Dear Friend, 
 
Today, I spoke on the House floor in commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the Los Angeles school walkouts and the immense contributions of student activists across the decades. 
 
Fifty years ago, the largest student mobilization in Los Angeles history shook the country. More than 15,000 students at Wilson, Lincoln, Roosevelt, and Belmont High Schools in East Los Angeles rose up against injustice and discrimination. In the wake of senseless tragedies and attacks on our communities, student activists continue to show courage and change the course of history.
 
Student activism has always been a powerful response to social injustice. When those in power fail to listen, or act in the interest of the all people, it is up to a new generation of Americans to speak up, walk out, and organize. Whether you’re in East LA in 1968 or Parkland, FL in 2018, you will be heard, you will be remembered, and you will become the change we all seek.

Sincerely,

Rep. Jimmy Gomez

Full Remarks

Mr. Speaker, I want to talk about something that gives me hope in the wake of the senseless tragedies and attacks on our communities: the power of students to change the course of history.
 
Fifty years ago this week, 15,000 students in East Los Angeles rose up in solidarity to demand culturally relevant education, better facilities, and diverse teachers.
 
I rise in honor of those students from Wilson, Lincoln, Roosevelt, and Belmont High Schools who started a movement that would be known as the East LA Walkouts. 
 
I also rise in honor of current student activists. Student activism has always been a powerful response to social injustice. 
 
That when those in power fail to listen, or act in the interest of the all people, it is up to a new generation of Americans to speak up, walk out, and organize. 
 
Whether you’re in East LA in 1968 or Parkland, FL in 2018, you will be heard, you will be remembered, and you will become the change we all seek.

P.S. As always, it is an honor to represent you in the U.S. Congress.  Visit my website or contact my Los Angeles office at 213-481-1425 or Washington, D.C. office at 202-225-6235, if we can be of service in any way. To stay connected, join me on Twitter, Facebook, and, if you have not done so already, please sign up to continue receiving my e-alert.