Hola. Buenas tardes/good afternoon. I am José
Ramírez-González, Jr. And, I appreciate your attendance. Especially, I treasure
the support of family, friends and professors. All have been key in my
development.
It has been an honor to be part of this amazing mural
collaboration.
As a child of immigrant parents in search of better
opportunities, who have worked the tropical lands of the Yucatán Península of
Southern México, home of the marvelous Mayan culture, and the fields of
California especially the world renowned strawberry fields of Oxnard, it is an
honor to be part of commemorating the outstanding labor leader Miguel Contreras,
social justice and the work of laborers in the development of California. They
have been key in improving our livelihood. Because of their incredible
contribution to society, we are gathered in warm celebration.
During this incredible journey, we have been blessed to have
had been touched by our fellow UCLA team member, Damina Green. Sadly, she
passed away recently while the mural was being finalized. Although she is not
with us physically, her beautiful spirit continues to emanate around us, especially
because of her outstanding contribution to our community. Although she was
battling a brain tumor for a very long time, she had a devotion to improving
the lot of youth. Her contributions are immortalized in this piece and will
continue to be an inspiration for future generations.
Finally, I would like to express my deepest admiration to
Judy Baca. Her commitment to Social Justice is unconditional! This passion for
Social Justice is inspiring and breathtaking! I thank her from the bottom of my
heart for believing in us and for this amazing opportunity to contribute to the
community. During her outstanding journey, she has given countless
opportunities to generations of youths. She has created endless
mutual-understanding environments in order for communities to unite. As I like
to refer to her, she is a designer of dreams.
Therefore, the opportunities to honor our family, culture,
labor leaders, communities and to learn from Judy Baca have been an amazing
experience beyond our wildest expectations.
Thank you. Now, I would like for all to give a warm welcome
to a fellow team member I have a high regard for, Adriana Macías.
UCLA student Andrea Macias' Speech:
Thank you Jose. Good
afternoon. I’d like to welcome you and
thank all of you for coming. I am one of
the UCLA students that had the great opportunity to work with Judy Baca, SPARC,
and the PULSE students here at the Miguel Contreras Learning Complex. I’d like to share with you my experience in
the process of this mural development.
Many people may not know all the hard work that goes into
developing a concept behind community-based art. There were many hours of research on the
Labor movements and Miguel Contreras, We had several workshops, and many, many
creative ideas. We learned that Miguel Contreras was a prominent leader that
fought for labor rights and social justice. We also learned that he was working
in the fields as a child with his family when he was inspired by Dolores Huerta
to join the UFW because of unfair labor contracts. This was our foundation for the mural which
is depicted in the first half.
The second half of the mural is the most inspiring. In meeting with the community and speaking
with the high school students we learned of their challenges, dreams and
aspirations. Through an epiphany index card workshop, we asked the students
what events in your life have made an impact and how have this events
influenced your life? What we discovered
was many students saw violence and crime in their neighborhoods, many of their
friends were dropping out of school and many families suffered financial
hardships. We wanted to represent these
young voices. Some students realized how
important an education is because they see the sacrifices their families have
made for them. Other students stated
that expressing themselves through music, art and poetry was their personal
sanctuary and freedom. Some students
revealed the injustices they suffered because they felt the pressure of having
to fill a mold within a social category. Through all of these obstacles, I was
most inspired by the hope that these young students continue to hold on
to. And together we realized that no
matter how different we may appear to be, we all have high hopes and dreams for
a better tomorrow.
My first encounter with muralism was in my elementary years where
I spoke in front of a news camera about the magnificent mural that was done at
my elementary school inspiring young children to “Take the Future in your
Hands” as the mural was called. As I
grew older, I marveled at the Great Wall of Los Angeles. And now, 20 years
later I am here speaking to all of you about muralism and community-based
art. Professor Baca, I want to thank
you, everyone at SPARC and express my appreciation for the digital mural lab.
Thank you for your passion and dedication to social justice and the Arts. Thank you for teaching and inspiring me to
express my voice and my identity where mere words could not do justice.
On that note, I’d like to introduce to you an amazing young
woman that is wiser beyond her years – from one generation to another, Karina
Perez Alvarado.
UCLA student Karina Perez's Speech:
Hello thank you all so
much for being here sharing this special moment with us. My name is Karina and
I am a graduate from Miguel Contreras currently a student at UCLA. When I first
met Judy I said “Judy, I want to be a social Justice artist” little did I know
that a few months later I would receive my acceptance letter from UCLA and get
myself enrolled in Judy Baca’s class. Producing this mural along with Miguel
Contreras Pulse club, an art and revolution here club on this campus, and other
UCLA students not only expanded my mind but also allowed me to establish strong
relationships with my classmates. We spent so much time together that it’s like
we had a whole new family at the lab. Unfortunately, one of members has now
passed. Damina. I remember the first time I talked to Damina was when she gave
me a ride home. I was confused on how to pronounce her name and too shy to ask
her so I decided to nickname her Dee. Unfortunately Dee is no longer physically
with us but she remains in our hearts joyous and lively as she was. Together we
worked on this great piece that lives before your eyes. My focus was on the
tattoos on the buildings. These tattoos depict the various realities that we
face as a community. One of these realities is that our parents are working two
or three shifts to make ends meet. Our parents left behind who they wanted to
be so that today we could be what we dream of becoming. Youth that are here I
tell you, don’t let people tell you you cant become what you dream of. I tell
you, I am undocumented womyn of color at the UCLA and I did it. Now I want you
to show me that you can accomplish your dreams too. Show
me how its done! Claro que si se puede. Vamos a hecharle ganas! Thank you!
