Over a hundred gathered at Mariachi Plaza on Wednesday for the neighborhood’s ninth annual May Day rally, with organizers standing in solidarity with Palestine and shedding light on a range of issues from the presidential election in El Salvador to immigrant and worker rights in L.A.
Some in the crowd wore keffiyehs, a traditional Arab headdress that has become a symbol for Palestinian resistance. Attendees held banners and signs in support of Teamsters Local 396 and calling for legalization for undocumented people. Many chanted “Viva Viva Palestina!”
While May Day is observed on May 1 to honor workers’ rights, activists also use the day to shine a light on many different causes. Attendees spoke about community control over L.A. school districts, defending public education over charter schools, and ending U.S. aid to Israel.
“There’s so many ongoing fights, and it might sound cheesy to say because you hear the phrase everywhere, but there is power in union,” said Itzel Flores Castillo Wang, a representative with Promesa Boyle Heights, who attended the May Day event for the first time. “When a community can come together and talk about their fights, talk about their experiences and fight for what they believe in as a group, it really builds community collective power to change things.”
Members of Centro CSO, a community organization founded in 1947 to support the needs of those living in Boyle Heights and East L.A., hosted the first neighborhood May Day event in 2015 and have organized the event every year since.
This year’s lineup of speakers included Melina Abdullah, who co-founded the L.A. chapter of Black Lives Matter, as well as representatives from the Committee in Solidarity with the People of El Salvador (CISPES), Eastside Padres Contra la Privatización, and Soledad Enrichment Action.
Veronica Hernandez, a speaker from CISPES, shared her experience as an international observer during the recent election of President Nayib Bukele, who although popular in El Salvador for his crackdown on gang violence, has drawn nationwide criticism for human rights violations.
“Bukele and his propaganda would like you all to think he’s adored by all… but the truth is, I saw that these social movements are fighting hard against what he’s doing to their country,” said Hernandez. “They’re fighting for their land rights in the face of predatory tourism.”
A small group of police officers monitored the event.
Carlos Montes, a long-time community activist in the neighborhood, with Centro CSO and FRSO LA organizer, said that the event has often called out police brutality against marginalized communities.
“You have to listen to the people of your community. As an organizer fighting for social justice, you really got to listen to the community, the people and learn and find out what they really want to fight for, help them organize for it. Don’t assume you know what they want,” Montes said.
The Boyle Heights Beat Youth Reporter team contributed to the reporting of this article.
