Episode 1 | 53m 37s | Video has closed captioning.
Explores the period from 1565-1880, as the first Spanish explorers enter North America, the U.S. expands into territories in the Southwest that had been home to Native Americans and English and Spanish colonies, and as the Mexican-American War strips Mexico of half its territories by 1848.
Aired: 09/16/13
Expired: 11/12/23
Man: WHAT IS OUR HISTORY?
WHAT IS OUR PAST?
WHAT IS THE CLAIM THAT WE HAVE
TO BEING MEMBERS OF THIS SOCIETY?
Man: WE ARE NOT HERE TO THREATEN OR TO BEG.
WE ARE HERE TO PARTICIPATE.
Woman: YOU CANNOT CLOSE YOUR EYES
AND YOUR EARS TO US ANY LONGER, BECAUSE WE ARE HERE.
Man: MOST PEOPLE ARE SAYING, SPANISH, THE MEXICANS,
INDIGENOUS PEOPLES DO NOT HAVE
THE SPECIAL INHERITANCE OF LIBERTY THAT WE HAVE.
Man: MY FATHER THOUGHT THAT THE UNITED STATES
WOULD BE LIKE PARADISE.
THERE WAS JOBS FOR EVERYONE.
THERE WERE THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE TRYING TO GET ACROSS.
THE TOUGHEST PART WAS WHEN I LEFT MY MOM,
NOT KNOWING IF I GONNA SEE HER AGAIN.
Woman: HERE'S A MAN WHO'S SHED HIS BLOOD,
AND YET HE CAN'T GET SOMETHING TO EAT.
RECKLESS?
YES.
DANGEROUS?
EXTREMELY.
DID IT PAY OFF?
DAMN RIGHT.
Woman: THE FIRST EUROPEAN LANGUAGE SPOKEN
IN WHAT WOULD BECOME THE UNITED STATES--SPANISH.
Woman: IMMIGRATION MEANS IT ALL GETS TO BE PART OF YOUR IDENTITY.
I CAN'T BELIEVE IT!
IT'S CRUCIAL THAT WE KNOW WHO WE ARE, WHERE WE COME FROM,
AND WHAT IT'S BEEN LIKE.
I AM SO PROUD TO BE YOUR MAYOR.
I, SONIA SOTOMAYOR.
Man: THERE'S SO MUCH AT STAKE FOR ALL AMERICANS
IN HOW LATINOS IN THE UNITED STATES DO.
Anno CAPTAIN JUAN SEGUIN, SON OF A LEADING MEXICAN FAMILY
IN SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS, WAS A SURVIVOR
AMONG THE DEFENDERS AT EL ALAMO IN 1836.
[GUNFIRE AND MEN SHOUTING]
Man as Seguin: TRAVIS, BOWIE, CROCKETT ARE OUR BROTHERS.
Narrator: SEGUIN BECAME A HERO, MAYOR OF SAN ANTONIO,
AND A SENATOR OF THE REPUBLIC OF TEXAS.
BUT HIS STORY WOULD BE BURIED
ALONG WITH THE ASHES OF HIS FALLEN COMRADES.
Montejano: HIS ANGLO ALLIES WILL SELL HIM OUT.
THEY WILL NOT PROTECT HIM WHEN HE NEEDED PROTECTION.
Narrator: MORE THAN A CENTURY WOULD PASS
BEFORE A GENERATION OF LATINOS,
SEARCHING FOR THEIR IDENTITY,
WOULD UNEARTH THE MEMORY OF JUAN SEGUIN
AND THE STORIES OF THE EARLIEST LATINOS IN AMERICA.
Montejano: WHAT IS OUR HISTORY?
WHAT IS OUR PAST?
WHAT IS THE CLAIM THAT WE HAVE
TO BEING MEMBERS OF THIS SOCIETY?
Narrator: THEY DISCOVERED THE MEMOIRS OF AN ORPHAN GIRL
THAT SHED NEW LIGHT ON THE LONG-FORGOTTEN WORLD
OF SPANISH CALIFORNIA.
THEY REVEALED THE STORY OF MARIANO VALLEJO,
THE MOST POWERFUL MAN IN MEXICAN CALIFORNIA.
VALLEJO WELCOMED AMERICAN SETTLERS,
ONLY TO FIND HIMSELF THEIR PRISONER.
THEY RECLAIMED THE LEGEND OF LAS GORRAS BLANCAS
OF NEW MEXICO.
RIDING UNDER THE COVER OF DARKNESS,
THE WHITE CAPS TORE DOWN FENCES AND BURNED RANCHES
TO PROTEST THE TAKING OF THEIR LANDS.
Madrid: WE DISCOVERED THAT, IN FACT,
THERE HAD BEEN RESISTANCE
AND SOME OF IT EVEN ARMED RESISTANCE.
Montejano: WE'RE TRYING TO CONSTRUCT
THE HISTORY THAT HAS NOT BEEN WRITTEN.
WE HAD A BLANK SLATE THAT HAD TO BE RECAPTURED,
RECOVERED.
Narrator: APOLINARIA LORENZANA WAS AMONG 21 ORPHAN CHILDREN
SENT BY THE SPANISH COLONIAL GOVERNMENT OF MEXICO
TO POPULATE THE FARTHEST REACHES OF ITS AMERICAN EMPIRE.
BY THE TIME APOLINARIA SETTLED IN MONTEREY,
THE SPANISH HAD DOMINATED THE NEW WORLD
FOR MORE THAN 3 CENTURIES.
Ruiz: MANY PEOPLE HAVE THIS POPULAR VISION OF LATINOS
AS PEOPLE WHO ARRIVED THE DAY BEFORE YESTERDAY.
BUT WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT THE FIRST EUROPEAN SETTLEMENT
IN WHAT WOULD BECOME THE UNITED STATES,
IT'S ST. AUGUSTINE IN 1565.
THAT PREDATES JAMESTOWN IN 1607.
THE FIRST EUROPEAN LANGUAGE SPOKEN
IN WHAT WOULD BECOME THE UNITED STATES, IT'S SPANISH.
[THUNDER RUMBLING]
Narrator: 100 YEARS AFTER COLUMBUS' ARRIVAL
IN THE NEW WORLD, SPANISH CONQUISTADORS AND PRIESTS
PUSHED INTO NORTH AMERICA,
CROSSING THE RIO GRANDE TO SEARCH FOR GOLD
AND SPREAD CATHOLICISM.
IN 1610, THEY ESTABLISHED SANTA FE, NEW MEXICO,
BRUTALLY CRUSHING A REVOLT BY THE PUEBLO INDIANS.
THE BRITISH AND THE DUTCH SETTLED
ALONG THE ATLANTIC COAST IN PLYMOUTH AND NEW AMSTERDAM.
THE FRENCH ARRIVED AT THE MOUTH OF THE MISSISSIPPI IN 1682,
WHILE THE RUSSIANS MADE THEIR WAY SOUTH FROM ALASKA
AND WELL INTO CALIFORNIA.
Suarez: SPAIN IS VERY KEENLY AWARE
OF OTHER EMPIRES THAT ARE ROAMING ACROSS
WHAT'S NOW NORTH AMERICA
AND WANTS TO PROTECT ITS NORTHERN BORDER.
SO THEY HAVE TO SEND PEOPLE NORTH
TO BUILD OUT A SPANISH CIVILIZATION
IN THESE PLACES THAT HAD BEEN THE SPANISH EMPIRE ON A MAP
BUT HADN'T REALLY HAD ANY MORE DURABLE CLAIM TO THE LAND.
Gonzalez: WHO WAS GOING TO POPULATE
THESE FAR-OFF FRONTIER SETTLEMENTS
IN ARIZONA, IN TEXAS, AND IN CALIFORNIA?
IT WAS THE MISSIONARIES.
IT WAS THE FRANCISCANS.
IT WAS THE JESUITS.
