Santa Ana's top news & views blog

Santa Ana's top news & views blog

Category Archives: Latino Leaders

Will the soccer haters apologize now that the Chivas are not coming to town?

Posted on by Posted in Civic Affairs, Latino Leaders, Latinos, Miguel Pulido, Santa Ana, Soccer, Sports 12 Comments

Pictured: The Board of the Santa Ana Soccer and Business Association, with Miguel Pulido and Vince Sarmiento

The Voice of OC is reporting that we were right – the Chivas USA soccer team is NOT moving to Santa Ana after all.  Will Santa Ana’s soccer-hating Usual Suspects now apologize for creating mass hysteria about the proposed move – which was really never more than a pipe dream?

The Voice of OC’s Adam Elmahrek interviewed Edgar Vasquez of the Santa Ana Soccer and Business Association.  We first reported about Vasquez and his new organization way back in January of this year, when they met with Santa Ana Mayor Miguel Pulido. Continue reading→

New Santa Ana’s editor, Art Pedroza, joins the Democratic Party

Posted on by Posted in 2012 Elections, Democratic Party, Elections, Latino Leaders, Politics, Santa Ana 30 Comments

Santa Ana is dominated by voters registered with the Democratic Party – and it has gotten worse for the Republican Party over the past few years.

Take a look, for example, at voter registration in the First Supervisorial District, which includes all of Santa Ana.  There are 98,164 Democratic voters in the district, versus 76,738 Republican voters.  And there are only 1,306 Libertarian voters in the district.  The only other significant voter demographic is the 45,876 voters who have no party preference. Continue reading→

So what do we know about new SAUSD Superintendent Meléndez de Santa Ana?

Posted on by Posted in Education, Latino Leaders, Latinos, Santa Ana, SAUSD 8 Comments

What do we really know about new SAUSD Superintendent Thelma Meléndez de Santa Ana?  We know that President Obama appointed her assistant secretary for elementary and secondary education at the Department of Education by the U.S. Senate on July 24, 2009.  What else do we know about her? Continue reading→

Is the top U.S. K-12 education official the new SAUSD Superintendent?

Posted on by Posted in Education, Federal Government, Latino Leaders, Latinos, Santa Ana, SAUSD 2 Comments

The Santa Ana Unified School District (SAUSD) is set to announce the selection of Thelma Meléndez de Santa Ana, the Assistant Secretary for Elementary and Secondary Education at the U.S. Department of Education, this Friday, July 15, at the SAUSD’s headquarters, at 3 pm, according to an insider at the district.

If true, this looks like a fantastic replacement for retired SAUSD Superintendent Jane Russo, whose tenure was marred by corruption, questionable expenditures and results that left many kids out in the cold. Continue reading→

Vincent Sarmiento to host an early 4th of July reception on June 30

Posted on by Posted in 2012 Elections, Democratic Party, Elections, Entertainment, Jose Solorio, Latino Leaders, Miguel Pulido, Politics, Santa Ana, Vince Sarmiento Leave a comment

Santa Ana Councilman Vincent Sarmiento is hosting an an early 4th of July Reception on Thursday June 30, 2011, from 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm, along with Assemblyman Jose Solorio, Mayor Miguel Pulido and the entire Santa Ana City Council.

Enjoy delicious hors d’oeuvres and fine wine at one of Santa Ana’s premier restaurants – South Coast Winery Restaurant & Tasting Room, located at 3608 South Bristol, in Santa Ana.

RSVP’s can be made at VSarmiento4Council@gmail.com or by calling (714) 245-9999.  Click here to RSVP on Facebook.

Sarmiento is going to be running for Solorio’s 69th Assembly District seat in 2012.  Right now it looks like OC Labor political Director Julio Perez, a complete unknown, will be getting hammered by Sarmiento in the Democratic primary.

Is Downtown Santa Ana losing its Latino culture?

Posted on by Posted in Arts and Culture, Civic Affairs, Development, Historical, Latino Leaders, Latinos, Santa Ana 20 Comments

Don Cribb?

