The King & Story, also known as Story & King, neighborhood of
San Jose, California
San Jose, officially San José (; ; ), is a major city in the U.S. state of California that is the cultural, financial, and political center of Silicon Valley and largest city in Northern California by both population and area. With a 2020 popul ...
is located in the
Alum Rock district of
East San Jose
East San Jose (abbreviated as ESJ), commonly called The East Side and less commonly as the East Valley, is the eastern region of the city of San Jose, California. The East Side is made up of numerous neighborhoods grouped into two larger distric ...
, centered on the intersection of King and Story roads. King & Story is one of San Jose's most notable and historic
Chicano
Chicano or Chicana is a chosen identity for many Mexican Americans in the United States. The label ''Chicano'' is sometimes used interchangeably with ''Mexican American'', although the terms have different meanings. While Mexican-American ident ...
/
Mexican-American
Mexican Americans ( es, mexicano-estadounidenses, , or ) are Americans of full or partial Mexican heritage. In 2019, Mexican Americans comprised 11.3% of the US population and 61.5% of all Hispanic and Latino Americans. In 2019, 71% of Mexica ...
neighborhoods.
[Silicon Valley DeBug - The Mural de la Raza Was My Mirror](_blank)
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History
The area surrounding King and Story, zip code 95122, is a hub for the East San Jose Community and for Latino
Latino or Latinos most often refers to:
* Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America
* Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States
* The people or cultures of Latin America;
** Latin A ...
culture in San Jose. The neighborhood is sometimes known as Tropicana, after the shopping center on the southwest corner of the intersection. In the 1930s, future agricultural labor union leader César Chávez
Cesar Chavez (born Cesario Estrada Chavez ; ; March 31, 1927 – April 23, 1993) was an American labor leader and civil rights activist. Along with Dolores Huerta, he co-founded the National Farm Workers Association (NFWA), which later merged ...
and his family moved into the neighborhood. It was here that Chávez first began his political actions, registering voters and organizing English language
English is a West Germanic language of the Indo-European language family, with its earliest forms spoken by the inhabitants of early medieval England. It is named after the Angles, one of the ancient Germanic peoples that migrated to the is ...
classes for the mostly Mexican American
Mexican Americans ( es, mexicano-estadounidenses, , or ) are Americans of full or partial Mexican heritage. In 2019, Mexican Americans comprised 11.3% of the US population and 61.5% of all Hispanic and Latino Americans. In 2019, 71% of Mexica ...
residents. The first grocery stores targeted by the NFWA grape boycott
A boycott is an act of nonviolent, voluntary abstention from a product, person, organization, or country as an expression of protest. It is usually for moral, social, political, or environmental reasons. The purpose of a boycott is to inflict som ...
were on King Road. In the 1980s the area was a hub of lowrider
A lowrider or low rider is a customized car with a lowered body. These customized vehicles are generally individually painted with intricate, colorful designs, rolling on wire-spoke wheels with whitewall tires. Lowrider rims are generally smalle ...
culture, and the ''Mural de la Raza'', which depicts Chicano
Chicano or Chicana is a chosen identity for many Mexican Americans in the United States. The label ''Chicano'' is sometimes used interchangeably with ''Mexican American'', although the terms have different meanings. While Mexican-American ident ...
history and was created on a wall near the intersection in that decade, is now one of the oldest mural
A mural is any piece of graphic artwork that is painted or applied directly to a wall, ceiling or other permanent substrate. Mural techniques include fresco, mosaic, graffiti and marouflage.
Word mural in art
The word ''mural'' is a Spani ...
s in the city. The Mi Pueblo Hispanic supermarket chain started at the intersection.
At the start of the 21st century, the San Jose Redevelopment Agency pursued redevelopment of the intersection, successfully locating a grocery store on the north-east corner before pursuing eminent domain to redevelop the southeast and southwest corners. On the southeast corner, in conjunction with local developers Blake-Hunt Ventures, vacant and abandoned buildings were replaced with needed banking and shopping options. However, after encountering a court challenge to its acquisition of the Tropicana shopping center on the southwest corner, the city paid $6.8 million in 2002 to the primary landowner who contended that his own redevelopment plans had been unfairly interfered with, and settled for acquisition of certain portions and the redevelopment of the remainder in conjunction with the existing owners.
