1982_11 The Daily Collegian November 1982

              November 4, 1962
Ybarra Discusses Chicana Roles
i have
By LEA YBARRA
Mexican and Chicana w
been depicted in American
literature as passive, weak women who
are not only forced into this type of situa¬
tion, but who also accept and sometimes
even like their position.
They have been characterized as being
at the other extreme ol the Mexican male
who is depicted as being overly dominant.
But is this a realistic portrayal of Chicana
women or is it a mythology that has been
developed and perpetuated because of a
lack of awareness of the tremenduosly
important historical and contemporary
roles that Chicana women have played?
The lacl is that strong women have
always been a part of the Mexican culture
and they have participated in the political,
educational, and economic spheres of
i heir communities as well as being a major
source of strength within their families.
As Marta Cotera has stated:
"A Chicana may have arrived from
Mexico yesterday, or her ancestor may
have been in the Southwest since 1520 or
belore. her ancestors may have lived in
the Midwest in the 1880's She may be
rural, urban, poor, middle class or PhD,
a teacher, a migrant or a doctor She does
share some basic, and also heterogenc
ous. roots in the development of Indian
and Spanish culture and history She also
shares the history of involvement and
participation which has been a way of life
for the Chicana community in the US
since 1848
The MexicarvChicana woman has always
striven for self-identity and for the mprovement
of her community as a whole, and has a
long history ol being involved in many
For example, one of the first feminists
of the American continent was Josefa-
Ortiz de Dominguez who participated in
Mexico's fight for independence from
Spain. When she was arrested and threa¬
tened with death, she stated:
"It would be an honor to shed my blood
before these young men (the soldiers), to
teach them how a woman can die in
defense for her ideals."
This type of feminist involvement also
continued during the Mexican revolution.
As Frederick Turner documents, many
women were at the front lines, fighting in
direct combat and carrying ammunition,
military equipment and medicine. Behind
the lines, women worked as dispatchers
of trains, telegraphers, nurses, pharma¬
cists, reporters, newspaper editors, busi¬
nesswomen and teachers. Like women in
the U.S., Mexican women in the early
1900s were also demanding female eman¬
cipation and suffrage rights.
Chicana feminist participation in the
U.S. also followed the lead of their Mexi¬
can sisters by maintaining important roles
within their families as well as in ther
communties. Maria Hernandez was a
Chicana activist and writer who started in
the 1920s. She wrote that "one should act
politically to raise the public conscious¬
ness because this type of effort is owed to
the family, the community and the nation."
This type of philosophy has been adopted
and nurtured by the thousand of Chica-
nas since Maria Hernandez who have
continued to be involved in community
Chcanas continue to play a very important
role in both family and community life and
they are making contributions in a wide
range of areas. Examples'of contempor¬
ary Chicanas are Dr. Kathy Flores and
Dr. Carmen De La Rosa, physicians at
Valley Medical Center; Irene Aparicio, a
recreational therapist at Fresno Com¬
munity Hospital; Hilda Cantu-Montoy,
deputy chief attorney for the city of
Fresno; Dr. Theresa Perez, a CSUF pro¬
fessor; Olivia Chavez, a CSUF counselor;
Bertha Gonzalez, a Pacific College pro¬
fessor; and Josie Mena, a businesswoman
on the State Commission on the Status of
In addition to women such as these>-
you have thousands of Chicanas throughout
the U.S. who are teachers, politicians,
nurses, secretaries and television repor¬
ters; they are in non-traditional jobs such
as carpenters, mechanics, electricians and
policewomen; and there are also many
Chicanas in the arts who are musicians,
writers and poets. Chicana artistic expression
is exemplified by the songs of Carmen
Moreno and Vicki Carr, the novels of
Estella Portillo and the poetry of Inez
Hernandez-Tovar.
An example of poetic expression is the
following poem by a Chicana:
"The Sounds and Sights of War"
A bomb explodes; a bazooka fires
A machine gun is heard afar
Buildings ripped open, with windows
And two doors left standing ajar.
Dead men lie in pools of blood
The cry of a homeless child is heard
These were sacrificed (or their country
And uttered in protest not a word.
But have you seen a mother's grief
A sweetheart's look of fear
When they announce the death of men
And boys they prized so dear
These sounds, these sights
These wasted loves, the tears that were
shed in vain.
Are seen and heard around the world
Where war has left its stain
Someday this will have to end
These sounds, these sights will seize
Then weapons, peopleend all free nations
Will stand united in peace.
