People from the Iberian Peninsula only began to understand themselves as españoles when they became colonists in the Americas

As California continues to formalize and institutionalize ethnic studies, scholars and activists are contending with the boundaries of the field and its purpose for higher education and society. With the inclusion of ethnic studies in general education requirements, courses in Chicanx/Latinx studies will receive a greater amount of institutional oversight, and an increased number of students gaining from this content and pedagogy. However, this has created an incentive for faculty from outside disciplines with no training in Chicanx/Latinx studies or ongoing work in the field to enter the discipline as instructors or researchers