FBI Files on Mexicans and Chicanos, 1940-1980: The Eagle Is Watching

A multi-chapter book that examines the FBI files on two well known persons of Mexican origin, Luisa Moreno and Ernesto Galarza; four Chicanos, Ambassador Raymond Telles and his wife Delfina Navarro, Francisco "Pancho" Medrano, Freddy Fender; two organizations, the Texas Farm Workers Union and teh American G.I. Forum; and, one event, the Zoot Suit police riots in Los Angeles, California during the 1940s.

About the Author :
José Angel Gutiérrez is emeritus professor of political science ate University of Texas in Arlington.

Review :
Using the Freedom of Information Act to acquire and analyze files compiled by the FBI in its surveillance of several notable, as well as less well known Latino leaders, former Chicano Movement activist José Angel Gutiérrez describes how the federal government extensively documented the activities and movements of those deemed 'subversive' and 'un-American.' This volume is a useful addition to those studies that reveal how the FBI monitored and intimidated activists over many decades, including many Latinos branded as 'Communists' and 'lefties' for their efforts to advocate for labor and civil rights on behalf of their people--Albert M. Camarillo, Stanford University José Ángel Gutiérrez once again does what, I think no other scholar of Chicano/Latino studies can do as well: provide new facts and produce deeper understandings of the foundations of intimidation that have always, and continue, to characterize efforts by Chicano/Mexican American communities to advance within the U.S. Through exclusive access to FBI files secured under FOIA requests, we can now more fully see, and feel, the foundations of state sponsored intimidation to inhibit this advancement. Whether the focus was on individuals, organizations, or policy initiatives, the FBI, the Office of the U.S. Attorney General, the INS, and others did all they could to discredit those working and sacrificing to empower Chicano/Mexican American communities in the U.S. This book is a masterpience of bringing patterns of state imposed oppression to light for all of us to see--and from which all of us must learn. In our post 9/11 world, the fact that we are being watched (for our security) is a commonly accepted notion by most citizens. After all, it is for our "protection." This chilling manuscript demonstrates that the FBI (and others) have been watching for many, many years. Whom have been the targets of surveillance? Often, persons and organizations that pose a real threat. However, this has not always been so. As Gutierrez notes often the subjects of such activities were persons/groups merely seeking to have the US to live up to its stated goal of 'liberty and justice for all.' As technology intrudes into our virtual and 'real' lives more and more, it is imperative to think about to whom, and why, "the eagle" may be listening. This work will make readers think more deeply about such matters. You may lose some sleep over this, but that might not necessarily be a bad thing--Jorge Iber, Texas Tech University In this well-researched and detailed book, José Angel Gutiérrez, as a scholar and a fearless leader for decades on behalf of Chicanas and Chicanos in the U.S., does an excellent job in exposing the civil/human rights abuses of the American government in general and oppressive FBI apparatus in particular against los de abajo. As a self-described Chicano militant, the author exposes a contradiction of the FBI's racist surveillance against brown people, where the gaze of Big Brother doesn't differentiate in spying on righteous militants, aspiring for radical/structural transformations, versus moderate Mexican Americans and groups, seeking reformist changes. --Alvaro Huerta, California State Polytechnic University His volumes (and presumably forthcoming third volume)...make a significant contribution to our ever-evolving understanding of the FBI and its deep interest in a seemingly inexhaustible array of subjects. If the FBI files that are the basis of these books were either eventually scanned and posted online or deposited in a library, Gutiérrez's goal of resurrecting these histories would advance considerably. I am confident, as an FBI scholar myself, that these important works will augment future comprehensive histories of the FBI. -- "Criminal Law and Criminal Justice Books"