In 2003, the San Jose City Council
The San Jose City Council, officially San José City Council, is the legislature of the government of the City of San Jose, California.
As the Mayor of San Jose, Sam Liccardo casts the 11th vote on matters before the council and acts as chair ...
considered a bill to rename King Road, named for an 1851 settler to San Jose, after Martin Luther King Jr.
Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister and activist, one of the most prominent leaders in the civil rights movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968 ...
The proposal was generally supported by the African American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
community and opposed by the Hispanic population. The city council eventually rejected the proposal.
In the late 2000s the neighborhood was badly impacted by the subprime mortgage crisis
The United States subprime mortgage crisis was a multinational financial crisis that occurred between 2007 and 2010 that contributed to the Financial crisis of 2007–2008, 2007–2008 global financial crisis. It was triggered by a large decline ...
.
Culture
King & Story is one of the most historic centers of the Chicano
Chicano or Chicana is a chosen identity for many Mexican Americans in the United States. The label ''Chicano'' is sometimes used interchangeably with ''Mexican American'', although the terms have different meanings. While Mexican-American ident ...
/Mexican-American
Mexican Americans ( es, mexicano-estadounidenses, , or ) are Americans of full or partial Mexican heritage. In 2019, Mexican Americans comprised 11.3% of the US population and 61.5% of all Hispanic and Latino Americans. In 2019, 71% of Mexica ...
community in San Jose.
Lowriding
King and Story is also recognized as being the "Whittier Boulevard
Whittier Boulevard known as Stephenson Avenue (before 1920) is an arterial street that runs from the Los Angeles River (where it continues into Downtown Los Angeles as 6th Street) to Brea, California. The street is one of the main thoroughfares in ...
of the North" which has many similar characteristics as East Los Angeles
East Los Angeles ( es, Este de Los Ángeles), or East L.A., is an unincorporated area in Los Angeles County, California. As of the 2020 census it had a population of 118,786, a drop of 6.1% from 2010, when it was 126,496. For statistical purpo ...
. The usage and showings of lowriders
A lowrider or low rider is a customized car with a lowered body. These customized vehicles are generally individually painted with intricate, colorful designs, rolling on wire-spoke wheels with whitewall tires. Lowrider rims are generally smalle ...
is prevalent along King Rd and Story Rd.
While lowriding began in Los Angeles during the 1940s, by the 1960s lowriding had become commonplace in East San Jose
East San Jose (abbreviated as ESJ), commonly called The East Side and less commonly as the East Valley, is the eastern region of the city of San Jose, California. The East Side is made up of numerous neighborhoods grouped into two larger distric ...
's Chicano/Mexican-American community, particularly along the broad boulevards of Alum Rock Avenue and Story Road. ''Lowrider'' magazine was founded in San Jose in 1977 by San Jose State students Larry González, Sonny Madrid, and David Núñez. The magazine covered not only the cars, but the culture surrounding lowriders.
Today, lowrider culture permeates mainstream society through art, music and cars. Several South Bay car clubs still exist and participate in events like Cinco de Mayo
Cinco de Mayo ( in Mexico, Spanish for "Fifth of May") is a yearly celebration held on May 5, which commemorates the anniversary of Mexico's victory over the Second French Empire at the Battle of Puebla in 1862, led by General Ignacio Zaragoz ...
celebrations and "Show-n-Shine" events.
Parks and plazas
*Emma Prusch Farm Park
Emma Prusch Farm Park is a 43.5 acre (176,000 m²) park in East San Jose, California. Donated by Emma Prusch to the City of San Jose in 1962 to use to demonstrate the valley's agricultural past, it includes a 4-H barn (the largest in San Jose), com ...
**El Jardín Community Garden
**Cornucopia Community Garden
**Veggielution Community Farm
*Plaza de Coatlique
References
External links
1979 Story & King San José Califas (video)
{{DEFAULTSORT:King and Story San Jose
Neighborhoods in San Jose, California
Chicano and Mexican neighborhoods in California