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.

Join us for Press conference, rally, city council meeting on Tues., April 10 – ICE Out of San Dimas

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We need your support!  Please show up to San Dimas City Council (245 East Bonita Ave.) at 6 PM for a rally and press conference on Tuesday, April 10th before the San Dimas City Council (set for 7 PM) where the city council will be taking up a discussion on opposing Senate Bill 54 (California Values Act).  This is part of a strategy of conservative right-wing groups to build momentum to get cities to sign on to a brief opposing the statewide bill that curtails cooperation between city and police with federal immigration officials. 

San Dimas Councilman Ryan Vienna said he decided to personally sign a brief opposing Senate Bill 54, passed last year and known as the California Values Act, because he believes it’s an important public safety matter. He urged his fellow elected officials Tuesday night to engage in a dialogue about the law’s potential impact to San Dimas.

After hearing the comments from Vienna at Tuesday’s meeting, San Dimas Councilman Emmett Badar proposed the council hold a study session on the issue.

The council is set to meet again on April 10 and will have the issue on the agenda.

https://www.dailybulletin.com/2018/03/28/san-dimas-to-discuss-impacts-of-sanctuary-state-law-and-whether-to-stand-against-it/

A group of peaceful protestors with banners and posters


Jose Zapata Calderon

President of Latino and Latina Roundtable of the San Gabriel and Pomona Valley

Emeritus Professor of Sociology and Chicano/a and Latino/a Studies

1050 North Mills Avenue

Claremont, CA 91711-6101

(909) 952-1640

 Jose_Calderon@pitzer.edu

Website:  www.josezcalderon.com

Invitation to Rally at 12 noon on Apr. 4 for U.S. Senate Kevin de León at Pitzer College

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You are invited to a rally for U. S. Senate candidate and Pitzer College Alumnus Kevin de Leon on April 4th at 12 noon at Pitzer College.  Please get the word out.  As you know, Kevin has taken strong positions in support of health care, the environment, and sanctuary for our immigrant families.  I urge your support for this rally.

 

Jose Zapata Calderon

Emeritus Professor of Sociology and Chicano/a and Latino/a Studies

1050 North Mills Avenue

Claremont, CA 91711-6101

(909) 952-1640

 Jose_Calderon@pitzer.edu

Website:  www.josezcalderon.com

Dear Pitzer Community –
 
Please join us in welcoming Candidate for U.S. Senate Kevin de León back to his alma mater for a campaign rally on Wednesday, April 4 at noon on the McConnell Center Apron.

Senator de León has led a bold agenda to increase economic opportunity for all Californians with a focus on maintaining California’s global leadership role in fighting climate change and building a clean-energy economy, rebuilding our state’s infrastructure, public education, work-place and health-care, equity for women, immigrants and low-wage workers and public safety.

Through his ambitious approach to policymaking, Senator de León has authored groundbreaking legislation on a variety of issues that have become national models. The progress that has been made on critical issues confronting California and the nation stands in stark contrast to the gridlock in the U.S. Congress.

In many ways, Senator de León embodies the promise of America. From a childhood of poverty to community activism, to the upper echelon of the California Legislature, his respect and commitment to working families and the betterment of all Californians has never diminished.

Senator de León is the son of a single immigrant mother who supported her family in the San Diego barrio of Logan Heights working as a housekeeper and other pick-up jobs. He was the first in his family to graduate from high school and college.

He attended U.C. Santa Barbara and graduated from Pitzer College at the Claremont Colleges with honors. He is a Rodel Fellow at the Aspen Institute and a guest lecturer at the University of Southern California. He has one daughter.

Before entering into politics, Kevin served the public as a community organizer, taught English as a Second Language and U.S. Citizenship, and advocated for public schools.

Working for both the National Education Association and the California Teachers Association, Kevin fought for additional funding for schools in low-income neighborhoods, more school construction, and health insurance for children. He fought against schemes to take funds from public schools through taxpayer-funded vouchers and academic censorship in public schools. 

