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PROPOSED RESOLUTION
HONORING THE LIFE OF RAQUEL GUERRERO, COMMUNITY ADVOCATE AND FOUNDING MEMBER OF THE ASOCIACI?N PRO DERECHOS OBREROS
WHEREAS, Raquel Guerrero was a leader, organizer, and activist in Chicago's Pilsen neighborhood for over forty years; and
WHEREAS, Her efforts to support education, culture, and social justice will continue to have a long-lasting impact on her community; and
WHEREAS, In the late 1960's, she played an instrumental role in the boycott and occupation of Froebel High School, then a satellite branch of Harrison High School; and
WHEREAS, These actions were meant to protest against the lack of resources for the school and led to historic walkouts organized by both African-American and Mexican-American students; and
WHEREAS, These walkouts started an education reform movement in Pilsen between parents, clergy, and activists that led to the efforts towards the first public high school in the neighborhood; and
WHEREAS, As a result, in 1972, Mrs. Guerrero and hundreds of other community members delivered petitions to the Chicago Board of Education and made a case for a public high school which is now known as Benito Juarez Community Academy; and
WHEREAS, Mrs. Guerrero's education efforts continued as she organized residents and advocated for funding to establish Pilsen's local branch of the Chicago Public Library, which was named for critical community figure, Rudy Lozano; and
WHEREAS, Raquel Guerrero also contributed to establishing Fiesta del Sol, one of the largest summer festivals in the Midwest which has drawn visitors for over 45 years and is emblematic of the Mexican-American community in Pilsen; and
WHEREAS, Additionally, Mrs. Guerrero was a founding member of Asociaci?n Pro Derechos Obreros, a workers' rights organization with an important history as a resource for the community; and
WHEREAS, Mrs. Guerrero arrived to the U.S. from Mexico in the 1950's and made Pilsen her home until her passing on February 1,...
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