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Tuesday, May 22, 2012
La Raza Galeria Posada brings "Celebrations of Home"
by Kelsey Simpson, published on August 10, 2010 at 8:54 PM
Storyline: Sacramento Events
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The new Alta California - Celebrations of Home celebrates the memory of Sacramento Mexicans for more than 40 years with photos, newspaper articles and historical documents.
La Raza Galería Posada staff spent nine months building an exhibition full of rare photos and memories from Sacramento residents.
La Raza Galeria Posada is a multi-disciplinary cultural center and public space for the Sacramento community by offering Latino/Chicano and Native arts programming as well as art education workshops, according to their website.
“(My favorite part) has been (being) able to comb through the Sacramento history and being able to present it all to the public,” said La Raza Galería Posada Education Manager Michael Collett.
This is the first time this exhibit will be displayed.
“We’re looking forward to the opening,” Collett said. “Being 30 or 40 years ago, we’re glad to be able to replicate feelings and memories people had.”
The photos presented in the exhibition include pieces by Michael Marcos Sanchez, Hector Gonzalez and Freddy Remoro. Posters include collections from California State University, Sacramento, and pieces from the La Raza Galería Posada collection. Also, there will be a visual collage work by Collett.
Though there is no admission fee for this exhibit, donations are gladly accepted, Collett said.
Celebrations of Home opens Friday and goes through Sept. 27.
“This exhibit is the first piece of many by the Mexican community,” Collett said. “We’re very excited to host this.”
The exhibit is a community participatory exhibit that is meant to get people to think, Collett added. It is meant for people to remember their heritage.)
The community participation part of the exhibit is where people are asked to bring in their own memories, photos and memorabilia to be a part of the second iteration of the exhibit, when it moves to the new Mexican Consulate building in 2011.La Raza Galería Posada is located at 1022-1024 22nd St. and can be reached by phone at (916) 446-5133.
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Thanks so much for the article. There's just a couple things - and I know I was talking really fast on the phone today, so no worries:
- it's Marcos, not Michael Sanchez
- Alta California: Celebrations of Home is the first of many community celebrations for Mexico's Bicentennial Celebrations, all of which are sponsored by the Mexican Consulate of Sacramento and the Foreign Relations Secretary of Mexico
- the community participation part of the exhibit is where we ask people to bring in their own memories, photos and memorabilia to be a part of the second iteration of the exhibit, when it moves to the new Mexican Consulate building in 2011
my thanks again,
-m
La Raza bases it’s organizational existence on sequestering one “race” (or ethnicity but La Raza means “The Race” however inexact that actually is) against others, in seeking privilege that is based upon ethnicity/race to exclude or supercede all others.
La Raza — an ethnic supremacy organization... going to this Galeria means you support thhis racialistic organizaing and racialist method.
For the record, I work for La Raza Galería Posada, so my apologies to the Sac Press if this violates any of your community rules, but I really cannot sit by idly and let this kind of slander continue. So, in short, here's the deal:
"La Raza" is a contraction of the title of a 1925 essay by Mexican philosopher Jose Vasconcelos, entitled "La Raza Cosmica" (The Cosmic Race). It was, in essence, a repudiation of the silly societal divisions based on appearance that had been proffered by European colonizers in the Americas. From Wikipedia: "The phrase, "La raza cósmica", in English "the cosmic race", embodies the notion that traditional, exclusive concepts of race and nationality can be transcended in the name of humanity's common destiny."
From our organization's mission statement and by-laws:
"La Raza Galeria Posada is a multi-disciplinary cultural center and public space serving the Sacramento community by offering Latino/Chicano and Native arts programming, art education workshops, and a community gathering place.
LRGP is a center of cultural pride, self-governance, self-expression and community empowerment through the arts.
We remain a public space where young and old come to pass on their stories, share their challenges, create art and build community."
For the record, people of all - and multiple - races, ethnicities, sexual orientations and other societal identities work, volunteer and participate in our events and programming. As an IRS-recognized 501c3 organization, we are expressly barred from endorsing or participating in the affairs of politics and politicians.
If, rather than sit behind an anonymous screen name and default photo, you'd rather come in and actually have a conversation with us, I invite you to come to any and all of our events, or even just to drop by during our regular operating hours: 11am - 6pm, Tuesday through Saturday, year round.
All, even the snide and cowardly, are welcome.
Call it whatever you want, but we both know what's behind the name. If a KKK Galeria opened up right next door to yours but identifed it's self as something else, who do you think they would be fooling?
Again, La Raza bases it’s organizational existence on sequestering one “race” and that is the true meaning behind your Galeria store front.
I assume you recognize that some organizations under the La Raza banner have some pretty racist, separatist and revolutionary goals. For example the Chicano Student Movement of Aztlan (MEChA) and their wonderful motto "For La Raza todo. Fuera de La Raza nada.". Groups like the operate hand in hand with La Raza all the time, yet La Raza has never made in effort to condemn or distance themselves from these groups.
