New Santa Ana | Category Archives: Latinos

Santa Ana: In Need of a Real Renaissance

Posted on April 12, 2013 by Art Pedroza Posted in Business, Development, Latinos, Santa Ana 110 Comments

Yost Theater

Santa Ana: In Need of a Real Renaissance

By Omar Ávalos Gallegos, The Santa Ana Sentinel, on April 11, 2013

In a city that is overwhelmingly Latino (upwards of over 80 percent) it becomes necessary for the majority to be reflected in the city’s decision making. Santa Ana is in need of a true organic growth from within, and not from unmeasured transplantation from without.

One area where Latinos are grossly under-represented is in business. We Latinos in Santa Ana have the numbers. We are a numeric and political majority, but we are not an economic majority. Continue reading→

Santa Ana’s Cinco de Mayo Fail?

Posted on April 4, 2013 by Art Pedroza Posted in Civic Affairs, Latinos, Santa Ana 4 Comments

By now we are all used to the fact that our City, Santa Ana, has a horrible budget mess. They owe the State of California over fifty million dollars and with the police union contract coming up we figure to sink into an even larger budget mess.

But now I am hearing that the budget problems may extend to some of Santa Ana’s vendors. I met tonight with a local business owner who is owed thousands of dollars for services he provided last September to MX Live, the event promoters who run Santa Ana’s Cinco de Mayo and Fiestas Patrias events. He showed me the invoices and his emails to the folks at MX Live and to the City of Santa Ana. He is afraid to mention his name as he knows that will kill his chances of working at these events but I sympathize with what he is going through. Continue reading→

Leadership training for immigrant candidates set for April 6-7, in Santa Ana

Posted on April 4, 2013 by Art Pedroza Posted in Asians, Entertainment, immigration, Labor, Latinos, Politics, Santa Ana 3 Comments

New American Leaders Project

Press Advisory

Contact: Nina Spensley, 917.864.8400, nina@newamericanleaders.org

“Ready to Lead “ Training Prepares Immigrants for Potential Candidacy and Leadership

SANTA ANA, California – The New American Leaders Project (NALP), Engage San Diego, Mobilize the Immigrant Vote, the Orange County Asian and Pacific Islander Community Alliance (OCAPICA) and the Orange County Labor Federation, in partnership with Wellstone Action will hold its “Ready to Lead” training to prepare first and second generation Americans with immigrant backgrounds for the rigors of running for office this April 6 –7, 2013 in Santa Ana, California. This event marks the first non-partisan program held in Orange County specifically aimed at training immigrant candidates to run for office at the local, state and national level. Continue reading→

Cesar Chavez was no hero – he opposed Mexican immigrants

Posted on March 31, 2013 by Art Pedroza Posted in immigration, Labor, Latinos, mexico, Santa Ana 7 Comments

Cesar Chavez, Anti Immigrant

From the OC Politics Blog

Google chose to honor Cesar Chavez on their website today – and I was quite disgusted by that. He was not a supporter of immigrants and his supporters should stop trying to pretend otherwise.

Cesar Chavez (born César Estrada Chávez, was born on March 31, 1927. President Obama has recognized March 31 as Cesar Chavez Day. Chavez was an American farm worker, labor leader and civil rights activist, who, with Dolores Huerta, co-founded the National Farm Workers Association, which was later known as the United Farm Workers union. Continue reading→

Santa Ana Cesar Chavez Celebration & Youth Leadership Conference set for 3/30

Posted on March 26, 2013 by Art Pedroza Posted in Education, Entertainment, Labor, Latinos, Santa Ana 2 Comments

SANTA ANA COUNCILMAN ROMAN REYNA AND COMMUNITY COLLEGE TRUSTEE JOSE SOLORIO INVITE PUBLIC TO CESAR CHAVEZ CELEBRATION AND YOUTH LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE

Variety of family activities planned in honor of the farm worker labor leader

SANTA ANA – Santa Ana Councilman Roman Reyna and Community College Trustee Jose Solorio invite the public to the 13th Annual Cesar E. Chavez Celebration and Youth Leadership Conference on Saturday, March 30, 2013, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. The event will be held at the Santa Ana College amphitheatre located at 1530 W. 17th Street (at Bristol Street) in Santa Ana. Continue reading→

Can Newsong bring new life to Santa Ana’s First Baptist Church?

