Network Aztlan Latino Chicano Comunidades Transnacionales

Women of the Chicano Moratorium

Rosalio Munoz

All week long I have been dissatisfied with my response to Vibianas sharing the bruta experience she had at the moratorium. There is so much that can be said about the why of this incident. The incident reminded men of the scene in Requiem 29, the Chicano filmmakers collective work on the event, where a young woman is brutally smashed on the head with a billy club by a really pig looking sherrif. Then it came to me, these upstanding representatives were attacking women because they were not only a basic, but a decisive factor in the event and the peoples struggle. Women all over this country and in the barrios had gotten out of the systems control and were pushing all progressive movements further than the establishment had expected.

This was true of the anti war movement in general and Chicano Moratorium in particular, despite the impediment that men monopolized the leadership positions it was the women who said Ya Basta, enough with the men going off to fight somewhere else, they are needed here to take care of basic business at home. In the barrios; they said pointedly Tia Guadalupe Needs You!. They were'nt just standing by their men they were marching for their community, many of them with brown berets.

One of my favorite photographs from that era was in La Raza magazine, it was from the Feb. 28 '70 ELA Chicano Moratorium in the rain and pictured Gloria Arellanes and Gracie & Hilda Reyes dressed in black, hair wet and matted, each holding a small crucifix with the name of a Chicano who had died in Vietnam on it. They worked hard as members of the berets making the Dec 20 '69 and the Feb 28 '70 demos unexpected success. The worked nearly full time with the Aug 29 moratorium committee, especially in the last 2 months, ensuring its success, they traveled to Chicano moratoriums in other areas like, organizing, mobilizing, moving their grass roots peers, especially the women to work towards the national demo on Aug 29.

I know this posting may go long but I want to offer a few sketches of key points for me where women made the difference in antiwar, moratorium organizing.

Right after I received my draft notice in Aug '69 to report on Sept 16 I went to my friend Ramses Noriegas place to seek his support for starting a Chicano anti draft anti war effort using my refusing induction as a kick off. Ramses was a talented artist who had helped Cesar Chavez organize in the Coachella Valley and helped build the grape boycott as a UFWOC organizer assigned to Pittsburgh. He was my campaign manager for UCLA student body president. He was a Caborca born immigrant who grew up among the working poor of Mexicali and the Imperial /Coachella Valleys, a principled, deep thinking hardworking man. We had talked ideas, the movement, the war for long hours previously. Now I was asking him to put our ideas to work. We talked late into the night, he plumbed the depth of my committment, agreeing would make him put off man carreer and personal goals. As we went back and forth, his wife Deanna made the comment that the war was immoral and had to be fought by everyone. I think this tipped the scales and Ramses agreed to help.

We decided that we had to move fast before the 16th less than 3 weeks away. We went to UCLAs Campbell hall where Chicano programs were housed and got the Mecha leaders to agree to begin mobilizing for a picket at the draft center on the 16th. Tony Salazar tells me it was the women of UCLA Mecha, lke Pat Tamayo, Teresa McKenna, Antonia Hernandez, Maria Elena Yepes, who pulled off that demo. This was key, this was our raza base in the movement backing our anti draft anti war play.

From there I went home to my parents to tell them of my plans. We sat in the living room and they sat stoned faced listening to my reasonings. They are deeply religious people with strong committment to personal and public morality, my father Methodist, my mother catholic. We grew up going to mass and Sunday School every Sunday. Reading the bible everynight and saying prayers at meals. Education an d family were their mottos, politics was secondary. My dad asked questions and listened. After what seemed like hours tears started coming from my mothers eyes and she sobbed out about the discrimination she had faced in school, how as my dad worked 2 jobs and went to graduate school, she had to go to the schools and deal with racist teacher, princeples, counselors et al for us 5 children who tested better than the Anglos, and our family had had it good. That settled it, the family was with me, I had a place to stay, meals at home, and was later to find with familia all over Aztlan. My dad gave me a gas credit card to help in my travels.

