[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 33 (Wednesday, March 15, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E376-E377]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                IN HONOR OF THE PREMIERE OF ``WALKOUT''

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. XAVIER BECERRA

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, March 15, 2006

  Mr. BECERRA. Mr. Speaker, facing unfortunate injustices, relegated to 
second class citizenship, and anxious to see change come to their 
classrooms, a group of students banded together in 1968 to protest the 
conditions of their high schools in East Los Angeles. The civil and 
non-violent protest took the form of a staged and systematic 
``walkout,'' which was not only the single largest protest by high 
school students ever in the history of the United States, but is also 
recognized as the event that gave birth to the Chicano civil rights 
movement.
  Today, I rise and pay tribute to the efforts of these students who 
embody change and whose memory reminds us all that peaceful, 
intelligent activism can right egregious wrongs. That reminder is now 
ever more visible as this seminal moment in civil rights history has 
been put to film, premiering tonight here in Washington, D.C., and on 
Saturday, March 18, on HBO.
  Called ``Walkout,'' the film provides a sincere and candid look at 
these student protests

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exploring the reasons and justifications that led to such a dramatic 
and historic move. Executive Producer Moctesuma Esparza and director 
Edward James Olmos have captured the tensions and regretful reality of 
life for Mexican American students in the public high school system of 
East Los Angeles. The movie honors the memory of the struggles and 
obstacles to empowerment that those before us fought so hard to 
eradicate. Today, we pay tribute to Esparza, Olmos, HBO Films and all 
those who played a part in bringing this snapshot of history to life.
  Mr. Speaker, only by dedicating ourselves to remembering how we 
compromised the civil rights and educational achievement of Latinos in 
the past can we renew our resolve to face the current attacks that seek 
to derail the future of our community. In 1968, the Mexican American 
community sent an unequivocal message that transcended the education 
system that sought to suppress them: when equality and opportunity are 
denied, our community will fight back to defend what is right. Through 
``Walkout'', we celebrate this resolve.

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