Depression-era Latinos turned Lemon Grove into lemonade when they fought against segregation. Paul Espinosa won an Emmy Award for his inspiring documentary that showed that in the doctrine of “separate but equal” schools for minorities were indeed separate but far from equal.
Espinosa was on hand at the Centro Cultural de la Raza to show his classic documentary “The Lemon Grove Incident.” The San Diego Labor Council screened the film as part of its 100th anniversary because it is an example of citizens fighting for their rights in San Diego County. A packed house at the Centro gave the film a standing ovation.
“This was a battle for the hearts and minds of our children,” said Espinosa, whose film is considered core curriculum in universities across America.
In the 1930s the Lemon Grove Grammar school was enrolling a steady number of Latino children. The school board decided to build a separate school for the Latino children, limiting their exposure to a quality education and interaction with white children. Parents of the Latino children joined forces and sued the school board, winning the first successful challenge of school segregation in the country and laying legal groundwork for the seminal 1954 Brown vs. Board of Education ruling which fueled the American Civil Rights Movement. “The Lemon Grove Incident” is a docu-drama featuring interviews with people who participated in the case and reenactments in English and Spanish.
Espinosa said he grew up in New Mexico but lived in San Diego from the late 1970s to 2004.
“I am interested in the U.S. Border region because I lived my whole life in this region,” he said. “It is a very rich region in terms of storytelling. It is a region in which two societies are coming together and are trying to make sense of each other.”
Elizabeth Newman at the San Diego Labor Council said her organization has been fighting for freedom of speech since 1912 when some citizens were assaulted and imprisoned for speaking on soapboxes in the streets and expressing their beliefs.
“The IWW used public speaking as a way to recruit union members to create a consciousness in workplace issues,” said Newman. “Free speech is relevant across the country. Struggles that existed in 1912 are still relevant today.”
Fred Lonidier, professor of visual arts at UCSD, said that just because free rights are written on paper does not mean they exist.
Lorna Zukas, professor of sociology at National University, said she was interested in learning about San Diego history and asked Espinosa to show his film at the Centro.
“I fundamentally believe that it’s very important that universities get out and interact with the public,” said Zukas. “Then we create this community-university dialogue.”
When Zukas was the director of the Center of Cultural and Ethnic Studies at National, her job included and creating community events.
“I go wherever I can express, explain, and educate,” said Zukas. “Free speech means being able to say what needs to be said responsibly.”
Espinosa agreed.
“We are not going to continue to be free if we do not stand up for our rights,” he said.