IT WAS THE DOMINICANS.
THEY ALL WENT OUT TO FOUND
TOWNS AND SETTLEMENTS AND ESTABLISH MISSIONS.
Narrator: IN 1808, APOLINARIA LORENZANA,
NOW IN HER TEENS, WAS BROUGHT TO MISSION SAN DIEGO,
THE FIRST MISSION FOUNDED BY SPANISH PRIESTS
AS THEY MOVED NORTH THROUGH CALIFORNIA.
NEARING THE END OF HER LIFE AND ALMOST BLIND,
APOLINARIA SHARED HER MEMORIES WITH THOMAS SAVAGE,
AN AMERICAN HISTORIAN, AS SHE RECALLED
THE ONCE-FLOURISHING WORLD OF CALIFORNIA'S SPANISH MISSIONS.
BUILT ALONG EL CAMINO REAL FROM SAN DIEGO TO SONOMA,
3 DAYS' HORSEBACK RIDE FROM ONE ANOTHER,
SPAIN'S 21 MISSIONS WERE THE BIRTHPLACE
OF THE GREAT COASTAL CITIES OF CALIFORNIA.
Gonzalez: ALL THESE PEOPLE
WHO LIVE IN THESE TOWNS IN CALIFORNIA--
SANTA CRUZ AND, UH... SAN FRANCISCO--
ALL OF THESE WERE MISSION TOWNS.
Narrator: IN THE 1800's, MISSIONS WERE THE CENTERPIECE
OF SPANISH COLONIAL LIFE.
Beebe: A MISSION IS A LOT OF THINGS.
IT'S A RELIGIOUS COMMUNITY WHERE THEY ARE HOPING
TO CHRISTIANIZE THE NATIVE PEOPLES,
BRINGING THEM INTO THE SYSTEM
TO MAKE THEM GOOD SPANISH CITIZENS.
IT'S AN ENTERPRISE WHERE INDIANS ARE BROUGHT IN
TO WORK OUT IN THE FIELDS,
TO WEAVE, TO DO BLACKSMITH WORK.
Ruiz: YOU THINK OF THE MISSIONS,
AND YOU THINK OF THE-- THERE'S, LIKE, ONE PRIEST,
AND THIS ONE PRIEST HAS THE POWER
TO HARNESS NATIVE AMERICAN LABOR,
UH, TO EDUCATE.
BUT ACTUALLY PRIESTS, PARTICULARLY IN CALIFORNIA,
RELIED ON LOCAL WOMEN.
YOU HAD PEOPLE LIKE APOLINARIA LORENZANA.
THE PADRES TRUSTED HER TO BOARD SHIPS,
TO GET THE NECESSARY SUPPLIES FOR THE MISSIONS.
SHE SUPERVISED INDIAN SEAMSTRESSES
OR SUPERVISED THE COOKING.
Pitti: TO UNDERSTAND THE POSITION
OF NATIVES IN THE MISSION SYSTEM,
YOU HAVE TO UNDERSTAND THE TREMENDOUS LOSS OF LIFE
THAT INDIAN COMMUNITIES IN CALIFORNIA HAD EXPERIENCED.
WHEN THE SPANISH COME AND INTRODUCE DISEASE,
UM, THOSE POPULATIONS GO INTO ENORMOUS DEMOGRAPHIC DECLINE,
LEAVING THEM VERY VULNERABLE.
THE MISSIONS OFFER THE OPPORTUNITY
FOR INDIAN COMMUNITIES TO HAVE BREAD ON THE TABLE.
SOME INDIANS WERE TAKEN BY CATHOLICISM
AND BY THE PROMISE OF SALVATION,
BUT WE KNOW THAT MANY INDIANS
OFTENTIMES REBELLED.
[BELL TOLLING]
Narrator: IN 1821, NEWS REACHED CALIFORNIA
THAT AFTER A HARD-FOUGHT 10-YEAR WAR,
MEXICO HAD WON ITS INDEPENDENCE FROM SPAIN.
Pitti: LIBERAL IDEAS ABOUT GOVERNANCE AND ABOUT EQUALITY,
ABOUT OPPORTUNITY WERE VERY MUCH IN THE AIR,
IN WHICH THERE WERE LOTS OF QUESTIONS
ABOUT THE POWER OF INSTITUTIONS.
IN THAT ATMOSPHERE, PEOPLE BEGIN TO LOOK AT THE CATHOLIC CHURCH
WITH A CRITICAL EYE, THINKING,
"WHY DOES THIS CHURCH, WHY DOES THIS INSTITUTION
OWN SO MUCH LAND?"
Narrator: THE GOVERNMENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF MEXICO
CHALLENGED THE POWER OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH.
IN 1833, IT ORDERED ALL MISSIONS SECULARIZED,
THEIR LAND HOLDINGS BROKEN UP.
THE VAST MISSION HOLDINGS WERE DIVIDED INTO RANCHOS
AND GIVEN AS LAND GRANTS TO A FEW HUNDRED FAMILIES,
MANY OF THEM THE ORIGINAL SPANISH SETTLERS OF CALIFORNIA,
CALIFORNIOS, AS THEY WERE CALLED.
Beebe: THE INDIANS WERE SUPPOSED TO
GET THE MISSION LANDS.
THAT WAS THE PLAN WITH SECULARIZATION.
BUT IT DIDN'T HAPPEN, AND MANY OF THE INDIANS
WERE...WERE LOST.
SOME OF THEM WENT BACK TO THEIR PREVIOUS WAY OF LIFE.
OTHERS WENT TO WORK ON THE RANCHOS.
Narrator: AND AS THE PADRES FACED THE END OF THEIR DOMINION,
THEY ENSURED THAT SOME OF THE MISSION LANDS
STAYED WITH PEOPLE THEY TRUSTED.
FOR HER DEVOTION TO THE MISSIONS,
APOLINARIA, KNOWN AS THE PIOUS, WAS GIVEN TWO RANCHOS.
SHE BOUGHT A THIRD.
Narrator: BY THE EARLY 1800's,
AMERICANS WERE MOVING WEST, DRIVEN BY THE BELIEF
IN A GOD-GIVEN RIGHT TO EXPAND ACROSS THE CONTINENT.
Gerstle: THIS VISION OF CONQUEST
WAS TIED TO VISIONS OF LIBERTY AND DEMOCRACY.
IT WAS A PROVIDENTIAL MISSION.
IT WAS A PROTESTANT MISSION.
THE PROBLEM, HOWEVER, WAS
THE LANDS THAT AMERICA WANTED TO OCCUPY,
IN THEIR IMAGINATIONS, THEY WERE EMPTY,
BUT IN REALITY THEY WERE NOT.
THEY WERE FULL OF INDIGENOUS PEOPLES
OF ONE SORT OR ANOTHER,
AND IN VARIOUS PARTS OF THE COUNTRY,
THEY WERE FULL OF SPANIARDS AND THEIR DESCENDANTS.
Narrator: HAVING PUSHED THE NATIVE POPULATION WEST,
THE UNITED STATES NOW STRETCHED ACROSS ILLINOIS TO THE FRONTIER
AND DOWN THROUGH LOUISIANA TO THE BORDER WITH MEXICO.
THE FIRST ANGLO SETTLERS TO CROSS THE BORDER
VENTURED INTO THE MEXICAN STATE OF TEJAS, TEXAS, IN 1821,
INVITED BY THE GOVERNMENT OF MEXICO.
Gonzalez: MEXICO NEEDS TO POPULATE THE AREA,
SO IT AGREES THAT ANYONE CAN COME INTO MEXICO
WHO WANTS TO SETTLE THERE AS LONG AS THEY'RE CATHOLIC
AND THEY PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE MEXICAN GOVERNMENT.