Santa Ana’s Nimby Usual Suspects are quick to scream that something is historical whenever their institutions are threatened.  And then they sue.  They did that when dilapidated housing in the proposed Station District was threatened and they are doing it again now that folks are talking about bringing the Chivas USA soccer team to the Willowick Golf Course.  Suddenly Willowick is, you guessed it, historical.

You don’t however hear these folks screeching about the pending change of Downtown Santa Ana’s Fiesta Marketplace, on Calle Quatro, to the “East End,” which is what the Chase family wants us to call this area now.  And not one of the Usual Suspects is complaining about the pending eviction of El Centro Cultural de Mexico from the building on the West Side of Downtown Santa Ana, where they have been for over seven years.  (Click here to read more about this story).

You see, in Santa Ana “historical” is in the eye of the beholder – and nothing Latino is ever deemed to have such value, at least not by the Usual Suspects.

That said, we cannot stop business and property owners from exerting their right to do with their property what they want to do with it.  The Chase family appears to be hellbent on purging all things Latino from the “East End,” and making it an extension of the Artists Village.  And whoever it is that is evicting El Centro appears to have similar ideas.

The sad thing is that our Artists Village is better for being in an area with Latino influence.  It makes our Artists Village more interesting.  Whitewashing Downtown Santa Ana actually makes our Artists Village less interesting.

It is worth noting that the “Godfather” of the Santa Ana Artists Village, Don Cribb, is one of the Usual Suspects crying foul over the proposed move of the Chivas USA soccer team to the Willowick Golf Course.  How ungracious of him.  The people of Santa Ana spent a fortune to put in place his vision of an Artists Village.  The least he could do is get out of the way and let Mayor Miguel Pulido try to improve the rest of Santa Ana.

Make no mistake about it – there is a concerted effort at hand to de-Latino-ize Santa Ana.  That this is happening while we have an all-Latino City Council in place is beyond ironic.

I hope that our City Council members will try to help El Centro Cultural de Mexico to find a new home.  It might be too late to save the Fiesta Marketplace, but we can at least help out El Centro, before it is too late.  Turning Downtown Santa Ana into another Irvine would be beyond tragic.

Imagine if we could find the money to restore the old YMCA building on Civic Center and put El Centro there – eventually?  How awesome would that be?

MALDEF and NALEO to host redistricting workshops at the Delhi Center

Posted on by Posted in 2012 Elections, california, Civil Rights, Democratic Party, Elections, Entertainment, Latino Leaders, Latinos, Orange County, Politics, Santa Ana Leave a comment

On Friday, June 10th California will have the first draft maps for Congress and the State Legislature.  Our Latino community cannot be left out of this high stakes process!

NALEO Educational Fund and MALDEF have partnered to bring to you resources you need to respond to the Redistricting Commission’s First Draft Maps.

The California Citizens Redistricting Commission has been working long hours to draw new maps for California. Preliminary visualizations of different California regions are available on the Commission’s website. However, the official First Draft Maps will be released this Friday, June 10th.

From June 16 to June 27 the Commission will be hosting a second round of public hearings that will begin in Los Angeles (June 16 and June 17) and end in Sacramento (June 27). A full schedule of the Commission’s hearings is available by clicking here.

Community members must participate!  Get ready for the upcoming hearings by joining a NALEO Educational Fund event near you!

ATTEND A WORKSHOP:

In preparation for the upcoming Commission hearings, NALEO Educational Fund will partner with MALDEF to host several workshops throughout Southern California. The purpose of these workshops will be to review the Commission’s First Draft Map, discuss implications of these maps for the Latino community and the Federal Voting Rights Act, provide onsite technical GIS assistance to determine ammendments to these drafts and provide information on how to participate in the Commission’s upcoming hearings. Please call us for further details or questions, (213)747-7606 ext 4434.

Please SAVE THE DATE for the following events in your area:

  • Santa Ana, Sunday, June 12, 9 am to 10:30 am, at the Delhi Community Center, located at 505 E. Central Ave., in Santa Ana (Cross Streets are Warner and Main).
  • Santa Ana, Tuesday, June 14, 6:00 pm-8:30pm, at the Delhi Community Center, located at 505 E. Central Ave., in Santa Ana (Cross Streets are Warner and Main).