A month after I refused induction there were massive national antiwar moratoriums in San Francisco and D.C on October 15 1969. I was a last minute additon to the Bay area one. There were 250,000 out there who were pretty restless towards the end. Fires were lighting up to keep people warm. The organizers wanted to cut off the program before I and a few others could speak, they asked Buffy St Marie to sing to as an impromptu finale, she said " I won't sing until you let that young man speak" pointing at me. I spoke ending by saying one of the reasons I was not going to war was because the Department of Defense was the biggest buyers of California grapes and if they didnt boycott grapes I would boycott them. The crowd cheered> Dolores Huerta came across the stage and gave me a big abrazo. I was now an antiwar leader.

Dolores spoke that day, so did Corky Gonzalez, myself and I think Abe Tapia of MAPA, perhaps others Chicanos, but when Ramses and I got back to our hosts, Armando Valdez home and saw the news there was an Indian Chief, David Hilliard of the Black Panthers, and yuppie types harrasing the anti war Republican Senator, but no Chicanos. There may well have been as many of us there that day as we had in 'East LA a year later but no one new it, and the Raza didnot know we were represented. We were disheartened but convinced that we needed to mobilize in the barrios.

I was travelling around the country to Chicano confernces doing anti war workshops that fall, but I was in town for a Chicana Womens conference at UCLA I think in mid November. There was quite a debate. During a break a woman in a brown beret, an activist from Cal St. LA Mecha, announce there would be a meeting in ELA about organizing a Chicano Moratorium. Wow!

Before I got to my first Chicano Moratorium I went with my family to Tucson for Thanksgiving. My nana was close to 90 or more and mom wanted us all to go see her. We did. I had long hair, beads, huaraches and a peace medallion, and was on a liquid fast. One of my tios, my mothers oldest living brother was there, he was iving my mom hell about me. His sons had served in the Air Force out of U of A ROTC. Who was I to espouse such ideas, to come dressed so mechudo, and not even eat when my aunts had been cooking all day, and on ... and on.... Nana called out, she was the extended family matriarch widowed since the depression, here folks had come over in covered wagons from Sonora in the early 1870's, she was born in Tucson. The table was set, she pointed to the seat next to her where my huero uncle was to sit and said "Rosalio, ven, sientate aqui, quiero ver tus ojos, te ves muy mejicano". That settled where our century old Tucson clan was going to stand on the war question. My family, Tuscon & Phoenix, U of A and ASU, Catholic and Methodist was behind me too.

The next Monday or Tuesday evening I was at the storefront at 4th & Mott for th e Chicano Moratorium Committee meeting. David Sanchez of the Berets opened the meeting and called for reports. Hilda Reyes, you've seen here pictures with a beret and bandoleras perhaps (its on the cover of Jesus Trevinos memoirs Eyewitness), reported on the large number of local merchants who she and others had gotten contributions from for the demo and for people coming from out of town. Here was a true grass roots bass in the barrio for an antiwar movement, here barrio berets and Mechistas movimiento activist could unite with EICC an other activist. I was impressed with Davids meeting skills, but even more with Hildas organizing effectiveness. I committed myself to help build the moratorium.

These are a few, key ones in my memories where women turned the tide for me in work against the war, I believe similar things happened in familises, organiztions, demonstrations etc all during this time. Women were on the move, moving the causa of all kinds for all communities, Angela Davis, Alicia Escalante, thats why the police went after the women on August 29, they were not just behind the men, they were along side and in front.

"My Quick Thoughts"

James Rojas

The Chicano Moratorium "2002"

A new antiwar movement takes to the streets.

Ralph Molina

My quick thoughts!!!!

The Chicano Moratorium marked the end of era for the Eastside and brings back my childhood memories of growing up there during these years of hope. These were the golden years for Latinos in the Eastside. Every one had work, homes, services but more importantly Latinos were questioning the "system". Los Angeles was in a great flux at this time as the city was greatly physically expanding and great social change was in the air. The city was recreating itself: barefoot hippies on Hollywood Blvd, young girls hick hiking on freeway on ramps, black power in LA and nuns shedding there habits.

