Concientización y Liberación is the section of ¡LA VERDAD! in which we publish our analysis on specific questions facing the struggle for Raza National Liberation. We understand that only by bringing clarity to the struggle through criticism and self-criticism will we be able to advance as a movement.

In 1980 the government agencies that command the activities of schools in the United States called for a series of national "reforms" directed at "urban centers" (a code phase that means poor barrios and ghettos) to reduce the so-called "drop-out" rate (what we call the push out rate) and counter the plummeting test scores at the national level (read "Rethinking Education Reform", Henry A. Giroux from Annual Editions 1990-91). Under the title of "Education Reform Movement" Reagan and his gang of KKK punks in suits launched this new strategy of attack to strip our community and our youth of the few gains we had fought for and won during the 1960's and 70's. After 16 years of these so-called reforms (there are more "special education programs" today than ever before), the push-out rate has grown by an enormous amount and test scores are lower than ever. Violence, racism, and suicide are common realties in U.S. schools. These contradictions are sharpened by the present political and economic crisis in the U.S. and around the world, as the one time strong capitalist racist producing system is decaying.

Unión del Barrio grasps clearly what all this means for our gente in the occupied territories. We work on the understanding that the U.S. government has never had as a goal the betterment of La Raza. We know that it has never been the plan of Uncle Sam to educated our juventud; this gringo system has done everything in its power to keep us as ignorant as possible so that we, Mexicanos in Aztlán, never rise up and unite around reclaiming what has always been ours. No matter what they say about reforms, or how many programs they fund, the educational reality of our gente is concrete proof of our analysis.

Many Of Our People Are Unable To Look At A Newspaper Or Television Broadcast In An Intelligent, Inquiring, Or Critical Fashion

In past issues of ¡LA VERDAD! and other documents, la Unión has explained that:

"The educational reality of the Mexicano community is one in which the vast majority of our gente lack the social, scientific, and practical skills necessary to enable us to self-determine our future and define our reality as free human beings. We find ourselves in a situation where a large percentage of our people cannot read or write in a functional manner. Many of our people are unable to look at a newspaper or television broadcast in an intelligent, inquiring, or critical fashion - ultimately unable to even fully comprehend its content." (see Education, Chicano Studies and Raza Liberation, published by La Verdad Publications)

Those few within our community who have access to a "quality" education have in essence received a colonial education that teaches our people an attitude of self-hate, negates our history, and destroys our culture. What they have received is an education that adheres directly and indirectly to a philosophy of white supremacy, which perpetuates the principles of elitism and class race privilege as something natural, unchangeable, and everlasting.

History has proven to us that the majority of our Raza that are educated have a vendido mentality (all they care about is making their pockets fat) implanted by the colonial education they received. Of the few Raza that do manage to get a complete education and not become hispanic vendidos there are even fewer that join the struggle for Raza liberation. We recognize that the struggles of the "Chicano Power Period" (1965-1975) were not to make a few vendidos rich - rather, the objective was a true education in the service of our gente, to make our future better for our children, our community, and our nation (Aztlán-México). Our movement upheld then, as it upholds today, that education, to be relevant to our people, must serve as a tool for self-determination, and it was precisely for that reason that this kind of education is denied to us.

History teaches us that since the day our land was stolen in 1848, the educational system of the U.S. has served as a tool in its strategy to keep La Raza oppressed. A simple of analysis of the way the colonial education functions and is administered, clearly demonstrates that these institutions do not contradict the interests of the ruling class (the rich gabachos). Therefore, classrooms in capitalist/colonialist countries can only train the social behavior that its ruling class wants. If we understand that the educational institutions are controlled by the system (our oppressor) then we must come to terms with the reality that the oppressor will not allow for any type of education which would challenge the status quo. So what we have in schools, from elementary to the university, is a kind of education which is focused on providing only that knowledge which will allow the system to survive. It is around this particular situation (education and colonialism) where we find the basis for the failure of education to effectively deal with our oppression and vicious attacks to eliminate those few aspects of education that can be any kind of help in our struggle for liberation.

Ironically, this past year, the Mexicano community celebrated 25 years of struggle all over Aztlán. From the celebration (for example in San Diego, Califas) of Chicano Park, Centro Cultural de La Raza, and the Commemoration of the August 29, 1970 Marcha, a lot of past activists that once benefited from the concessions our community fought for - came out of the wood work, nostalgically, to celebrate "La Lucha," as if complete victory had been achieved and revolutionary struggle was no longer needed.

