CHAPTER SEVEN
THE WAR AGAINST MEXICO
Chapter Thesis Some Mexicans became Americans without changing where they lived. As the US empire expanded through war and settlement, it took in the territory. Texas and a good part of the southwest, including California, had actually been part of Mexico. The US then enacted policies to ensure white dominance.
Chapter Summary The American empire was not satisfied with controlling only territory east of the Mississippi River. One of the first territories it wanted next was Tejas, or Texas. Slaveholders wanted more cotton-growing land and Texas seemed perfect for that, but it was Mexican territory and slavery was illegal there. Americans had been migrating to Texas and they outnumbered the native Mexicans. When Mexico outlawed more immigration, Stephen Austin called for white citizens to bring their guns to “Americanize� the territory. The battle of the Alamo resulted in Mexican victory, but rallied the Americans to seek revenge. They killed 630 Mexican soldiers and declared Texas to be an independent nation. In 1845, it became a US state, but there was a dispute over wheth37