20th Anniversary of Alternative Spring Break in La Paz

This is to let you know of the 20th Anniversary of taking students to work and carry out educational advocacy with the farm workers. We had an exhilarating Alternative Spring Break in La Paz that included on Saturday: a service at Cesar Chavez’s gravesite, students making UFW flags and posters for an action on immigrant rights, carrying out service projects that included cutting weeds at a peace memorial site, an evening dinner (with Paul Chavez and key leaders of the UFW and Cesar Chavez Foundation) that featured former alumni who had been part of the Alternative Spring Break in the last 20 years, the presentation of a 20th anniversary plaque to the Chavez Family, and a presentation by the La Paz hip hop group that includes the son of Dolores Huerta. On Sunday, the events included: a visit to Radio Campesina and a presentation by the grandson of Cesar Chavez (who is also named Cesar Chavez and is one of the directors of the radio station); an action with signs and flags in the Latino section of Bakersfield (the streets of Mt. Vernon and Nile) where we passed out 800 educational leaflets on the need for immigration reform (with Melissa Ayala and Maria Rodriguez taking the lead in gathering over 100 signatures in support of driver’s licenses for undocumented) and support for a march on Sunday, March 24th (covered by 4 different televisions stations and by local news media); and led on a tour of 40 acres, Agbayani, and other historic sites of the UFW in Delano by Marc Grossman. We had a really good dinner at a restaurant in Delano run by a former farm worker who supports the UFW. On Monday, the students made very moving teatro presentations of their experiences to farm worker organizers, staff, and community at a special luncheon in La Paz (Keene, CA). The place was packed like Saturday night — and especially attended by the grandsons of Cesar Chavez and some farm workers who came in from Arvin just for the teatros.

Here is some of the coverage:

Local leaders rallying for immigration change
An announcement on Youtube:
And an article with a picture of some of my students holding signs:

 

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