Chicano Communists and the Struggle for Social Justice

Enrique Buelna’s book, Chicano Communists and The Struggle for Social Justice, dislodges U.S. historical amnesia in respect to the protracted life struggle of labor organizer and communist Ralph Cuar on. The author asserts that if we want to understand our history, we must recognize those who have been in the trenches struggling in the spirit of social justice for the common people. The book helps fill a gap in our historical knowledge about Mexican Americans participation and leadership roles in the Communist Party, in Southern California, particularly, but also regionally and nationally. The book is an invaluable historical contribution in documenting Chicano Communists in the struggle for Civil Rights and in the labor movement. This work is vital in debunking anti-communist propaganda that has persisted for over a century. It challenges the tentacles of the Red Scare by providing a holistic view of what communism meant to Chicano activists, and what their political ideology added to their struggles. It helped remove a smokescreen and openly confronted a culture of fear constantly utilized to diminish and dehumanize not only communists but all who resisted. It invites the reader to understand, through the life of Ralph Cuar on, how political theory turns into community practice through protracted struggle. The book also introduces the reader to many Chicano activists who answered the call to fight for social justice as open communists. The book is organized with a prologue, introduction, five chapters, and conclusion. “Prologue” introduces the book by recalling the events of Jesus Cr uz as he lay in a funeral home in Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico. During the viewing two well-dressed men enter the viewing room, and approach Jes us’ niece to confirm the identity of the deceased. Disrespecting the family, they approached the coffin and photographed the body several times. It was suspected that more than likely they were FBI agents whose unwelcomed presence was to close the case. Buelna uses this example from family memories to explain Jesus’ positionality as a radical activist. He had been a labor and community organizer who had openly challenged the miserable working conditions and treatment of the poor, Mexican Immigrants and Chicanos. The author notes that such courage of consciousness reaped consequences as authorities relentlessly pursued him. What made him a persona grata for government surveillance was his membership in the Communist Party USA (CPUSA). Buelna uses this example to help the reader understand that for any social change to truly occur, power has to be confronted without fear. In Angela Davis: an autobiography, Dr. Angela Davis supports this position. Buelna provides a brief overview of the Mexican American community’s struggle for civil rights, and how the community rose up and rejected inferior schools and discriminatory policies. In Assata: an Autobiography, Shakur takes racism to task for its centric posi"tion in the dehumanization of people of color