Chicanos Por La Causa, or CPLC, is a

non-profit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

based in

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

founded in 1969. It is a statewide

community development corporation A community development corporation (CDC) is a not-for-profit organization incorporated to provide programs, offer services and engage in other activities that promote and support community development. CDCs usually serve a geographic location su ...

(CDC). It has staff of nearly 900 and impacts more than 2,000,000 people every year throughout Arizona, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, and California.

History

CPLC was founded in 1969 when young

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 ...

men and women, hoping to improve the quality of life for Arizona's Mexican American population. Inspired by

Dolores Huerta Dolores Clara Fernández Huerta (born April 10, 1930) is an American labor leader and civil rights activist who, with Cesar Chavez, is a co-founder of the National Farmworkers Association, which later merged with the Agricultural Workers Organiz ...

and Cesar Chavez, CPLC advocated for equity in education, politics, and labor conditions. Requested from the parish council of the Historic Sacred Heart Church to utilize Santa Rita Hall for community engagement efforts; the parish council granted them the request at the insistence of parish council member Abraham F. Arvizu, who was subsequently elected to CPLC's Board of Directors. Santa Rita is credited with being the birthplace of CPLC. The

National Council of La Raza UnidosUS, formerly National Council of La Raza (NCLR) (La Raza), is the United States's largest Latino nonprofit advocacy organization. It advocates in favor of progressive public policy changes including immigration reform, a path to citizen ...

invested and supported the organization, and with that financial assistance, CPLC implemented programs focusing on bilingual housing referral services for low income communities in South Central Phoenix. In the 1970s, CPLC board member Guadalupe Huerta advocated for increased capacity of senior housing related to the destruction of the Golden Gate Barrio by the

City of Phoenix Phoenix ( ; nv, Hoozdo; es, Fénix or , yuf-x-wal, Banyà:nyuwá) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona, with 1,608,139 residents as of 2020. It is the fifth-most populous city in the United States, and the onl ...

, which led to the development of one of the earliest known senior housing projects in

Phoenix Phoenix most often refers to: * Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore * Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States Phoenix may also refer to: Mythology Greek mythological figures * Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...

, Casa de Primavera.

References

Greg Stanton at Chicanos Por La Causa - 6

External links

*{{official website, http://www.cplc.org/ Chicano Mexican-American culture in Arizona Mexican-American organizations Non-profit organizations based in Arizona