The Mexican American war today
Today, 170 years later, most Mexicans still harbor a grudge against America for losing the war of 1846. Many Mexicans consider the southwest U.S. stolen Mexican land. The truth is this land historically belongs to the Indians. The Spanish took this land from the Indians and then lost this land to the U.S. Many Mexicans also believe the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo was too harsh on Mexico. So the real issue today is this: Even if Mexico is 100% to blame for starting both wars - which they were - did the US have the right to take almost half of Mexico’s territory? The answer is ABSOLUTELY YES!! Here’s why:
Mexico was determined to conquer Texas and was looking for an excuse to start this war because they were certain they could defeat the US. But Mexico lost every major battle. To have beaten Mexico as badly as we did, conquered most of their country including the capital city, and then told them they must accept Texas as part of the US, which it already was, and then retreated back to the U.S. without Mexico suffering any consequences would not have been fair for us. This would have been an unforgivable disgrace to the men who died and the rest who went through hell to attain victory - and we would be inviting another attack.
Now put yourself in Mexico’s shoes. Your army has been repeatedly defeated, nearly the entire country has been conquered, and the consequences are - nothing!! Just be nice and don’t threaten Texas again! In a machismo society like Mexico, would they sit back and say ‘OK’ or would Mexicans think we Americans are unbelievably gullible. Mexico would hold Americans in contempt for conquering their country and not making them pay a price for their warmongering. The reality is that once Mexico attacked the US, losing the land north of the Rio Grande became necessary to repay the US for the cost of the war and repay US citizens for monetary damages Mexico refused to pay. Mexico had to pay a price for attacking the U.S.
If the US could change history, what could we change so Mexico would love us today? If we only kept Texas and gave back California and New Mexico, would Mexico still hate us for keeping Texas? Absolutely yes. If we gave Texas to Mexico, would they love us? No, Mexico would still be bashing America and sending drugs and illegal aliens into all parts of our country. They already are. Giving Texas and the southwest US to Mexico would gain us nothing.
Since the 1960s, an increasing number of Mexican leaders have claimed that the Treaty of Tordesillas, signed in 1494 gives legal ownership of the southwest U.S. to Mexico. Some Mexicans claim legal ownership of most of the U.S. for Mexico. This Treaty gave Brazil to Portugal and Spain got all the rest of the New World.
Reies Tijerina, a very influential Mexican-American racist from the 1950s til his death in 2015, referenced the Treaty of Tordesillas to justify forcing all Anglos to move back to Europe!(131)
Mario Obledo, who co-founded MALDEF in 1968 declared that Anglos “ought to go back to Europe."(132)
Rodolfo “Corky” Gonzales, in his autobiography, Message to Aztlan declared: “We are all heirs to the land. We, the mestizo, the Indian, and of Spanish birth, owners of the Southwest by precedent and by legal title.”(133)
Mexican treaty claims to any part of the US are fatally flawed. Since only Portugal and Spain signed this Treaty, no other country was obligated to obey it. In addition, Mexicans ignore all subsequent treaties after the Treaty of Tordecillas - the Adams-Onis Treaty of 1819 and the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo - which Mexico signed to end the Mexican American War in 1848. Mexico signed away their rights with these treaties. Therefore, the U.S. has legal ownership of all the U.S. CASE CLOSED.
Another scam by today’s Mexicans is to claim that any Mexican who has Indian blood in them - Mestizos - has the right to illegally enter the US and resist assimilating because their goal is to reconquer the southwest US, starting with California. Jose Angel Gutierrez, ‘professor’ at the University of Texas at Arlington and a founder of La Raza Unida declared: “We cannot, we will not, and we must not be made illegal in our own homeland. We are not im-mi-grants that came from another country to another country; we are migrants, free to travel the length and breadth of the Americas because we belong here. . .”(134)
Very few mestizos originated in what became the U.S. But being part Indian doesn’t make you superior or above the law. There are millions of Americans with Indian blood in them. Does this mean they can ignore the border with Mexico?
Mexico lost additional territories!!
