1976 La Voz de Aztlan

              REEDLEY ADMINISTRATORS
'After the fact' apology offered
by Tom Uribes
Chicano students in Reedley
gained some ground this week
concerning an issue with Reedley
school administrators stemming
from a UFW workshop offered in
the recent CSUF Chicano Youth
Conference.
An administrative apology and
assurances of publicity and
transportation     provisions    for
such future affairs were issued
by Reedley's Kings Canyon Unified School District Superintendent Roger D. Freet to RHS
MEChA advisor Frank Garcia
Mondayl
Garcia said Freet told him the
administration was "sorry there
was an administrative mistake
on the part of someone" not allowing them to attend.
Grievances
hit Woodlake
An imminent walkout by Wood-
lake High School students maybe
avoided if the administration responds to concerns of the students.
MEChA last week learned of
problems Woodlake was having,
especially Chicanos, meeting
concerns of the students.
CSUF Mechista Juan Perez
said he was contacted by students he had met at the Chicano
Youth Conference to seek advice-
on questions arising from several
events occurring at Woodlake in
the week following the CYC.
"Students reported that members of the faculty attempted to
remove UFW and other buttons
with Chicano slogans from students' clothing," said Perez. He
said one student reported having
his UFW button literally torn
from his clothing by one teacher.
As a result, at the request of
the Woodlake students, four CSUF
Chicanos, an ad hoc committee
of MEChA established for this
purpose, are working with the
high school students towards
helping them achieve better "student conditions."
Along with Perez, other members are Alfonso Hernandez,
Roseanne Venegas and Roger
Valverde.
Perez said the students have
submitted 20 demands to the administration. Major ones are:
more hiring of Chicano faculty
and counselors; improved food
services; and sex education
courses, to name a few.
"All parties stated their role
and position on issues and left in
agreement to rneet for two hours
next Tuesday," Perez said after
a meeting yesterday with school
officials. He said strong gains
were made on the more important issues.
Perez said the students have
been on the verge of walkout.
He related an incident in which
a female student was suspended
because she would not remove a
bandana which had a Chicano button on it. As a result some 60
other females wore bandanas the
next day in protest. No reprisal
was taken.
Within the same week, Manuel
Marquez, a volunteer advisor at
the high school, was told by
officials to leave the school
grounds and never return.
According to Marquez, he was
suspended because he circulated
a CYC evaluation form to students who had attended the conference.
Although ordered to cease the
activity, 20 of the 47 students
were able to complete them and
mail them to CSUF.
Perez said Marquez was able
to talk the students out of walking
out, convincing them "there are
other alternatives to a walkout."
"Chicanos have the sophistication to deal with problems without
first taking to the streets," said
Marquez. "The students agreed
to try some of those alternatives."
Perez said, "The students are
demonstrating great dedication
to their commitments."
Guatemala
Benefit tonight
A soccer game, for the
benefit of the earthquake
survivors in Guatemala, will
be played tonight at 8 p.m.
at Daryl Lamonica Stadium
in Clovis.
The game will pit the Mexico Soccer Club against the
Fresno All Stars. •
Admission is $1.50 donation per person or donations
of medical supplies, bedding
and/or non-perishable food.
These donations will be
turned over to the group
handling the donations for the
Guatemalans.
The drive is sponsored by
Radio KGST, which has
raised 15 tons worth of donations. The Guatemalan
consul general is expected
in town this week to pick up
the goods.
600 attend Noche;
LRS classes open
by Margaret Esparza
Noche De La Raza attracted
600 persons last Saturday night
as Roosevelt High School inaugurated La Raza Studies 1976 Spring
Semester.
A free dinner and a program
featuring CSUF's Teatro, Compared, and Danzantes was offered
in the effort to provide a better
understanding    of  the   La  Raza
Studies program to the community.
However, La Raza Studies
Director AlexSaracoza cautioned
against a "complacency among
Chicanos on campus."
"Continued growth in student
enrollment," said Saragoza, "is
the foundation of a strong, healthy
La Raza Studies program.
(Continued on Page 2, Col. 3)
Reedley's MEChA was able to
send only five students to the CYC
along with Garcia due to a lack
of cooperation by Reedley school
authorities because of what RHS
MEChA leaders said was opposition to the UFW workshop offered.
RHS MEChA President Tony
Valenzuela said they were denied
publicity channels and approval to
attend the conference first by
RHS vice-principal Dale Minor
in December, then by the school
board of trustees prior to the
event in January.
"The vice-principal tore up
our bulletin announcement and
said we couldn't publicize the
conference," said Valenzuela.
"He glanced at the publicity
sheets and threw them away."
Valenzuela said Garcia then
took it to the principal, Dr.
Charles Saunders, who confirmed
this in an interview Feb. 4.
Saunders said "no student ever
directly" contacted him. He said
he learned of the publicity denial
"after   the   fact"   when   Garcia
brought it to him.
Upon Garcia's request, Saunders says he took it to Freet.
Saunders also said he "could
imagine" how the UFW workshop
might have influenced board
members, citing some of the
board members are farmer, or
"farmer-related," and have had
some bad experiences with the
UFW.
