Guest Column

Who or What is LULAC?

By Carlos L’Dera*

I was heavily involved in the civil rights movement of the 1960’s. Back in those days, you would be hard pressed to find anyone who was unfamiliar with the NAACP. The NAACP was prominent and active. Although its leadership recognized the importance of relationships with officials, they never lost sight of their mission and were always cognizant of their priorities. But who ever heard of LULAC in the 1960’s?

Now let’s fast forward to the late 1990’s and early 2000’s. Just about everyone is still aware of whom the NAACP is and what the organization stands for, even though their basic goal was met by the passage of the 1964 civil rights act. Conversely, ask someone who, or what, LULAC is and more often than not you will get a blank stare at best. It made sense that the NAACP was more recognized in the 1960’s, but in the 2000’s?

The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) claims to be the oldest and largest Latino organization in the United States. That may be, but it is rapidly losing its standing as a viable civil rights organization by placing higher priorities on "political correctness" and being able to hobnob with elected officials than on the tedious and hard work involved in civil rights.

People don’t know the name of LULAC because LULAC isn’t in the forefront of the civil rights movement of today the way the NAACP was in the 1960’s. Instead, LULAC has become an organization that jumps on the publicity bandwagon whenever an issue hits the news, but fails to either initiate or involve itself in controversial issues that don’t have media attention.

LULAC needs a major priority adjustment.

LULAC officials must first remember that LULAC is an organization of American Citizens and that its members are obligated to follow and obey the law. Recent events in which LULAC endorsed, directly and indirectly, illegal immigration, driver’s licenses for illegal aliens, etc. are in direct contrast to the Constitution and bylaws of LULAC.

Next, LULAC officials must remember that hobnobbing with elected officials that are acting contrary to the interests of Latino citizens, thereby ignoring the purpose of LULAC, is not only hypocritical, but detrimental to the credibility of the organization.

LULAC needs to take action, not engage in posturing.

The most important item on the LULAC agenda in Los Angeles should be education. Angel G. Luevano, the State Director for California LULAC, has stated "Education is the major Civil Rights issue of the 21st Century for our Community. Education is the great equalizer and we can ill afford that Latino Students are being left behind".

Article III, number 5, of the LULAC constitution calls for LULAC members "to combat with every means at our command all un-American tendencies and actions that deprive American citizens of their rights in educational institutions, in economic pursuits and in social, civil and political activities".

Why then is LULAC consistently ignoring problems in California education that impacts kids of all ethnicities, but especially Latinos?

For example, the Los Angeles County Office of Education may lose $210 million in federal money that is designated to provide day care for 24,000 poor children because of mismanagement (and other problems) at 28 Head Start centers. In an apparent attempt at covering up its own failure, and redirecting culpability, LACOE has threatened to shut down the only Head Start program in Los Angeles County that was given a clean bill of health by the federal government. The Latin American Civic Association runs that one agency.

Another example is Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who campaigned with a promise to become involved in meaningful reform of the LAUSD. Now the mayor is refusing to back a bill by State Senator Gloria Romero that would give him authority to do so. Worse yet, Villaraigosa is deliberately blocking those victimized by LAUSD incompetence and misconduct from participating in his so-called "education committee". Included on the committee, however, are some of the very people that have helped destroy the LAUSD. In fact, one of the Mayor’s picks participated in the cover-up of misconduct so severe that National LULAC passed a resolution condemning it. Despite this, apparently fearful of offending the mayor, LULAC has taken no positive action to effectuate any form of correction.

LULAC needs to take action if it wants to regain credibility.

LULAC leadership seems to believe that public posturing on issues in the news and sucking up to political leaders, even to the point of disregarding the LULAC constitution and bylaws, will bring credibility to the organization. Those leaders are dead wrong. Credibility is not built by ignoring the very people that you claim to represent.

It’s time for LULAC to stop acting like the elitist group it has become and start acting like the civil rights organization it once was. It’s time that LULAC remember that it is an organization of American citizens, not illegal aliens, and start dealing with issues pertinent to Americans. Most of all, it’s time for LULAC to stop playing political games with our kids, as Mayor Villaraigosa, LACOE, the LAUSD, and so many others have done and continue to do.

If LULAC wants to be recognized as a legitimate organization, it will have to act like one.

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Carlos L’Dera is the founder of Parents Demand and the Chairman of the California LULAC Education Commission. He can be reached at FixOurSchools@ParentsDemand.com or (661) 242-2533.

*(HispanicVista.com Editor's note: Though not stated by Mr. L'Dera, his comments are strictly his own opinion which may or may not be shared by other members of LULAC. Mr. L'Dera submitted a fax Newsletter bearing LULAC's name and logo indicating that on January 2004, he was elected as Treasurer of LULAC's California's newly formed District 8. HVC was not able to determine whether Mr. L'Dera is in fact the Chairman of the California LULAC Education Commission.)

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