Space is limited.  Please RSVP to Elsa Carrillo at (213) 629-2512, ext. 139, or ecarillo@maldef.org or Juan Gallegos at (619) 246-7550, or  jgallegos@maldef.org, or agarcia@naleo.org or at (213)747-7607, ext 4434.

O.C. Redistricting Commission sets aside some maps and modifies others

Posted on by Posted in 2012 Elections, Elections, Latino Leaders, Latinos, Orange County, Politics, Santa Ana Leave a comment

League of United Latin American Citizens
Santa Ana LULAC Council #147
Established: National – 1929 | Santa Ana – 1946
Orange County LULAC District #1
PO Box 1810, Santa Ana, CA 92702-1810

June 8, 2011

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT PERSONS: Art Montez, 714-661-4428 / Zeke Hernandez, 714-914-3154

County Redistricting Committee Sets Aside “Phantom” Map Plans + 1 Other; Modifies 3 Others

The Orange County redistricting voted unanimously on Wednesday (June 8) to set aside and not consider the six anonymous plans submitted to the committee by an unnamed person. The “phantom” plans are listed as Plans #9, 10, 11, 13, 14, and 15. In addition, the committee also will not be considering Plan #1, whose author withdrew his support for this plan at the May 26 meeting.

Santa Ana LULAC #147 President Zeke Hernandez thanked the committee for its action, but also advised committee members, because they in essence put these plans “in abeyance” – that he hopes they are not resurrected on the last day of public reviews if the author does show up at the last minute. He states, “As to these maps, I would hope the committee has put them to rest permanently.”

The committee also accepted minor modifications to three map plans (Plans #16, 17, and #18) submitted by District #2 staff and replaced them with Plans #16A, #17A, and #18A. The modifications were very minor and did not affect any population data, percentages as explained by staff during the meeting presentation of all maps.

Hernandez also encouraged committee members, “to whittle down the number of plans that were submitted by county supervisors – to assist staff as they work to provide more details on plans under consideration, such as street boundaries, identification of census tracks and blocks, etc.” The general public attending the meeting was assured that district offices were thinking of this and district staff persons may be seriously considering perhaps withdrawing additional plans or may just narrow their district preferences soon.

Among those attending the first of several public meetings outside of the county hall of administration was Orange County Supervisor – District 4 Shawn Nelson and La Habra City Councilmember Rose Espinoza.

The Redistricting Committee will hold its second community meeting on Thursday, June 9 (6 pm) at the Orange City hall Council Chambers, 300 East Chapman Avenue, Orange.

Two additional community meetings are scheduled to encourage public participation, they are:

June 16 (6 pm) – Westminster City Hall Council Chambers, 8200 Westminster Ave., Westminster.
June 23 (6 pm) – Mission Viejo City Hall Council Chambers, 200 Civic Center, Mission Viejo.

Established in 1946, Santa Ana LULAC Council #147 is the oldest LULAC council in California and is an affiliate of Orange County LULAC District#1 and LULAC National – founded in 1929 with its national office in Washington , D.C.

The mission and objectives of the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) is to advance the economic development, educational advancement, public policy outcomes, housing opportunities, health awareness, and general civil rights protection of Latinos in the United States and Puerto Rico through community-based programs and services through more than 700 local LULAC councils nationwide.
###

from: Zeke Hernandez
President (Past State Director)
Santa Ana LULAC #147
League of United Latin American Citizens
PO Box 1810, Santa Ana, CA 92702
714-661-4428 (cell)
www.LULACSantaAna.com
www.LULAC.org (National LULAC)

LULAC claims County Redistricting Committee violated procedures

Posted on by Posted in 2012 Elections, Elections, Latino Leaders, Latinos, Orange County, Politics, Santa Ana Leave a comment

League of United Latin American Citizens
Santa Ana LULAC Council #147
Established: National – 1929 | Santa Ana – 1946
Orange County LULAC District #1
PO Box 1810, Santa Ana, CA 92702-1810

June 3, 2011

PRESS RELEASE – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

County Of Orange Redistricting Committee Violates Its Own Adopted Procedures in Accepting Anonymous Map Plans

In a May 27 letter to the County of Orange Executive Office and the Orange County Redistricting Committee, local civil rights organization Santa Ana LULAC #147 had provided a copy of its letter addressed to the United States Department of Justice to Rob Richardson, Assistant County CEO and to Don Hughes, Chairperson of the redistricting committee. This is contrary to the assertion by a county spokesperson to the Orange County Register in a news article released June 2. The article includes the following quote:

“County spokesman Howard Sutter said the county had not seen the letter and had no comment at this time.”

