Spring Break
Getting the youth involved
Michael Pasaoa
Issue date: 5/6/08 Section: News
"How many of you know what social justice means?" asked Maribel Martinez, program coordinator for the Cesar Chavez Community Action Center.
Fifteen students from Ocala Middle School, who took part in the first social justice tour hosted by the Cesar Chavez Community Action Center as part of their Cinco de Mayo filed trip, couldn't think of an answer at the beginning of the tour.
Justine Ouano, senior sociology major and Campus Organization Outreach coordinator, said the center wanted to host a social justice tour of SJSU that highlights all the monuments and significant aspects on campus that promote community involvement and social justice.
"That's something understated in a normal tour," Ouano said. "People don't realize how much history and involvement we've been apart of, so we decided to bring that to light and this is the first one that we're doing."
Ouano said it's great that they've gotten the youth involved in San Jose's significance in history and contributions to society.
"If they decided to come here, they'd have this knowledge already," Ouano said.
Roberto Garcia, a junior sociology major, teaches these students in Entourage, a community service, leadership and service-learning program as a part of the After-School All-Stars.
Garcia said he wanted his students to be exposed to the history that represents San Jose, and a tour would be a great start.
"It represents a lot of the heritage in the city and that would be motivating for them to come to college," Garcia said, "and social justice is another motivating factor."
The students visited the Cultural Heritage Center on the fifth floor of the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Library, Yoshihiro Uchida Hall and the Tommie Smith and John Carlos Statue.
"Have you guys seen him before, the guy in the statue?" one of the middle school students asked. "Oh my God, I want to see him now."
Timbó Temblador, a junior sociology major and program assistant for the Cesar Chavez Community Action Center, said the campus has a lot of cultural and social justice aspects that are rarely heard.
Fifteen students from Ocala Middle School, who took part in the first social justice tour hosted by the Cesar Chavez Community Action Center as part of their Cinco de Mayo filed trip, couldn't think of an answer at the beginning of the tour.
Justine Ouano, senior sociology major and Campus Organization Outreach coordinator, said the center wanted to host a social justice tour of SJSU that highlights all the monuments and significant aspects on campus that promote community involvement and social justice.
"That's something understated in a normal tour," Ouano said. "People don't realize how much history and involvement we've been apart of, so we decided to bring that to light and this is the first one that we're doing."
Ouano said it's great that they've gotten the youth involved in San Jose's significance in history and contributions to society.
"If they decided to come here, they'd have this knowledge already," Ouano said.
Roberto Garcia, a junior sociology major, teaches these students in Entourage, a community service, leadership and service-learning program as a part of the After-School All-Stars.
Garcia said he wanted his students to be exposed to the history that represents San Jose, and a tour would be a great start.
"It represents a lot of the heritage in the city and that would be motivating for them to come to college," Garcia said, "and social justice is another motivating factor."
The students visited the Cultural Heritage Center on the fifth floor of the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Library, Yoshihiro Uchida Hall and the Tommie Smith and John Carlos Statue.
"Have you guys seen him before, the guy in the statue?" one of the middle school students asked. "Oh my God, I want to see him now."
Timbó Temblador, a junior sociology major and program assistant for the Cesar Chavez Community Action Center, said the campus has a lot of cultural and social justice aspects that are rarely heard.
Be the first to comment on this story