Montejano: THE COMANCHES AND THE APACHES
ARE BASICALLY IN CONTROL, AND AS A MATTER OF FACT,
THERE WERE SEVERAL SPANISH SETTLEMENTS THAT WERE ABANDONED
AS THE COMANCHES IN PARTICULAR BECOME MORE POWERFUL.
SO THE MEXICAN GOVERNMENT WANTS TO CREATE
THESE BUFFER ZONES
WITH THESE ANGLO-AMERICAN COLONISTS.
Narrator: 300 FAMILIES, MOST FROM THE AMERICAN SOUTH,
WERE LED INTO TEXAS BY STEPHEN AUSTIN,
A YOUNG BUSINESSMAN ORIGINALLY FROM VIRGINIA.
De La Teja: MEN LIKE STEPHEN AUSTIN ARE INTERESTED
IN TRANSFORMING TEXAS FROM WHAT THEY BELIEVE TO BE
A WILDERNESS INTO THE NEXT GREAT COTTON-GROWING PART
OF THE UNITED STATES, BUT THEY UNDERSTAND
THAT THEY HAVE TO WORK WITH MEXICAN AUTHORITIES,
THEY HAVE TO WORK WITH MEXICAN LAW,
THEY HAVE TO WORK WITH TEJANO PARTNERS
IN DEVELOPING TEXAS.
A LOT OF THE SETTLERS OF TEXAS AT THIS TIME
ARE COMING OUT OF THE AMERICAN SOUTH.
THEY'RE IMAGINING AT LEAST PART OF TEXAS
AS BEING A SLAVEHOLDING SOCIETY.
THEY ARE NEVER WITHOUT THESE SENTIMENTS
OF A SPECIAL SUPERIORITY
THAT ADHERES IN THE ANGLO-SAXON RACE.
Suarez: ONCE THEY START TO GET CRITICAL MASS,
THEY'RE NOT NECESSARILY READY TO ACCEPT MEXICAN GOVERNMENT,
AND THEY START TO FIND FAULT
WITH THE DEMANDS THAT MEXICANS ARE MAKING OF THEM
IN ORDER TO BE ACCEPTED IN TEXAS SOCIETY.
Narrator: MEXICAN TEXANS, TEJANOS,
WERE ALSO CHAFING UNDER THE RULE OF MEXICO CITY, 900 MILES AWAY.
PROMINENT AMONG THEM WAS JUAN SEGUIN,
A THIRD-GENERATION TEJANO WHOSE FAMILY TRACED
ITS ROOTS IN SAN ANTONIO TO THE EARLIEST SETTLEMENTS IN 1712.
Montejano: JUAN SEGUIN, VERY EARLY ON IN THE 1830's,
ALREADY IS STARTING TO IDENTIFY HIMSELF
AS SOMEONE ELSE OTHER THAN A MEXICANO, AS A TEJANO,
AS A MEMBER OF AN INDEPENDENT REPUBLIC.
HE HAS A CONFLICTED IDENTITY.
I MEAN, HE CALLS HIMSELF JOHN, JOHN SEGUIN.
Narrator: SEGUIN'S FATHER, ERASMO,
SAN ANTONIO'S POSTMASTER, HAD PERSONALLY CONDUCTED
STEPHEN AUSTIN ACROSS THE TEXAS BORDER IN 1821.
De La Teja: ERASMO AND JUAN SEGUIN
SEE ANGLO-AMERICAN SETTLEMENT IN TEXAS
AS IMPORTANT TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF THIS FRONTIER,
OUTLYING PART OF MEXICO
THAT ISN'T ABLE TO GET THE RESOURCES FROM MEXICO CITY
TO PROPERLY DEVELOP THE REGION.
THE TEJANOS FELT THAT GOVERNMENT
WHICH LEFT DECISIONS IN THEIR OWN HANDS
WA VITAL TO THE PROGRESS OF TEXAS,
AND ANGLO-AMERICANS, WHO HAD GROWN UP
WITH THE TRADITION OF STRONG PERSONAL RIGHTS,
ALSO WANTED A STRONG LOCAL GOVERNMENT.
Narrator: WHEN, IN 1834,
MEXICO'S NEW PRESIDENT, ANTONIO LOPEZ SANTA ANNA,
DISSOLVED THE CONGRESS TO RULE ALL MEXICO WITH AN IRON HAND,
TEXANS AND TEJANOS UNITED IN OPPOSITION.
IN THE FALL OF 1835, THEY ROSE IN OPEN REBELLION.
SANTA ANNA LED AN ARMY OF THOUSANDS
ACROSS THE RIO GRANDE TO PUT DOWN THE REVOLT.
IT'S FUNNY HOW I HAVE TO REMIND MY STUDENTS THAT...
YOU KNOW, THEY THINK SOMETIMES THAT SANTA ANNA
INVADED THE UNITED STATES, AND I HAVE TO DISABUSE THEM OF THAT,
SAYING, "WELL, WAIT A MINUTE.
NO.
SANTA ANNA WAS MARCHING INTO WHAT WAS STILL MEXICO."
Narrator: ON THE 23rd OF FEBRUARY 1836,
SANTA ANNA TOOK POSSESSION OF THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO.
200 TEXANS FELL BACK TO AN OLD SPANISH MISSION
CALLED EL ALAMO,
AMONG THEM, RENOWNED FRONTIERSMAN DAVID CROCKETT
OF TENNESSEE,
JIM BOWIE OF KENTUCKY,
AND LIEUTENANT COLONEL WILLIAM TRAVIS OF ALABAMA.
THERE WERE ALSO TEJANOS AT EL ALAMO,
MEN WITH NAMES LIKE BADILLO, ESPARZA, NAVAS, AND JUAN SEGUIN.
[BUGLES PLAYING FANFARE]
SANTA ANNA LAID SIEGE TO EL ALAMO.
[EXPLOSION]
ON THE 25th OF FEBRUARY, SEGUIN WAS SENT
BEHIND ENEMY LINES TO GATHER REINFORCEMENTS.
AT DAWN ON MARCH 6th, DAY 13 OF THE SIEGE,
SANTA ANNA'S FORCES BREACHED THE EL ALAMO DEFENSES.
[BUGLES PLAYING FANFARE]
LATER THAT DAY, JUAN SEGUIN HEADED BACK TO EL ALAMO.
SEGUIN LISTENED IN VAIN FOR THE SIGNAL GUNSHOT
THAT WAS TO BE FIRED EVERY 15 MINUTES
AS LONG AS THE FORT HELD.
ALL THE DEFENDERS AT EL ALAMO, 189 MEN, HAD BEEN KILLED.
SEGUIN WAS LEFT TO BURY THEIR ASHES.
Man as Seguin: TRAVIS, BOWIE, CROCKETT ARE OUR BROTHERS,
WHOSE VALOR PLACES THEM IN THE RANK OF MY HEROES.
Narrator: TO THE CRY OF "REMEMBER THE ALAMO,"
SEGUIN GATHERED A COMPANY OF TEJANOS
AND JOINED GENERAL SAM HOUSTON'S ARMY OF THE REPUBLIC OF TEXAS
AT THE BATTLE OF SAN JACINTO.
THE MEXICAN ARMY WAS TAKEN BY SURPRISE.
THE DECISIVE BATTLE OF THE TEXAS REVOLUTION
LASTED ALL OF 18 MINUTES.
SANTA ANNA SURRENDERED, HANDING OVER TEXAS
TO HOUSTON'S ARMY OF THE REPUBLIC OF TEXAS.
JUAN SEGUIN WAS NAMED MILITARY COMMANDER OF WEST TEXAS,
ELECTED SENATOR OF THE NEW REPUBLIC,
AND LATER MAYOR OF SAN ANTONIO.
BUT THE SURVIVOR OF EL ALAMO WOULD SOON FIND HIMSELF
TORN BETWEEN HIS ALLEGIANCE TO THE REPUBLIC OF TEXAS
AND HIS LOYALTY TO HIS OWN PEOPLE.
