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Student Views: Should Cabrillo College Change Its Name?
COMMUNITY NEWS Student Views: Should Cabrillo College Change Its Name?
Dr. Adela Najarro, who teaches English 2 in the Puente Learning Communities at Cabrillo College, introduces student essays on the topic, “Should Cabrillo College Change Its Name?”
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In “Composition & Critical Thinking,” known as English 2, students wrote persuasive essays expressing their point of view about renaming Cabrillo College. Students argued both sides of the question after reviewing the issue through sources on the Cabrillo College website and after conDr. Adela Najarro ducting research at the Cabrillo College library databases.
Students volunteered to share their perspectives on this document and at the Cabrillo College name change exploration event April 22 on Zoom and recorded on YouTube. To read these essays, visit tinyurl. com/cabrillo-student-name-essays. (Full URL: https://docs.google.com/ document/d/13Vz_Nb3VN90P3L9YZzGP DSyaHsTmHddw-MF0StY-8I4/edit) •••
Juan Cortez
Cabrillo College should change its name to remove the college from any negative allegations and connections that are being associated with Juan Cabrillo.
Some may disagree with changing the name and see no point in changing it as it could cost lots of money and that history happened in the past and we can’t change that.
Although this is true the world is trying to bring inequality and destroy the hatred that is dividing us more and more. Although we could use Juan Cabrillo as a lesson to remind us of what we shouldn’t do, it may seem like we are honoring the dark side of Juan Cabrillo for having a college named after him. Instead, we should honor the victims affected by Juan Cabrillo.
••• Denise Salmeron
What is in a name? What makes up a name and what is the story behind it? Cabrillo College got its name from Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo who was believed to be a slave owner.
Some might say that changing the name would be the best thing to do and others believe that keeping the name but teaching the students about the name would be better.
What people are forgetting is that we can do both by changing the name and teaching the students about why they decided to change the name.
This topic is controversial because some people would prefer to keep the name of Cabrillo College and teach the students where the name came from and who that person was.
On the other hand, other people would prefer to change the name altogether since it would disrespect the different ethnic groups that attend Cabrillo college.
The people who prefer to keep the name and teach the students about it are not in favor of having Cabrillo spend tons of money that could go to sports, classes, or programs on the name change of Cabrillo. Thus, some people might say that keeping the name and explaining the history would be the best.
In the process of keeping the name the same we are disrespecting the students from foreign countries. Keeping the name the same and teaching the students about where the name came from and who that person was is not enough. Yes, keeping the name the same would require Cabrillo to spend a good amount of money but for those who want to change it we can start a fundraiser.
Starting a fundraiser would benefit Cabrillo so they will not be taking it out of the budget and that money can go to a club or other school activities. In addition, the fundraiser would explain why people want to change the name of Cabrillo. Changing the name while also teaching future and current Cabrillo College students would be the best solution.
Seeing that some people prefer to keep the name and others to change it. My solution would work in favor of both parties.
••• Ariana Santillan-Leon
Finding a means to pay for the school’s name change could prove challenging. Should taxpayer’s money be used to change Cabrillo’s name?
Those who support Cabrillo College may not be happy about how their hardearned money is being used or they could not support the cause as a whole. In addition to the struggle of finding a means to pay for the name change, finding a way around the issue of using taxpayer’s money through an event such as a fundraiser and the current Covid pandemic could present another challenge.
With the precautions being taken to avoid the rapid spread of the Covid 19 virus, the number of participants would be limited and attendance to possible events would be minimal, ultimately damaging the outcome of any fundraiser.
In addition to the challenge with expenses, the reputation of Cabrillo could be lost since the school will seem unfamiliar to many due to the new name. •••
Fernanda Torres Calderon
What are the effects of changing Cabrillo College’s name? What are the effects if we keep the name? If we keep the name, are we contributing to the world in a more positive way than if we were to change it?
There is power in naming things; Cabrillo College’s name affects everybody that interacts with it and sure keeping the name has some good excuses but if we change it we not only make a positive impact for a brighter future but we also honor people who were affected by the European conquest.
The name of Cabrillo College is a representation of the human experience but in a negative way that carries the legacy of inhumane acts that were part of the conquest of the native people that lived in the Bay Area. Growing up hearing about Cabrillo College as a great opportunity to get affordable higher education I never took into consideration where the name came from until now.
The name is something every student uses and it should be changed to represent the students who go there, to represent the path we want to take, to represent who we are as human beings. Changing the name will allow us to honor indigenous protocols and if we keep the name we will continue to honor the colonizers.
The college name shouldn’t be represented by a man who was part of mass genocide because before everything was renamed by the Spanish, the land had been named by the Native Peoples. For the sake of a brighter future, I know that a name with good values is one that makes a big positive impact when people use it.
All things considered, renaming the only community college in Santa Cruz County will allow us to honor the past indigenous people who suffer because of men like Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo.
He committed horrific crimes, however, he is not all at fault for everything he is because we have continued honoring his name and his legacy. As a society we must make the change we want to see in the world and seeing white supremest monuments or buildings named after white supremacist, it is a constant reminder to people of color of the violence and genocide that built California.
We must educate not only ourselves but teach others of past wrongs so we don’t repeat or continue things such as the oppression of people of color. •••
Ariana Perez
For most people, when one thinks about Cabrillo college, the first thing that comes to mind would probably be that it’s a local community college in Aptos instead of automatically thinking about Cabrillo as in Juan Cabrillo as in the Spanish colonizer who enslaved indigenous people.
If we were to keep the Cabrillo name, the money instead could be used for funding programs or assistance for indigenous and other minority students here at Cabrillo as well as making a statement to POC students that this school does not support the beliefs and actions of Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo.
However, it would be nice to have a name change so everyone could be happy realistically, the price is not worth it. Renaming Cabrillo College will cost too much. Therefore we should not rename the school but instead spend those funds on ways to support our indigenous and other minority students.
Many favor the name change due to Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo’s brutality towards others, his involvement in the slave trade, and the lasting adverse effects on its victims. Some think keeping the name is insulting, knowing the brutal history that resonates within it, and believe such a person shouldn’t be glorified.
I think that Cabrillo College should not change its name. Although Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo participated in many horrible actions against indigenous communities and disgraced the school’s name, the millions it would take to change its name could be much better used. If we were to change the name, it’d imply an attempt to erase what once was.
