The parish was founded as a mission to Spanish speaking farm
workers. The parish’s original neighborhood called “Sal Si Puedes” - meaning, “Leave if you can” - was located at the Jackson Street
280 onramp. The nick name came about because of mud. When it rained the entire neighborhood would
become a giant mud flat because there were no streets, gutters or sidewalks.
The mud was so bad, said Rachel - who grew up here with her family, that the
kids would take their shoes off and put them in a grocery bag and walk through
the mud. Just before walking into class, they would wipe their feet off as best
they could, and put their shoes on. The
school, Jackson School, was a 2 room school house housing kids in grades
K-9. There were no grocery stores close
by. People would have to go downtown to
shop - and keep the mud in mind when I say this - that the closest bus stop was on King Road,
over a mile away from the heart of the community. The community, “Sal Si Puedes” was literally stuck in the mud and
isolated from the rest of San José.
And this was the so-called “Fabulous Fifties.”
In 1953 the community got together and decided that they were
going to have church of their own. The closest church was Five Wounds - the
mass in Latin and the sermon in Portuguese. There weren’t Spanish songs or a sermon the
people could understand. There was no
mass regularly offered in the community. Priests would come down once every few
weeks to celebrate the mass and do “consejos” in a hall located in the community.
The community itself decided that they were going to take responsibility for
their own spiritual welfare. St. Martin of Tours, an aging church on the other
side of the city was available for sale. The community bought the church, cut
it in half and hauled it over to this side of town. The church became the “Mission Church of Our Lady of
Guadalupe.” Fr.
McDonnell lived in the sacristy when he came down for mass. There in the church
Fr. McDonnell introduced a young Cesar Chavez the Church’s VISION for social justice. They would meet in the church to discuss the
problems and challenges facing the community.
In that building, the young Cesar Chavez, Fr. McDonnell and others
talked about the poor infrastructure and its affects on the people: no sewage
lines, sidewalks, paved roads, no garbage service - all contributed to a host
of stomach-related ailments - diarrhea and dysentery. No other place in San Jose had raw sewage running
down the streets. These challenges were
too much to put up with.
Fr. Don McDonnell and Cesar had a deep conviction that all
people should be free - that is free from poverty, violence, and
exploitation. This foundational belief
gave hope to those who were gathered in the small, Guadalupe Mission Church. In
this church under the spiritual guidance of Fr. McDonnell and the prophetic
organizing work of Cesar, the people began to talk about how they themselves
could organize the community for change. Together they worked with other visionaries to
develop the Community Service Organization that served to organize and mobilize
a people who were isolated from the rest of the city. This was a RADICAL
concept in the 1950’s. In an era that is more known for ultra patriotism and
conformity, the people of Mayfair took up the banner of resistance that
demanded change. The Mayfair Community
was not longer a community of “Sal, si puedes,” but a community of “Si Se Puede.”
The “Si Se Puede” grito of independence, gradually caught the attention of people from around
the country and around the world. After
Cesar moved on from the Mayfair, he got people everywhere to consider this
concept of communities organizing themselves for freedom. The humble beginnings
of the social change movement involving Latino leadership began here. History will show that the Mayfair community,
like our sisters and brothers in the Deep South, will be considered another
center of activism and social change. And McDonnell Hall is ground zero of that
incredible part of our country’s history. Today’s recognition of McDonnell Hall is a
step for all of us to claim our history.
Today we celebrate not only the State recognition of
McDonnell Hall - Guadalupe Mission Church, but also the Exaltation of the Holy
Cross. The symbol of the cross rose above the violent streets of Jerusalem
occupied by foreigners that bled the region dry and who set the indigenous
peoples against one another. The cross
on the bell tower of the humble Guadalupe Mission Church in 1953 stood out as a
symbol of triumph of Justice and Peace. In the midst of mud and sewage, the
cross reminded the people that they are God’s beloved sons and daughters and that
God’s children
deserved better.
While we have paved streets, sewer and garbage service, we
are still isolated. Hemmed in by freeways and onramps, our challenges today are
raising the literacy rate for our children, getting our youth into university
and lowering violence in our homes and streets.
There’s no easy
fix to our local problems while our people still fear deportation and
profiling. Most of our people do not have sustainable wages - that’s why we work at several jobs. The
cost of housing has forced us to live in garages and double or triple up in
housing. Despite what we see all around
us, can you see more than suffering and hurt? Look at the first reading. The
people in the desert were complaining because of what they saw, “Why have you brought us up from Egypt
to die in this desert, where there is no food or water? We are disgusted with
this wretched food!” Moses, a visionary leader, saw more
than the lack of food. Moses saw a noble people who would create a land out of
a desert. His role was to animate the people by providing them with a clear
vision of what and who they could be. Sight doesn’t move us to act; VISION, on the
other hand, provides hope and moves us toward action. Community
organizing for social change requires strong visionary leadership. Visionary
leaders are able to see beyond the problems and see real solutions. Visionary leaders see the path and embolden
us to be courageous and take the path.
As we celebrate this feast of the Exaltation, we remember
that we exalt Christ who came to us as a laborer. A working man born to a working family in a
poor region. “Christ Jesus, though he was in the form of God, did not
regard equality with God something to be grasped. Rather, he emptied himself,
taking the form of a slave…” Marginalized from the seat of power
and privilege, this working man, this carpenter, started a movement that is
still active today. Jesus’ story continues to inspire future visionary leaders to see
the world around them as an opportunity to initiate positive and inclusive
social change from the base. So as we
come forward to this table, we come together as ONE. We join Fr. Don McDonnell
and Cesar Chavez at the Table, anticipating the vision of true and lasting
freedom - that has yet to be realized. As we eat the Bread of Hope and the Cup
of Resistance, we too become the VISION of “Si, Se Puede.”
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