Here’s to La Familia, Fuego Dancers, & Hacia la Luz

By Elizabeth Jiménez Montelongo

Here’s to La Familia

Here’s to the Mexicanos
Who got crossed out by the border
Who swore to cross it back
Who demanded education
For our children
For the next seven generations
Who fed us the fruits of their labor

Here’s to those who survived
So that we could live
So that we could thrive

Here’s to the Chicano children
Who bore the burden of integrating 
Schools in California
Waiting for Mendez vs. Westminster SD
Waiting for Brown vs. the Board of Education
Who bore the burden of “English-only”
Punished and ridiculed for speaking 
The other language forced on our ancestors

Here’s to our queridos muertos
Passed from the servitude of exploited labor
Waiting for the “No Mexicans” signs to come down
Waiting to be allowed to attend college
Waiting for those who came to remind us
Qué “Sí se puede!”
y “Hasta la Victoria Siempre!”
For those who passed waiting for El Pueblo Unido
Y por supuesto
For those who passed happily 
Having lived, breathed, existed
Loved laughed, comido y bailado
Lo bailado nadie nos lo quita
Here’s to you, queridos
Los llevamos en el corazón
Los sentimos en el viento de nuestras palabras 
que transforman

Here’s to the Chicano youth
Who said “Ya Basta” and walked out
1968 couldn’t hold you back no more
You who kept us from being tracked
Groomed for only service jobs and labor
Against our will, without our consent
To crush our spirit

Here’s to you Chicanas
Who made space for us
Demanded justice
From society
From education
From family
From the men
Here’s to the Chicanas
Who claimed our place
In the world
In the university
In the workplaces
In our own homes
In the world
Chicanas who knew no limits
Who lived by nobody’s rules
Who freed themselves
And so freed us

Here’s to the Chicanos
Feeling trapped in jobs
That don’t measure up
To their potential
You didn’t even notice
When you were robbed
Of your motivation
Denied inspiration
Kept from essential experiences
All before your birth
You take responsibility
You were set up to fail
But you didn’t fail
And you’ll make it anyway

Here’s to the Chicanos
The Mexicanos
Our Indigenous ancestors
The Mexican-American corporate workers
CEOs and business owners
Some who make us proud
Some who learned to look down their nose
Because they were taught to
Because they know we can do better
They inspire us to do better
Not in the hoarding of wealth
But in the struggle for liberation
For us, and for the pleasure of
Discomfort replacing smug smiles

Here’s to the Chicano scholars
Emerging from the barrios
Of East L.A.
Of Eastside San José
To reach us, connect us
Help us notice our worth
Make space for horizontal space
Inspire us to decolonize our minds

Here’s to the Chicanas
Who were never seen or spoken to
By teachers, by the popular girls
Never admired by the family or by the boys
Never acknowledged by the scholarship committee
The hiring committee, the community
You live, you breathe, you exist
And in a society that boxes you up 
To be a mom, a worker, a wife
A single mother, a cook, a housekeeper
We do all that amazingly
We are all that and more
We are all that, so you’re welcome
You can do it all, refuse it all
Your power is that you are needed
Here’s to you, mujer!

Here’s to the Mexican y Chicano kids
Precious, dark-eyed magical beings
Exuding energy, curiosity, and love
From every pore
Run, jump, scream!
Explore, experiment, read!
Smile, laugh, and hug!
We need you more
Than you need us
Your beauty and power keeps us going.

Here’s to the Chicano poet professors
The Chicana poet scholars
The Chicana poet artists
The Chicanx poets
The Chicana artists
The Chicano warriors

Here’s to the Chicanos in the barrio 
Reminding us that we need to
Protect our own neighborhoods
That tattoos on arms and faces
Are more welcome than stains on the soul
That other people mask under clear skin
That the colors you claim
Are no worse that the flags we claim
To battle our own familia
Across the continent, across the world
For the profit of the wealthy of the empire

Here’s to the barrio poets,
The barrio scholars
The children of the barrio
The people of the barrio

Here’s to the Chicanos
Here’s to the Chicanas
Here’s to the Mexicanas
Who carried us in their wombs
Who let us feed off their milk and love
Madres, you are the tree of life!

Here’s to the madres, the abuelitas, the tías
That filled our hearts with love
The primas that filled our memories with laughter
The primos that were our extra brothers
The padres, abuelitos, and tíos that set an example
That worked, protected us, made us laugh, passed us a $5 bill
That played the guitar, sang, laughed
While we all played and ate and loved life together
Here’s to la familia!

And here’s to the familia we create
The familia we find
The familia that finds us
And here’s to the familia
The campesinos and builders
Who feed us and house us
Whose names we’ll never know.

And here’s to the familia
We pass on the street
Without saying hello
And here’s to the familia
Across the nation
Across the world
Familia who exist in languages
We’ll never understand
But smile and laugh just like us
Who hug, cry, and love, just like us
Who eat and sleep and create, just like us
Here’s to the familia
La familia
Our familia

Elizabeth Jiménez Montelongo is a poet, visual artist, and facilitator. Elizabeth’s work is informed by her Indigenous ancestry, Mesoamerican philosophy, Mexika & Mixtec art, Mexican & Raza culture, Chicano history, and her experiences as a woman. Her poetry is published widely in both print and online journals such as Somos en escrito, PALABRITAS, Azahares, Label Me Latina/o, and in various anthologies. She earned a BFA in Pictorial Art and a BA in French from San José State University, served as Creative Ambassador of the San José Office of Cultural Affairs, received a Commendation from the City of San José, and was awarded a Creative Corps Initiative grant from the California Arts Council and Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. She serves as a Board Member of Poetry Center San José, and is the Founder La Raíz Magazine. www.ejmontelongo.com/poetry