Senator de León was elected by his colleagues to lead the Senate in 2014, making him the first Latino to hold that position in over a century. Prior to that, Kevin served four years in the Assembly before his election to the Senate in 2010.

If you have any questions, comments, or concerns please email senpres@students.pitzer.edu.

All Best,

Hajar Hammado ’18
Student Body President
Pitzer College Student Senate
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Email: senpres@students.pitzer.edu
Cell: (909) 524-5035

Request for your support

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 I am writing to request your support for our 14th  annual Cesar Chavez Breakfast that will take place on Friday, March 30, 2018, from 8 A. M. to 10 A. M. (with registration between 7 and 8 AM) at the Conference Center at the Fairplex, California Ballroom (601 W McKinley Ave., Gate 3) in Pomona. As a result of your support, the Latino and Latina Roundtable now has an office and a director for the first time in its history. Although we have no other staff, we continue to sustain the work of our immigrant rights, community development, and education work through the commitment of dozens of volunteers and the resources that are raised from this yearly fundraiser.  In keeping with our grass-roots organizing character, we continue to keep the cost at a minimum to ensure that the tradition is in keeping with the celebration of the life of Cesar Chavez and the many leaders, from all backgrounds, who have historically given of their lives to ensure a future with justice and equity. In keeping with the tradition of honoring leaders in our region who have exemplified the principles and values of Cesar Chavez, the Roundtable this year is honoring:  Maria Alonso (Director of the community-based garden Huerta del Valle), Luis Nolasco (Community Engagement and policy Advocate with ACLU), the Pomona Dining Hall Workers (whose historic efforts turned around union-busting and the firing of 17 undocumented workers to vote in UNITE-HERE culminating in a union contract), Maura Ayala (Community Star Award for her consistent organizing efforts in the community), Melanie Andreo, Pomona Unified Garey High School Senior (College Readiness Scholarship for her community engagement efforts and advocacy work on advancing a college pipeline).  In addition, Social Justice Scholarships will be presented to students from the region who exemplify the values of connecting their studies to community engagement and social change.  Attached is the RSVP application that you can mail in.  Please Mail RSVP & payment to: Latino and Latina Roundtable 1460 E Holt Ave, Mailbox 144 Pomona, CA 91767 by March 20.  For questions, call at: (909) 480-6267 or e-mail at breakfast@latinolatinaroundtable.org

 

Jose Zapata Calderon

President of the Latino and Latina Roundtable

 

Article in Daily Bulletin and Request for your membership

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Here is the link to the article that appeared today on the Latino and Latina Roundtable and NAACP Pomona Valley Branch Celebration, opening of joint office, and our common work.

http://www.dailybulletin.com/2018/02/19/collaboration-of-pomona-valley-branch-of-the-naacp-latino-latina-roundtable-leads-to-opening-of-joint-office/

I would like to ask you, if you have not already, to become a member of the Latino and Latina Roundtable.  Atttached is the membership application that you can send in.

The membership dues for one year are $25.00 for individuals and $10.00 for students, retirees, and low income individuals.  Your dues help to sustain our organizing and advocacy efforts.  As you know, our organization has always been a volunteer organization that is primarily sustained through membership dues and a yearly fundraiser.  Only until recently, have we rented an office and hired an executive director which bring forward new fundraising challenges. All the work of our organizational, community development, and immigrant rights committees are carried out by community-based organizers who have emerged out of the civil rights and human rights movements.  We are continually motivated through our practice of an “abundance mentality” where we continue to see the outcomes of our efforts in training and developing new leaders in our communities.   In supporting our organization through your membership, you are helping to sustain the inspiration and efforts of our members  in organizing an annual Cesar Chavez breakfast and Pilgrimage march; in advancing our collaboration with area schools and colleges, as part of the College4All Coalition in implementing a school-to-college pipeline; in implementing educational forums and workshops on voter, ballot initiative, and immigrant rights; in advancing our efforts to support workers and unions in our region;  and in ensuring our ongoing participation in numerous coalitions on social justice and quality of life issues. 