Santa Ana LULAC President Zeke Hernandez, noted, “The county assistant CEO had requested a copy of the letter in a late e-mail message to me; and the county consequently was provided the letter within a short time after its request. The county committee has violated its own adopted procedures by accepting six anonymous redistricting plans at its May 26 meeting. These plans were submitted via online by a person using the same email username with an Anaheim 92805 zip code. The six phantom map plans constitute 25% of 24 maps submitted.”

The county committee previously adopted guidelines of the Public Participation Plan states (highlights by Santa Ana LULAC):

“In order to submit a plan using the redistricting software, the software requires plans to have five district; no non-contiguous areas; no unassigned areas; a contact name, address, phone number, and email address; and a narrative description of the proposed plan, preferably in 250 words or less.”

In addition, the county committee emphasized they would not accept plans that did not meet the requirements as specified:

“Neither the County nor CDR is responsible for rejection of proposals that are either not received by the deadline or are incomplete or that do not comply with the requirements herein.”

The committee, with the urging by contracted county counsel, quickly accepted these six “Zip-Coded 92805” plans from an unknown person – their rationale was (and also asserted by counsel) that the phantom person may all of a sudden appear and reveal their real identity to the committee at some time during the review process.

Hernandez asserted, “The six submitted redistricting map plans did not have a contact name, no address, no phone number. The zip code was provided upon further investigation by contracted staff. The county committee should have never received the six phantom plans in the first place as they did not comply with adopted public participation guidelines.”

“Santa Ana LULAC is rapidly losing faith that the Redistricting Committee will be neutral in its discussions, deliberations, and recommendations to the Orange County Board of Supervisors in June or July. What is becoming clear is that county committee members will find a way to include a plan for consideration to the Orange County Board of Supervisors that is a “pet plan” of one or more of the incumbent supervisors.”

Established in 1946, Santa Ana LULAC Council #147 is the oldest LULAC council in California and is an affiliate of Orange County LULAC District#1 and LULAC National – founded in 1929 with its national office in Washington , D.C.

The mission and objectives of the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) is to advance the economic development, educational advancement, public policy outcomes, housing opportunities, health awareness, and general civil rights protection of Latinos in the United States and Puerto Rico through community-based programs and services through more than 700 local LULAC councils nationwide.

###

Supporting Documents are being provided separately.

From: Zeke Hernandez
President (Past State Director)
Santa Ana LULAC #147
League of United Latin American Citizens
PO Box 1810, Santa Ana, CA 92702
714-661-4428 (cell)
www.LULACSantaAna.com
www.LULAC.org (National LULAC)

Correa to host a higher education and career development program on June 4

Posted on by Posted in Education, Entertainment, Garden Grove, Jobs, Latino Leaders, Lou Correa, Santa Ana, Youth Activities Leave a comment

Please join State Senator Lou Correa and the Young Senators program for a Young Senate session on Higher Education and Career Development, on June 4, from 8 am to 1 pm, at Coastline Community College, located at 12901 Euclid, in Garden Grove.

The program will include the following workshop topics:

  • college application process
  • life as a college student
  • career paths: military, vocational
  • training, law, public safety, health, etc.
  • job interviewing & resume building
  • internships & scholarship opportunities

This event is free to all high school students & their parents. Light snacks & refreshments will be provided. space is limited.

For more information or to rsvp, call the District Office at 714.558.4400 or email young.senator@sen.ca.gov.

