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188 “Debemos Trabajar” [We Must Work] Astrea R As a borderland city, Laredo, Texas, consisted primarily of Mexican residents, many of whom had lived in the area long before the 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo created the U.S.-Mexican border at the Rio Grande River. When the Mexican Revolution began in 1910, Laredo’s population rose sharply as Mexicans fled their home country to find work and political refuge in the United States. La Crónica (1909–?) was one of the most influential newspapers along the border .1 Written and published by Nicasio Idar and his eight children, La Crónica promoted the rights of Mexicans in Texas while protesting segregation and a host of other racist abuses. For Idar, a former railroad worker and one of the organizers of a union of Mexican railroad workers, the Mexican Revolution represented an opportunity for Chicanos to organize and fight for civil and economic rights. Idar held the First Mexican Congress in 1911, out of which arose the Liga Femenil Mexicana (League of MexicanWomen),devoted to improving the status of women. Although many of the articles in La Crónica advocated that women submit to their husbands,the newspaper,with the advent of the Mexican Revolution,called on Mexican women to take on a greater role in society.2 The modern woman, aware of and acknowledging the need to do her part to aid in the enlightenment of all peoples, is courageously venturing into all areas and segments of the economy, with no fear or lethargy. She turns her back on leisure and inaction, because now, at a time when she is so full of life opportunities, so full of energy and hope, there is no place for idle bums in society. La Crónica (Laredo, Texas), Nov. 23, 1911, 2 Inaction and indolence are viewed today as disgraceful traits, and as such are shunned by those who consider themselves factors in the development and progress of all peoples. Modern women do not spend their days settled in the comfort of an armchair. Not even rich women do so; even those blessed with wealth devote themselves to charity or philanthropy by organizing charitable or recreational clubs, out of a desire to do something useful for themselves or their peers. Working women, fully aware of their rights, proudly hold their heads high and step into the struggle. Their era of degradation has passed. They are no longer slaves sold for mere coins. They are no longer men’s servants, but rather their partners, as men are their natural protectors, not their lords and owners. Despite all that has been said and written in opposition to the feminist movement, women in California may now serve on juries and hold public office. Sorely mistaken are those discontent, superficial spirits who are unworthy of good deeds and criticize women who brush aside social convention to devote their energy to gainful or charitable purposes. Such people ignore the moral stakes involved, as a person devoted to work or activity has no time for anything futile or harmful.A woman worker sitting at a sewing machine or performing clerical duties is more relevant than a young woman with idle time on her hands who merely visits others or hops from one commercial establishment to another, serving as a mouthpiece for gossip or idle chatter. A dignified and hard-working single woman does not ask to live at the expense of the head of the family, be he the father, a brother, or a relative. No. A healthy, brave, strong woman devotes her energy and talent to helping her family, or at least to supporting herself. Just as upstanding, hard-working men feel contempt for drifters and idlers, so too do working women not appreciate useless, idle women. Translated by Paul Coltrin. work and the labor movement 189 ...

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