For decades, the word "Chicano" was used as a classist slur in Mexico and a derogatory term in the United States to describe low-income Mexican-Americans. However, during the Civil Rights movement of the 1960s, the community performed a masterful act of linguistic jujitsu. They reclaimed the word, transforming it into a badge of pride.
The term derives from the French chicane (trickery, quibbling, or a legal loophole) and the suffix -ism , suggesting a systemic or ideological commitment to such tactics. A person who practices chicanism is a ; the adjective form is chicanistic .
A minority view holds that chicanism can serve just ends—for example, an employee using procedural delays to slow-walk an unethical directive from management, or a civil rights lawyer exploiting every technicality to protect a client. In such cases, chicanism becomes a tool of the relatively powerless against the overbearing. chicanism
Most often, when people use "Chicanism," they are referring to (Spanish for "Chicanism"). This is the more common usage, particularly in American history and sociology.
The habitual chicanist is not typically a psychopath or a grandiose narcissist. Clinical profiles suggest three more common traits: For decades, the word "Chicano" was used as
Chicanism manifests through a repertoire of low-grade, high-irritation tactics. These can be grouped into five primary categories:
The lowrider is Chicanism on wheels—a slow, sleek, and intricate rejection of the "fast-paced" American lifestyle, emphasizing craftsmanship and community. The term derives from the French chicane (trickery,
In older legal texts or discussions of rhetoric, "Chicanism" can refer to the practice of .