LULAC submits proposed redistricting plan to the O.C. Board of Supervisors

Posted on by Posted in Civic Affairs, Elections, Latino Leaders, Latinos, Orange County, Politics, Santa Ana Leave a comment

League of United Latin American Citizens, Santa Ana LULAC Council #147
Established: National – 1929 | Santa Ana – 1946
Orange County LULAC District #1
PO Box 1810, Santa Ana , CA 92702-1810

PRESS RELEASE: May 23, 2011

Local Civil Rights Groups to Submit Proposed Redistricting Plans to Orange County Redistricting Committee

Contact Persons: Zeke Hernandez, 714-661-4428 / zekeher@yahoo.com
Arturo Montez, 714-914-3154 / arturomontez@gmail.com

Santa Ana LULAC Council #147 (League of United Latin American Citizens) has submitted it’s completed county supervisorial plans with appropriate population data to the Orange County Redistricting Committee by the May 18 deadline. The Santa Ana LULAC county plan (Plan #3) and data are included in this press release (see also attachment).

Santa Ana LULAC President Zeke Hernandez states, “There are well-over twenty plans being submitted by county supervisors, community groups and individuals. Board of Supervisors Chairman Bill Campbell announced at the May 17th board meeting that he himself is submitting four plans, including one suggested by former county supervisor Phil Anthony. We understand another county supervisor has submitted 10-12 plans through his/her appropriate office or through third party intermediaries. Other local elected officials may also be submitting their own plans.”

Due to population changes following the decennial federal census count in 2010, Santa Ana LULAC has been able to draft two supervisorial districts (1 and 4) with over 50% minority population. These two districts have a community of interest – sharing common social and economic interests. The Santa Ana LULAC Plan #3 is affirmed to stand on its merits for the purpose of a community’s fair and effective representation.

Hernandez added, “We have brought to the attention of the Board of Supervisors its concerns that the redistricting committee has not adopted a definitive process on how it will review submitted plans and how it will determine which plans will be recommended for adoption. The committee has acknowledged it may even re-draw a submitted plan by the public to be sent to the Board for approval. Committee members are comprised of staff aides to the supervisors and were appointed by them to act on their behalf. The committee recently revised its writing of the committee meetings, but continues to do its best to provide very little content, thus thwarting public knowledge through written commentary.”

Santa Ana LULAC Public Policy Director Arturo Montez emphasizes, “We have drawn a plan that has ZERO concerns relating to incumbents, political parties and candidates. These plans were drawn, keeping in mind our strong adherence to the U.S. Voting Rights Act and the California Constitution. In addition, we have done our best to take into consideration the public’s concern for transparency and reform in the redistricting process.”

Montez continued, “Santa Ana LULAC feels its Plan #3 surpasses any other 20-23 plans that were submitted by the May 18th deadline. The question that now comes to the forefront: Will the Board of Supervisors recognize the dramatic demographic changes taking place in Orange County ? As proposed, District #1 has an 85% minority population, and District #4 has over 72% minority population. These are most likely the most heavily minority populated county districts in the nation.”

The redistricting committee will hold its first of several public meetings on Thursday, May 26 (2 pm) to review and receive public comments on the submitted plans. This first meeting will be held at Orange County Hall of Administration – Board Hearing Room, 333 West Santa Ana Blvd., 10 Civic Center Plaza, Santa Ana.

Established in 1946, Santa Ana LULAC Council #147 is the oldest LULAC council in California and is an affiliate of Orange County LULAC District#1 and LULAC National – founded in 1929 with its national office in Washington , D.C.

The mission and objectives of the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) is to advance the economic development, educational advancement, public policy outcomes, housing opportunities, health awareness, and general civil rights protection of Latinos in the United States and Puerto Rico through community-based programs and services through more than 700 local LULAC councils nationwide.

~~ end ~~

Find out how to stop Santa Ana’s unjust towing of immigrants’ cars, on May 12

Posted on by Posted in automobiles, Civic Affairs, Civil Rights, Entertainment, immigration, Labor, Latino Leaders, Latinos, Lawyers, Santa Ana 6 Comments

The Orange County May Day Coalition presents:

CHANGING YOUR CITY’S UNJUST VEHICLE CHECKPOINT & IMPOUNDMENT POLICIES

A free training for community-based organizations, conducted by Lucero Chavez, esq.