As indicated by the poem, many Chi¬
canas are concerned with issues that
affect themselves and society in general
and have been historically and comtem-
porarily involved in efforts to Better their
lives and the loves of others. They have
participated in many different activities
and have entered a wide range of profes¬
sions because they are a diverse group
with differing ideologies and lifestyles. But
whether they are housewives who have
chosen to remain at home, women who
have chosen to develop their careers; or
women who have decided to combine
both roles, a disservice has been done to
all ol them by the simplistic, stereotypical
lumping of all Chicanas into a group
where they are uneducated and uninvotved.
This stereotype was never true of all
Chicanas and is certainly not true today.
Chicanas continue to particpate in the
quest for equal job and educational oppor¬
tunities for themselves and others, and
will soon be joined in their efforts by the
thousands of Chicanas who are graduat¬
ing from high schools, colleges and uni¬
versities throughout the country.
(Lea Ybarra received her doctorate in
sociology from the University of Cafi/or-
nia, Berkeley, and is currently an asso¬
ciate professor at Fresno State University.)
Central American Tensions Escalate
By   Pedro   Perez
Several dramatic military operations
are taking place in El Salvador and the
surrounding countries that include Hon
duras and Nicaragua
Mario Velasquez, a Washington repre
sentative for the FDR, Revolutionary De
mocratit Front, spoke about these
operations to various community me-
mebers Wednesday at the Ted C Wills
Center The operation that he spoke ol
was the gradual involvement of Honduras
in. the civil war of FJ Salvador Velasquez
said. 'Honduras receives the second
largest military aid (from the U S.) in the
wesiern hemisphere; El Salvador is the
According to Velasquez, Honduran
troops were used in military operations
<in Chalatenango after the March 28elec
tions when the Salvadorean government
thought they had won political support
Irom the Salvadorean people
He also talked of how the war has
become regionalized and of how the FDR
had alerted the US population of this
happening two years ago. Velasquez said
thai the FDR is expecting a "Vietnam-
type war that is spreading and is strategi
cally conducted "
He said that the recent offensive
launched by the FDR and the FMLN,
Farabundo Marti National Liberation
Front, was prompted by the declaration
made by Thomas Enders, Assistant
Secretary of State lor Inter-Affairs and
the Salvadorean government that the
guerrillas are losing the war. For the last
eight days they have launched a big offen¬
sive with three objectives: 1) to recognize
Ihe second anniversary of the FMLN
formed on Oct. 10. 1980. 2) to respond to
Viewpoint
the declarations of Enders and the Salva¬
dorean government, and 3) to test their
military capacity. In five days of combat,
Velasquez said they have confiscated 126
recoilless rifles from the Salvadorean mil¬
itary, ten cannones with 241 projectiles,
and have taken 127 prisoners and shot
down one Huey-type helicopter and two
planes.
According to Velasquez. This offen¬
sive shows that the FMLN is pretty much
alive; it's still strong and there's local sup¬
port of the population."
El Salvador is not the only country that
is being attacked by Honduran troops.
Velasquez said that Nicaragua has con¬
stantly been attacked by soldiers based in
Honduras. He added that these attacks
are from ex-Samocistas being supported
by the United States in bases located in
the Honduran broder.
The recent military maneuvers bet¬
ween the U.S. and Honduras has resulted
in the building of military bases along the
Nicaragua border.
The most recent joint exercise was in
July and lasted for three weeks.
According to a Nicaraguan newspaper,
U.S. pilots were used to transport planes
from Tegucigalpa, the Honduran capital,
Mario Velasquez, FDR Representative
to Puerto Lempira on the Atlantic Coast,
loaded with 1000 Honduran troops and
communication equipment, machine-gun
shells and mortars, and boxes of long-
range patrol rations.
Nicaragua has suffered several casual¬
ties from armed ex-National Guardsmen
that continue to use Honduras as their -
Velasquez said that the armed aggres¬
sion by the counter-revolutionaries is
escalating into a full scale war in Central
America.
By Larry Banale*
As I stood in line the other day to
receive my financial aid, I spoke with a
student next to me, and he told me his
allocation was only $66.00 a month. At
first I thought he was joking and quest-
toned him. In all seriousness he said,
"No, that's it."
I thought lo myself, "How do admini¬
strators expect a student to survive on
$66.00 per monthr
It was completely unbeBeveabk.
We continued to talk, and both of us
complained bitterly of the distribution
system and overall reductions implemented
by the Reagan Administration (vomit!).
"It sucks." we agreed. CSUF history is complete with successful -
What is the rational behind distributing    protests, and if that's what it takes I
monies in small monthly installments?
Don't administrators realize that students
have expenses to meet, too? Or are students
cosidered incapable of handling large sun
of money? What is the real reason for I
the changes?
make administrators aware of our plight,
then that is what well do.
It is inconceivable that the university
instated the current distribution system.