Montejano: YOU HAVE AN INFLUX OF ANGLO NEWCOMERS,
AND WHAT THEY REMEMBER IS THEIR COUNTRYMEN
BEING SLAUGHTERED BY SANTA ANNA.
SO REPRISALS ARE TAKEN AGAINST ALL MEXICANS,
INCLUDING THOSE WHO FOUGHT ON THE SIDE OF THE ANGLO SETTLERS.
PEOPLE ARE BEING RANDOMLY MURDERED
SIMPLY FOR BEING MEXICAN.
THEY'RE BEING PUSHED OFF THEIR LANDS BY SQUATTERS
WHO ARE TRYING TO LAY CLAIM TO THESE LANDS.
Montejano: THEY'RE TAKING CATTLE, THEY'RE TAKING HORSES.
IT'S A ROUGH TIME.
Man as Seguin: DAY AND NIGHT,
MY COUNTRYMEN RUN TO ME FOR PROTECTION.
COULD I LEAVE THEM DEFENSELESS, EXPOSED TO THE ASSAULTS
OF FOREIGNERS WHO TREATED THEM WORSE THAN BRUTES?
Montejano: THESE ARE LANDOWNERS.
THESE ARE MEXICAN ELITE MEMBERS
COMING TO JUAN SEGUIN AND ASKING HIM FOR PROTECTION
FROM THE AGGRESSIONS OF THESE NEWCOMERS.
JUAN SEQUIN IS POWERLESS TO DO THAT.
De La Teja: HE'S TRYING TO UPHOLD THE LAW,
AND THESE BRIGANDS, IF YOU WILL,
ARE REFUSING TO ABIDE BY THE LAW.
IN FACT, THEY'VE THREATENED HIM PERSONALLY.
THE PEOPLE WHO JUST ARRIVED
SEE THE PEOPLE WHO HAVE BEEN HERE FOR A LONG TIME
AS THE OUTSIDERS.
Man as Seguin: A CONSPIRACY WAS ORGANIZED TO RUIN ME.
EVERY PARTY OF VOLUNTEERS EN ROUTE TO SAN ANTONIO
DECLARED THAT THEY WANTED TO KILL JUAN SEGUIN.
Montejano: HIS ANGLO ALLIES WILL SELL HIM OUT.
THEY WILL NOT PROTECT HIM WHEN HE NEEDED PROTECTION.
HE HAS TO GIVE UP THE MAYORAL POSITION IN SAN ANTONIO.
Man as Seguin: ON THE 30th OF APRIL,
A FRIEND SENT ME WORD THAT A COMPANY WAS COMING
DOWN THE RIVER, BURNING RANCHOS ON THEIR WAY.
UNABLE ANY LONGER TO SUFFER THE PERSECUTION
OF UNGRATEFUL AMERICANS, I HAD TO LEAVE TEXAS,
ABANDON ALL FOR WHICH I HAD FOUGHT
TO BECOME A WANDERER.
Narrator: JUAN SEGUIN FLED TO MEXICO IN 1842.
IN THE 20 YEARS SINCE HIS FATHER LED 300 FAMILIES INTO TEXAS,
THE LINE THAT WOULD DIVIDE LATINOS AND ANGLOS
HAD BEEN DRAWN.
[BIRD SCREECHES]
IN THE MEXICAN PROVINCE OF CALIFORNIA,
THE SECULARIZATION OF THE MISSIONS
HAD TRANSFORMED THE LANDSCAPE,
THE VAST MISSION LANDS NOW OWNED
BY A FEW HUNDRED CALIFORNIO FAMILIES,
AND MUCH LIKE THE TEJANOS IN THE YEARS TO COME,
THE CALIFORNIOS WOULD STRUGGLE TO HOLD ONTO THEIR LAND.
FOR MARIANO GUADALUPE VALLEJO, A RANCHERO IN SONOMA,
THAT STRUGGLE WOULD LAST A LIFETIME.
Pitti: MARIANO VALLEJO IS ONE
OF THE MOST INTERESTING FIGURES IN 19th-CENTURY CALIFORNIA.
HE GREW UP IN MONTEREY AND WAS A WELL-KNOWN MEMBER
OF MONTEREY SOCIETY.
HE WAS A KIND OF BARONIAL FIGURE,
VERY INTERESTED IN EUROPEAN CULTURE,
WHO LIKED THE FINER THINGS IN LIFE,
WHO ENJOYED HIS WINE AND GREW GRAPES.
LIKE OTHER CALIFORNIO FAMILIES, HE WAS VERY INTERESTED
IN MODERNIZING CALIFORNIA.
Narrator: SON OF A SPANISH MILITARY OFFICER,
MARIANO VALLEJO PRESIDED OVER A VAST EMPIRE.
HIS RANCHO PETALUMA,
RECEIVED AS A LAND GRANT WHEN THE MISSIONS WERE BROKEN UP,
COVERED 65,000 ACRES
AND INCLUDED 10,000 HEAD OF CATTLE, 4,000 HORSES,
AND THE LARGEST ADOBE STRUCTURE EVER BUILT IN CALIFORNIA.
Pitti: LAND WAS REALLY VERY IMPORTANT
TO CALIFORNIO IDENTITIES.
ACCESS TO LAND MEANT ACCESS TO HONOR, TO DIGNITY.
IT MEANT BEING ABLE TO FLAUNT ONE'S WEALTH.
[MARIACHI MUSIC PLAYING]
THEY SPENT LIKE MAD.
YOU KNOW, THERE'S ALL THESE HORSE RACES AND FANDANGOS.
Pitti: LIFE REALLY DOES REVOLVE AROUND RURAL CULTURE.
THEY'RE PROUD OF THEIR CAPACITIES AS HORSEMEN,
AS VAQUEROS.
THESE ARE PEOPLE WHO TOOK GREAT PRIDE
IN THEIR CLOTHING, THE WAY THEY BORE THEMSELVES IN PUBLIC.
THESE ARE PEOPLE WHO THOUGHT OF THEMSELVES
AS A PROUD PEOPLE,
AN EMERGING PEOPLE.
Narrator: PEOPLE LIKE PIO PICO, CALIFORNIA'S GOVERNOR;
THE RAMIREZES OF SANTA BARBARA;
THE SEPULVEDAS AND THE LUGOS OF LOS ANGELES.
Beebe: SO MANY OF THESE FAMILIES VIEW THEMSELVES
AS MEXICAN BUT NOT MEXICAN.
THEY LIVED IN AN AREA FAR AWAY FROM MEXICO CITY,
FAR AWAY FROM THE CENTRAL GOVERNMENT,
AND SO THEY HAD ESTABLISHED IN SOME WAYS
THEIR OWN HYBRID CULTURE.
MOST OF THE SPANISH THAT CAME TO THE REGION
WERE THEMSELVES MESTIZOS OR MULATOS FROM MEXICO.
SO THE GROUP HERE IS ALREADY MIXED FROM THE VERY BEGINNING
AND THEN BECOMES MIXED WITH THE LOCAL POPULATION.
SO IT'S NEVER ANY KIND
OF RACIALLY PURE EUROPEAN POPULATION.
Montejano: THE LANDHOLDING ELITE INSISTED ON BEING SEEN
AS EUROPEAN OR SPANISH.
CERTAINLY THEY SAW THEMSELVES AS VERY DIFFERENT
FROM THE CHRISTIANIZED INDIANS,
THE NATIVES WHO WERE THEIR SERVANTS.
Narrator: VALLEJO'S WIFE, FRANCISCA BENECIA,
WOULD RECALL...
Woman as Francisca Benecia: EACH OF MY CHILDREN
HAS A PERSONAL ATTENDANT.
I HAVE TWO FOR MY OWN NEEDS,
6 OR 7 IN THE KITCHEN,
AND 5 OR 6 ARE ALWAYS WASHING CLOTHES.