Thursday, May 12, 6:30 to 8:30 pm
SEIU Office: 1200 North Main St. (at Washington), Ste. 900, Santa Ana

This training is designed to provide advocates with tools that have helped other communities carry out successful campaigns to change their city’s checkpoint and car impoundment policies. We will

  • review relevant cases and vehicle codes that provide the basis for the authority of the police to have checkpoints and impound cars,
  • identify ways to get information on current policies in your city,
  • look at how checkpoints are funded,
  • review key recommendations made in other cities,
  • review provisions of existing policies in other cities,
  • go over existing Know Your Rights information, and
  • review checkpoint observing tools and data collection strategies.

This invitation is extended to community-based organizations from diverse fields — including immigration, labor, faith, and criminal justice — interested in working change unjust vehicle impoundment policies in their communities. This training is not intended for the general public. This training is not open to government officials or members of the media.

Light refreshments provided. Space is limited.

LUCERO CHAVEZ is an immigrant rights attorney with the ACLU of Southern CA based in Orange County. The ACLU of Southern CA opened its Orange County satellite office in 2005. The ACLU is non-profit organization that focuses its resources on impact litigation as well as policy advocacy. As an immigrants rights attorney, Lucero focuses on informal and formal local enforcement of federal immigration laws. On the issue of car impoundments and checkpoints she has worked with PICO CA affiliates, bay area, central valley, and inland empire groups, as well as local communities. She is also a part of the statewide coalition of advocates pushing for legislative change on the car impoundment issue in Sacramento.

Click here to RSVP on Facebook.

National Society of Hispanic MBAs in the O.C. to meet on May 12

Posted on by Posted in Business, Entertainment, irvine, Latino Leaders, Latinos, Santa Ana Leave a comment

Come and connect with O.C. members of the National Society of Hispanic MBAs (NSHMBA) at their Networking Event sponsored by State Farm Insurance. This will be a great opportunity to meet working professionals and explore career opportunities with State Farm and other firms.

Light hors d’oeuvres and refreshments will be provided. No host cash bar will be available.

When: Thursday, May 12, 2011 6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.

Where: The Sports Club/LA – Orange County
1980 Main Street
Irvine, California 92614
949.975.8400

RSVP by: Wednesday, May 11th.

Link to RSVP: http://nshmbanetworkingevent.eventbrite.com/

This event is free, but they are asking for a minimum $5.00 donation to go towards the NSHMBA Scholarship Fund.

To learn more about the NSHMBA Orange County Chapter click here.

SAVE THE DATE:

Join us at our annual NSHMBA and Target Corporation event on Thursday, July 14 for a special workshop presentation on Strategic Influence, developed in conjunction with the Center for Creative Leadership (CCL). In this workshop, you will learn:

The nature of influence and what makes it strategic
Whom you should influence
How to influence
When to influence
The “irony” of effective influence

Since this event will be taking place in Downtown Los Angeles, we would like to poll prospective attendees to see if there is interest in securing transportation from Central Orange County to the event. The estimated cost is $15-25 per person and will save members from dealing with traffic, parking costs, and gas.

Rafael Buitrago
VP of Marketing
NSHMBA – Orange County Chapter
marketing@orangecounty.nshmba.org

11th Annual NHBWA Awards and Scholarships Dinner on May 19

Posted on by Posted in Business, Charities, Entertainment, Latino Leaders, Orange County, Santa Ana, Women Leave a comment

The National Hispanic Business Women Association (NHBWA) cordially invites you to join community and business leaders, friends, and supporters at our 11th Annual Awards and Scholarships Dinner, honoring 2011 Business Women of the Year and Educational Scholarships.

Deadline to RSVP is May 15, 2011.  Click here to register now.

2011 Women of the Year Honorees include:

  • Sandra Hutchens, O.C. Sheriff-Coroner, for Community Service
  • Milly Lago, Santa Ana Library, for Education
  • and Angelica Navarro-Sigala, Esq., from the Law Offices of John R. Alcorn, for Small Business

EVENT LOCATION:

DoubleTree Hotel – Santa Ana
201 E. MacArthur Blvd.
Santa Ana, CA 92707

DATE AND TIME:

Thursday, May 19, 2011
6:00 PM PDT

UNABLE TO ATTEND?

You can still support our NHBWA Scholars in any of the following ways (click each link for details):

Advertise on our program!

Adopt-A-Scholar!

Support our Silent Auction!