Arturo Casares Papers

Collection

Identifier: MS-0440

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

The Arturo Casares Papers (1968-2008) document the establishment of the Barrio Station in San Diego and Casares' involvement in the Chicano Movement. Highlights include photographs of the UFW grape strike and the Chicano Moratorium, Casares' English class journal with entries discussing the formation of a Mexican-American Studies program at San Diego State College, old Barrio Station Newsletters, and documents regarding the Chicano Park Incident in which police arrested Casares. Filed alphabetically, the collection consists of correspondence, course papers, newsletters, and photographs. The majority of materials date from 1968 to 1975. This collection has been digitized: https://digitalcollections.sdsu.edu/arturo-casares-papers

Dates

Creation: 1968-2008
Creation: Majority of material found in 1968-1975
Other: Date acquired: 06/05/2008

Creator

Casares, Arturo (Person)

Conditions Governing Access

This collection is open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

The copyright interests in some or all of these materials have not been transferred to San Diego State University. Copyright resides with the creator(s) of materials contained in the collection or their heirs. The nature of archival collections is such that multiple creators are often applicable and copyright status may be difficult or even impossible to determine. In any case, the user must assume full responsibility for any use of the materials, including but not limited to, obtaining publication rights and copyright infringement. When requesting images from Special Collections & University Archives for publication, we require a signed agreement waiving San Diego State University of any liability in the event of a copyright violation.

Biographical Note

Born in 1943, Arturo Casares grew up in Del Rio, Texas, where he attended a segregated school. Casares moved to Long Beach, CA in 1960. He finished high school and married at the age of 19. He then attended Long Beach City College. He received an Associate's degree in Liberal Studies and transferred to San Diego State College in 1968. At SDSC, Casares majored in Spanish and minored in History. Later, Casares received a Master's from the University of New Mexico in Counseling.

In the late 1960s and early 1970s, Casares became active in the Mexican American Youth Association (MAYA), an activist Chicano group, and later in the Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlan (MEChA). In addition, Casares worked as a teacher's aide at Logan Elementary school and San Diego High School. Working at these schools once again exposed Casares to gang activities and the limited scholastic resources associated with impoverished neighborhoods. As a result, he founded Barrio Station, an outreach center for low-income Mexican-American families, which still exists today. The Station offers tutoring, recreational activities, and services for at-risk youth.

In addition, Casares began attending student conferences to discuss the implementation of El Plan de Santa Barabara, which sought to establish Chicano and Mexican-American studies programs at the university level. He also became active in the free speech and Chicano movements, supporting Cesar Chavez's United Farm Workers (UFW) strikes and protests. He was also Vice Chairman of the Chicano Federation. In April of 1971, Casares and two other men, David Llamas Jose Benavides, were arrested at the first anniversary celebration of Chicano Park for obstructing a police officer. The event became known as the "Chicano Park Incident."

Today, Casares continues his community work.