A Study and Research of First Generation Mexican American

Study and Research of the First Generation Mexican American Progress in Academics

When Mexican Americans arrive in the United States, they do not only leave everything behind but arrive for a better future.  A future that not only they end up benefiting from, but their child as well.  The American Dream stands before them. First-generation Mexican Americans are the ones being impacted the most and it is shown in their academics. Do not get me wrong, I am not saying that they are behind, but there most that suffer from these disadvantages because of the way their parents have not acclimated or assimilated themselves with the culture of this country. There are many things that come to play a big part in the situation in which first-gen Mexican Americans tend to have, for example, economic hardships, racial barriers, and the way this American Dream is being valued by first-gen. The problem, though, has in fact been changing throughout the passing of each next generation.

Examples of Typical Values Coming Into Play 

There are many people that do not value the effort of their parent's journey into a new life which changes their future. These sets of values the parents come with into this country do not seem to pass on to their children. Nowadays first-gen seem not to sacrifice as much as their parents, instead, they are just cruising and waiting for something to happen. On the other hand, Mexicans that immigrated tend to do better than first-gens for the fact that they lived the harsh life and saw a future in America.

For example, there are very limited first-generation Mexican Americans that embrace their heritage. This ends up affecting the way first-gens tend to treat the academic world. If the heritage is not embraced, this shows how they do not look up to their parents for doing what they did, which in turn leads to the lack of hard work. There is less hard work being applied because they have no sense of motivation if they do not have something or someone to look up to in the family. Also, the value of authority is lacking in the first gens, which is the thing that keeps them on the check, to prevent them from slacking off and staying focused (you can ask me about it, I’m talking from experience here). Once respect to authority is lost, their academics end up falling apart by not doing homework and not respecting anything that is said or done for them.

Academics Made Difficult By Economic Hardships

Economic struggles do set obstacles for anyone who finds themselves in its path. Mostly all first-gens struggle with this the most since once parents come over from another country it is hard for them to settle in. These economic hardships lead to having disadvantages over others. This involves limited resources which they cannot afford to have. For example, WiFi, a computer, or even a printer and leaves a mark of stress not only to the family but also the child. The parents are left to hassle through two to three jobs since most do not have technical or professional skills with them, which means they literally need to start from scratch. This leaves the children to also end up helping their parents with the bills and also tends to stress the children out and eventually making them get distracted from their academics. There is absolutely no time for academics or extracurricular activities since the entire family is trying to keep up to survive.

A Breakdown of Racial Barriers on First-Gens

First-generation Mexican Americans experience racial discrimination on a frequent basis as well, whether in public or in subtle ways and sometimes are forced into making unfortunate decisions. This forces first-gens into hiding their heritage and being ashamed of it. The fast assimilation process some experience forces first-gens to alter their racial identity and destroying the pride of heritage, the hard work, and the way they were raised. They are faced with the tough decision of either going to college and risk losing their heritage or not go to college and remain with their identity, yet be at a low level in economic terms. From what we see today it seems as if most first-gens prefer to stick to their current level rather than join the levels of academics success. These complete opposite situations carry with it a burden on the shoulders of Mexican Americans faced with a tough choice. Yes, one can say they can blind themselves to the situation presented and brush aside the consequences of discrimination and move on. It is easy to say it, but harder in practice. The mounting pressures to fit-in, an unfortunate effect of progressing, is inevitable.

To Conclude

To end my train of thought, I do not imply that all first-generation Mexican Americans are like this, but we have to open our eyes and see the truth of what is happening. We should, in fact, be able to compete with other race peers and be toe to toe, but in reality, there are rare instances in which we are capable to do so. I researched and sought out information which showed all the different types of factors that are involved in our deviation from the goal. Our goal should not just simply be cruising around and have a minimum paying job, absolutely not, we should be striving for greatness and be in the records of being looked up to and not trashed around. Not being in the same position as we started, but being one step above and beyond.