Historical Society opens new exhibit celebrating Long Beach’s Chicano history

Harbor commissioner Bonnie Lowenthal, left, District 1 Councilmember Mary Zendejas and Herlinda Chico, of the Long Beach Community College District, are among the local dignitaries at the opening of “Centro de la Raza: John A. Taboada Legacy Photo Collection,1970-1985,” on Thursday, Mar. 28, 2024, at the Historical Society in Long Beach. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)

District 1 Councilmember Mary Zendejas, left, and original Centro de la Raza member Phyllis Arias attend the opening of “Centro de la Raza: John A. Taboada Legacy Photo Collection,1970-1985,” on Thursday, Mar. 28, 2024, at the Historical Society in Long Beach. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)

Original Centro de la Raza member Ron Arias addresses guests at the opening of “Centro de la Raza: John A. Taboada Legacy Photo Collection,1970-1985,” on Thursday, Mar. 28, 2024, at the Historical Society in Long Beach. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)

Original Centro de la Raza members Armando Vasquez-Ramos, left, Ron Arias and his wife, Phyllis, attending the opening of “Centro de la Raza: John A. Taboada Legacy Photo Collection,1970-1985,” on Thursday, Mar. 28, 2024, at the Historical Society in Long Beach. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)

Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna, left, former U.S. Congressman Alan Lowenthal and original Centro de la Raza member Armando Vasquez-Ramos are among the guests attending the opening of “Centro de la Raza: John A. Taboada Legacy Photo Collection,1970-1985,” on Thursday, Mar. 28, 2024, at the Historical Society in Long Beach. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)

Analuisa Espinoza looks at some of the photographs taken by her late husband on display at the opening of “Centro de la Raza: John A. Taboada Legacy Photo Collection,1970-1985,” on Thursday, Mar. 28, 2024, at the Historical Society in Long Beach. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)

A wood-carved fist symbolizing Chicano Power is on display along with photographs from “Centro de la Raza: John A. Taboada Legacy Photo Collection,1970-1985,” at the exhibit’s opening on Thursday, Mar. 28, 2024, at the Historical Society in Long Beach. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)

Guests view photographs from “Centro de la Raza: John A. Taboada Legacy Photo Collection,1970-1985,” at the exhibit’s opening on Thursday, Mar. 28, 2024, at the Historical Society in Long Beach. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)

Analuisa Espinoza, who was married to John A. Taboada for 40 years, and other family members gather for the opening of the late photographer’s exhibit on Thursday, Mar. 28, 2024, at the Historical Society in Long Beach. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)

Analuisa Espinoza, who was married to John A. Taboada for 40 years, welcomes guests to the opening of the late photographer’s exhibit, “Centro de la Raza: John A. Taboada Legacy Photo Collection,1970-1985,” on Thursday, Mar. 28, 2024, at the Historical Society in Long Beach. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)

Guests view photographs from “Centro de la Raza: John A. Taboada Legacy Photo Collection,1970-1985,” at the exhibit’s opening on Thursday, Mar. 28, 2024, at the Historical Society in Long Beach. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)

Guests view photographs from “Centro de la Raza: John A. Taboada Legacy Photo Collection,1970-1985,” at the exhibit’s opening on Thursday, Mar. 28, 2024, at the Historical Society in Long Beach. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)

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The Long Beach Historical Society has opened a new exhibit, dubbed “Centro de la Raza,” to honor and memorialize the city’s Chicano heritage.

Centro de la Raza, otherwise known as the East Long Beach Neighborhood Center, opened in 1969 after the city’s Mexican American/Chicano population saw a 400% percent increase during the decade prior.

The Center, along with its founding members — dubbed the Chicano Six — played a crucial role in galvanizing Long Beach’s Chicano movement and advocating for the community.

The Historical Society’s exhibit will tell the story of Centro de la Raza and the Chicano Six through the work of photographer John Taboada.

Taboada, born in Indio, attended College of the Desert before transferring to Cal State Long Beach — where he joined the Chicano movement and began working at Centro de la Raza as an art teacher and photographer.

His photos, taken between 1970 and 1985, capture Centro de la Raza’s impact in Long Beach.

“Members of the Long Beach Chicano Community History Committee, made up of former Centro members,” HSLB’s website said, “have recently devoted countless hours to the digitization and identification of these rare images.”

The photos, HLSB added, have never been publicly displayed before.

The exhibit, which opened on Friday, March 29, will run through the year at the Long Beach Historical Society, 4260 Atlantic Ave.

Visit hslb.org for more information about the exhibit.

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