 

Jose Zapata Calderon

President of the Latino and Latina Roundtable

2018 LRT Membership Application

Urging your support

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We are urging your support of our upcoming Latino and Latina Roundtable retreat by asking you to attend this most important meeting this Saturday, February 10 and also to invite others who might be interested in becoming members of our organization.  Remember, the retreat begins at 9 A. M. and will be held in our new office at the Village in Pomona (1460 E. Holt Ave., Entrance #3, Room 6.  This is your opportunity to help decide the priorities for the organization in the next year — and look forward to your participation.

Katherine Cabrera
Executive Director
Latino and Latina Roundtable
1460 E Holt Ave. Pomona, CA 91767

Presentation at Latino and Latina Roundtable and NAACP Celebration and Opening of Solidarity Center

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PRESENTATION AT LATINO AND LATINA ROUNDTABLE AND NAACP CELEBRATION OF COLLABORATION – AND OPENING OF SOLIDARITY CENTER

 It is so exciting to have all of you here today in advancing our common efforts in bridge-building, coalition-building, and creating collective spaces – such as the one we are experiencing today – to advance spaces and places that are examples of the kind of just and equal world that we want to live in. 

Every one of you here deserves a big applause for creating that type of social change advancement in Pomona – Please give yourself a big applause.  It was not that long ag- December 5th, 2014 when the Latino and Latina Roundtable and the NAACP Pomona Valley Branch walked together, chanted together, and raised our voices in a Pomona Peace Walk of over 200 diverse participants – that made their way from city hall to the Village area on East Holt Avenue where we showed the film “Cesar’s Last Fast.”   This was a real beginning of our crossing bridges – and indeed we crossed bridges that day in sharing our solidarity with a 120-mile, seven day march from Ferguson, Missouri to Jefferson City in support of Michael Brown.  Some of the marchers of all nationalities crossed borders that day in carrying pictures of 43 Ayotzinapa students from Mexico (whose forced disappearance is still being protested today).  Since that time, we have not stopped in collaborating – building bridges  from  forums and actions to get at the structural foundations of violence – to other marches such as a a Cesar Chavez Pilgrimage with the primary themes “Black Lives Matter” and “Remember Ayotzinapa;” – together in carrying out voting rights forums, ballot initiative forums, candidate’s forums, – and voter registration – voter turn-out campaigns – in the streets of Pomona and the region; to supporting our union brothers and sisters – farmworkers in Salinas, dining hall workers at Pomona College, UFCW workers and warehouse workers, nurses and service workers and health for all —  to a “Journey for Justice” Rally at Pomona city hall in honor of an exemplary leader that we all remember and support —  Julian Bond; to a  march of 1500 students at the Claremont Colleges (where Jeannete and I were the keynote speakers) – as part of national demonstrations protesting a growing campus climate of exclusion and calling for our working together, as we are doing today, to root out the seeds of racial, class, gender, and sexual oppression.  We have been there together, brothers and sisters, in supporting our immigrant and refugee communities – together in No Ban No Walls Rallies in LaVerne in Claremont, and at the Ontario airport – Together, brothers and sisters in — Passing a Pomona Unified School District school board a resolution “Regarding the Board’s Commitment to Ensure All District Campuses are Safe Zones and Safe Havens”; Together in coalition-building to Pass an ordinance with  the  Pomona City Council to implement the California Values Act, SB 54;   Together – in continuing to partner as Part of a College for All statewide coalition to endorse and actively implement California State Senate Bill 1050 to create a kindergarten-to-college pipeline of educational opportunity and success for our underrepresented students – particularly those from low income, English language learner, and foster youth backgrounds.   Together – in supporting local businesses, schools, colleges, and unions to advance a local economy that invests in the health and well-being of our communities.

And finally, together today – to be together in this sacred space right here – in collaborating to build a visionary and united leadership of all generations and of all backgrounds to advance positive outcomes  for good jobs, health care, education, and quality of life.  That is why we are here today – in Solidarity  -together —  to celebrate how far we have traveled down this justice road – and to make a commitment today to keep on a walking, keep on a talking – walking down this freedom road.