Erased and Invisible History: Armenian Protest in Westwood

On September 22, 1989, a large group of Armenians gathered in front of the Wilshire Federal Building in Westwood to protest Soviet involvement in Armenia, especially over the control of Karabagh (Mullen).  Karabagh is the region between Armenia and Azerbaijan that has historically been connected to Armenia because of its huge Armenian population.  However, during Stalin’s rule, he granted Karabagh to Azerbaijan and reduced the region’s size to cut it off from Armenia.  In the late 1980s, the Azeris blockaded Karabagh and persecuted the Armenians within the region’s borders, which was the focus of this protest (Armenian Research Center).

This protest was significant because it brought together a voiceless minority to show people that the extermination of Armenians in Karabagh is unacceptable.  The location was significant because of Los Angeles’ large Armenian population.  According to “Armenians in Glendale, CA,” Glendale’s Armenian population has been rising since the late 1970s and “contains the largest diaspora of Armenians anywhere in the world.”  Unfortunately, their voices were silenced because there is very little evidence that this protest existed.  However, the silencing of their voices just fueled Armenians to let the general public know that this was not the first time historically that there has been a massacre of Armenians.  In 1915, the Ottoman Empire began “the systematic decimation” of the Armenians within its borders in what is known as the Armenian Genocide (“Armenian Genocide”).  By 1923, 1.5 million, of the 2 million Armenians living in the Ottoman Empire prior to 1915, had been killed (“Armenian Genocide”).  Most countries, including the United States, still do not recognize the Armenian Genocide as a genocide.  The example set by these protesters was one of many that helped pave the way for today’s Armenians to reveal the horrors of the Armenian Genocide, thus giving this protest more significance.

In order to commemorate the erased protest, I created a sign on paper and went to the Wilshire Federal Building to take photographs of my marker.  Initially, I taped the sign to a pillar near the front door, so that I could get some pictures such that the words “Federal Building” could be seen.  However, as soon as I took the pictures, a security guard came out of the building yelling that I could not take pictures where the building had a glass wall and that I could possibly get arrested for it.  He forced me to delete the pictures, after which though, he allowed me to take pictures that included the non-glass wall side of the building, where the name of the building could not be seen.  However, I was still paranoid about getting into trouble for my actions.  So, a few days later, I went back to the Federal Building and took pictures of my marker from the sidewalk, which I know is legal.  Finally, I posted the new pictures to the course blog to spread the word.  In this way, I hope that more people will learn of this protest and the problems Armenians have faced.

Works Cited

“Armenian Genocide.” Armenian-Genocide. Armenian National Institute, n.d. Web. 23 May 2016. <http://www.armenian-genocide.org/genocide.html>.

Armenian Research Center. “Fact Sheet: Nagorno-Karabagh.” UMDearborn. The University of Michigan-Dearborn. 3 Apr 1996. Web. 23 May 2016.<https://umdearborn.edu/dept/armenian/facts/karabagh.html>.

“Armenians in Glendale, CA.” Hayk the Ubiquitous Armenian. Hayk the Ubiquitous Armenian, n.d. Web. 23 May 2016. <http://www.hayk.net/destinations/glendale-ca/>.

Mullen, Mike. Armenian Protest in Westwood. 1989. Photograph. Los Angeles Public Library, Los Angeles. WorldCat. Web. 23 May 2016. <https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:DJpB08XrjGcJ:https://beta.worldcat.org/archivegrid/collection/data/275169086+&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us&gt;.

Manifesto: We Are Indians

Archita Dwarakanath

Renee Hudson

America in the Sixties: Politics, Society, and Culture, 1954 to 1974

14 April 2016

We Are Indians

            We are tired of the stereotypes.  We are tired of being portrayed as socially awkward nerds in the film and television industries.  We are tired of being stripped of our culture and forced to assimilate into a culture that does not respect ours.  We are tired of our culture being appropriated in every facet of life, from music videos to Coachella.  We are tired of the racist questions.  We are tired of being told that we are ugly, smelly people who should not aspire for excellence in anything, except in the academic world.  We are Indians and we are tired.

