In recognition of Chicano History Week, the United Mexican American Students organization at CU-Boulder will host a series of events Sept. 10-19.
The annual event shares many of the goals of UMAS, according to Victor Hernandez, a senior at CU-Boulder and a peer leader in the group. Both seek to promote awareness about Chicano history and issues the Chicano community faces today, he said.
UMAS works year-round to promote diversity and facilitate stronger ties to the Boulder community, as well as to educate and heighten awareness within the university community about the contributions that Latinos have made in the United States.
"We want to promote an understanding of Chicano history and contemporary issues as well," said Hernandez. "It is our hope that our activities will attract Chicano youth and expose them to higher educational opportunities."
The festivities formally started on Sept. 6 with CU Bienvenidos, a welcome picnic for all Latino students. This annual reception allows new and returning Latino students to get to know each other and also to meet faculty and staff members.
One of the highlights of this year's Chicano History Week will be guest speaker Carmen Tafolla, who will speak at 7 p.m. on Sept. 10 at Old Main Chapel. A Chicana teacher, author and actress, Tafolla writes poetry, stories, non-fiction and plays. Her work covers a diverse range of subjects including writing and bilingual education.
Tafolla was educated during her early years in exclusively Chicano schools before being awarded a scholarship to a private college preparatory high school. She received a bachelor's degree in Spanish and French in 1972 and a master's degree in education from the University of Texas at Austin in 1982. She has taught at both the college and the high school levels and has worked as an associate professor and visiting professor of women's studies, honors literature and education at several colleges nationwide.
Also on the list of activities are two films which take a hard look a social issues facing the Chicano community. "Chicano! Taking Back the Schools" will be presented on Wednesday, Sept. 12, from noon to 2 p.m. in Willard Hall 101. "Chicano! Fighting for Political Power" will be shown the following week on Wednesday, Sept. 19, from noon to 2 p.m. in Willard 101.
These two film documentaries are from the four-part "Chicano!" series that chronicles various aspects of the struggles for equal rights by Mexican Americans.
"Taking Back the Schools" documents the Mexican American struggle to reform an educational system that failed to properly educate Chicano students, resulting in a more than 50 percent dropout rate, and leaving many others illiterate and unskilled. It focuses on the 1968 walkout by thousands of Mexican American high school students in East Los Angeles, which resulted in conspiracy indictments against 13 community leaders.
"Fighting for Political Power" focuses on the emergence in Texas of Mexican American political power and the creation of a third political party, La Raza Unida. Although the idea of a third party eventually proved ineffectual, La Raza Unida inspired a generation of political activists and pioneered voter registration strategies that eventually led to the election of thousands of Chicanos to political office.
All events are open to the CU community and the public. UMAS hopes that the events will be well-received not only by Latino students but by other members of the CU-Boulder community as well. These community ties are especially important to the organization.
"The main motto of UMAS," said Hernandez, "and one which I will continue to live by is: 'to get an education and take it back to the community.' "