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Longtime Eastside Riverside residents Suzie Medina and Melba Scott discuss their life experiences growing up in the Eastside community and its changing nature today. They begin by first detailing their family histories of moving to Eastside before discussing school degradation in Riverside public schools and the Freedom Schools they attended as children. They discuss the racism and discrimination they experienced during this time, but highlight the strong multiracial community support and solidarity networks that Eastside experienced. Later on they detail the changes that took place in the Eastside community, with many new residents moving in without connection to the community and its support system, in addition to the growth of gang activity. Further, they discuss the failures of nonprofits and other outside organizations to support the Eastside in their refusal to listen to resident needs. They also highlight the role of Lincoln Park as a central Eastside community site for celebrations and activities throughout the oral history. They discuss Eastside locations such as the Eastside bungalows, Hollows and Green Hollows, and March Air Force base’s and other industries’ roles in the area. In closing, they conclude by sharing stories of racial segregation and discrimination at Riverside’s Mission Inn.
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Pictured here in a partially colorized black and white image are the 1929 dieciséis de septiembre queen and her court in Redlands, California. Queen Lucy Hernandez and her court, consisting of Encarnacion "Chon" Manzano (left), Mary Macias (second from left), Josefina Lara (second from right), reigned over a daylong fiesta complete with a parade, music, and dancing. September 16, dieciséis de septiembre, or Mexican Independence Day, was and continues to be a major event on the social calendar of Mexican American barrios across Southern California.
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"Amelia (Sadie) Cordero is shown here in front of the family home at 305 High Street in the early 1930s." (Vasquez and Carpio, 25) Amelia wears a drop waist dress with her hair pulled back in finger waves.
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Leo Cordero posing with a 1927 car outside his home on High Street. Like many working class people he benefited from the improved roads and access to motorized vehicles. "He and his family would travel to job sites across California." (Vasquez and Carpio, 43)
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Black and white photograph of Sadie Cordero and her three children, a daughter and two sons, picking grapes in Salinas, California. Some Mexican American families in California would go pick various California produce in the Summer and Fall. Some picked apricots in Hemet, walnuts in Concord, stone fruit in Fairfield, and other crops. For many, following the crops was a matter of survival in the absense of local, full-time, year-round work. Families would spend summers and the early fall months harvesting crops throughout California and other parts of the West.
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Black and white fourth-grade class photograph of Lincoln School in Redlands, California taken in 1935. This was the classroom of Nellie Hernandez. On the photograph, Nellie has labeled some students.
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"Students cross Fern Street in front of Redland High School in the 1940s." (Vasquez and Carpio, 50)
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Black and white photograph of a member of the Roque family posing in uniform during World War II under a tree.
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Margaret Roque Castro pictured with her older sister, Guadalupe. The Roque family lived in the neighborhood known as "Barrio Judeo." Margaret Roque Castro described the neighborhood: "I was born in a little area right there on Herald Street, they used to call it El Barrio Judeo, because it belonged to some Jewish people. There were several houses, little old houses, but they were, you know, liveable. Then my parents bought that house on Herald Street, 1113 Herald Street. You know, the same street, but farther down." (Vasquez and Carpio, 22)
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Aerial view of the Redlands Valley showing the 1-10 freeway, the city of Redlands and the San Bernardino Mountains including Mount San Gorgonio. Most likely taken in the 1960s.
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Color photograph of the Lupe Sanchez Band with Blas Coyazo on guitar; Hemet Califorina, New Year's Eve 1964. Blas Coyazo said: "I play the bass guitar and the electric guitar and the electric guitar so for the last fifty years also, or more, out of the eighty-three years that I have, I've been playing with bands in the Inland Empire here. San Bernardino, Colton, Riverside, Hemet, Palm Springs, even Indio and Coachella, Perris, Pomona, Fontana, Bloomington, Corona...Saturday nights I used to go out moslty every week and earn perhaps twenty, twenty-five dollars extra...So I made that as a side work, you know, because I'd -- well, I learned how to play the guitar way back in 1927, '28."
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Anthony Victoria shows the location of and discusses the BNSF intermodal facility in San Bernardino. He speaks about the company’s plans to expand into neighboring communities, and the reasons behind why some people sell their homes to the company while others are unable to, as well as the history of workers of color being exploited by industry in the inland empire. He mentions his own personal history with the pollution and environmental racism in the inland empire.
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Anthony Victoria, an inland empire resident and enviromental justice advocate, discusses the railroad and warehouse industry in San Bernardino and the Inland Empire. He describes the pollution these industries put into the air, and the adverse effects pollution has on the communities of color where warehouses and railroads are built. He also advocates for a shift in the way the average person views their communities to become less consumer-driven and turn focus on decreasing emissions and challenging the large corporations exploiting their workforce. Efforts to reform the local laws and regulations in the Inland Empire, he argues, will allow for the betterment of air quality and force representatives to act in what is best for the communities, and not industry.
