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Take it From Us, Wait and See About the Latino Mayor Dear LA, LA, I hope that your Antonio Villaraigosa works out better than Ron did for us, but just in case here are some words of warning of getting a new Latino Mayor. Ron Gonzales also made history as San Josˇ's first Latino Mayor since California became a state in 1850. Back in 1998 good Hispanics everywhere were raving about the gains Latinos had made all over the country in politics by electing Latinos into top political positions, both Democrat and Republican. Over 80% of Latinos who voted in 98' in San Josˇ, voted for Gonzales. We were backing him not only because his name was Gonzales, but also because he promised to improve things we cared about like, our schools, affordable housing, our neighborhoods, and to cut down the traffic. Sounds familiar? Villaraigosa also makes these focal to his campaign as Mayor of LA. But the way our Latino Mayor has gone about these things however are changing the face of San Josˇ forever, and not the way we hoped. Instead of holding our existing community as an asset, he sought to push it out and bring in something new. His commitment to the community has used the language of reinvestment and revitalization only to mask the reality of gentrification. People who were already living in San Josˇ, cooped up with many families under one roof or cramped in an apartment just to make the rent didn't get any relief from their situation. More and more families had to move to the Central Valley, if they were that lucky. Along with that they stripped thousands of families and businesses from the security they felt of owning their own homes and businesses in a large part of the east side. The city approved the use of eminent domain to continue the makeover of the city, that could not include established businesses. In our downtown, this is evident by the myriad of empty storefront businesses. Villaraigosa also supports ŅrevitalizationÓ to LA's downtown, which he acknowledges is also going through an unprecedented transformation. But just because both of are mayors are Latino, does not mean they came from the same background, that might be the saving difference for you LA. Gonzales comes from a high tech background, working as an Executive for Hewlett Packard, and his loyalties seem to express that more than the Latino community ties he once talked about. Since his election, Mayor Ron Gonzales has been busy turning his cheek to the people who elected him and holding the hand of business that contributed hefty sums to his campaigns. After all, that was his background, but the City of San Josˇ shouldn't be severed and sold off in pieces to the highest bidder, because (empty) trendy condos and an extravagant city hall with outrageous price tags don't define San Josˇ , it's people do. Villaraigosa does have a different story, coming from a background of community service, from his student activism days to heading the ACLU of Southern California, and becoming an elected official. But I hope he remains true to those that have supported him on his way to becoming the new mayor of Los Angeles. Just because both mayors run cities where over a third of the population is Latino, they would have never been elected if they didn't appeal to a majority of their city's constituents. Their gains shouldn't be exalted, just because they are Latino. We should be happy that they have the privilege of representing us, but we should wait to see if the actions of our mayors are beneficial to our communities before we dream up fantasies that a historic shift actually creates positive change for our cities. Good luck LA.
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