As a result, legislation created later diluted the contents of the treaty, creating holes in the law and making the treaty less effective in protecting the rights of Mexicans and common land , for example, was protected by the treaty, but private land was not. Additionally, the United States had the right to use any submerged land belonging to Mexico. The treaty envisioned a situation in which individuals in the ceded land were no longer citizens of Mexico. The government of Mexico would not protect them. At the same time, the US government has not granted any special protection to these individuals. As they waited for U.S. citizenship, their rights and property were threatened by discrimination. During the California Gold Rush, for example, the fear that California's native Mexicans might monopolize gold profits led to violence, vigilantism and