There's a word in my mother's Indian language that also means "the people". When it is used among tribal members, it's a source of pride. When it is used publicly toward anyone else, it is an "us and them" Klu Klu Klan-like usage.

If you've ever spoken to an actual member of La Raza (not just someone who admires it, but someone who is a planner in the trenches), you would know that it is as racist as the Klan and the Nation of Islam.