The time for action is now.  We must live by these principles to gain equal recognition:

• We must not accept the fact that there are not enough roles for Indians in Hollywood and we should not be grateful that Indians are getting any representation at all. We must not audition for roles that force stereotypes upon us.  We must tell our fellow Indian brethren who are actors in America to not audition for roles that portray us as geeks, but rather for more prominent roles.  We must also avoid watching films and television programs that depict us in stereotypical supporting roles.  Without us auditioning for and watching programs that portray us negatively, television and film executives will be forced to heed to our demand to not depict us Indians as nerdy losers.
• We must proudly display our culture wherever we go. We must wear traditional saris, salwars, and kurtas and proudly walk the streets.  We must eat our food amidst an array of various other cuisines to display our love of our food and our culture.  We must speak in our regional dialects, whatever language that may be, to show that we will not succumb to the English-speaking majority.
• We must not indulge in American culture that appropriates our own. We must not watch movies, television programs, and music videos that showcase our culture in a context not our own.  We must not partake in commercialized forms of yoga because they do not reflect yoga as it is intended to be done.  We must not drink chai tea lattes or Americanized forms of Indian food and drink.  We must not attend festivals, like Coachella, that take our cultural signifiers of beauty and Americanize them.
• To accompany the above principle, we must also educate others on the difference between cultural appreciation and cultural appropriation. Showcasing and partaking in our culture as we portray it is appreciation, but molding our culture to fit the needs and desires not our own is appropriation.  We must show others the beauty of Indian festivals and dances and not the appropriated version often associated with the media.  We must teach yoga in Sanskrit as a journey of the body and mind, and not as the quick exercise method it has become.  We must enjoy chai in its simplicity and not give into the masala added by the words “tea” or “tea latte.”  We must teach others about the religious meanings behind the wearing of the bindi and that it is not for everyone to wear.
• We must not let ourselves be deterred by the racial questions that berate us every day. Instead, we must fight back with our words by sarcastically answering questions.  We must not acknowledge those comments at face value, but rather let others know that their words may hurt emotionally, but that they make us stronger as a group.
• We must recognize that we are not ugly, smelly people. We are beautiful, intelligent people, who can and have, achieved in areas of life far beyond the academic world.  We must strive for greatness in whatever facet of life we choose, be that in academics, art, literature, music, film, or sports.
• We must inform our fellow Indian brethren of these principles so that we may stick together. United we can and will stand, but divided, we can achieve nothing.
• We must recognize that above all of our differences, we are Indians, who are proud of our rich heritage. Now, loudly and proudly, we must show America our love for our culture.  We must!

¡Viva La Huelga! ¡Viva La Bandera! for those who can’t access Microsoft Word

For those of you who cannot access Microsoft Office Word, here is the outline. All of the information is here, just the formatting became completely messed up when copying and pasting. Sorry for the inconvenience of the poor formatting. Thank you!

1. Introduction: The United Farm Workers of America is an association founded by César Chávez in 1962 whose mission is “to provide farm workers and other working people with the inspiration and tools to share in society’s bounty” (“Our Vision”). The main symbol of the association is their flag, on which is a black Aztec eagle.  This flag appears in Huelga! by Andrew Zermeño and in Yes on 14 by Louie “The Foot” Gonzalez.  Because both artworks included the flag, I had to ask myself, “How and why is the flag important in each image?”  The flag is important in each image because it helps the images champion the strike and advocate for more rights.
2. Background Information on the Flag
3. Designed by Richard Chávez and César Chávez’s cousin Manuel
4. They used an Aztec symbol because “many Mexican Americans identified with” the Aztecs (Fuentes)
   1. The symbol was a representation of their proud heritage
5. Designed in such a way that it could be easily recreated by the workers on strike
   1. Staircase-like wings
   2. Red with a white circle, in the center of which was a black Aztec eagle
   3. 
   4. The colors are significant because they symbolized how Chávez saw the life of a farm worker
   5. The black symbolizes the hardships that the workers were facing (Fuentes)
   6. The white symbolizes the hope for a better future (Fuentes)

iii. The red symbolizes all that the workers have been forced to sacrifice (Fuentes)

1. The eagle
   1. Faces to the right looking towards the future
   2. There are no talons, thus symbolizing no harm
   3. There is a base, though, which symbolizes “peaceful stability” (Fuentes)
   4. Wings are shaped like indigenous temples (Fuentes)
2. Andrew Zermeño “interpreted the wings as an inverted pyramid” (Fuentes)
   1. Fixed the eagle’s neck because it looked like a turkey’s neck (Fuentes)
   2. Created the poster Huelga!