Minority students are dropping out of
school as fast as they enrolled, and unless
drastic measures are taken, they wS continue
to do so. Just as Chicanos ten years ago
fought to remain on campus, we must
again unite under one body to march and
declare our due justice. or
  ijsk. :	
Even for those students who receive
$200.00 a month it is difficult to survive,
much less for others who collect $66.00.
The administration
has made some serious decisions, and it is
up to the student body to ensure that they
realize the effects its policies have taken
2
The first blow will come at noon Friday,
November 5th, when students rally in
front of the Joyal Administration building,
and with an additional letter-writing
campaign, we wiD deliver the bureau¬
cracy a second shot.
And if that does not work, we will
continue marching, yelling louder, and
writing more leters, until we succeed.
Caring for your canine
They call him man's best friend, but
are you always fas?Tm sure many of
you own your own pets, but maybe
we don't always know wnafs beat for
them. Pets/need just as much loving
care as you do. did you ever notice
how their face brightens up as you
pet them, or acknowledge their pres¬
ence? They depend on you to care for
them and love them. Pet care includes
gj<Axm&heaUwe,araimostimportant
loving care.
Dog's aren't human, but in many
ways we treat them as such. If you
really think about it, dogs have already
achieved a human role; we talk to,
them! We've developed special drugs
and practice veterinary medicine. We
have for mem sweaters, coats, jewelry
studded collars, dog cemetaries and
doghouses. There are even pet mink
coats designed in New York. How's
that for status! Buying your pets new
clothes is rewarding They'll be over¬
joyed at the addditon to their war¬
drobe. Pet owners all over the coun¬
try strive to please their pet with new
beds, biscuits, and "I Love My Ger¬
man Shepard" buttons. Pets have
also made business boom; remember
RCA's "Nipper"? Sttting^y a phono¬
graph, he made his way to fame and
fortune. Then there was Lassie, Petie,
Rin Tin Tin, Boomer, and so on....
Never underestimate the power of-
the pups, and next time you call
sorrieorieadr^ccetsidertfacrjrrpSmertf.
Pets are loving, caring, protective,
and loyal. They're cute, cuddly, and
curious, attacking their taHsandany-
thing that moves. So, now you're
convinced and wanfyto get a dog.
Well, before you run out to the pet
store, there are a.Jew things you
ought to know, starting with a fitt/e
advice acknowledge of pet care.
It is very important to find a dog to
fit your life style. For example, if you
Sue in an apartment, a small dog is
preferable. Also, do you have enough
time to care for and give attention to
a small puppy?
According to Dr. Gregory K. SaUd
of the Academy Veterinary Cfintc,
Sanger, pet care is very important.
Dr. Saiki isagraduate of the Class of
71". He did graduate work at FSU,
then went on to UC Davis to become
aveterinarian.Hebecameinterested
in veterinary medicine for a variety of
reasons, but there is one reason that
is more memorable: As a child his
own pet died from injuries. Dr. Saiki
wanted to be in the position to help
sick and injured animals. The realiza¬
tion of not being able to save every
animal came into view and holds true
in veterinary medicine.
Dr. Sada. explans pet care is important
if you want a happy, healthy pet.
"Pets aren't self-sufficient." Nutrition
is also very important In biological
makeup, "What holds true for humans,
holds true for animals." There are
many old myths about pets. Did you ever
find food half spoiled and said, "Give
it to the dogs.''Be cautious of what
you give your dog, the may not be
able to digest certain foods just Ske
we may not be abk to. It Is important
to keep in mind that your pets depend
on you for their wll being. Other pet
care tips include:
1. Provide a weS balanced diet on a
regular schedule!
2. Do not give your dogs bones. For
example, chicken bones have splin¬
ters and may lodge in their throat.
3. Have fresh water available -always!
4. Bathe your dog regularly and check
for fleas and ticks.
- S. Provide a warm shelter for your
outdoor pets and make sure they
aren't restricted from it.
6.Vocdnateyourdogs.
Owning a pet requires resoponsi-
bility. Millions of dogs are killed each
year due to overpopulation, or simply
because they are unwanted. There ■
are not enough homes for them.
Don't let yout pet or its puppies
become statistics. Make sure your
pet is spayed or neutered. If you want
apet.itwouldbeagoodideatoadopt
onefrom theSPCA. They have adop¬
tions available and they are heated
at 103 S. Hughes Ave. Fresno.
Now you know the basics of having
a pet. It's worth the wheel Having a
pet allows you to enjoy them and
cherish the company they keep. So
whether yx*ihm* a Datrnction, Poo¬
dle, or Pug. the relationship befuieen ,
dbg and human is a bond that is not
By YOLANDA OBOZCO
Dr. Gregory SaUd checking x-rays