CCCC's 2012 Tribute Month
As part of the Centro Cultural César Chávez (CCCC or the 4Cs) tribute month this past April, the OMA gave a presentation on the history of the 4Cs, specifically the 1970s, the years before the official creation of the Centro.
A Brief Overview:
Established in 1972, the original nine members of the Chicano Cultural Center met weekly in the basement of the Milam building. At the end of 1976, the Chicano Cultural Advisory Committee requested that the university provide housing for the Center. The CCC was first given the house at 2475 Orchard Street and later the small house at 1969 SW “A” Street, which was to become the permanent Chicano Cultural Center. On April 13, 1977, OSU President Dr. Robert MacVicar cut the ribbon to symbolically open the new Center to the public.
Name Change:
The center was renamed the Hispanic Cultural Center in mid-1980s, but the final name change came in 1996 to honor Mexican farm worker activist César Chávez. The Centro Cultural César Chávez was established to provide a location and facility for programming various academic, cultural, recreational, and social events related to the Chicano/Latino/Hispanic culture and heritage.
~ Centro Cultural César Chávez website
One of the best resources for OSU history research is the student newspaper, The Barometer. The archives has copies of The Barometer on microfilm and we began the research process in the 1969 issues and looked through each day for articles related to the Chicano Student Union and Latino/a issues in general. During the research process, we noticed that the struggles and challenges faced by the Chicano community were shared with the campus’ African American and Native American communities. While each of these groups made efforts to be distinct, they worked together toward the common goals of promoting greater understanding of their communities’ histories as well as promoting recruitment and retention of minority students.
Here is a selection of the PowerPoint presentation slides:
[To better view the articles in PDF format, click here]
The Department of Health, Education, and Welfare visited OSU March 25-26, 1969 to assess OSU's compliance with the 1964 Civil Right Act
Newly Formed Chicano Student Union, 1970, president: Carlos Martinez
All three minority groups are represented and featured
Fall Term 1977
So, how far have we come?
Ethnic Studies program since mid-1990s
More Minority Student Enrollment
Tribute Month Events for all Four Cultural Centers
New Buildings for all four Centers are planned
Yet, there is still more to do…