Texas was NOT the first state to secede from Mexico. Because of the dysfunctional state of Mexican politics and only 2 years after Mexico’s independence, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua and Costa Rica declared themselves independent from Mexico on July 1, 1823. These five countries became the United Provinces of Central America. But infighting resulted in the Union falling apart in 1838 and they became independent nations. Why hasn’t Mexico made an issue out of this over the past 190 years? Is it because they are fellow Spanish, whereas the northern territories came under control of Anglo Americans?
Because Mexico’s government was so dysfunctional, Mexico deserved to lose Texas forever just like they lost Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua and Costa Rica forever. Losing the southwest US was the consequences of going to war with the US.
We should also keep in mind that Mexico (actually Santa Anna) DID sell the US the land that became known as the Gadsden territory in 1854 - only 6 years after the end of the Mexican American War. Mexico was broke (again) and Santa Anna needed money to pay his army to put down ongoing rebellions and maintain his extravagant lifestyle. Santa Anna agreed to sell 45,000 square miles south of the New Mexico territory for $15 million. The U.S. Senate reduced the land purchased to 29,670 square miles and paid Santa Anna $10 million. Santa Anna signed the revised treaty on June 8, 1854.(126) The deal was so unpopular in Mexico that Santa Anna was removed from office and banished.
Had Mexico not started a war with the US, Mexico wouldn’t have lost the southwest US, or if they did, there could be no denying that the US stole it.
Not acquiring these lands (Texas, N Mexico and California) would have the U.S. weaker military, economically and with a smaller population. The US might not have been powerful enough to have won WWII or the Cold War. Mexico mostly sat out the Cold War and World War Two.
The southwest US was vital in making the US a powerful nation. The US can’t be replaced as the defender of the free world. Mexico could NEVER have filled our shoes. They were too big. So was it Manifest Destiny for the US to acquire these lands, so the US could save democracy in the world a century later??? .
Most Mexicans believe that if they had kept ownership of the land north of the Rio Grande - Texas, California and New Mexico, these areas would be economically prosperous like they are now. This is delusional thinking. These areas became prosperous because they belong to the US, not Mexico. Had these lands stayed under the control of Mexico, they would not have helped Mexico prosper. This part of Mexico would be as dysfunctional as the rest of Mexico. All that would change is that constant revolutions, widespread poverty, a disastrous economic system, bad health care, poor education, political turmoil and murderous drug cartels would be in a country twice as large as it is now. Even more illegal immigrants from Mexico would be coming into our considerably smaller country for jobs. So be happy the U.S. won.
Spain really didn’t know what to do with all this land. Not content with having seized most Caribbean Islands, Central America and South America (except for Brazil), Spain also wanted North America too but the Spanish didn’t have enough people to populate all this land. Over 99% of the Mexican population lived on land south of the Rio Grande and less than 1% lived north of the Rio Grande. The government had to manipulate people to move into these areas. As mentioned earlier, in the rush to claim land in the New World, if you didn’t have people to settle the land you claimed, your claims were open to challenge. Mexico had virtually no immigration and no hopes of attracting immigrants, which is why they invited Americans to settle Texas in the first place.
And there is additional proof that the US wasn’t out to merely steal land from other countries. During Polk’s presidency, there was a dispute with England over the Oregon territory. Some Americans wanted all of the territory - “54 40 or fight” was the slogan. But Polk and England settled the dispute by making the boundary at the 49th parallel. The US thus gave up claims to about half the Oregon Territory - a huge amount of land.
Where do we go from here?
Mexicans who come to the US have two choices:
1) The first choice is for Mexicans who come to the US to embrace America, her history and traditions. The attitude of immigrants from Mexico should be the same as immigrants from any other country - you’re proud of your ancestry but your loyalty is now totally to America. America is your native country. No other country has accomplished what the US has - which is why you are here. You are an American and should feel proud waving the American flag and celebrating July 4th.
2) The second choice is for Mexicans to come to the US as invaders, which must be confronted and defeated.
The US and Mexico will NEVER have a good relationship until Mexico stops holding a grudge for a situation they created. Mexican Americans who live in America and proclaim loyalty to Mexico don’t deserve to live in the US. And it’s time to end the pity party for Mexico.
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Return to: "Peace Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo and Aftermath of the War."
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Mexico in 1821.
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Mexico in 1824 after loss of 5 southern states.