The Art of Advocacy: Mexican American Documentary

The history of the Mexican American documentary demonstrates the various sociocultural forces influencing how documentarians have used the nonfiction media form to educate, politicize, and empower the United States' largest Latino constituency. Defined as nonfiction broadcast and film media by, for, and about Mexican Americans and other Latinos, the Mexican American documentary is thematically characterized by promoting positive representation, recuperation of Mexican American/Latino history, and social justice advocacy. Amid evolving social contexts and modes of presentation, throughout its first half century the Mexican American documentary has consistently advocated for greater inclusion of the growing Mexican American/Latino community into US public life.