Friday, February 19, 1999
Chicanos, Native Americans emphasize solidarity, history
GROUPS: Event features drums, dance, food in celebration of
cultures
By Cathy Collins
Daily Bruin Contributor
As the smells of sizzling carne asada and Indian frybread wafted
through Westwood Plaza Thursday, students gathered to highlight the
unity of Native American and Chicano peoples.
The second annual Native American and Raza Solidarity Day was
sponsored by the American Indian Student Association (AISA) and the
Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano/a de Aztlan (MEChA).
"This day is meant to remember the original people of this land,
their continued resistance against European colonialism and
genocide, and exactly what this state and many of its institutions
were founded on – the destruction of Native peoples," said Natalie
Stites, a fourth-year history student and the chair of AISA.
The event, which featured speakers and dancers from the Chicano
and Native American communities, drew a varied number of students
in the plaza from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. AISA and MEChA also sold food
to raise money for their programs.
Henry Hale, a member of the Navajo tribe from Arizona, opened
the event with a traditional prayer in his native language.
Six dancers from the Los Angeles-based group Danza Tenochtitlan,
dressed in colorful traditional clothing and headdresses and
performed to the rhythm of a large drum. Their energetic movements
attracted a crowd of about 100 students.
Belen Pena Ruiz, a speaker for the group, encouraged the crowd
to come closer and call out during the dance.
"Let’s get ready to shake some feathers," she said.
Between dances, she spoke about the importance of not making
assumptions about others in dance and in life.
"We need to learn how to speak to each other," she said.
The performance ended with a dance celebrating the cycle of
life, in which one of the dancers put his feet and thighs over an
open flame.
Paul Apodaca, a social science professor at Chapman University
and a UCLA alumnus, spoke about diversity in Los Angeles and the
population shift which caused a decline in the white majority in
the state.
"The idea that there is no longer one majority is the most
important event in California history," he said.
Apodaca added that the increase of minority groups in California
calls for solidarity among people of all races.
"Today we have to learn what it is to be Californian, to be an
American because these labels are not going to change," he said.
"Our greatest inheritance from Native Americans and the founding
fathers is freedom. If solidarity means anything, it means standing
together so we can all be free."
Following Apodaca, Roberto Rodriguez, a journalist and UCLA
alumnus, spoke about his experiences as a victim of police
brutality because of his race.
"The mentality that still exists is that we are less than
human," Rodriguez said.
He said that many Native Americans and Chicanos have suffered
from the stereotype that they are "illegal aliens," although they
actually have many roots in America.
"This society teaches you to pick one identity and deny the
others," Rodriguez said. "For me, it’s important for people to know
that if our roots are here, we can’t be illegal, we can’t be
alien."
The Solidarity Day ended with a drum performance by the Hale
family.
"What’s very important about the study of history is not so much
knowing for the sake of knowing," Rodriguez said. "You have to
bring it forward so that it will never happen again."NICOLE
MILLER
Danza Tenochtitlan, an Aztec dance group, perform at a
MEChA/AISA
solidarity rally in Westwood Plaza.
Comments, feedback, problems?
© 1998 ASUCLA Communications Board[Home]