The Chicano Moratorium: And East LA Protest That Shaped the Chicano Movement
Cal State Long Beach MEChA delegation and banner
Photo credit: John Rodriguez. Posting credit: John Fernández
By Daniel Hernandez, Los Angeles Times – Aug. 23, 2020
The night before Aug. 29, 1970, a date that would be remembered for dashed hopes and heartbreak, then-9-year-old Consuelo Flores went to bed early, excited for what was to come: a celebratory marcha for peace. It felt like it was going to be a party in her East L.A. neighborhood. Her family made protest signs. She decided to wear her prized red tennis shoes, “the ones that as a child you say, ‘Oh, these make me run fast, and you can run higher.’ ”
The National Chicano Moratorium Against the Vietnam War in East Los Angeles would become the biggest gathering of Mexican American demonstrators in U.S. history to that point, with about 20,000 people parading down Whittier Boulevard to what was then called Laguna Park — before widespread violence erupted when sheriff’s deputies stormed the park and skirmishes followed. Patrol cars and buildings were set on fire… Read Full Article