Narrator: THE VALLEJOS' SERVANTS
WERE AMONG 10,000 FORMER MISSION INDIANS
WHO ARE NOW BOUND TO A FEW DOZEN CALIFORNIO FAMILIES.
Pitti: THESE KEY FAMILIES REALLY ARE THE POWERHOLDERS,
THE STAKEHOLDERS IN THE ECONOMY
AND THE POLITICS OF THE REGION.
WHAT ACTUALLY HAPPENS TO THOSE ELITES
HELPS TO DICTATE WHAT WILL HAPPEN TO PROPERTY.
IT HELPED TO DEFINE HOW MEXICANS AND OTHERS
ARE GOING TO BE TREATED FROM THAT MOMENT FORWARD.
Narrator: AT DAWN ON THE 14th OF JUNE 1846,
MARIANO GUADALUPE VALLEJO,
NOW THE MILITARY COMMANDER OF CALIFORNIA
AND A GENERAL IN THE MEXICAN ARMY,
WAS AWAKENED BY AN ARMED MOB AT HIS CASA GRANDE
IN SONOMA PLAZA.
Man as Vallejo: I HAD MY UNIFORM BROUGHT,
DRESSED QUICKLY, AND THEN ORDERED THE DOOR THROWN OPEN.
[DOOR OPENS]
Narrator: IN HIS PARLOR,
VALLEJO ENCOUNTERED A GROUP OF AMERICANS,
THE LIKES OF WHICH HE HAD NEVER SEEN BEFORE.
Man as Vallejo: I ASKED WHAT THE TROUBLE WAS
AND WHO WAS HEADING THEIR PARTY.
I WANTED TO KNOW TO WHAT HAPPY CIRCUMSTANCE
I OWED THE VISIT OF SO MANY INDIVIDUALS.
Pitti: MARIANO VALLEJO HAD LONG THOUGHT OF HIMSELF
AS THE MOST HOSPITABLE OF CALIFORNIOS,
A PERSON WHO HAD WELCOMED AMERICANS
WHO WERE VISITING THE REGION, LOOKING TO SETTLE IN THE REGION.
Narrator: AMERICANS HAD BEEN COMING TO CALIFORNIA
SINCE THE 1830's, MOSTLY TRADERS FROM BOSTON
WHO CAME BY SHIP,
LOOKING TO BUY HIDES FOR THE NEW ENGLAND SHOE INDUSTRY.
Pitti: THEY'RE INTEGRATING INTO CALIFORNIO FAMILIES,
INTO CALIFORNIO LIFESTYLE.
THEY'RE BECOMING RANCHEROS.
THEY'RE LEARNING SPANISH.
THEY'RE MARRYING CALIFORNIA WOMEN, CALIFORNIANAS.
MANY OF THEM ARE ADOPTING CATHOLICISM.
THEY'RE ASSIMILATING INTO CALIFORNIO SOCIETY.
AND SO WITH THIS BACKDROP,
VALLEJO HAD REASON TO BE SOMEWHAT OPTIMISTIC
ABOUT THE CAPACITY FOR AMERICANS
AND CALIFORNIOS TO WORK TOGETHER.
Narrator: BUT THESE WERE NO SEAFARING BOSTONIANS.
THEY WERE TRAPPERS AND FARMERS,
PIONEERS WHO HAD CROSSED THE ROCKIES AND THE SIERRAS
AND LAID CLAIM TO LAND IN THE SACRAMENTO VALLEY.
ORGANIZED BY U.S. CAPTAIN JOHN C. FREEMONT,
THEY CALLED THEMSELVES THE BEAR FLAG REVOLT.
THEY HAD COME TO ARREST VALLEJO
AND DECLARE CALIFORNIA AN INDEPENDENT REPUBLIC.
VALLEJO HAD LONG FELT THAT MEXICO STOOD IN THE WAY
OF CALIFORNIA'S PROGRESS AND WAS EVEN THOUGHT
TO FAVOR ANNEXATION TO THE UNITED STATES.
BUT NOW, AS HE SIGNED THE ARTICLES OF CAPITULATION,
HE FEARED FOR HIS LIFE AND THE SAFETY OF HIS FAMILY.
Man as Vallejo: I THOUGHT FOR A MOMENT
THAT THROUGH SOME SACRIFICE, I MIGHT GET RID OF
OF SUCH LITTLE-DESIRED GUESTS,
BUT ONCE UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF ALCOHOL,
THEY FORGOT THE CHIEF OBJECT OF THEIR MISSION
AND BROKE INTO SHOUTS OF "RANSACK!
RANSACK!"
Narrator: VALLEJO'S SISTER, ROSALIA,
WATCHED FROM HER HOME ACROSS THE PLAZA.
Narrator: VALLEJO WAS IMPRISONED AT SUTTER'S FORT
ON THE SACRAMENTO RIVER
UNDER THE COMMAND OF CAPTAIN FREEMONT.
Pitti: THIS IS A TURNING-POINT MOMENT FOR VALLEJO.
HE REALLY WAS THE DON OF ALTA CALIFORNIA IN MANY RESPECTS.
THIS WAS A DEEP INSULT TO VALLEJO'S SENSE OF WHO HE WAS
AND WHO HE THOUGHT THE AMERICANS WERE.
Beebe: WHAT'S HAPPENING TO US?
WHAT'S OUR CULTURE GOING TO TURN INTO?
ARE THEY GOING TO COME OVER AND TAKE OVER EVERYTHING?
THE FEAR, THE FOREBODING-- WHAT'S NEXT?
Man as Vallejo: JULY 10, 1846.
DEAR CAPTAIN FREEMONT, I WISH THAT YOU...
Narrator: ONE MONTH INTO HIS IMPRISONMENT,
HIS BODY WRACKED WITH MALARIA,
VALLEJO LEARNED THAT THE UNITED STATES AND MEXICO
WERE AT WAR.
[EXPLOSIONS AND HORSES NEIGHING]
THE WAR HAD BEGUN IN APRIL 1846 OVER DISPUTED TERRITORY
ALONG THE BORDER BETWEEN MEXICO AND TEXAS,
NOW A STATE OF THE AMERICAN UNION.
BUT UNDERLYING THE CONFLICT WAS THE DETERMINATION
OF NEWLY ELECTED PRESIDENT JAMES POLK
TO PUSH THE AMERICAN BORDER ALL THE WAY TO THE PACIFIC COAST.
Garcia: AMERICANS WERE ALREADY LOOKING
TOWARDS THE FUTURE AND TOWARDS TRADE WITH ASIA,
AND SO THERE WAS THIS BELIEF THAT WE NEEDED TO EXPAND, UM...
KEEP PUSHING THAT WESTERN BOUNDARY.
Narrator: POLK HAD FIRST OFFERED TO PURCHASE
NEW MEXICO AND CALIFORNIA FOR $25 MILLION,
BUT NOW, AS THE U.S. ARMY MARCHED WEST,
IT EASILY TOOK NEW MEXICO.
CALIFORNIA WAS NEXT.
IN LOS ANGELES AND SAN DIEGO,
THE CALIFORNIOS PUT UP STIFF RESISTANCE.
IN THE NORTH, MONTEREY FELL
WITHOUT A SINGLE SHOT BEING FIRED.
[HORSE NEIGHS]
THE MEXICAN AMERICAN WAR LASTED NEARLY TWO YEARS.
WITH MEXICO'S SURRENDER IN FEBRUARY 1848,
THE UNITED STATES DOUBLED IN SIZE,
ADDING TO ITS TERRITORY A FULL HALF
OF WHAT HAD ONCE BEEN MEXICO.
Gonzalez: THE ENORMOUS WEALTH THAT CAME TO THE UNITED STATES,
THE SILVER THAT CAME OUT OF NEVADA.
ARIZONA BECAME THE CENTER OF COPPER IN THE UNITED STATES.
NEW MEXICO SUPPLIED A HUGE PORTION OF AMERICA'S WOOL.