1995 reminded us of all the things our people fought for during the 1960's and 70's, and also slaps us in the face with some cold realities, especially in the educational arena. Prop. 187 - which "legalizes" the stripping of education from our gente - was voted in, Chicano Studies programs have been cut all across colleges and universities, while most of those that survive get mutated into hispanic/Ethnic/Amerikkan Studies programs. English Only laws continue to challenge bilingual education, and Affirmative Action has been eliminated at all the U.C. campuses in Califas.

El Plan De Santa Barbara Was The Banner For All Chicanos To Uphold

We know that education has always been a struggle the whole community can unite with. In the early 1970's the majority of our Raza was not getting a quality, relevant education. The majority of our Raza were dropping out or were pushed out. A tiny sector of our Raza was getting into college. The Mexicano community fought endlessly for this cause; the innumerable walkouts led to the creation of M.E.Ch.A. and the implementation of Chicano Studies. El Plan de Santa Barbara was the banner for all Chicanos to uphold. El Plan states:

"Due to the racist structure of this society, the barrio remains exploited, impoverished and marginal. Self determination for our community is the only mandate for social and political action, it is the essence of the Chicano commitment. . . .

"M.E.Ch.A.'s function is to politicize Chicano students of their particular campus to the ideals of the Movement. M.E.Ch.A. must bring to the minds of every Chicano that the liberation of her/his people comes first. . . .

"Chicano Studies represents the total conceptualization of the Chicano community's aspirations that involve higher education. The following must be put into motion:

1) Admission and recruitment of Chicano students, faculty administrators and staff. 2) A curriculum program and an academic major relevant to the Chicano cultural and historical experience. 3) Support and tutorial programs. 4) Research programs. 5) Publications. 6) Community cultural and social actions.

We must learn from our history and our defeats. We saw how, during the 1960's and 1970's, the gabacho colonial system was forced to give Raza some concessions and many of our demands were met. Today we see more Raza college students than we have ever seen in the past. We have more politicos Mexicanos in this system; we have more Raza administrators in our schools; we have more recruitment/retention programs than before. Yet the over-all conditions of La Raza have worsened.

The question every Mexicano should ask themselves is "What went wrong?" The reality is that the majority of the Raza that benefited from the movimiento got too comfortable and did not understand (some by convenience) what was meant by self-determination. Today, programs aimed especially at helping Raza, guided by Raza, are producing Mexicanos with a selfish, sell out, unconscious mentality. We have Bilingual teaching programs that produce teachers with no consciousness except for their selfish needs; we're referring to those who will not struggle until their paycheck is in jeopardy.

The main reason why anti-Raza legislation such as Affirmative Action, Bilingual Education Cuts, English Only Laws, Prop. 187, etc. have been implemented, has to do with the fact that our movement does not have the ability to effectively struggle against it. Many so-called activists fail to see the nature of the capitalist colonial system and the bankruptcy of their band-aid reformist response to this colonial situation.

The Solution Around The Question Of Raza Education Is To Take Control Of The Schools

The solution around the question of Raza education is to take control of the schools in our barrios or to create independent Raza liberation schools. Only in this way can we witness the development of an education that is relevant to community needs, experiences and concrete conditions. This movement to control the education of our communities and create Raza power, calls for a unified-national movement that understands fundamental problems created of colonialism.

"Raza Power" as it relates to our education means the power to create a curriculum that counters the systematic de-education of Mexicanos by the anglo/colonial school system while at the same time creating barrio youth with advanced academic skills and the means to effectively utilize higher education for the well being of the Raza community. It would also offer an educational program that creates positive self-identification as an individual and as a Mexicano, plus the motivation to advance academically and socially within the community. This would emphasize courses that include both classroom instruction and education through concrete barrio based involvement in Mexicano grassroots issues. We must utilize the community, its resources, issues and problems, as the main arena for the educational process; in other words relate education to reality. We must emphasize self-determination as a basic right to all people and to encourage unity with all people fighting for liberation.

The ignorance and self-destruction imposed on the majority of La Raza by colonial education demands that all forces within the Chicano Liberation Movement unite around a plan of action that will immediately begin a struggle to remedy this horrible situation. If our movement continues to offer "band-aid solutions" (reforms) to the oppression of our gente and does not vigorously fight the racist anti-Raza climate today, we will have to deal with much graver problems tomorrow.