Mexico once included large parts of what is now the United States. After the Mexican-American War of 1846-47 altered the border, many Mexicans suddenly found themselves to be citizens of the United States.

Today, Mexican culture is a powerful presence throughout the American Southwest and in Mexican American communities from Seattle, Washington, to Bangor, Maine. Mexican Americans possess a heritage that draws from Mexico, Spain, pre-Columbian kingdoms, and indigenous cultures, as well as U.S. history.