Amsterdam, NY in the 1960's
I
have been a student of the American civil rights movement since checking out a
book on the subject from the Lincoln County Public Library back in the early
70's. During that time, civil rights were predominantly focused on
righting inequality towards the Black population of the United States.
There may have been a little bit in that book about Mexicans given the
Cesar Chavez and United Farm Workers Union picket line demonstrations of the
late '60's. I became absorbed in that book, probably 250 pages - the
longest book I had read by the 8th grade (Harry Potter readers do this casually
by 2nd grade in the modern era). It was evident to me, having been in
primary school in Costa Rica; a homogenous country where everyone looks the
same, is of the same faith (Catholic), and enjoys a dominant middle-class, that
there was a class structure in North Carolina. I guess our eyes are opened when we are in pre-teen years, that everyone is not the same, and that everyone
is not treated the same. My brother Carlos and I were the first Latino
children to enter the Lincoln County Schools in January of 1971, we were a
novelty at best. I often joke that when we entered the school on that
day, there were little white boys and girls, little black boys and girls, and Carlos
and Luis Lobo. By the time I was reading that book in the 8th grade, four
years after our arrival, I could also see a distinction in economic class.
I
have wondered why I became interested in the subject matter at such a young
age. Now, I am sure it was because I was trying to find "ME" in that
book. Latinos did not exist in the national dialogue of civil rights, or
for that matter in any other dialogue given a 4% representation of the American
population until the late '80s. The Latino population primarily existed in NY made
up primarily of Puerto Ricans arrived after WWII; in Miami made up of Cuban
refugees from the Castro revolution of the early 1960's; and the TexMex and
CaliforniaMex of 400 years ago.
There
was a wave of Costa Ricans that followed my father, Gerardo "Jerry"
Lobo, first from Costa Rica to
Amsterdam, NY in the early '60's, with many of these early immigrants creating
the Costa Rican settlements in north New Jersey, given the economic
decline of upstate NY by the late '60's. My father was part of FAB
Industries, and was relocated to Lincolnton, NC in 1969. Thus began a vast
migration of Costa Ricans from the north to what became known as LincolnTICO (Lincolnton) , and then later a direct destination from Costa Rica.
Then
came the "Great Latino Migrations" of the 1980's driven by murderous
civil wars in El Salvador and Nicaragua, where socialism was trying to
overthrow US backed fascism, and most significantly by the collapse of the
Mexican economy and the devaluation of the peso. Waves upon waves
of young Latino men crossed the southern border of the US seeking a better life
for themselves and their families. Most often the male arrives alone,
just like my Dad did in 1964, and in time sends for their loved ones or meets a
significant other here. The US economy was red hot from the mid-80's
through the Great Recession of recent days, and the labor provided by
these immigrants was absorbed by our great capitalistic machine even as their
presence was at first ignored and then derided and politicized by nativists and
right-wing politicians. Today, the Latino population of 50 million, 75% of
them BORN in the US, has become the largest minority.
1/3
of the peoples of the United States are of Asian, African and Latino heritage.
This matters in the conversations of public education, the work force and
the government apparatus. The impact is a game changer in the faith
community where the Latino and Asian communities have propped-up a declining
Catholic Church in America and caused an evangelical explosion in mainline and
independent Protestant churches. It is amazing to me to see that the
largest Protestant church in Winston Salem, also has the largest Latino
congregation in the area, because even churches need new members to stay in
business. This is a far cry from the 26 Catholic families, mainly relocated
from the north, that gathered every other Sunday at St. Dorothy's Catholic Church
in Lincolnton, NC, as we were not large enough to have a full-time priest in
1970.
Last
year I visited Dr. June Atkinson , Superintendent of Schools for NC in Raleigh.
I was referred to her by a friend in DC that had met her at a White House
conference on education. Dr. Atkinson was gracious to receive me even as
I admitted not being sure why I was there, only that my friend had suggested
the meeting. I proceeded to tell her what my new assignment entailed in
my banking career and how surprised I was, being a student of the Latino
culture, that 22% of children 16 and under in the NC schools are Latino. Dr.
Atkinson gently clarified my ignorance by telling me that 50% of children
entering the NC public schools are of Asian, African and Latino heritage.
50%! Then after about 10 minutes she said "Luis, now I know
why you are here. It is for me to introduce you to Robert Landry, most
recently Superintendent of Schools in Davie County, close to where you live,
and he is a native of Puerto Rico". Fast forward to last month, Dr.
Landry will now join our Multicultural Advisory Council. Amazing how
things work!
I
began to attend the MLK Holiday breakfast gatherings in Washington DC many
years ago. It was there that I became more familiar with the heritage,
arts, spirit and impact of the Black community. These gatherings were
filled with joy, preaching and the best gospel music. I began to take my
children with me and witnessed a diverse attendance probably because DC is
global in its population.
Last
year, I attended the MLK gathering here in Winston Salem, it did not look
diverse. Some speaker prompted my memory about the days of when my father
first arrived in Amsterdam, NY in the winter of 1964. President Kennedy had
just been assassinated and the US economy was in a downturn. He was
unemployed for about 6 months, unprepared for a US winter, with holes in the
soles of his shoes. He and his cousin Horacio Lobo and his future
brother-in-law William Montero, lived in a barely heated basement apartment.
They found succor from a Catholic priest, Padre Mauro, an expatriate
Cuban refugee that had fled to Costa Rica, then reassigned to Amsterdam, NY who helped with basic
necessities and job referrals. They were also embraced by Maco and Fela
Rivera and their children, a Puerto Rican family that they met at church.
I had not been back to Amsterdam in 34 years until some years back.
I took my children to see where their grandfather had first settled in
American, but also to give a thank you to this family, that in the teary-eyed
words of my uncles Horacio and William : "that family took away our hunger
many times", tearing-up myself as I write these words. This is the common immigrant story world-wide.
I
believe that my father learned from the Rivera's and Padre Mauro that "a
hand up is NOT a hand out". Then I saw it growing up in NC, when people
would knock on our door at 3:00 am, because they heard that a man lived there
that could help them find a job, a place to live. I remember my father
visiting the local jail to help someone picked up for some infraction. I
remember him helping people fill out their immigration papers, getting a
drivers license, pulling blankets from our closet to hand to someone in need.
At his funeral 20 years ago, my brothers and I stood in line and greeted people
of EVERY race; whites, Asians, Blacks, Latinos, fellow Costa Ricans,
multi-generational. There was a common theme:" you father helped me
get a job, your father helped me buy my house, your father helped me reunify my
family, etc.".
Monday,
I will attend the MLK breakfast again, in Winston Salem. My nephew Andres
Arce Lobo will be my guest, along with a diverse group of team mates.
I
really like the engraved steel weight someone gave me years ago, it reads:
" BE THE CHANGE YOU WISH TO SEE IN THE WORLD".
In the final analysis, your attitude determines your effectiveness in everything, every time! LGL www.LuisLobo.Biz
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