Michael, are you willing to condemn the racist, separatist and "Aztlan reconquest" goals of La Raza fellow travelers such as MEChA?
Interesting, after reading the back and forth here, you Michael sure sound afraid to discuss key points made by cogmeyer and trapper, and to sum it up you have fessed up to working with MEChA who is a racist, separatist group. The fact that you work with MEChA says that you condone their views.
I will NEVER go to La Raza Galería, I think if more people knew about you connection with MEChA, the Galería would go out of business.
Would you care to tell us more about this relationship? Care to open your books as a 501c3 organization? Something stinks and I think it's what La Raza Galería really stands for. FYI, I captured a screenshot of your comment about working with MEChA.
Your comment (now removed) that the La Raza gallery sometimes interacts with MEChA is pretty interesting, but certainly well within your 1st ammendment rights. But I guess I am bit surprised that the sponsors listed on the LaRaza website (Home Depot, SMUD, Sutter Health) know about your admitted interaction with a racist, irredentist organization like MEChA and some of the factions of La Raza.
http://www.larazagaleriaposada.org/about-lrgp/
Here is what is even wierder. On the MEChA wikipedia site is a claim that the La Raza National Council actually has already condemned MEChA (which Michael Collette couldn't do).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MEChA
But the wikipedia link to the source article is broken, and searching La Raza's own NCLR site uncovers a much softer disassocation from MEChA, essentially saying that MEChA's founding racist separatist policies are "dated relics" and MEChA members don't "bothers to read them"
http://www.nclr.org/index.php/about_us/faqs/the_truth_about_nclr/support_of_s
eparatist_organizations/
So overall I think we have a pretty good understanding of La Raza Galeria Posada. The gallery is free to "occassionally work" with organizations like MEChA (or the KKK, or any other organization of their choosing. And the Galeria is even free to suddenly delete comments where they openly admit that they interact with racist separatist groups like MEChA.
And similarly, I am free to point out that organizations like SMUD, Home Deport, Sutter Health and all the major local Arts councils and foundations are supporting a gallery that admits it works with racist organizations.
I think you may actually have an interesting story lead here. A representative from a local art gallery that is funded by many big local companies and foundations admits in your comments section that they sometimes work with a radical racist, separatist, irredentist organization called MEChA.
I would love to hear if, for instance, if the SMUD community affairs/outreach person is aware of this and is still proud to be a sponsor of La Raza Galeria Posada.
Of course digging into MEChA might not be for the faint hearted news organization. They have a track record of destroying press runs if a newspaper dares to print an unfavorable article.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MEChA
As a Native American and Latino, and a Jew, I've gotten used to both the overt and covert racist intent of some posters here -- that's pretty much all that's left since many more respectable 'professional lefties' have gone onto greener and more progressive pastures.
The SacPress has openly attacked others, and has even booted at least one, who express opinions that differ and stand against the tidal onslaught of those who seek to marginalize racial and other minorities, and do so with aplomb and expository acumen.
This is not a friendly place for minorities, for far too much permission is granted those who willingly attack us for being brown or black or any color but lily white.
There are far friendlier media outlets in Sacramento and the Valley. This is not one of them.
People fall on the race card when they don't have anything else to support their opinions, and that would be you dshore22. It shows weak character as a person if that's your last line of defense.
In other words, I think you're not being truthful -- to put it politely.
Can you please ask Michael Collette to defend his support of MEChA like you seem to also be doing? The Hispanics community has vary little tolerances for racists, even within our own.
You must be in Public Relations. Instead of making a cogent argument on the topic at hand you instead immediately went to the standard 4 step "no...you are the racist!" response. Nicely done!
a) Claim superior knowledge based on your ethnicity (authority)
b) Ignore that the fundamental fact that the subject of the article admits that they sometimes works with a radical, racist Latino organization.. ie MEChA (deflection)
c) Instead label those who point it out as being racist (the ol' switcheroo)
d) Accuse the news organization of catering to a fringe (marginalization) and of being anti-minority (ol' switcheroo + deflection)
MECHA is hardly racist. It is an organization that celebrates culture of a people that go back more than a few millenia. I guess because YOUR origins aren't quite as celebrated, you and your buddies claim 'racism' where none exists.
I think it might have more to do with people like you just not wanting to celebrate anything having to do with brown people, or to celebrate anything.
Maybe you just need a good party to go to for it seems like your bunch only celebrates hate -- not culture.
I'm not saying this closes the book on the issue, but MEChA has a lot of chapters (more than 400 according to Wikipedia) and I think it's possible that calling MEChA racist is an over-generalization and is an unfair condemnation considering the complexity of the issue.