Removing vines, cutting weeds, developing a garden, and restoring murals at Cesar Chavez park in Pomona with artists Paul Botello, Gary Lett, Jose Antonio Aguirre, students, and community. One of many more gatherings to come to sustain and preserve the meaning and future of the park.
Adelante Rose – winning first place prize with her painting titled “Border Eyes” at the 43rd Annual Juried Art Show in Claremont’s Alexander Hughes Center (1700 Danbury Road in Claremont). The art creation meaning is timely – with the heightened enforcement, detentions, deportations, and increased building of divisive walls – aimed against our immigrant communities. From son Joaquin: “You can visit the show and vote for her to also receive the people’s choice award that will be given out at the show’s closing on August 28th.”
Sent to me by a friend – An article in the New York Times that appeared yesterday on some history of movements in Boulder, Colorado and includes a picture of me in my younger days when I, as student body vice-president, took the vote of 10,000 students that led to a student strike and the shutting down of the university in protest of the killing of four Kent State students by the national guard, against the unjust war in Viet Nam, and the disproportionate number of Chicanos and Blacks who were dying on the front lines in an unjust war. This is the history that should be focused on and not used in any other way.
A celebratory dinner with the friends and family of J. R. and Xochitl Setlich – celebrating the twenty year anniversary of J. R.’s legal practice and his contributions to our communities. J. R. remembers the significance of one of my classes at Pitzer in his undergraduate years – when he joined dozens of other students in carrying out participatory engagement projects with the UFW – and taking in the lessons from lawyers there who were exemplary in using their lives in the interests of our communities.
Retirement of PUSD teacher Ion Puschila met with the attendance of dozens of former and present students, teachers, political leaders, organizers, educators, and community-based friends – all lauding the influence that he had in the development of community schools, the organizing of scholarships for students with the annual Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta breakfast and pilgrimage march, the building of bridges in advancing intersectional unity, the support for immigrant and labor rights, and the unconditional teaching, giving, and mentoring of hundreds of students over the years. All echoed the sentiment: “Ion – thank you for your contributions- we will carry on – but you are truly going to be missed.”
The injustices continue and we must keep organizing and exposing to turn this around – as two new Supreme Court decisions have left thousands of our immigrant families, who came here as a result of inequitable international power relations, colonialism, climate change, unjust trade agreements, and wars – open to unjust mass detentions and deportations.
Keeping to my balance – as I do at this time every year – Running the 5000 meter run in the Senior Games at Occidental College and placing first in my age group. Support that all proceeds go for senior programs.