Magon: The Dreamer Chronicles, Part 1

October 7, 2013 / By Coachella Unincorporated
Tags: Alma Torres, CA Dream Network, CHIRLA, comprehensive immigration reform, DACA, Diana Colin, DREAM Act, immigration reform, Jesús E. Valenzuela Félix, jesus valenzuela, Joaquin Magon, S. 744, UFW, UFW Foundation, United Farm Workers, Wise Up!

    Editor’s Note: This is the first in a series of three reports on the DREAMer movement   The Diary of Joaquín Magón Entry 27: The Dreamer Chronicles, Part 1   It was 2010 and the Immigration movement was at a crossroad— continue advocating for comprehensive immigration reform, or support the Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act, legislation introduced earlier that year by Senator Durbin (D-IL) which would have benefited undocumented youth exclusively, which is the most common version known today (there was a version introduced in 2001 but that, for reasons I’m sure all of you know, failed in a wave of xenophobia and patriotism).

Olive Crest Striving for a Healthier Student Body

October 4, 2013 / By Coachella Unincorporated
Tags: Anayeli Zavala, Building Healthy Communities, Coachella, Coachella Valley High School, desert mirage high school, Dr. Oz, Eastern Coachella Valley, Health Corps, Karla Ramirez, Lisa Hernandez, Maria Garcia, Olive Crest Academy, RAP Foundation, Re-Think Your Drink, Regional Access Project, Riverside County Department of Health, Trinidad Arredondo

  MARIA GARCIA and KARLA RAMIREZ/Coachella Uninc   COACHELLA – Olive Crest Academy (OCA), a public charter high school, is making great strides toward a healthier student body through recent grants from The California Endowment (TCE) and Regional Access Project Foundation (RAPF).

Openly Gay, Secretly Undocumented

October 4, 2013 / By Coachella Unincorporated
Tags: Alejandra Alarcon, brenda rincon, Doug Hairgrove, gay straight alliance, lgbt, New America Media, Palm Springs, Safe Schools Desert Cities, undocumented lgbt, undocuqueer, Warren Wood

BRENDA R. RINCON/New America Media   PALM SPRINGS, Calif. – Juan Ceballos came to the United States so he could live freely as an openly gay man.

Life After Incarceration: Becoming a Mentor for Young Men in Coachella

September 30, 2013 / By Coachella Unincorporated
Tags: Alliance for Boys and Men of Color, aurora saldivar, BMOC, Boys and Girls Club, Boys and Men of Color, Building Healthy Communities, carlos gonzalez, Coachella, Eastern Coachella Valley, ivan delgado, Raices Cultura, Ramon Leija, Riverside County Juvenile Detention Center, the california endowment

  AURORA SALDIVAR/Coachella Uninc COACHELLA — Ramon Leija clearly remembers the moment he decided to turn his life around.

Paved Roads Mean Cleaner Air for Rural ECV Residents

September 25, 2013 / By Coachella Unincorporated
Tags: AB 1318, Alejandra Alarcon, brenda rincon, CV Link, Darin Schemmer, Eastern Coachella Valley, John Benoit, Margarita Gamez, Pueblo Unido, SCAQMD, Sentinel Energy Project, Sergio Carranza, South Coast Air Quality Management District, St. Anthony's trailer park, V. Manuel Perez

    ALEJANDRA ALARCON and BRENDA RINCON/Coachella Uninc THERMAL – Residents scored a major victory in their 16-year fight for clean air when Riverside County was awarded the funding to pave roads at 31 trailer parks in the unincorporated communities of the eastern Coachella Valley.

Volunteer Work Fun and Rewarding for Student

September 23, 2013 / By Coachella Unincorporated
Tags: after school programs, ASES, Coachella, coachella valley unified school district, community service, Eastern Coachella Valley, Karla Martinez, Olive Crest Academy, Peter Pendleton, volunteer, Volunteer Match

  KARLA MARTINEZ/Coachella Uninc   COACHELLA — I never knew hanging out with my little brother could be so rewarding, but this has definitely been the case since I started volunteering at his after-school program at Peter Pendleton Elementary.