Traditional research has confronted only Mexican and United States interpretations of Mexican–American culture. Now we must also examine the culture as we Mexican Americans have experienced it, passing from a sovereign people compatriots with newly arriving settlers to, finally a conquered people—a charter minority on our own land.
When the Spanish first came to Mexico, they intermarried with and absorbed the culture of the indigenous Indians. This policy of colonization through acculturation was continued when Mexico acquired Texas in the early 1800’s and brought the indigenous Indians into Mexican life and government. In the 1820’s United State citizens migrated to Texas, attracted by land suitable for cotton.
As their numbers became more substantial, their policy of acquiring land by subduing native populations began to dominate. The two ideologies clashed repeatedly, culmination in a military conflict that led to victory for the United States. Thus, suddenly derived of our parent culture, we had to evolve uniquely Mexican-Mexican modes of thought and action in order to survive.
The author most probably uses the phrase “charter minority” to reinforce the idea the Mexican Americans _____.
- A.are a native rather than an immigrant group in the United States
- B.played an active political role when Texas first became part of the United States
- C.have been misunderstood by scholars trying to interpret their culture
- D.identify more closely with their Indian heritage than with their Spanish heritage
正确答案及解析
正确答案
解析
a charter minority on our own land表明，他们虽然是少数民族，却是地地道道的土著人，答案为A。