Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Reddit As I drive through the City of Anaheim (Anaheim) down streets like La Palma Avenue, Lincoln Avenue, and Beach Boulevard I cannot help but notice the new developments being built. New luxury housing units and businesses to “revitalize Anaheim.” While the City moves rapidly on these revitalization efforts, young people like me are being left out of these conversations. I moved to Anaheim from the Inland Empire in 2019 to pursue a job opportunity that I could not pass up. I thought I would be able to afford my own apartment after a few months of saving ..read more

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Reddit If you’ve followed our work over the years, maybe you’ve noticed— Over the past year, Chispa has been more active in the City of Anaheim. For an organization historically focused in Santa Ana, but with aspirations to become a political home for young Latinxs countywide, this was a big milestone. It happened just as Chispa began: with a small cohort of Anaheim based members and staff seeing a need for young people to lead and make  an organizing intervention in response to political corruption at City Hall, and pull the organization to meet the mo ..read more

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Reddit A year ago, the FBI announced an ongoing investigation into political corruption by disgraced former Anaheim Mayor Harry Sidhu. Behind closed doors, Sidhu sought to undersell the Angel Stadium, a publicly-owned property, in exchange for one million dollars for his political campaign.  The blatant corruption within our City Hall became undeniable.  For many of us who feel the consequences of corruption, it confirmed what we already knew; the City does not prioritize its majority working class residents. Our elected officials’ loyalty lies wit ..read more

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Reddit I’ll never forget it. It was my first semester at California State University, Fullerton and I had recently transferred from Santa Ana College. My experience there had sparked a love and passion for my community. The first time I heard about the water drops was during a Movimiento Estudiantil Chicanx de Aztlan (M.E.Ch.A.) de CSUF meeting. Leaders from the Border Angels LA/OC chapter came in to speak and present to us. I saw the amazing programs they hosted locally, including the Day Laborer Outreach. When they spoke about the water drops, a program th ..read more

This summer, Black-led organizations and communities of color throughout California demanded that the bloated budgets allocated to local law enforcement be diverted to the social services and infrastructure that our communities need to survive and thrive. Calls to #DefundPolice and reinvest our tax dollars directly into our communities reverberated through social media and city council chambers.Communities large and small urged local electeds to re-invest in affordable housing, community-based mental health support, youth programming, and more.  Our movements are gaining momentum and as ..read more

We’re nearing two months since California issued its shelter-in-place in order in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. While the statewide quarantine begins winding down, with beaches and some businesses opening, we’re sober to the fact that the last month and half has taken its toll. The degree and speed of change to our daily lives has left me in a state of shock. I can say with absolute honesty that I felt dazed all of March and the better part of April. Of course, I’m not the only one, and throughout these last two months I’ve found myself dedicating a lot of time to check in with my co-wo ..read more

I remember waking up the morning of November 9, 2016 feeling dazed. What the polls, the pundits, and even my own instincts told me wouldn’t happen–happened. Trump was president. As voters across California receive their ballots to vote on a frivolous recall election championed by Republicans driven, not by a serious plan to lead California, but by an instinctual desire to oppose everything our communities have and continue to fight for to make our California a better state for young people, working people, women, immigrants, and communities of color–I am reminded of how close we are to reliv ..read more

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Reddit What is the point of replacing a racially biased and classist system with another that will continue to feed mass incarceration and pretrial racism? That is essentially what Proposition 25 would do. Prop 25 carries the optics of victory, but a more harmful future for people most impacted. The proposition aims to bring an end to the unjust and unfair money bail system in California. At face value it sounds like a great thing. For decades, the money bail system has criminalized poverty and favored the rich, who when charged with a crime can afford to b ..read more

Police violence is once again dominating the national discourse. Though George Floyd was murdered hundreds of miles away, the same structural injustices that made officer Derek Chauvin feel protected enough from any consequences to take George’s life even as cameras filmed, permeate the entire country, from large metropolises to small towns, and places in between like Santa Ana. The city of Santa Ana is well acquainted with police violence. Just last month, a video of two officers appearing to brutalize and harass an older man made the rounds on social media. City officials and the Police De ..read more

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Reddit Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. I’ve had this drilled into my head since my mom made my avena every morning before school. Even to this day, if I skip breakfast, I feel tired, cranky and unmotivated. Food is fuel and starting out the day without fuel feels like I’m setting myself up for a long, winding day and loud tummy rumbles. Personally, I love food and my favorite meals will always be breakfast food. It’s also one of the easiest meals to prepare. Take some toast, slab some butter with some scrambled eggs and salsa, I’m good unti ..read more