El Grupo making a name for itself

By: EDWARD SIFUENTES - Associated Press

NORTH COUNTY -- A year after a Latino rights coalition called El Grupo resurfaced, its members say it has had an eventful new start with a string of successes --- and a long list of problems left to tackle.

The group announced its return last August after what members called a series of setbacks for the Latino and immigrant community in North County.

Escondido was considering a proposal to ban landlords from renting to illegal immigrants in Escondido.


Several Latino suspects had been shot by sheriff's deputies in Vista.

And council members in the same city were considering a day-labor law that activists said would punish workers.

"I wish that El Grupo was unnecessary," said Bill Flores, the group's spokesman. "When there is no need for the group, that's when we'll call ourselves successful. But the formation was in response to these major issues."

The group is a coalition of representatives from various civil and Latino rights organizations that takes political stands on social and legal concerns in minority communities. It first came together in 1998 under the leadership of late San Marcos Councilman Vince Andrade.

The group started as a networking opportunity for organizations, but has now taken a more activist role, Flores said.

About a dozen organizations make up El Grupo, including the California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation, the American Civil Liberties Union of San Diego and Imperial Counties, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People in North County and the Chicano Federation of San Diego County.

Since its return, the coalition's members have been the driving force behind a lawsuit that resulted in some changes to the Vista day labor law, a successful legal challenge of the Escondido rental ordinance and a state Attorney General review of the shootings in Vista.

The group also raised a $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of people responsible for vandalizing a migrant camp near Rancho Penasquitos in January. No one has been charged in the incident.

El Grupo reborn in difficult times

Flores, a retired San Diego County assistant sheriff and a founding member of El Grupo, said the ordinances, the vandalism case and rampant anti-illegal immigration rallies in North County are rooted in fear about the region's changing demographics. Those demographics and the xenophobia they bring have been exploited by politicians, he said.

In the 1970s, "a guy with the mentality of an Archie Bunker was laughed at, now they are sitting in city councils," Flores said.

One Escondido City Council member who has been critical of El Grupo said the group does not deserve much credit and does not speak for the entire Latino community.

"If they feel they accomplished something, that's fine, but it wasn't them," said city Councilman Ed Gallo, about the blocking of the council's rental ordinance. "It was the federal judge."

Gallo, one of three council members who supported the Escondido rental ordinance, has said the ordinance was needed to alleviate housing overcrowding as a result of illegal immigration, which, he said, has led to a decline in the quality of life in the city.

Gallo said he heard from some in the Latino community who disagree with Flores and El Grupo.

"I don't think that groups such as this represent all the Latino community," he said.

Prominent Latinos say the group may not speak for everyone, but it provides an important voice for those whose opinion is not always heard, such as new immigrants.

"They've been effective at educating the public," said Robert Rivas, who founded an organization aimed at reducing dropout rates among Latino boys in North County. He is not a member of the group. "I think they've done an incredible job at crystallizing the issue. It's provided a needed voice for those without a voice."

New group holds private meetings

Current and former El Grupo members said the group struggled in the past to find its own voice.

After Andrade's death in 1999, the group was responsible for various candidate forums and networking meetings that provided a platform for Latino candidates seeking local and state offices. But political divisions and differing views on the group's mission, structure and membership sent the group into hibernation in 2002.

The new group is different, Flores said.

And it's not just in the name, which was shortened from El Grupo Sin Nombre, meaning "the group without a name," to El Grupo, which simply means "the group."

Meetings were once held at restaurants and open to the public. Anyone who attended had a say in the group's mission. While some said they liked the open exchange of ideas, others said public meetings made the group unwieldy and ineffective.

Flores said the group needed to change to meet new challenges.

"The old El Grupo was more of a networking and information exchange group," he said. "For a time, that's exactly what we needed, but now the issues are so important, with long-term implications, that we forego the social part of it."

Under the new structure, membership is restricted to representatives of organizations. Meetings are unannounced to all but members and are generally not open to the public. Most communications among members occur by phone or e-mail, Flores said.

Flores, who is retired, serves as a coordinator and spokesman for the group, but there is no leader, he said.

The streamlined group works well, said Joe Cordero, past chairman of the Chicano Federation and who served as president of El Grupo in its previous incarnation. Cordero, who helped restart the group, said the new structure works because it's democratic and the group is open to change.

One of the group's most important roles has been as an advocacy organization, said Kevin Keenan, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of San Diego and Imperial Counties, which sued Vista and Escondido over its day-labor and rental ordinances, respectively.

In the last year, El Grupo has helped organized voter registration drives and free legal clinics.

"It's the best way for people to stand up for their own rights; to learn what their rights are and fight for their rights," he said.

Though immigration matters have taken most of the group's attention, Cordero and others said they hope to focus their attention on education matters in the coming year, including student dropout rates and higher education.

A time when the group is no longer necessary is still a long way off, Cordero said.

"In order for us to make progress, you have to look at it over a long time," he said.

-- Contact staff writer Edward Sifuentes at (760) 740-3511 or esifuentes@nctimes.com.


http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2007/08 ... _26_07.txt