COMMENCEMENT EDITION
City Times sdcitytimes.com
Covering the San Diego City College community since 1945
Volume 76, Issue 2 May 26, 2022
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yo soy gr aduado! 100 students honored at the Chicano-Latina Graduation ceremony
B Y SUSANA SE RRANO Multimedia Editor he gloomy evening did not stop families, fr iends and gr aduates fr om gather ing to celebr ate San Diego City College?s 51st annual Chicano-L atina Gr aduation cer emony. The event was hosted by the Chicana/o Studies depar tment and took place May 20 on the A Building Ter r ace. Attendees wer e welcomed with the sound of popular L atin music. Gr aduates lined up for the ceremony, which is one of many festivities complementing the tr aditional commencement cer emony held at the end of the spr ing semester.
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The Chicano- L atina Gr aduation gives students with Chicanx backgr ounds the oppor tunity to celebr ate their accomplishments with their loved ones in both English and Spanish. The gr aduates enter ed to the song ?Yo Soy Chicano? by Ramon ?Chunky? Sanchez while their families cheer ed them on. The cer emony was full of emotion as ever y student r eceived a sash, with color s and textur e r esembling a tr aditional sar ape. Ever y student had the oppor tunity to speak at the podium and thank their family and loved ones. ?I ?m ver y excited because I never thought I would get her e,? said Aileen Ar echar, a Child Development gr aduate and mother of four. ?A lot of things happened befor e getting her e.? Ar echar said she did this for her childr en. ?I want the best for my childr en and hope they get inspir ed,? she continued. The bilingual cer emony ended with all 100 gr aduates tur ning to their loved ones and clapping as a thank you for all of their suppor t. Left : Sever al st udent s at t he Chicano-Lat ina Gr aduat ion decor at ed t heir caps. Right : A Cit y College st udent smiled at a classmat e in t he fr ont r ow. Phot o by Susana Ser r ano
Chicana/ o
studies
mural
unveil ed
Celebration includes film preview and mural reveal in City cafeteria
B Y K ATH Y A RCH I B AL D Enterprise Editor The Chicana/o Studies depar tment at San Diego City College celebr ated a documentar y pr emier e and mur al
unveiling on May 13, both wor ks shar ing the same name ? ?50 Year s of Chicana/o Studies.? After the 2020 Chicano- L atina gr aduation cer emony was canceled due to COVI D -19, the idea for an on-
The new cafet er ia mur al unveiled May 13 honor s st udent act ivism at Cit y. Phot o by Kat hy Ar chibald
going celebr ation was bor n, coming full cir cle with a completed mur al and the event hosted by Justin Aker s Chacon, chair of the Chicana/o Studies depar tment, dr awing near ly 100 attendees. The documentar y fr om filmmaker Paul Espinosa, and the discussion that followed, highlighted the depar tment and student activism. Attendee Ymoat L una, cur r ently a boar d member of the Centr o Cultur al de la Raza, expr essed gr atitude for the suppor t she r eceived at City and invited cur r ent students to ?continue to make the space your own.? The audience then viewed the finished mur al, complete with a dr um blessing fr om Red Warr ior dr um gr oup. Ar tist Alicia Mar ia Siu explained her pr ocess and pr ovided a r oad map to the dozens of events depicted, including the moment when City stu-
dents hopped on a bulldozer to pr otest in Bar r io L ogan, clear ing the path for Chicano Par k. The sur r ounding ar ea, composed of musical r efer ences, includes cultur al icon Ramon ?Chunky? Sanchez, the Centr o Cultur al de la Raza, and Joaquin ?Quino? McWhinney, whose son, Jakob McWhinney, City Times Media?s managing editor, will gr aduate fr om City in May. Siu said she hopes the space helps empower students to see the unity of differ ent str uggles. ?I t r eally matter s what you see ar ound you,? Siu said. ?I f you change the space, it can empower you to know that you belong.? To read more about the mural, scan the QR code.