Hispanic Heritage Month Update

Today is the halfway point in National Hispanic Heritage Month, which runs Sept. 15-Oct. 15. And as with nearly everything occurring in the midst of a pandemic, the recognition of the history, heritage, and “cultures and contributions of both Hispanic and Latino Americans” probably isn’t getting as much attention as it deserves.

But something historic and Hispanic happened eight days after this symbolic month began that affects every member of the CSUDH community, and any new members for what should be a long time: the naming of Joseph I. Castro as chancellor of the California State University system, the first person of color–and the first California native–to lead the country’s largest educational system.

In our next e-edition, which goes live early Wednesday morning, the Bulletin will include another significant and historic development: production editor Yeymy Garcia’s story on movement around establishing the university’s first Latinx affinity center.

(and if you want a delicious way to cap off Hispanic Heritage Month, check out Melany Ruiz’ killer enchilada recipe elsewhere on our website).

And we can’t mention Hispanic Heritage Month and the Bulletin without mentioning that three days before September began, the Bulletin published a special e-edition commemorating the 50th anniversary of the quite historic Chicano Moratorium March in 1970.

in that e-edition, which you can find here, you can read a story by News Editor Robert Rios about why the march mattered, and what it means today; politics editor Iracema Navarro’s piece on the eerie parallels between America 1970 and America 2020; an opinion piece by news editor Brenda Verano about how the death of journalist Ruben Salazar while covering that march for the Los Angeles Time is both a cautionary and inspiring tale; a story by Destiny Torres, a former staff editor who just wanted to be involved on such a special project and wrote a piece about the Chicanas who contributed so much to the movement, despite facing obstacles.

And you can also get the (very short) story on this photograph, which, without saying a word, expresses just how much the march meant to so many.

And it’s graced by a pretty cool cover by Nova Rico-Blanco.

As this university, which is comprised of approximately 65 percent Latinx students, continues its stride into the future, we thought reminding everybody about some of the ways we got here was important enough to give the editors a near nervous breakdown by publishing a special issue during the first week of the semester.