• Huelga! by Andrew Zermeño (1965)
• 

1. “Huelga!” means “Strike!” in Spanish (Zermeño)
2. Poster came out during the Delano Grape Strike
3. The striker is a member of the United Farm Workers Organizing Committee
4. UFWOC is angry at the growers
5. The man’s brows are furrowed
6. He is screaming
7. Huelga is written in all capitals
8. An exclamation point is used at the end of Huelga
9. Justice is urgent
10. The man on strike is running as seen through the lines behind him
11. The man on strike is “leaping” over the injustices done unto him
12. UFWOC is frustrated and demands justice now
13. The entire poster is a symbol of pride
14.   The use of three Aztec eagles: on the flag, on the shirt, on the hat
15.   The use of only three colors: red, white, and black
16. The same colors of the UFW flag
17. The use of Spanish, the main language of the farm workers and the Chicanos, instead of English
18. The striker is seen wearing a sombrero, not just a normal hat
19. Shows that the farm workers are proud of their heritage and what they are fighting for
20.  Why must the flag be used?
21. The striker is shown gripping the flag fiercely and proudly
22. The man is proud to be on strike because he knows that if he continues, he

will gain the rights and respect he deserves, and thus the pride that the flag

symbolizes seeks to champion the farm workers’ strike

3. Because of the man’s strong grip on the flag, Zermeño is showing that the workers will remain steadfast, so the growers have to meet their demands, and thus advocates for more rights, respect, and a better future, as a whole
4.   How does this image relate to the Chicano movement as a whole?
5. The farm workers fighting for their rights is just one part of the Chicano movement
6. Just like the UFWOC member in the poster, people in the Chicano movement were of Mexican heritage
7. This poster is Chicano art because it is created by a Chicano person about issues relating to Chicanos: more respect, better pay, more recognition, etc.
8. Yes on 14 by Louie “The Foot” Gonzalez (1976)
9. 

1. Importance of Louie “The Foot” Gonzalez (“Luis C. Gonzalez”)
2. Born in Mexico City, but raised in Sacramento
3. Attended Sacramento State University
4. Member of the Royal Chicano Air Force
5. “Collective of activist Chicano artists” (“Luis C. Gonzalez”)
6. Much of his work, including this piece, is centered around his “support for

the farm workers” (“Luis C. Gonzalez”)

1. “Viva La Huelga” means “Long Live the Strike” in Spanish (Gonzalez)
2. The phrase is clearly indicative of Gonzalez’s support of the strike
3. The saying itself is significant because it was the official “battle cry”

of the farm workers’ movement

3. The saying has been featured on other posters
4. This poster both promotes the farm workers to strike and persuades others to not indulge in luxuries that cause others harm
5. The many phrases
6.     “Boycott Gallo” (Gonzalez)
7. References Gallo Wines
8. In the background on the red-orange sign
9. I interpreted this as the phrase is written on the blood and sweat

of the workers that Gallo Wines treats badly

1. By doing this, he is letting others know of the horrors occurring

to the farm workers without verbally explaining the details

1. By including this phrase, he is not only reminding the workers of the

horrors they face to keep their morale up to strike, but is also dissuading

others from buying Gallo Wines by showing the horrors that come in

producing them

2.     “Yes on 14” (Gonzalez)
3. Proposition 14: Agricultural Labor Relations-Initiative Statute (Chavez)
4. Was going to amend the Agricultural Labor Relations Act of

1975 (Chavez)

1. Established collective bargaining (Chavez)

iii. Revised “the appointment process of members to the

Agricultural Labor Relations Board” (Chavez)

1. Gave union workers more rights (Chavez)
2. Allowed “farm workers to vote for or against union

representation through secret ballots” (Chavez)

