manual): A permanent reference guide for
employers and employees that contains information about a
company, its goals and its current employment policies and
procedures.
24
Example methods of information dissemination:
E-mail with E-mail attachment
Website posting
CD
Toll free number: telephone voice recording

Electronic News Posting/ Blog
25
Information Storage
Areas in which data storage is of significant concern:
Employment Applications
Resumes
Performance evaluations
Disciplinary records
26
Information Storage
Areas in which data storage is of significant concern: (cont.)
Medical files
Insurance-related records and correspondence
Training records and documentation
Certificates, transcripts, diplomas
Military records
27
Information Storage

Areas in which data storage is of significant concern: (cont.)
Governmental entity inquiry records
Lawsuit-related information
Other employee or employment-related correspondence
28
Information storage: The processes, equipment, and documents
that make up a company’s total records retention effort.
29
Information Storage
Key components of record-keeping systems:
Security Features
Records Specific Designated Servers
30
Documentation and
Record Keeping
Selected recordkeeping requirements enforced by the United
States government:
Employee Name, address, Social Security number, gender, date
of birth

Position, job category
Applications, resumes, recruitment notices, job orders,
employment tests
Date of hire
I-9 form
31
Documentation and
Record Keeping
Selected recordkeeping requirements enforced by the United
States government: (cont.)
Work permits/age certificates for minors
Dates and reasons for promotion, demotion, transfer, layoff,
rehire, and termination
Performance evaluations
Training opportunities, agreements
32
Documentation and
Record Keeping
33
Documentation and

Record Keeping
Constructive Discharge: An employee-initiated termination of
employment brought about by conditions that make the
employee's work situation so intolerable a reasonable person
would feel compelled to quit.
Also known as constructive wrongful discharge.
34
Documentation and
Record Keeping
RFI: An official EEOC “Request for Information”
Responding to an RIF is an EEOC requirement that the accused
party submit all requested copies of personnel policies, the
accuser’s personnel files, the personnel files of other
individuals, and any other information deemed relevant by the
EEOC.
1
The Legal Environment of Human Resources Management
Chapter 2
2
Learning Objectives

Define and describe “employment law:” the legislation directly
addressing employer–employee relations.
State the importance of the government’s role in establishing
legal requirements affecting HR management.
3
Learning Objectives
List and briefly describe significant labor-related legislation
enacted in the U.S. by the federal government.
Identify the unique issues facing hospitality companies that
operate units in countries with legal and cultural systems
different from that of the United States.
Appraise and appreciate the unique HR-related responsibilities
of the hospitality industry unit manager.
4
Employment Law
Employment Law: The body of laws, administrative rulings, and
precedents which addresses the legal rights of workers and their
employers.
Jurisdiction: The geographic area over which a legal authority
extends.
5
The Government’s Role in the Management of HR

Hospitality managers interact with governmental entities in a
variety of different ways, and they must observe the procedures
and regulations established by the government.
Just as the federal government has played and will continue to
play an important regulatory role in the hospitality industry, so
too do the various state and local governments.
6
Unemployment compensation is primarily operated by the
states.
Unemployment compensation: A benefit paid to an employee
who involuntarily loses his/her employment without just cause
7
Worker’s Compensation: A benefit paid to an employee who
suffers a work-related injury or illness.
Garnish(ment): A court-ordered method of debt collection in
which a portion of a worker’s income is paid directly to one or
more of that worker’s creditors.

8
A Manager’s Review of Significant Employment Legislation
One good way to examine significant federal legislation related
to human resource management is to view them as being enacted
before, or after, the landmark Civil Rights Act 1964.
9
The Clayton Act of 1914 legitimized and protected workers’
rights to join labor unions.
Labor union: An organization that acts on behalf of its members
to negotiate with management about wages, hours, and other
terms and conditions of their membership’s employment.
10
Railway Labor Act of 1926 required employers to bargain with
unions and prohibited discrimination against union members.
Interstate Commerce: Commercial trading or the transportation
of persons or property between or among states.
11
Wagner Act of 1935 prohibited employers from:

Interfering with the formation of a union
Restraining employees from exercising their right to join a
union
Imposing any special conditions on employment that would
discourage union membership
12
Wagner Act of 1935 prohibited employers from: (cont.)
Discharging or discriminating against employees who reported
unfair labor practices
Refusing to bargain in good faith with legitimate union
leadership
13
Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 eliminated labor conditions
deemed “detrimental to the maintenance of the minimum
standards of living necessary for health, efficiency and well -
being of workers.”
14
The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938

Requires employers to pay overtime for hours worked in excess
of 40 per week (defined as 7 consecutive 24 hour periods)
Set standards for child labor
15
The Equal Pay Act of 1963
Prohibits employers from paying women and men different
wages when the work performed requires equal skill, effort, and
responsibility, and is performed under similar working
conditions
16
The Civil Rights Act of 1964
In June 1964, Congress passed the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
It was the most important piece of civil rights legislation in the
nation’s history.
On July 2, 1964, President Johnson signed it into law.
17
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 outlaws discrimination based on:
Race
Color
Religion

Sex
National origin
18
Title VII: The specific section of the Civil Rights Act of 1964
that outlaws discrimination in employment in any business on
the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin.
19
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC): The
entity within the Federal government assigned to enforcing the
provisions of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
20
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits sexual harassment.
Sexual Harassment: Unwelcome sexual advances, requests for
sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual
nature.