Posted on March 25, 2013 by Editor Posted in Andy Quient, Churches and Religion, Dave Gibbons, Entertainment, irvine, Koreans, Latinos, Santa Ana 6 Comments

Dave Gibbons at First Baptist of Santa Ana

William H. Spurgeon, the founder of the City of Santa Ana, purchased seventy-six acres of land from the Yorba heirs in 1869 and laid out what was to become the Orange County seat. With only six or eight homes in the place and about one hundred fifty souls, thirteen people organized First Baptist Church of Santa Ana on a Saturday in March of 1871, at the local school house.

Services were held in the school house until the first church was built in 1876. The cost was $4000 and it was located on four lots donated by Spurgeon at the corner of Main & Church Streets. The interior was unfinished for a number of years and financial problems were so severe during the first 10 -12 years, that the property was sold for taxes several times. At one point, members mortgaged their homes to pay off the church obligations and one member lost his home because of this. And Santa Ana developed, so did the church. As many members were from surrounding area, certain groups took their letters and established in neighboring cities. Continue reading→

The OC Fair is looking for artists to design a migrant farm worker memorial

Posted on March 14, 2013 by Art Pedroza Posted in Arts and Culture, Costa Mesa, immigration, Labor, Latinos, Orange County, Santa Ana Leave a comment

Migrant Agricultural Worker Memorial Call for Artists

The 32nd District Agricultural Association OC Fair & Event Center Board of Directors has elected to erect a memorial to commemorate the contributions of migrant agricultural workers to the growth and prosperity of Orange County. The project is open to California-based artists working in any media appropriate to the site and climate of coastal southern California.

Artists are encouraged to consider any area within the Centennial Farm. An additional proposed site for this project is located in the plaza and foyer area of the new entrance to the Pacific Amphitheater, an onsite performance space seating approximately 8,200. Estimated completion date for this new construction is spring, 2014. A video presentation of possible sites within the Centennial Farm as well as architectural concepts and plan views for the entrance area can be found online: www.ocfair.com/ocfwmp. Continue reading→

A Long Beach film programmer will be taking over Santa Ana’s Fiesta Teatro

Posted on March 13, 2013 by Art Pedroza Posted in Latinos, LGBT, Movies, Santa Ana 11 Comments

Fiesta Teatro

Cinematheque will be taking over all programming at Downtown Santa Ana’s Fiesta Twin Theatre/Fiesta Teatro this coming September, according to the Long Beach Post.

Cinematheque is “a new film programmer coming to the cinemas–direct from El Long Beach–to fulfill indie-, student- and LGBT-movie dreams,” according to the OC Weekly.

The Fiesta Twin Theatre is the only movie theater in Santa Ana that shows new first-run movies in Spanish or in English with Spanish subtitles. Make no mistake about this – the Chase family is once again opting for “gaytrification.” Continue reading→

Santa Ana College presents “Welcome to Arroyo’s” at Phillips Hall Theatre

Posted on March 11, 2013 by Art Pedroza Posted in Arts and Culture, Education, Entertainment, Latinos, Plays, Santa Ana, Theater Leave a comment

Rancho Santiago Community College District Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: March 8, 2013

Contact: Judy Iannaccone, Director, Communications , (714) 480-7503, E-mail: iannaccone_judy@rsccd.edu

Santa Ana College Presents Welcome to Arroyo’s at Phillips Hall Theatre

*Production runs March 15-23*

(Santa Ana)—Santa Ana College (SAC) is set to open Kristoffer Diaz’s Welcome to Arroyo’s on March 15. First produced at the Lark/Hip-Hop Theater Festival in 2005, this urban hip-hop comedy is a sweet, loose-limbed shout out to Manhattan’s Lower East Side. The play that is almost more of a party than a play features two DJs from the TripNel Cartel, along with an exuberant chorus of hip-hop dancers. Continue reading→

Santa Ana Library to host a Telenovela exhibit featuring Carla Estrada

Posted on March 6, 2013 by Art Pedroza Posted in Arts and Culture, Latinos, Literature, Movies, Santa Ana 2 Comments

City of Santa Ana, Downtown Orange County

Community: Santa Ana Public Library and the Art of the Telenovela

SANTA ANA, CA (March 5, 2013) – The Santa Ana Public Library is pleased to present the exhibit, Carla Estrada: Her Legacy – 25 Years of Telenovela Production, from March 4, 2013 through March 16, 2013. Telenovelas are a distinctive genre, different from American soap operas. A telenovela is a limited-run dramatic serial very popular in Latin America. Their popularity has extended to mass global appeal. This is especially true of those produced by Carla Estrada, because of her treatment of relevant societal concerns and dilemmas. In many of her productions, controversial themes like discrimination, child abuse, urban violence, and racism are thoughtfully explored. Historical dramas also are a popular subject of Ms. Estrada’s repertoire. Continue reading→

So why doesn’t our City Council stop the useless DUI checkpoints?

