Yo Soy Joaquín Analysis

1. "I must choose between the paradox of victory of the spirit, despite physical hunger, or to exist in the grasp of American social neurosis, sterilization of the soul and a full stomach."

1.1. This section of the poem explains that he can either choose between being internally victorious with living by his cultural traditions but starve due economical hard ship that comes from discrimination; He can also choose to assimilate and have a full stomach but lose who he really is.

1.2. The test describes how " The concept of "la raza" (race) became particularly important to the Chicano movement. It expressed not only ethnic pride, but also superiority of the Chicano race. The idea of assimilating into mainstream American culture was considered repugnant by many Chicanos."

1.2.1. Girod, Christina. "Movement Matures, 1966–1973." The American Mosaic: The Latino American Experience, ABC-CLIO, 2020, latinoamerican2.abc-clio.com/Topics/Display/33. Accessed 14 Apr. 2020.

2. "My blood runs pure on the ice-caked Hills of the Alaskan isles, On the corpse-strewn beach of Normandy, The foreign land of Korea And now Vietnam. Here I stand Before the court of justice, Guilty"

2.1. This section from the poem describes how he bled for America during the war at all these foreign places yet he still does not get treated fairly back home.

2.2. The text describes how, "With their homecoming, Mexican American soldiers expected to be treated with the respect and esteem they deserved as veterans of the U.S. Armed Forces. Instead, such veterans as Macario García faced the same segregated realities they had confronted before their military service."

2.2.1. Miner, Dylan A. T. "Chicano Movement." The American Mosaic: The Latino American Experience, ABC-CLIO, 2020, latinoamerican2.abc-clio.com/Search/Display/1505822. Accessed 14 Apr. 2020.

3. "My knees are caked with mud. My hands calloused from the hoe. I have made the Anglo rich, Yet Equality is but a word– The Treaty of Hidalgo has been broken And is but another threacherous promise. My land is lost And stolen"

3.1. This section of the poem describes how Mexican American labor is abused in order to make Anlgos rich on land that used to belong to the Mexicans. It also mentions that the Treaty of Hidalgo had been broken.

3.2. Going against The Treaty of Hidalgo, "In New Mexico, most claims to land grants were rejected due to unclear boundary lines and missing documents."

3.2.1. Rosales, F. Arturo. "Reies Tijerina and New Mexico Land Struggles (Overview)." The American Mosaic: The Latino American Experience, ABC-CLIO, 2020, latinoamerican2.abc-clio.com/Topics/Display/1448350?cid=41&sid=1448350. Accessed 14 Apr. 2020.