And the Earth Did Not Devour Him | Historical Context

And the Earth Did Not Devour Him Historical Overview

Chicano Farm Workers in the 1940s and 1950s

… And the Earth Did Not Devour Him is set after World War II, reflecting the period when the author lived the life of a child of migrant farm workers. Millions of Mexican Americans came to the United States during and after World War II to work as farm laborers. Though a significant number were illegal immigrants, many stayed in America and made it their home. In the early 1950s, the U.S. government tried to curb the immigration though the federal program called Operation Wetback. This program called for several coordinated agencies to find and deport illegal Mexican immigrants. Many Chicanos, both legal and illegal immigrants, settled in urban environments, often in barrios (Spanish-speaking enclaves).

Many Chicanos continued to work as migrant farm laborers in the 1940s and 1950s. Picking crops was an intense labor process involving many long hours of hard, back-breaking work. Workers were put in direct...
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