Mexican Americans included New Mexican Hispanos and Pueblo Indians and Genizaros, Tejanos, Californios and Mission Indians have existed since the area was part of New Spain. The majority of these historically primarily Hispanophone populations eventually adopted English as their first language as part of their overall Americanization. Approximately ten percent of the current Mexican-American population are descended from the early colonial settlers who became U.S. citizens in 1848 via the Treaty of Guadelupe Hidalgo which ended the Mexican–American War. Although most of the original Mexican American population were officially deemed white citizens by the treaty, they have faced and continue to face
Afro-Mexicans in the Mexican War of Independence Afro-Mexicans in the Mexican War of Independence The history of Africans in Mexico has not been well documented or recognized by the government and society. The Spanish relied upon slavery to expand their empire and to increase their wealth, and during the 16th and 17th centuries, African slaves were brought to Mexico to toil in sugar fields and work in underground mines. Estimates vary, but somewhere between 200,000 and 500,000 slaves were brought to Mexico during the colonial expansion. Over the years this bloodline has been absorbed into the population and the contribution of Afro-Mexicans has largely been forgotten. During