Walls and/in movement: murals and activism. The Chicano case

Abstract

The Chicano Movement was organized and developed in the 60s in the context of the struggle for Civil Rights in the United States. It demanded the rights of Chicanos/as as full American citizens, and vindicated this group’s cultural specificity in the socio-ethnic fabric of the country, on the other. It was articulated through marches, demonstrations and protests that took place in the streets of the large cities of the country, and particularly in those of the Southwest. This activity of denunciation and demand was also reflected in an abundant artistic production, which served as an expression of the Movement's struggle, as well as an instrument of articulation of the concept of “Chicano identity” that the ideology of the Movement was based on. Among others, the murals, which began to appear on the walls of the streets of the Mexican/Chicano neighborhoods of the cities of the Southwest of the United States. The objective of this work is to reflect on one of the most representative cases of this phenomenon, the case of Chicano Park, in San Diego, considered the most emblematic set of Chicano murals in the United States, both for its quality and quantity. Specifically, it will offer a reflection on its relevance as a symbol of the communal and collective struggle of a neighborhood, as well as the vindication of “lo Chicano”, and in particular, of its indigenous past, through the paintings that shaped the plight of a neighborhood that was threatened by rampant spatial and cultural gentrification.