ALL OF THIS WAS MEXICAN TERRITORY
SEIZED BY THE UNITED STATES
AS A RESULT OF WINNING THE MEXICAN AMERICAN WAR.
Narrator: 80,000 MEXICANS WERE GIVEN THE CHOICE
TO BECOME AMERICAN CITIZENS
UNDER THE TREATY OF GUADALUPE HIDALGO.
Montejano: THE TREATY OF GUADALUPE HIDALGO
PROVIDED CERTAIN RIGHTS AND PROTECTIONS
FOR THE NEWLY MADE AMERICAN CITIZENS OF MEXICAN DESCENT.
THAT INCLUDED PROTECTION OF THEIR LAND RIGHTS, FOR EXAMPLE.
THEY WERE TO BE TREATED AS CITIZENS,
ENTITLED TO THE RIGHT TO VOTE.
Narrator: "AMERICANS AND MEXICANS WILL NOW BE
ONE AND THE SAME PEOPLE," THE MILITARY GOVERNOR
OF CALIFORNIA, RICHARD MASON, DECLARED,
"SUBJECT TO THE SAME LAWS,
"ENJOYING THE SAME RIGHTS AND PRIVILEGES.
THEY SHOULD BECOME A BAND OF BROTHERS."
MARIANO VALLEJO HAD RETURNED HOME TO SONOMA
AFTER TWO MONTHS IN PRISON
ONLY TO FIND SQUATTERS ON HIS LAND,
HIS CATTLE SLAUGHTERED, HIS HORSES STOLEN.
CONFIDENT THAT HIS RIGHTS WOULD BE PROTECTED UNDER AMERICAN LAW,
HE VOWED TO BURN HIS MEXICAN ARMY UNIFORM
AS A GESTURE OF ALLEGIANCE TO THE UNITED STATES.
Garcia: AS IT WORKED OUT,
THOSE RIGHTS AND PRIVILEGES WERE CONTINUALLY TESTED.
Narrator: IN JANUARY 1848, A CHANCE DISCOVERY
AT A WATER CHANNEL NEAR SACRAMENTO
WOULD CHALLENGE VALLEJO'S CONFIDENCE IN THE FUTURE,
AS THE GOLD RUSH FOREVER TRANSFORMED CALIFORNIA.
Montejano: CALIFORNIA.
MY GOD.
CALIFORNIA.
THE DISCOVERY OF GOLD, I MEAN, BASICALLY OVERWHELMS
THE OLD MEXICAN FAMILIES OF NORTHERN CALIFORNIA.
THEY'RE OVERWHELMED ALMOST IMMEDIATELY.
Narrator: THE FIRST TO PROFIT FROM THE BOOM
WERE THOSE WHO LIVED NEAR SACRAMENTO,
MOSTLY MEXICANS AND CALIFORNIOS.
A JUSTICE OF THE PEACE FROM LOS ANGELES,
ANTONIO CORONEL, RUSHED TO THE GOLD FIELDS
TO TRY HIS LUCK.
Man as Coronel: EVERYONE BEGAN TO WORK AT DAYBREAK.
SOON, AFTER A LITTLE DIGGING, WE CAME TO THE GOLD DEPOSITS,
AND EVERYONE WHO WAS WORKING WAS HAPPY WITH THE RESULTS.
Narrator: AS WORD SPREAD AROUND THE WORLD,
YOUNG MEN FROM CHINA TO CHILE
AND EVERY CORNER OF THE AMERICAN CONTINENT
LEFT EVERYTHING BEHIND AND FLOCKED TO CALIFORNIA.
WITH THE AMERICANS CAME A NEW HIERARCHY BASED ON RACE.
Gerstle: WHAT WE SEE BEING IMPORTED INTO CALIFORNIA
VERY POWERFULLY IS A SENSE OF, "WELL, THE ANGLOS,
"THIS IS THEIR DESTINY.
"THIS IS ONE OF THE EXPRESSIONS
"OF THE PROVIDENTIAL MISSION
"TO CONQUER AND CIVILIZE ALL AMERICA
"FOR THE ANGLO PEOPLES,
"AND THEY SHOULD BE GIVEN FIRST CRACK, FIRST OPPORTUNITY
TO GET THIS GOLD."
THIS IS A MOMENT IN WHICH
THE SPANISH-SPEAKING INHABITANTS OF CALIFORNIA
FIND THEMSELVES BEING DISCRIMINATED AGAINST.
Narrator: ANTONIO CORONEL NOTED HOW THE WEAKER
WERE DISLODGED FROM THEIR DIGGINGS BY THE STRONGER.
Man as Coronel: ONE SUNDAY, NOTICES APPEARED
IN SEVERAL PLACES THAT ANYONE WHO WAS NOT AN AMERICAN CITIZEN
MUST ABANDON THE PLACE WITHIN 24 HOURS.
THIS WAS SUPPORTED BY A GATHERING OF ARMED MEN
READY TO MAKE THAT WARNING EFFECTIVE.
Montejano: LYNCHING WAS COMMONPLACE.
YOU FIND MANY TRAVELER ACCOUNTS
OF INDIVIDUALS RIDING THROUGH THE COUNTRYSIDE
AND COMING ACROSS AN INDIVIDUAL WHO WAS HANGING FROM A TREE.
Narrator: AS MANY AS 300 MEXICANS WERE LYNCHED
IN CALIFORNIA IN THE YEARS OF THE GOLD RUSH.
Pitti: LYNCHINGS WERE MEANT TO BE PUBLIC DISPLAYS
OF THE POWER OF AMERICAN SOCIETY
AND OF ANGLOS IN AMERICAN SOCIETY.
THEY WERE INTENDED TO SEND A MESSAGE TO LATINOS
ABOUT THEIR PLACE IN AMERICAN CALIFORNIA.
Narrator: MADE INTO POSTCARDS AND SOLD AS SOUVENIRS,
LYNCHINGS WERE THE MOST GROTESQUE
BUT NOT THE ONLY DEMONSTRATION OF RACIAL VIOLENCE
IN THE AMERICAN SOUTHWEST.
LATINOS ARE SEEN AS GREASERS,
AS KNIFE-WIELDING, DANGEROUS, DIRTY, SWARTHY,
THREATENING FIGURES IN GOLD RUSH SOCIETY.
ON THE OTHER HAND,
THERE ARE STEREOTYPES ABOUT CALIFORNIOS,
ABOUT VALLEJO AND OTHERS
WHO ARE SEEN AS BARONIAL ESTATE HOLDERS,
FEUDAL LORDS OF THE MIDDLE AGES
WHO HAVE LANDED IN THIS 19th CENTURY
BUT WHO ARE REALLY PRODUCTS OF ANOTHER TIME.
Narrator: SAN FRANCISCO, THE GATEWAY TO THE GOLD FIELDS,
GREW FROM A PUEBLO OF 200 PEOPLE
TO A CITY OF 36,000 IN THE YEARS OF THE GOLD RUSH.
BY THE LATE 1850's, IN THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA,
13,000 MEXICANS WERE OUTNUMBERED BY 300,000 ANGLOS.
AND AS THE GOLD RAN OUT,
PROSPECTORS BEGAN TO SQUAT ON LAND
OWNED BY RANCHERO FAMILIES.
Garcia: THEY ARE CHALLENGING THE LAND GRANTS,
AND THE SPANISH MEXICAN LAND GRANTS
WERE VERY EASY TO CHALLENGE
BECAUSE THE BOUNDARIES WERE SO VAGUE,
UNDEFINED IN MANY CASES.
Ruiz: IF YOU LOOK AT THE OLDER GRANTS,
IT WILL SAY, YOU KNOW, "30 LEAGUES THIS WAY
"ACROSS THE CREEK BY THE OAK TREE
WITH THE HATCHET EMBLAZONED IN IT."
