US Immigration by Country 1970
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US Immigration by Country 2013
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Source: Migration Policy Institute tabulation of data from the U.S. Census Bureau's 2010 and 2013 American Community Surveys, and 2000 Decennial Census. Data for 1960 to 1990 are from Campbell J. Gibson and Emily Lennon, "Historical Census Statistics on the Foreign-Born Population of the United States: 1850 to 1990" (Working Paper No. 29, U.S. Census Bureau, Washington, DC, 1999).
Chicano vs. Latino
The charts above show the countries with the most US immigrants each year in relation to the entire US immigrant population. As you can see, in 1970, the majority of US immigrants were European. Cuba and Mexico were the only two Latin American countries with a significant immigrant population coming to the US. For the most part, the Cuban population stayed in Miami, so Mexican immigrants were really the only Latin Americans affecting California society during the 1970s (the beginning of the Chicano Movement). However, in 2013, there continues to be a large population of Mexican immigrants, but there is also a large population of immigrants from the Dominican Republic, El Salvador and Guatemala. Therefore, Mexicans are no longer the only significant Latino population in the US, so Chicano is no longer an identity that can solely represent Mexican Americans.
It is important to take into account that these graphs are both reflective of immigration— they refer to populations that have just come to the US, not populations who have been in the US for generations. Therefore, today's second/third generation Latino population still reflects the large proportion of Mexicans that came to the US throughout the late 20th century. However, from the 1960s to today, war and dictatorship has increased immigration from Central America. In the 1980s, Nicaragua was at war, in the 1990s, Nicaragua and Honduras were hit by a devastating hurricane. Therefore, the population second and third generation Central Americans has just began to have a large impact on the definition of the word Chicano. The fact that in 2013, Guatemala and El Salvador had significant immigrant populations come to the US shows that in the future, Chicano and Latino will merge, evolving to include Central American culture as well.
It is important to take into account that these graphs are both reflective of immigration— they refer to populations that have just come to the US, not populations who have been in the US for generations. Therefore, today's second/third generation Latino population still reflects the large proportion of Mexicans that came to the US throughout the late 20th century. However, from the 1960s to today, war and dictatorship has increased immigration from Central America. In the 1980s, Nicaragua was at war, in the 1990s, Nicaragua and Honduras were hit by a devastating hurricane. Therefore, the population second and third generation Central Americans has just began to have a large impact on the definition of the word Chicano. The fact that in 2013, Guatemala and El Salvador had significant immigrant populations come to the US shows that in the future, Chicano and Latino will merge, evolving to include Central American culture as well.
