The History Ese

The history of immigration policy in the state of California has been a long and storied history. In this episode we look into the immigration policy of two former California governors;  the Republican Pete Wilson and the Democrat Jerry Brown.  We will take a look into how both of these men sought to deal with the ever contentious issue of immigration and how their respective legacies set the foundation for the California we know now. 

In this episode we will introduce you to three men,  Jacobo Arbenz (President of Guatemala 1951-1954), Jose Figueres Ferrer (President of Costa Rica 1948-1949), and Alexander Dubcek (First Secretary of Communist Czechoslovakia from 1968-1969), all leaders who attempted to bring about worthwhile change in their respective countries by means of a somewhat moderate type of revolution. I also compare their style of bring about change to the methods used by one Che Guevara. The attempt here will be to show that you don't need to burn the entire system down to bring about change in the world.

Those who don't listen to history are doomed to repeat it. For many who oppose the social justice movements of today, the United States of America is in the midst of it's own Cultural Revolution. Is that true? In this episode we will look into the Cultural Revolution which took place in China and we will compare and contrast it to the social justice movements of today. We will see how Woke Culture and Cancel Culture stack up to the methods used during the Cultural Revolution. You won't want to miss out. 

The Eurovision Song Contest or Eurovision for short, is a competition which has everything. It has drama, it has questionable lyrics, it has live performances which will have you saying "is that person really wearing a space suit for this performance?" Nevertheless, Eurovision may also be the secret to how Europe manages to come together. It has the power to bring together regional rivals that would normally be at each others throats for a brief moment to enjoy a night of music. Is this competition more profound than meets the eye? Or is it just another reason for us to poke fun at Europe? (Instagram: @the_history_ese)

This is part of a series I am going to continue in the future, the Q & A series. If you follow me on Instagram (@the_history_ese) I put out a survey question of sorts which asked what it is you might want answered or what questions you have in regards to history in general.  We will be talking about the controversial Nanking Massacre and Hernan Cortes as well as Argentina. Yeah that's a weird group, but those were the questions/topics I chose to answer because each one has its interesting aspects. Sit back, tune in, and get ready to dive into some interesting topics. 

Soon after Mexico achieved its independence from Spain, there were several people within Mexico who looked at the remaining Spanish possessions in the region and started to develop dreams of expansion and grandeur. With Spain's dominance of the region fading, Mexican political leaders felt it would only be correct to for Mexico to fill the void left behind by Spain and assume control over the remaining territories as a means of assuring Mexican and Latin American independence but also to give Mexico its rightful position on the world's stage.  The annexation of Cuba, plays an interesting role in Mexican history as it has an interesting end result. 

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The Zoot Riots of the 1940's were a series of clashes between white U.S. servicemen based in Los Angeles, California and Mexican American youth who lived in the city as well. While it is certain that racism and nativism on behalf of the U.S. servicemen was the main cause of what took place, the Spanish language newspaper La Opinion , instead tries to present an argument which challenges the Mexican American community to reflect on the state of Mexican American youth.  La Opinion would dare to ask the questions that many in the Mexican American community might have been asking themselves once these events had taken place. 

Often times when you think about the evils of colonialism, the country or countries that come to mind are Great Britain, France, Germany, the Netherlands, maybe even the United States. In this episode I will cover Belgium's colonial past and how their actions in the Congo, resulted in the first ever use of the phrase "crimes against humanity. More importantly, I hope to give you insight on how the horrors and atrocities committed there are still plaguing the people of the Democratic Republic of the Congo today. 

Part 2 of You may not want to here this, takes a look at the legacy of one Imelda Marcos. She was and still is often seen as a woman who should be scorned and forgotten. Yet, in this episode we will take a look at some of her achievements which have been largely overshadowed. Achievements which don't necessarily excuse her and her husband's blatant corruption, but are worth analyzing in depth. 

Part 1 of You may not want to hear this; It's 1911 and the Mexican Revolution has just started. The oppressed rise up and decide that enough is enough.  Tired of privileges for the elite and foreigners and fueled by the patriotic spirit of revolution, a group of revolutionaries decide to take the city of Torreon. In doing so, they would go on to participate in one of the darkest episodes in Mexican History. An episode which would see Mexicans who desired reform, brutally attack and kill countless Chinese residents in the name of the Mexican Revolution. A chapter of history which has often gone overlooked until now.  

Statues of Confederate Heroes are coming down, and some of you are probably asking yourself "why are they even up in the first place?". Once you understand the narrative of the Lost Cause and it's impact on American society, not only will you understand why Robert E. Lee has statues and even has high schools named after him, but hopefully you'll be able to debunk some pro-confederate myths that people state as fact. 

People are protesting, there's riots in the streets, America is as polarized and divided as ever, and on top of all this unrest going on in the country we have an election to deal with! But this is not 2020, this is 1968. Let's take a look back to a time when just like today, the very fabric of American society seemed to be tearing at the seams and how everything going on in the background ultimately influenced how the 1968 Presidential Election turned out. 

Have you ever heard the saying, "those who don't learn from History are doomed to repeat it"? Have you perhaps taken a look around lately and taken in all that's happening around us? Did we not learn? Well let's talk about the cycle of history. Let's reflect on this and see what we come up with. Are we going through the same motions we have already gone through in the past? Or is what we're going through totally different? Join the discussion.