Centro de La Raza: John A. Taboada Legacy Photo Collection, 1970-1985

The Exhibition

The 1960’s saw the largest and fastest growth of the Latino community in Long Beach—a growth of nearly 400%. This, coupled with political and social change, the rise of student unrest, the Chicano student movement at California colleges and universities, including CSULB, and the implementation of multiple federal War on Poverty programs, resulted in the establishment of the East Long Beach Neighborhood Center, also known as Centro de la Raza (Centro). The organization served thousands of diverse and economically disadvantaged community members with social programs in labor, housing, arts and culture, mental health, education, and more. In addition, the Centro launched the careers of many Latino leaders in the greater Long Beach area.

This video explores the story behind the Historical Society of Long Beach’s 2024 exhibition, Centro de La Raza: John A Taboada Legacy Photo Collection 1970-1985. Learn a brief history of the Centro de la Raza and the photographer who captured the Chicano Movement in Long Beach. The exhibition is open March 29, 2024-March 12, 2025 at the Historical Society of Long Beach Museum at 4260 Atlantic Ave, Long Beach, CA 90807. This project was made possible with support from California Humanities, a non-profit partner of the National Endowment for the Humanities. General support for HSLB in 2024 was provided by the Arts Council for Long Beach, the City of Long Beach, and the LA County Department of Arts and Culture as part of Creative Recovery LA, an initiative funded by the American Rescue Plan. Additional support for the Centro de La Raza exhibition was made possible by Presenting Sponsor, the Port of Long Beach. Video written and narrated by historian Brian N. Chavez

Exhibition Hours

The Exhibition Catalog

As part of Historical Society of Long Beach’s Centro de La Raza: John A. Taboada Legacy Photo Collection exhibition this new publication was created. The catalog captures the text created by the Long Beach Chicano Community History Committee and historian Brian N. Chavez.

The catalog is a perfect bound, paper back with 60 pages. It is beautifully illustrated with 51 black and white images; featured in the exhibition, and 4 installation shots from 2024. Most of the photographs were made by John A. Taboada, also known as JT. A few photographs were taken by Ron Arias and in a few cases the photographer was unknown.

Topics include: Chicano history, Long Beach history, California history, neighborhood centers, Head Start, education, Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlan (MEChA), culture, struggle, self-determination, Long Beach Chicano Political Caucus, community organizations, United Mexican American Students, Educational Opportunity Program

John A. Taboada

Between 1970 and 1985, the Centro’s programs were chronicled through the photography of John A. Taboada (aka “JT”), a former CSULB student and member of the local Chicano community. Members of the Long Beach Chicano Community History Committee, made up of former Centro members, have recently devoted countless hours to the digitization and identification of these rare images. The committee and the Historical Society of Long Beach have partnered to publicly display these photographs for the very first time in the exhibition Centro de La Raza: John A. Taboada Legacy Photo Collection, 1970-1985 which explores the story of this impactful community organization.

Thank you to our Sponsors