21
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 mandates affirmative action in
some cases.
Affirmative Action: A Federally mandated requirement that
employers who meet certain criteria must actively seek to fairly
employ recognized classes of workers.
22
Is expanded to prohibit discrimination based on:
Pregnancy
Age
Disability
23
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 allows discrimination under some
BFOQs.
(BFOQ): Bona Fide occupational qualification: A specific job
requirement for a particular position reasonably necessary to the
normal operation of a business, and thus allowing
discrimination against a protected class.
24

Disparate treatment: The claim that, in the same situation, one
employee was treated differently than other employees in the
same situation.
Disparate impact: The claim that an employer’s action, though
not intentionally discriminatory, still results in unlawful
discrimination. Also known as adverse impact.
25
The Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967
Initially passed to prevent the widespread practice (at that time)
of requiring employees to retire at age 65.
26
The Pregnancy Discriminati on Act of 1978 made discrimination
on the basis of pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical
conditions unlawful sex discrimination under Title VII.
27
The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 mandates
reasonable accommodation.

Reasonable Accommodation: Any modification or adjustment to
a job or the work environment that will enable a qualified
applicant or employee with a disability to participate in the
application process or to perform the job’s essential functions.
28
The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 definition of
disability includes:
AIDS
Cancer
Cerebral palsy
Tuberculosis
Heart disease
Hearing or visual impairments
Alcoholism
29
The Family Medical Leave Act of 1993 allows an employee to
take unpaid leave due to pregnancy, illness, or to care for a sick
family member.

30
The Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009 changes the statute of
limitations on charges of equal-pay violations from 180 days of
its first occurrence (per the Civil Rights Act) to 180 days from
the issuance of each worker paycheck resulting from the
discriminatory act.
31
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 (Obama
care);
Guaranteed the ability of all individuals to obtain healthcare
coverage regardless of their pre-existing health conditions.
Mandated that all employees not covered by a health insurance
plan at work must purchase individual health care coverage.
32
care); (cont.)
Provides health insurance cost subsidies for low income
individuals and families.
Bans annual and lifetime caps on insurance coverage for all
individuals.
Provides tax incentives for small businesses that provide health
coverage for their workers and pay at least 50% of cost of the
coverage.

33
care); (cont.)
Fines employers who do not provide adequate health coverage
to their full-time employees (currently defined as those who
work over 30 hours per week or 130 hours per month).
34
care); (cont.)
Mandates individual coverage. Exceptions to the mandate
include undocumented immigrants, members of Native
American tribes, members of religious orders and those who
cannot afford insurance.
35
The International Legal Environment for Multinational
Hospitality Companies
Expatriate Manager: a citizen of one country who is a working
manager in another country.
Special International HR Concerns:
Accrued vacation time
Quality of training
Availability of qualified numbers of employees

Employee and management attitudes toward gender equality,
appropriate dress, work ethic, religious tolerance, and the rights
of minorities
36
The Special Role of the Hospitality Unit Manager
The unit manager is the primary HR expert in many operations.
Unit Manager: The individual with the final on-site decision-
making authority at an individual hospitality operation.
37
The Special Role of the Hospitality Unit Manager
Ways to keep up-to-date on constantly changing national, state,
and local legislation include:
Reading hospitality industry journals and publications
Reviewing franchisors updates
Staying involved in hospitality trade associations
Consulting chambers of commerce, business trade associations,
and police, fire and building officials
Thinking like a Historian checklist*

Use this checklist as a guide for your students as they examine
primary sources.
Historical Thinking Strategy Strategy
Used
Yes/No
Findings
Sourcing: Think about the author, artist, or writer and
the creation of the primary source. Who created it?
When? Why was it created? For what purpose? How
trustworthy is this source?
Contextualizing: Situate the source in time and
place. What major events, themes, or peoples distinguish
the era or period in which the source was created?
Close reading: Carefully consider what the document
says and the language used to say it. Note interesting
words or phrases; consider contextual clues about time,
place, or people; or question facts, opinions, and
perspectives.
Using background knowledge: Use prior knowledge to
read and understand the source. What else do I know
about this topic? What other knowledge can I apply?

Reading the silences: Identify what has been left out or
is missing by asking questions of the source. What do you
not hear or see? What did you expect to see and didn’t?
Why?
Corroborating: Question important details across
multiple sources to determine points of agreement and
disagreement. How can you proceed with your historical
investigation? What other primary sources might
corroborate or refute this interpretation?
*Adapted from Sam Wineburg’s “Thinking Like a Historian”
article from Teaching with Primary Sources Quarterly,
Winter 2010.
Choose one of the questions below to respond to
and reply to one classmate's post who answered a
different question than you did in your post. Be
prepared to discuss all questions in class.
Remember your responses should include both
content-specific terminologies that demonstrate

understanding of the required readings/video and
an element of your own interpretation that reflects
your ability to connect our class discussion with
your own learning.
◦ Compare this new knowledge with your own
prior knowledge of Texas/US History.
Pages 3 and 5

.. U.S. Conquest and Mexican American Communities .

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