The walls inside Room 130 in Jerome Richfield Hall are nearly completely covered with Chicana/o and Latina/o art, protest posters and photographs of demonstrating social justice activists who all happen to be young students. A red flag with the United Farm Workers’ black eagle in the center hangs above a wide table where several MEChA students sit and talk. Among those is 27-year-old graduate student Lucia Laguna, a self-described veteran activist and community organizer with eight years of experience under… Read more

Mayra Amezcua recalls one Christmas as a little girl where she and her older sister, Angelica, were crying and jumping up and down because they unexpectedly received presents from a family they did not know. Mayra, a 20 year-old liberal studies major, said she and her sister Angelica, 22, are CSUN students who come from a working class family. “I know how it feels to receive a gift that you didn’t expect and I want to make them (children) feel… Read more

Members of the Chicana/o studies club, MEChA, traveled to Arizona for a weekend of political campaigning. Students including junior Omar Romero, communications major, campaigned for the congressional candidate for the Democratic party, Raul Grijalva. “I’m a hard-core democrat and wanted to see a democratic candidate elected,” the 20-year-old said. “He (Grijalva) shares the same values and beliefs as me.” Grijalva’s career in public service for Tucson has spanned over 30 years. He has served as the representative for Arizona’s 7th… Read more

Students gathered to celebrate the dead Friday night at CSUN’s Chicano House among skulls, skeletons,  candles and idols. Since the Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano/a de Aztlán (MEChA) chapter was established at CSUN in 1969, it has hosted an annual Dia de los Muertos or Day of the Dead festival to honor and celebrate the lives of those who have died. Every year Dia de los Muertos falls on Nov. 2, but since this year that day fell on a Tuesday, the… Read more

Megan Magers’ uninformed and misguided article titled “Starve the Beast.” Magers’ discourse is racist and violent, especially as she asks, “Why buy the cow when you can get the milk for free?” It seems to be the case that Magers has forgotten about the Constitution’s 13th Amendment, which officially abolished slavery or the declaration of human rights. In response, we, the students of MEChA and CAUSA, remind Magers that this is the country where the 14th Amendement states that we… Read more

A panel comprising professors and students had the opportunity to share its candid thoughts on the recent controversy surrounding the topic of immigration. MEChA hosted the Immigration Forum Thursday afternoon in the Matador Square. The panel’s roster included Chicano/a studies professors Dr. Rodolfo Acuna and Dr. Jorge Garcia as well as four students. The forum tackled immigration issues such as the fight for comprehensive immigration reform, the California and Federal DREAM Act, and the recent Arizona bills that have sparked… Read more

Political issues were close to the surface at the annual Endependence Day event in the Chicano House. The event, which was hosted by MEChA had performances by Danza Mexica Cuauhtemoc, followed by Ballet Folklorico Aztlan de CSUN and the CSUN Mexican Music Ensemble club on Friday night. “The event is mainly to promote self-dependency,” said senior Jose Gomez, 22, MEChA internal chair. Hip-hop artists Sherman and Olmeca also performed. Various vendors tabled at the event, selling items such as handmade… Read more