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Graciela Mendez, a long-time Los Angeles resident, expresses her experience as a commuter on the 60 freeway that takes her from Los Angeles County to the Inland Empire. She briefly discusses her upbringing in Culver City Los Angeles and the introduction of the Freeway construction and how it transformed the landscape and everyday life, including traffic, time management, safety, and health impacts. In addition to this Graciela speaks on the negative health impacts of warehouses near Jurupa, Moreno Valley, and San Bernardino. Discussing the carelessness of the city and the consequences being pushed on the working class. Moreover her countless years of experiencing environmental inequity with warehouse implementation in low-income working-class communities as well as freeways and truck stops, she became part of the Peoples Collective for Environmental Justice to assist in creating a better future with reduced warehouse expansion and advocating for community health.
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Ana Carlos continues to speak about the effects of warehouse expansion and companies buying up land in her town of Bloomington. She talks about homes being bought up and demolished to make room for warehouses and industrial parks. She also talks about how companies, such as Amazon, have made contributions to schools and promises to replace destroyed trees. These are attempts to gain support for their warehouses. However, Ana Carlos explains that these contributions won’t do much for Bloomington. Ana Carlos also recalls seeing similar warehouse expansion in Fontana and Riverside, all in the Inland Empire. Ana Carlos also comments on poor air quality affecting students' health, with increasing cases of Asthma. As well as the heat island effect caused by concrete.
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In this interview, Ana Carlos speaks about the expansion of warehouses in her, unincorporated, city of Bloomington, which is in the Inland Empire. Ana Carlos speaks about her group, concerned neighbors of Bloomington, and the support they have gotten from assembly members. She also speaks about her family, her farm, and her family’s history. Ana Carlos also talks about how warehouses have expanded in Fontana. This was done through companies like Amazon buying up land from residents. Ana Carlos also expands on how Bloomington’s Mac has let down the community. They say that they let the warehouses be built for the community. However, Ana Carlos states that the jobs they bring aren’t good and they also destroy homes and bring pollution. Finally, she talks about how an industrial park is going to be built in the middle of a residential zone.
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Jose Jimenez, a teacher and UCR alumni, speaks about how San Bernadino, and his neighborhood, have changed over the years that he has lived in the city. These changes were brought about by the building and expansion of warehouses in the city. Jimenez speaks on how these warehouses, namely those owned by Amazon, have potentially led to detrimental effects on resident's health, safety, and quality of life. Mainly from the resulting pollution that these warehouses create. He also speaks on his involvement with activist groups such as the PC4EJ who are working to protect public health and the environment in the Inland Empire. Finally, Jose talks about his hopes for the future and why he believes telling his story is important.
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Ernest "Jimmy" Medina discusses his life growing up in the Inland Empire. Additionally, he discussed his father's involvement in the bracero program and the citrus industry.
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This is one of the only known photographs of the Redlands Floral Plunge. Located on Oriental Avenue, the "Mexican Plunge" was built and run by the House of Neighborly Service, a Presbyterian community service orgnanization that provided everything from cultural enrichment to after school programs, childcare, and laundry facilities. Located a short distance up the railroad tracks was the Sylvan Plunge, a much larger and better-equipped facility open to Mexicans one day a week - the day the pool was cleaned. Although the Floral Plunge was used by many in the Mexican community, some parents refused to allow their children to patronize segregated facilities in a town where they "paid taxes, worked hard, and owned homes," as noted by Carl Sepulveda. In the 1960s, the aging Sylvan Plunge was desegregated, and the Mexican Plunge was turned into a private swim club for Anglo youth. By the 1980s, both pools had been demolished. In the photo is Richard Alvarez, the lifeguard who is standing with arms crossed.
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Black and white photograph of the Federico Family pictured in Redlands in 1895. "From left to right above are (first row) Alejito and his father, Alejo; (second row) Alejo's daughters Jesusita, Mariana, Mercedes, and Eleanor. The Federicos moved to Redlands shortly after this photo was taken. Mercedes married Quintin Verlarde of Redlands, two of their grandchildren, Rita Radeleff and Lee Richardson donated photos, documents, and interviews for this collection." (Vasquez and Carpio, 12)
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Black and white photograph of a group of six men in a truck bound for citrus picking circa 1938. Pictured is Joe Hernandez standing center on the truck along with Ismael "Smiley" Tejada (Standing on the truck's running board).
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Black and white image of the Mexican Drum and Bugel Corps marching down Colton Avenue during the Dos de Abril festivities in the late 1920s. Two members of the band, Samuel "Sam" and Nick Coyazo were members of the group and are labeled in the image with arrows. The band was sponsored by Mexican patriotic and fraternal organizations which were often a pillar in Mexican American communities.
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Black and white image of Samual R Coyazo standing on the bed of a truck. Taken in 1947 the image shows Samual known as "Sam" at Western Fruit Growers where he was a foreman. Handwritten on the photo is "Sam Coyazo, 1128 Lawton Street. Redland California, Best wishes to you always, phone 25636"
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Sam Coyazo Jr. in front of his home on Calhoun Street in 1949 during a rare season where Redlands received snow. On the photograh is written "Sam M. Coyazo Redlands Jan 1949."
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"The Guzman family settled in Redlands before it was founded in 1888. Jesusita Guzman and Mercedes Velarde were sisters from the Federico family." (Vasquez and Carpio, 12) The black and white photograph shows Jesusita Guzman (standing), Richard Guzman (Standing Foreground), Epimenio Guzman (seated), Carlos Guzman (seated on lap).