1. By including this phrase, he is not only reminding farm workers that

there is a way to gain more rights (through Proposition 14) if they

continue to strike, but is persuading others vote on that issue and “Help the

Farmworkers”

3.      “RCAF” (Gonzalez)
4. Acronym for the Royal Chicano Air Force
5. Makes it personal, and thus relatable, because Gonzalez is a member
6. Giving the stamp of approval on the poster
7. People in the poster
8.      Everyone is on the field, the place they work, thus showing that they are

standing their ground

1. Important that they are on the field because their blood, sweat, and tears

go into making the grapes grow in the fields

2.       The people in the background are together, no individual can be

pinpointed

1. Shows unity and strength in numbers
2.       The man in the foreground is holding a bullhorn
3. Shows that the workers are not afraid to speak out against the injustices

that occur to them everyday

1. They want the growers to know that they are loud and they are proud
2.        Why must the flag be used?
3.     The mass of people is united under the flag, physically and

emotionally

1. Without the flag the way it is juxtaposed on the poster, it is difficult to

tell whether the masses are on strike or just watching the display

1. The flag gives the masses of people the identity of a unified group of

strikers

1. That unity that the flag symbolizes champions the strike
2. Acknowledges that the strike is unifying the people
3. With strength in numbers, anything can be accomplished

iii. The strikers’ united front cannot back down until the

rights they deserve are received, and thus advocates for a

better future

2.     The flag helps identify the man as a strong, confident leader
3. The man’s attire is authoritative, like an overseer
4. Looks like Mr. Sir from the movie Holes
5. Farm owners were known to berate their workers and carry around

bullhorns to ensure that they did their work

1. Without the flag, the man looks like a mean farm owner, instead of a

strike leader

1. The man is actually a labor protestor named José Montoya (Chavez)
2.       How does the image relate to the Chicano movement as a whole?
3.    The use of RCAF
4.     The whole poster revolves around the farm workers’ strike, which was a

part of the Chicano movement

3.    The persuasion of boycotting organizations that denied respect and rights
4.     The poster is Chicano art because it is designed by a Chicano artist about

Chicano themes

1. Conclusion: In Huelga! by Andrew Zermeño, the flag is a symbol of pride, while in Yes on 14 by Louie “The Foot” Gonzalez, the flag is a symbol of identity and unity. Although both images use the flag in different ways, they are able to accomplish the same goal of championing the strike and advocating for a better future.  Neither image could have succeeded without the use of the flag.
2. Discussion Questions
3. What other ideas could a symbol, such as this flag, symbolize to the people it represents? Why is it important that it has these symbolisms?
4. Earlier I mentioned that the flag has a black Aztec eagle on it. What is the significance of the black eagle to the farm workers as compared to the bald eagle of today?

Works Cited

Chavez, Ricardo. “Louie “The Foot” Gonzalez.” Selected Works from the Sacramento State Art

Collection. Ed. O’Brien, Elaine. California State University, Sacramento. 5-6. Web. 4 Apr. 2016. <http://www.csus.edu/indiv/o/obriene/Home%20page/

SelectedWorksfromtheSacramentoStateArtCollection.pdf>.

Gonzalez, Louie “The Foot.” Yes on 14. 1976. Silkscreen.

Fuentes, Ed. “How One Flag Went From Representing Farmworkers to Flying for the Entire

Latino Community.” Takepart. n.d. Web. 4 Apr. 2016. <http://www.takepart.com/article/

2014/04/02/cultural-history-ufw-flag>.

“Luis C. Gonzalez (aka Louie-the-Foot).” UC Santa Barbara Library. UC Santa Barbara, 2010.

Web. 4 Apr. 2016. <http://www.library.ucsb.edu/special-collections/cema/

louie_the_foot>.

“Our Vision.” United Farm Workers. ¡Si Se Puede!. The United Farm Workers. 2016. Web. 4

Apr. 2016. <http://www.ufw.org/_page.php?inc=about_vision.html&menu=about>.

Zermeño, Andrew. Huelga!. 1965.

 

 

 

 

¡Viva La Huelga! ¡Viva La Bandera! by Archita Dwarakanath

The copying and pasting did not work properly, so please click on the link below to access my outline. Thank you!

presentation outline