17 Apr East County Youth Shine at Farmworkers’ Rights Celebration

Pittsburg High School Folklórico and the East Contra Costa-based Mariachi Monumental performed Tuesday as the county Board of Supervisors celebrated local youth and the farmworkers rights movement. (Screenshot by Samantha Kennedy / The CC Pulse)

By Samantha Kennedy

Whether it was taking home an award for leadership or performing traditional Mexican dances between stories of achievements, East County youth represented well at Contra Costa County’s Farmworkers’ Rights Movement celebration.

Three students with ties to Antioch and Pittsburg were among a dozen Youth Hall of Fame awardees at Tuesday’s event that, alongside performances from Pittsburg High School Folklórico and East County-based Mariachi Monumental, celebrated the resilience of farmworkers.

Once named for labor leader César Chávez, the annual event was delayed and renamed this year following an investigation by The New York Times that unearthed allegations he sexually abused fellow activist Dolores Huerta and underage girls.

Chavez’s legacy, however tainted or complicated for many Latinos, added another layer to the event. Board Chair Diane Burgis said the Farmworkers’ Movement remains “rooted in those lasting ideals of fairness and respect.”

“We also recognize that accountability and care must go hand in hand, creating space for truth, for healing, and for those who may have experienced harm is essential,” said Burgis.

But, as promised by a Burgis opening address that praised the Farmworkers’ Movement as much more than one individual, the rest of the event highlighted the community and their struggles.

Jane Garcia, the keynote speaker and CEO of La Clinica De La Raza, said the fight is far from over, citing the impact of the Trump administration’s mass deportations and their economic and emotional toll.

“This is why, now more than ever, we must link arms. We have to do this,” said Garcia. “All of our history, all of our future, is depending on this.”

The message appears to resonate with East County youth, who were awarded for their achievements in leadership and innovation.

“We’re acknowledging all of these amazing farmworker rights efforts and the right of workers to organize into a union to create some fundamental equality, and bargaining and rights,” said supervisor John Gioia. “And the young people that we are recognizing are doing similar great things.”

Morriah Crose, an 11th grader at Pittsburg High, and Samantha Pedraza-Lindsey, an eighth grader at Black Diamond Middle School in Antioch, were recognized with the leadership and civic engagement and innovation and empowerment awards, respectively. Amadeus Castillo, a Freedom High School student in Oakley who serves on the Antioch Council of Teens, received the Good Samaritan Award.

Crose, who is on Pittsburg’s Youth Advisory Commission, was celebrated for her dedication to civic engagement that creates “lasting change,” according to officials.

Pedraza-Lindsey was given a “Rising Star” award for, in part, her “invaluable” willingness “to uplift those around her,” the award states.

Castillo has tutored students, participates in the Latinos Unidos Cultural Club and volunteers with an organization that builds homes and schools in other countries..

Also honored were: Marisela Villezcas of Alhambra High School; Symone Jewell of Northgate High School; Cesia Jesus Gonzalez of Oakland Technical High School; Adya Gupta of Dougherty Valley High School; Eden Rosekind, who is homeschooled in El Cerrito; Claire Cho of Foothill Middle School; Pablo Cabrera of El Dorado Middle School; Soraya Dang of Pleasant Hill Middle School; and Camilla Rodriguez Cantwell of Excelsior Middle School.