Loading...
Identifier
BarerraTony_2012_CRP
Description
Salinas city council member Tony Barrera uses stories to illustrate what life was like growing up as a Mexican immigrant in the early 1960s. He gives life advice base on his many experiences as a community activist. Tony and his family moved from Sinaloa México to the border towns of San Jose Arizona and later to the Imperial Valley in California. Both his parents were migrant workers and as such, Tony was able to help in the fields on an as wanted basis with friends for fun. Historical events such as the Farmworker's strikes led by Cesar Chavez are forever marked in Tony’s early childhood memories. As a teenager he involved himself with sports and volunteered with the Boys Club (now the Boys and Girls Club) where he found positive influences that helped him gain a passion for community work. It was through his early experiences with community groups that highlighted his natural ability to lead. As a young adult he married, started a family, and took an interest in his children’s schools in Salinas, finding himself active in city community projects and at city council meetings. In this interview Tony touches on the diverse community of Salinas that enhanced the entrepreneurial businesses sector. He has been witnessing to business owners having uncovered the right supply and demand and now having passed on various businesses to their children and employees who have learned the system along the way. Barrera supports these businesses strongly and believes that the individual has power over his own life and a responsibility to the community overall. It was the strong work ethic he learned through his mother, particularly for being Latino, where Tony really learned the importance of community activism. Since community work came naturally to Barrera, he became the board director of Dorothy’s Place in Chinatown when it first opened in 1982. Barrera reflects on Chinatown as a "mini Las Vegas" with the original Chinese and Japanese stores and restaurants when he was seventeen, however some things have changed over the years the neighborhood has transformed into a neighborhood full of illegal activity. In contrast, he is now confident in the strength CSUMB has provided for the people in Chinatown and speaks highly of the hope the Chinatown Community Garden has provided for so many. The themes of family, community activism, and changes within the Latino culture were represented throughout this interview. Tony’s overall message is to encourage younger generations to do well for themselves so they can ultimately do well for their community, for here is nothing more rewarding than helping out others.
Interview Date
10-8-2012
Interviewer
Jessica Brightman
Geographic Coverage
Salinas (Calif.)
Subjects
Chinatown (Salinas, Calif.); Mexican American families; Imperial Valley (Calif. and Mexico); Local government--California; Civic leaders; Cultural pluralism; Community development, Urban
Type
Moving Image
Genre
Oral histories
Digital Format
video/mp4
Language
eng
Digital Collection
Chinatown Renewal Project
Repository
Archives & Special Collections of California State University, Monterey Bay
Disclaimer
These oral histories express the personal views, memories, and opinions of the interviewee. They do not represent the policy or views of California State University, Monterey Bay.
Recommended Citation
Barrera, Tony and California State University, Monterey Bay, "Interview with Tony Barrera" (2012). Chinatown Renewal Project. 16.
https://digitalcommons.csumb.edu/ohcma_chinatown/16
Rights Statement
