Marxist-Leninist thought was crucial in the division of the Chicano movement.
The Raza Unida Party (RUP), formed in 1970, attempted to gain political power for the Chicano community. However, by 1973 internal division was fueled by the power dispute between Jose Angel Gutierrez and Rodolfo “Corky” Gonzalez, and the ideological issues between those who had Marxist-Leninist and cultural nationalist orientations.