WHEREAS LOOK AT THE GRID SYSTEM FROM THE NORTHWEST ORDINANCE.
EVERYTHING'S LAID OUT.
EVERYTHING'S MEASURED TO A "T."
AND SO YOU HAVE PEOPLE WHO HAVE THAT SORT OF GRID OUTLOOK
OF HOW PROPERTY, YOU KNOW, IS CLAIMED,
AND THEN THEY SEE THESE.
THE MEXICANOS WHO ARE LIVING IN THE CONQUERED TERRITORY,
THOSE WHO HAVE BECOME AMERICAN BY CONQUEST,
THEY BELIEVE IN THE AMERICAN SYSTEM,
AND THEY FIRST TURN TO THE COURTS.
THESE COURT CASES OFTENTIMES TOOK
A VERY LONG TIME TO DECIDE,
AND IN THE PROCESS, THE LANDOWNERS,
THE MEXICAN LANDOWNERS HAD TO PAY FOR LAWYERS.
THEY HAD TO PAY FOR COURT COSTS.
THEY HAD TO PAY FOR TRANSLATORS BECAUSE, OF COURSE,
THEY DON'T SPEAK THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE.
THEY HAVE TO PAY TAXES.
SO THAT EVEN IN THE BEST OF CIRCUMSTANCES,
WHEN THE COURTS DO RULE IN THEIR FAVOR,
THEY HAVE TO SELL THEIR LANDS ANYWAY
IN ORDER TO PAY FOR ALL THESE COSTS.
Montejano: MARIANO VALLEJO DOESN'T KNOW WHAT TO DO.
HE HAS TO DEAL WITH SQUATTERS, YOU KNOW.
HE COMPLAINS ABOUT SQUATTERS.
SO WHAT DOES THE NEW CALIFORNIA STATE LEGISLATURE DO?
THEY PASS A LAW PROTECTING THE SQUATTERS.
HA HA HA!
SO...
SO MUCH FOR THE TREATY OF GUADALUPE HIDALGO, YOU KNOW.
I MEAN...
Narrator: VALLEJO TOOK THE FIGHT TO KEEP HIS LAND
ALL THE WAY TO THE SUPREME COURT,
BUT IN 1864, TO PAY HIS COURT COSTS,
VALLEJO WAS FORCED TO SELL THE LAST
OF HIS 65,000 ACRES AT RANCHO PETALUMA
TO A SAN FRANCISCO BANKER.
Montejano: MEXICAN AMERICANS WERE SEEN AS A CONQUERED PEOPLE.
EVEN THE ELITES COULD NOT STAND
IN ANY POSITION OF AUTHORITY OVER THE ANGLO NEWCOMERS.
Man as Vallejo: THE LANGUAGE NOW SPOKEN IN THIS COUNTRY,
THE LAWS THAT GOVERN US, THE FACES WE ENCOUNTER
ARE THOSE OF THE MASTERS OF THE LAND,
ANTAGONISTIC TO OUR INTERESTS AND OUR RIGHTS.
BUT WHAT DOES THAT MATTER TO THE CONQUEROR?
HE WISHES HIS OWN WELL-BEING, NOT OURS.
Pitti: THE EASE WITH WHICH ANGLOS WERE ABLE
TO CONQUER MEXICANS WAS, FOR MANY ANGLO OBSERVERS,
PROOF OF ANGLO SUPERIORITY.
AN INFERIOR PEOPLE HAD BEEN CONQUERED BY A SUPERIOR PEOPLE.
DEMOCRACY HAD WON OUT OVER FEUDALISM AND BACKWARDNESS.
PROGRESS WAS IN THE HANDS OF THE AMERICANS,
AND LATINOS WERE DESTINED TO EXTINCTION.
Sanchez: THERE'S A SENSE OF THE INEVITABILITY
OF WHITE SUPREMACY.
IT'S VERY MUCH LIKE THE THINKING
TOWARDS NATIVE AMERICANS,
THAT THEY WILL EVENTUALLY WITHER AWAY
BECAUSE THEY CAN'T SUSTAIN THEMSELVES
WITH THE PRESENCE OF ANGLO-AMERICAN CULTURE.
[BELL TOLLING]
Narrator: CHEATED OUT OF HER LAND BY AN AMERICAN COLONEL,
APOLINARIA LORENZANA, THE ORPHAN GIRL
WHO HAD DEVOTED HER LIFE TO THE MISSIONS,
COULD NOT HOLD ON TO HER HARD-EARNED WEALTH.
[TRAIN WHISTLE BLOWING]
Narrator: IN 1878,
THE ATCHISON-TOPEKA, AND SANTA FE RAILROAD
STEAMED ACROSS THE AMERICAN PLAINS
INTO THE U.S.
TERRITORY OF NEW MEXICO.
SETTLED IN 1598, NEW MEXICO WAS THE LARGEST
AND OLDEST SPANISH SETTLEMENT IN THE SOUTHWEST
AND WHERE THE CULTURE OF LATINOS REMAINED STRONG.
Madrid: THE INSTITUTIONS OF THE SOCIETY
WERE DEEP IN NEW MEXICO.
THERE WAS A DEEPLY ROOTED INSISTENCE
ON MAINTAINING THE SPANISH LANGUAGE,
SPANISH CULTURAL TRADITIONS,
SPANISH RELIGIOUS TRADITIONS.
Narrator: IN THE 30 YEARS
SINCE THE END OF THE MEXICAN AMERICAN WAR,
THE HISPANO ELITE IN NEW MEXICO HAD PRESERVED
MUCH OF ITS ECONOMIC AND POLITICAL STANDING,
EVEN AS CALIFORNIOS AND TEJANOS
HAD BEEN OVERWHELMED BY AMERICAN EXPANSION.
Montejano: NEW MEXICO IS, IN A SENSE, SPARED
THE VIOLENCE OF TEXAS AND OF CALIFORNIA
BECAUSE IT'S A DESERT.
I MEAN, THERE'S BASICALLY NOTHING THERE
THAT THESE NEW SETTLERS, THESE INCOMING ANGLO SETTLERS WANT.
Pitti: THERE ARE SO MANY MORE MEXICAN AMERICANS IN NEW MEXICO
THAN THERE WERE IN CALIFORNIA OR IN TEXAS
AT THE DAWN OF THE U.S. MEXICO WAR.
THESE ARE COMMUNITIES THAT ARE BIGGER,
THAT ARE SETTLED,
THAT HAVE BEEN THERE LONGER,
AND THAT REALLY MADE A DIFFERENCE.
Madrid: THERE WERE FAMILIES THAT WERE LANDHOLDING FAMILIES
WHO SENT THEIR CHILDREN OFF TO SCHOOL
AT HARVARD, IN ST. LOUIS, IN THE MIDWEST,
AND WHO CAME BACK LITERATE IN ENGLISH
AND LITERATE IN SPANISH, WHO TOOK THEIR PLACE
AND HAD LEADERSHIP POSITIONS.
Narrator: MIGUEL ANTONIO OTERO,
A WEALTHY HISPANO, HAD STUDIED LAW
AT ST. LOUIS UNIVERSITY.
ELECTED DELEGATE TO THE U.S. CONGRESS,
OTERO WAS INSTRUMENTAL IN BRINGING THE RAILROAD
INTO NORTHERN NEW MEXICO.
[TRAIN WHISTLE BLOWS]
FOR OTERO AND THE NEW MEXICAN ELITES,
THE RAILROAD BROUGHT ECONOMIC PROGRESS,
CONNECTING THE TERRITORY TO KANSAS AND CHICAGO.
BUT FOR MANY NUEVO MEXICANOS, IT WAS A THREAT.
Madrid: IN OTHER PLACES, ONLY GENTRY HAD LAND,
BUT IN NEW MEXICO, THE LANDS THAT WERE NOT PRIVATELY HELD
WERE HELD IN COMMON, AND THEY WERE OPEN.
