Harvest of Empire

As noted in my last blog, I am currently reading Juan Gonzalez’ Harvest of Empire: A History of Latinos in America. Some of the history I am already familiar with. Some is new to me. All of it paints a picture of how Latino/as have been a significant part of the formation of the United States and how in our quest for empire we have significantly shaped the culture of Latin America.

One of the fascinating things early on in the book was how it traced the parallel histories of the English and Spanish colonists during the formation of this country. It traced similarities and differences in the cultures created and the interactions with those already living in this land when the colonists arrived. It was helpful to me in integrating the two histories I had been taught as a child… that of the British colonists that created the United States of America and that of the Spanish colonists that created California, the land I grew up in.

It is perhaps too simplistic to say that one group arrived to be a new Christian nation and one arrived to create one. Yet the British arrived hoping to become themselves the people of a new Christian nation with a manifest destiny to conquer much of the world. They were the chosen people of God, the new Israel. Those in the way, those already occupying the land, were treated much like those living in the promised land when Israel arrived under Joshua to claim their inheritance. They were often treated as enemies and driven from the land or destroyed.

The Spanish, on the other hand, “saw colonizing and conversion as a unified effort.” Those already in the land were baptized by the thousands and the two cultures mixed together much more fluidly than in the British colonies. A caste system still existed, with those of pure Spanish blood at the top of the hierarchy and those of native blood still at the bottom. The group in the middle, the mestizos, those of mixed blood, though, would become a significant new race in this new world.

Neither story is ideal. Both point to the arrogance and sin of a people who felt called by God yet failed to see the image of God in those they were called to. Both stories are necessary. They muddy the mythical creation stories of the United States making them more complex and more reflective of the true identity of this nation. We are a very human nation, created with a blend of faith, idealism, greed, and arrogance. These strands of identity cannot be easily disentangled. Instead, we must constantly follow each thread seeking to move forward in ways that honor the good and seek to make amends for the bad.