Posted on March 5, 2013 by Art Pedroza Posted in Alcohol, David Benavides, immigration, Latinos, Michele Martinez, Santa Ana 12 Comments

Michele Martinez and her pals

I keep receiving DUI checkpoint notices from the SAPD and I have to wonder why our Santa Ana City Council won’t move to cancel theses useless exercises.

Simply put, DUI checkpoints don’t work. They rarely catch any actual drunk drivers. Instead they become a hassle for our residents who are undocumented immigrants. The State of California won’t let them drive legally, so if they get caught driving during a DUI checkpoint they could end up losing their cars, which they depend on to get to and from work.

Our City Council is supposed to be progressive and “vibrant” so why don’t they stop these useless charades? Continue reading→

“Boys in Peril” to screen at Valley High School on March 22

Posted on February 27, 2013 by Art Pedroza Posted in Education, Latinos, Movies, Santa Ana, Youth Activities 1 Comment

The groundbreaking documentary film “Boys in Peril” will be screened at Santa Ana’s Valley High School on March 22, 2013.

This film is an effort to better understand the dwindling college-bound American population, by Los Angeles filmmaker Graham Streeter, who embedded himself in East Los Angeles, where he befriended Julio, Edgar, and Abel: three Latino high school seniors; each attempting to navigate through the daunting and challenging transition between high school and college in their own unique ways. Continue reading→

O.C. Public Defender to be honored by Hispanic Bar Association

Posted on February 27, 2013 by Art Pedroza Posted in Courts, Latinos, Lawyers, Orange County, Santa Ana Leave a comment

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 2/27/2013
Contact: Howard Sutter, 714.834.6203 office, Howard.Sutter@ocgov.com

Public Defender to be Honored by Hispanic Bar Association

(Santa Ana, CA) — Orange County’s Public Defender, Frank Ospino, will be honored as Attorney of the Year by the Hispanic Bar Association of Orange County during an event on Saturday, March 2. Continue reading→

County Supervisors whack Latino Health Access’ funding

Posted on February 8, 2013 by Art Pedroza Posted in America Bracho, Health and Medical, Latinos, Orange County, Politics, Santa Ana 12 Comments

“Orange County officials have decided not to renew an exclusive contract with Latino Health Access (LHA) to provide promotores services throughout the county, opting instead to divvy up the approximately $500,000 contract among several community organizations,” according to the Voice of OC.

America Bracho, President and CEO of LHA, says that the county’s decision is political payback. That is of course complete B.S. But in reality this is just desserts for Ms. Bracho, who originally hails from Venezuela, where she claims she was a rural doctor, though my sources say she does not have a medical degree. She has however since earned a Master’s Degree in Public Health. Continue reading→

Santa Ana Political Chismes: the return of Thomas Gordon?

Posted on January 11, 2013 by Art Pedroza Posted in 2014 Elections, Alcohol, Cecilia Aguinaga, David Benavides, Democratic Party, Elections, Frank Barbaro, Julio Perez, Labor, Latinos, Michele Martinez, Miguel Pulido, Paul Walters, Politics, Public Safety, Sal Tinajero, Santa Ana 14 Comments

The Return of Thomas Gordon?

Santa Ana Mayor Pro Tem Sal Tinajero thought he was being rather clever when he moved community activist Thomas Gordon out of his ward, when the City Council changed the Council ward map before the general election in November. But now I am hearing that Gordon has moved back into Ward 6 – and he will be ready to take on Tinajero in 2014.

Gordon tried to run against Tinajero in 2010, when a Vietnamese American and a Latina also filed to run against Tinajero. There was evidence that appeared to indicate that Gordon was involved in their campaigns, which made sense as this would have been the ultimate vote split. But the Santa Ana City Clerk tossed out Gordon’s signatures, including his own, and he waited too long to turn in his signatures, so there wasn’t time to get more. Continue reading→