"I would imagine this might
have had something to do with
their decision," he said.
Valenzuela said the administrators "probably felt the workshop would spread ideas that
were against farmers."
CYC Chairperson Arturo Olivas
explained the UFW workshop was
one of 12 offered in the morning
category. Students had a choice of
attending any four they desired.
Olivas further explained the
workshop was not conducted by
the union but by a student who
was knowledged with the UFW.
Both vice-principal Minor and
Superintendent Freet refused to
respond  to  personal interviews
with La Voz to clarify the matter.
Minor would only say "it's not
something I wish to comment
on."
Freet released a letter asserting the matter never reached
him. Through his secretary, he
claims Saunders never brought
the matter to him nor the board.
However, Saunders maintained he
did take it to Freet, but clarified
he did not know what exactly
happened from there.
An inquiry by Asociacion
Educativo de Padres Mexicano,
Reedley chapter (Mexican Parents Education Association) as
well as the Reedley College and
CSUF MEChA clubs into the matter apparently resulted in the
KCUSD response to Garcia.
He said the administrators told
him they "didn't want outside
pressure groups coming here
claiming things that aren't true."
MEChA is now working on securing approval to take a trip to
Mexico during Easter vacation at
their own expense and with their
own transportation.
LA VOZ
DE   AZTLAN
LXXX/75 Wednesday, Feb. 11, 1976
A special edition of THE DAILY COLLEGIAN, California State University, Fresno
Governors call causes
Zenovich cancellation
Senator George Zenovich's cancellation of a CSUF speaking
appearance last Friday was due
to a meeting he was called to by
Governor Brown in Sacramento,
said his Fresno office secretary
Mildred Virtue.
"Senator Zenovich came to
Fresno Thursday night specifically for the heavy schedule he
had planned for last Friday," said
Virtue. "We had to cancel the
college's and all other appointments later that afternoon."
Zenovich was scheduled to
speak Friday afternoon to the
United Provessors of California
on collective bargaining.
His secretary said other engagements also cancelled were
at Mallock School and the Auto
Dealers Association.
"He was looking forward to
coming to CSUF," said Virtue.
"But he was called away and had
to fly back at his own expense.
There wasn't any trying to avoid
anything. He had to be there."
She said she did not know specifically what the Senator's business was about.
UPC Chairman Gerald Johnston said they had "no reason to
believe Zenovich meant anything
other than what he told us."
"Our dealings in the past have
not been all that bad with Zenovich," said Johnston. "He's never
been a guy to run from trouble."
Two days prior to Zenovich's
scheduled appearance, the UPC
execu^ve board voted to place on
the agenda of the Feb. 24 general
membership meeting a resolution
censuring Zenovich's "opposition
to labor's cause and his betrayal
of the public trust he has sworn
to uphold."
In part, the resolution says
"Senator George Zenovich has
ignored his pledge to support
California's ALRB and has instead sponsored repressive leg
islation favored by the growers'
interest which is aimed at disenfranchising farm workers and
depriving agricultural employees
of the economic tools needed to
compel  growers to negotiate in
good faith."
Zenovich's secretary said,
however, his office was unaware
of the resolution, unless it was
sent to Sacramento. Zenovich was
in Sacramento.
Campesinos
rally ALRB
A planned demonstration by
United Farm Worker Union supporters oi\ campus against Sen.
George N. Zenovich ended as a
demonstration at the Fresno office of the Agricultural Labor
Relations Board on its last day
in town.
CSUF supporters waited to
picket Zenovich who was scheduled to speak before the campus
chapter of the United Professors
of California on Friday. However, Zenovich did not show and
the demonstration was moved to
his state building office in Fresno where the group learned the
senator was not in town.
Grace Solis, former CSUF
MEChA president and now a UFW
representative, said they then
marched through the downtown
mall and to the ALRB office to
join  more UFW demonstrators.
At the ALRB office, a last-hour
petition and authorization cards
asking for elections at Robert
Farms, Inc. were presented.
Richard Chavez,- UFW vice-
president, said the demonstration
in front of the office was held to
show the union's displeasure at
the state legislature's failure to
refund the board.
Before  entering the office to
present the petition, Chavez said
he had heard they might no longer
accept any petitions.
However, Barry Bennett, the
Fresno regional director, welcomed the UFW representatives
saying it was "business as usual
until 5 p.m." when he had orders
from Sacramento to close the
Fresno office until further notice.
Chavez then asked Bennett to
address the crowd gathered outside the office and explain the
current situation and how it would
affect the UFW.
"We expect to be back. The
question is what will happen in the
meantime," said Bennett, adding,
"Until we do come back, the only
thing that binds the (different)
parties (involved) to obey the law
is only their good intentions."
Bennett told the crowd he was
glad to see them and to know they
support the law. He promised
them the law would continue to
operate and any "violations will
be remedied. The question again
is when," he said.
He told the demonstrators that
as someone sworn to be impartial he could say he saw only the
UFW present in support of the
law. "I can also say I wish others
would have been here."