For the first time in Chicago’s history, Latinos in 2020 became the largest racial or ethnic group – surpassing Black residents, according to a Sun-Times analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data.
Latinos, in particular Mexican and Mexican American communities, fought for decades against federal immigration and municipal policies to make Chicago their home. Mike Amezcua’s “Making Mexican Chicago: From Postwar Settlement to the Age of Gentrification,” chronicles the plight of these communities on the city’s Southwest Side, detailing how Mexican residents built communities and homes despite policies intended to push them out of the city.
