I Am an American
Idea of community service resonated with Ramon Ramirez
What does it mean to you to be an American?
To live in a country free from discrimination, racism, indifference, xenophobia, and a country where you celebrate diversity, because we are a nation of immigrants. ... For us to survive as a country, we have to honor the diversity that makes up this country.
What moment touched and motivated you to launch this effort?
When I was in high school, I heard Cesar Chavez speak (in 1970). He advocated for kids to go to school, to get an education, to become doctors, lawyers, nurses and educators, and to come back to the community and serve your community. He had this whole concept of community service, and it really resonated with me. ... I wanted to be part of a movement that helped people and helped build capacity in people. It’s kind of like being an educator. When you teach people to read and write, you can never take that away from them. You become a person that empowers others.
What gives you hope or what concerns you?
What concerns me is the political moment that this country’s in, where instead of building bridges of understanding, respecting diversity and honoring the past, there’s a polarization happening, especially against people of color. The moment that we’re in is very dangerous, I think.
What do you hope to accomplish through your efforts?
I think the most important thing is to create change in the community, permanent change in the community. I think we’ve done that by building institutions. We have, for example, our own radio station, and we have a leadership institute called CAPACES. We’re training the future generation to take over the work that we’ve laid out the last 30 years. What I want to accomplish is to make sure that the work is sustained after we’re gone.