Author Archives: Jose Calderon

About Jose Calderon

Jose Zapata Calderon is Emeritus Professor in Sociology and Chicano/a Latino/a Studies at Pitzer College and President of the Latino and Latina Roundtable of the Pomona Valley and San Gabriel Valley.

Historic Groundbreaking of Cesar Chavez Foundation Low-income Housing

Historic groundbreaking of Cesar Chavez Foundation low-income housing project (90 units of future affordable housing in Eastside Pomona) – with Paul Chavez, dignitaries, and community. The housing project is named after Rev. Chris Hartmire who recently passed away at Pilgrim Place in Claremont- after a life of organizing – with the freedom riders in the early years of the civil rights movement – and later led the CA migrant ministry in supporting the UFW in strikes, boycotts, marches, and numerous farmworker campaigns. While at Pilgrim Place, Chris did not stop but came out various times over the years to support the unionization of workers at both Pomona and Pitzer colleges – and to share his life’s story in my classes. We had various lunches together reminiscing on the many years that he gave of his life to the California Migrant Ministry and the UFW – and the connections he made in his life between organizing, spirituality, and becoming one with the farmworker cause.

Pushing Out ICE From Home Depot

Supporting ICE Out of Home Depot – calling for Home Depot to take a stand against the raids and to prohibit ICE from coming onto their property (where a number of raids have occurred recently in Home Depots throughout the region). The Wall Street Journal recently reported that Stephen Miller, the White House official and leader of the administration’s tactics to increase deportation numbers, directed ICE to not just focus on people with arrest records but to make random sweeps – and directed them to target Home Depot, where day laborers typically gather for hire, or 7-Eleven convenience stores.” In the past, Home Depot owners supported the election campaign of Trump with millions of dollars.