Max 20, Ages 14-18

Historically May 1st, also known as May Day and International Workers Day, has been an opportunity to rally nationally about diverse issues including immigration and labor. Who can forget the historic May Day “Day Without Migrants” march of 2006 where more than 500,000 supporters filled the Streets of Los Angeles? This workshop will include an arts and craft component of signage, banners, and Central American art, as well as an informational session on the history of resistance throughout Latin America.

Instructor Bios:

Rocio Veliz is the Youth Program Coordinator and has worked for CARECEN for the past 13 years with a primary focus on youth development through the arts.  In her current position, Rocio implements College Head Start and the Youth Organizing Program, serving over 60 youth with academic enrichment and cultural arts expression. Rocio was born and raised in Pico-Union and is the daughter of Guatemalan immigrants who fled to the U.S. in the early 1980’s in search of freedom and opportunity.

Olimpia Zuniga-Blanco is the Youth/LGBT Organizer and former undocumented DACA recipient. She received her B.A. in Community Studies and Spanish from U.C. Santa Cruz. She co-founded East Oakland DREAMers in 2012 while living in the Bay Area in order to help undocumented students realize their college dream by providing scholarships and a peer-to-peer mentorship program. She first applied and refiled her DACA application at CARECEN and decided to become further involved when she had the opportunity to do field study as a LGBTQ+ Health Access & Outreach Intern. After finishing her Undergraduate Studies, Olimpia became a fellow and consequently a full-time organizer overseeing CARECEN’s LGBTQ+ Youth Cohort and Youth Organizing Program.