THEY WERE OPEN TO BE USED BY WHOMEVER.
Narrator: WITH THE RAILROAD CAME ANGLO CATTLE RANCHERS,
AND WITH THE RANCHERS CAME BARBED WIRE
THAT NOW CUT THROUGH LANDS HELD IN COMMON BY NUEVO MEXICANOS.
Madrid: THERE'S A SAYING IN SPANISH...
[SPEAKING SPANISH]
WITH BARBED WIRE CAME HUNGER,
BECAUSE THE LANDS THAT HAVE BEEN USED
TO GRAZE ANIMALS AND TO RAISE CROPS
WERE FENCED OFF.
WHEN PEOPLE CAME TO REALIZE THAT THEY WERE LOSING THEIR LANDS,
THEY FOUGHT BACK.
Narrator: THREE BROTHERS--
PABLO, NICANOR, AND JUAN JOSE HERRERA--
ORGANIZED A RESISTANCE MOVEMENT
TO PROTECT HALF A MILLION ACRES OF LAND
FROM ENCROACHMENT BY CATTLE RANCHERS.
THEY WORE HOODS TO MASK THEIR IDENTITY
AND CALLED THEMSELVES LAS GORRAS BLANCAS,
THE WHITE CAPS.
Garcia: THE GORRAS BLANCAS MAY HAVE BEEN AS LARGE
AS 1,100 MEN.
THEY DON'T HESITATE TO TAKE MATTERS INTO THEIR OWN HAND
AND TO DEFEND THEIR RIGHTS WITH A GUN.
Narrator: RIDING BY MOONLIGHT, THEY TORE UP TRACK,
BURNED RAILROAD BRIDGES AND BARNS,
CUT MILES OF BARBED WIRE.
MY GREAT-GRANDFATHER HAD TO LEAVE HIS HOME COMMUNITY
AND MOVE UPSTREAM TO LAS VEGAS
ON THE SANTA FE TRAIL BECAUSE HIS LANDS
HAD BEEN EXPROPRIATED BY ANGLO-AMERICAN OCCUPIERS.
AND THOUGH THERE ARE NO STORIES IN THE FAMILY
ABOUT THEM RESISTING THAT, THE LIKELIHOOD IS
THAT THEY WERE PART OF THE FENCE-CUTTERS
AND THE BARN-BURNERS.
Narrator: LETTERS FROM RANCHERS
COMPLAINING ABOUT THE OUTRAGES OF FENCE-CUTTERS
IN SAN MIGUEL COUNTY RAINED ON THE GOVERNOR
OF THE U.S.
TERRITORY OF NEW MEXICO.
"CRIMES WERE BEING COMMITTED, AND THE COMMUNITY AS A WHOLE
HAS LITTLE OR NO PROTECTION,"
WROTE COUNTY CLERK MIGUEL ANTONIO OTERO,
SON OF THE MAN WHO BROUGHT THE RAILROAD TO NEW MEXICO.
BUT OTHERS BLAMED THE VIOLENCE ON THE GREED OF LAND GRABBERS.
WHEN IN NOVEMBER 1889
THE HERRERA BROTHERS AND 44 OTHER SO-CALLED FENCE-CUTTERS
WERE ARRESTED, THE LOCAL NEWSPAPER NOTED,
"IT WILL BE A VERY DIFFICULT MATTER
"TO OBTAIN A JURY WHO CAN BE PERSUADED
"TO PUNISH THEIR FELLOW CITIZENS
"FOR ACTS, THOUGH ILLEGAL, THEY IN THEIR OWN HEARTS
FEEL TO BE RIGHT."
THE CHARGES AGAINST LAS GORRAS BLANCAS WERE DISMISSED.
THEY DISBANDED IN 1891.
THE FENCING AT SAN MIGUEL COUNTY STOPPED.
BUT IN A MATTER OF DECADES, ONLY A FEW THOUSAND ACRES
REMAINED OF THE HALF-MILLION ACRE LAS VEGAS LAND GRANT.
Griego: EVERY FAMILY IN NEW MEXICO HAS A STORY ABOUT
"OH, WE USED TO OWN A LOT OF LAND."
"WELL, WHAT HAPPENED TO THAT LAND?"
"WELL, WE DON'T OWN IT ANYMORE."
"WELL, WHAT HAPPENED TO IT?"
"WELL, WE DON'T KNOW.
IT WAS LOST SOMEHOW."
Narrator: LAS GORRAS BLANCAS COULD NOT PROTECT
THE LANDS OF NUEVO MEXICANOS,
BUT THEY MADE HISTORY IN A DIFFERENT WAY,
HELPING TO SET A PRECEDENT OF LATINO RESISTANCE TO INJUSTICE.
NUEVO MEXICANOS CONTINUED TO FIGHT FOR THEIR RIGHTS
AS AMERICAN CITIZENS IN A CONQUERED TERRITORY.
COUNTY CLERK MIGUEL ANTONIO OTERO
WAS APPOINTED GOVERNOR
BY U.S. PRESIDENT WILLIAM McKINLEY
AND SERVED FOR TWO TERMS.
THE LEADER OF LAS GORRAS BLANCAS,
JUAN JOSE HERRERA, TRADED HIS WHITE CAP
FOR A VESTED SUIT AND WAS ELECTED
PROBATE JUDGE OF SAN MIGUEL COUNTY.
NEW MEXICO IS UNIQUE AMONG ALL THE SOUTHWESTERN UNITED STATES
IN HAVING SUBSTANTIAL POLITICAL PARTICIPATION
ON THE PART OF THE HISPANIC PEOPLE.
Garcia: WELL INTO THE 20th CENTURY,
PEOPLE OF MEXICAN ANCESTRY CONTINUE TO BE
THE NUMERICAL MAJORITY IN NEW MEXICO,
AND BECAUSE THEY ARE THE MAJORITY,
THEY HAVE A VERY DIFFERENT EXPERIENCE
THAN, SAY, THE TEJANOS OR THE CALIFORNIOS.
Narrator: IN SONOMA, CALIFORNIA,
ON A SMALL ESTATE HE CALLED LAGRIMA MONTIS,
TEARS OF THE MOUNTAIN,
MARIANO VALLEJO SPENT HIS WANING YEARS.
STRIPPED OF HIS INFLUENCE AND FORTUNE,
HE MADE A MODEST LIVING SELLING WATER
FROM A RESERVOIR BEHIND HIS HOME.
VALLEJO DIED IN 1890 AFTER COMPLETING
A 5-VOLUME HISTORY TO UPHOLD THE LEGACY OF CALIFORNIOS
AND HIS OWN PLACE AS ONE OF CALIFORNIA'S FOUNDING FATHERS.
THE SURVIVOR OF EL ALAMO, JUAN SEGUIN,
RETIRED TO MEXICO, WHERE HE DIED, FORGOTTEN, IN 1890.
80 YEARS LATER, HIS REMAINS WERE BROUGHT TO TEXAS
AND BURIED WITH HONORS.
IN HIS MEMOIR, SEGUIN CALLED HIMSELF
"A FOREIGNER IN MY OWN LAND"
AND SPOKE FOR TENS OF THOUSANDS OF LATINOS,
NOW SECOND-CLASS CITIZENS IN A LAND THAT HAD ONCE BEEN THEIRS.
Announcer: NEXT TIME ON "LATINO AMERICANS"...
IT BEGINS WITH WAR.
HIS BROTHERS AND SISTERS WERE SLAUGHTERED.
Announcer: FORCING A TREACHEROUS JOURNEY.
Man: SHE SAID, "WE ARE NOT GOING TO DIE."
Announcer: AND ENDING WITH HOPE.
HE'S 25, AND HE'S THE KING.
Announcer: ONE FAMILY'S JOURNEY FROM THE MEXICAN REVOLUTION
TO THE AMERICAN DREAM
NEXT TIME ON "LATINO AMERICANS."
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