The East Side was part of these great social movements in the City. Latinos were coming into their own by their new wealth, political power, intellect and artistic awakening. Former gang members like my father, with no high school diploma were working union jobs in the great manufacture region by the LA River. This allow former gang members to purchase new cars, appliances and new homes in the white communities like Montebello, Pico Rivera and other communities. Groups like the Brown Berets were replacing the traditional gangs. These militant groups would protest on Eastside streets for a better life, while the more fashionable and social shopped at the stores on the "boulevard". New space and ideas in architecture were being develop such as the "El Mercado" and murals. I remember the social debates about calling our selves Chicanos and protesting in front of Food Giant in behave of UFW. The Eastside was the center of all things Latino in LA at this time and it was great to be a part of that movement. After the Moratorium the Eastside never recover. Old growth trees were removed to make streets wide for police cars. No one shopped on the "Boulevard" any more because they were scared or shopped in the new shopping malls. Latinos dispersed in all directions never to regain that collective space that the Eastside created. But more importantly the hope that Latinos had which lead up the moratorium has changed to that of survival. Overcrowded schools, lack of housing, jobs, parks and social service programs pledge the Eastside and most of Latino LA. The Eastside today is shell of those past times but my memories are still as real as the place!!!

Chicano Moratorium 2002

A new antiwar movement takes to the streets

By Ralph Molina | Web Published 9.3.2002

During the week of August 25, veterans of the Chicano/a anti-Viet Nam War movement returned to the streets and meeting places of East Los Angeles to impart the lessons of their time to the youth of today.

A week-long series of events began with a march and rally against Bush's foreign and domestic policies. Organized by the Centro CSO, the rally speakers emphasized the fact that Bush-Cheney are placing the American people in more danger both at home and abroad and threatening the lives of millions around the world. CSO spokesman Carlos Montes pointed out that the almost half trillion dollar Pentagon budget will make health care and educational reforms in the U.S. impossible.

At the Avenue 50 Studio in Highland Park an exhibit that included posters, photos and newspaper articles commemorated the antiwar demonstrations staged between 1969 and 1971 known as the Chicano Moratorium. (Photos and graphics are at http://www.aztlannet.com.). The exhibit was curated by long-time activists Rudy and Nancy Tovar. "This is a lesson for the present," said Mr. Tovar, a World War II veteran, now 80 years old. "I believe that the same thing will happen that happened during the Vietnam action -- that Chicanos in disproportionate numbers will be sent to die needlessly."

On Sunday August 25th, a panel discussion at the Lincoln Heights library drew a large crowd of interested community members. Dr. Mario Garcia of UC Santa Barbara and Dr. Raul Ruiz of Cal State University, Northridge discussed the largest Chicano demonstration of the Viet Nam period on August 29, 1970. On that day, approximately 25,000 people protested the war and three people, including L.A. Times reporter Ruben Salazar, were killed by police. Dr. Jorge Mariscal of UC San Diego, author of "Aztlan and Viet Nam: Chicano and Chicana Experiences of the War," explained how military recruiters are invading our public schools and targeting Latino/a youth, whose opportunities are limited.

"Latino/a youth will make up the largest pool of available 18 year olds for well into the next century," Mariscal said. "The Latino/a high school drop out rate is still high and Latino/as have been essentially excluded from most campuses in the UC system. The Pentagon knows this and has an aggressive propaganda campaign to exploit the situation."

Original Moratorium members Rosalio Muñoz, Robert Elias, Gloria Arellanes, and David Sanchez were present at the events in Los Angeles. Muñoz, who refused induction into the military when he was drafted in 1969, spoke about the current crisis: "We are again at a time of military escalation as the Bush administration is calling for a prolonged war on terrorism. That has many of us worried about the denial of rights in our Constitution."

In response to the present situation, Muñoz and Elias have decided to resuscitate the Moratorium Committee. "Our youth need to have more opportunities than prison or the military," said Munoz. "We will not stand by and allow war fever to overwhelm our people."

Ralph Molina is a teacher in the California public schools, community activist, and Viet Nam veteran.