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k folks, like dead fish and three-day visits, it begins to stink after a while. Surely you have something better to address. The Huerta issue while controversial and of interest to many is a dead horse. Lets not beat it to death. Move on to something fresh. ¿What can you say about the issue of Professor Henry Louis Gates being arrested in his home for disorderly conduct? The arresting officer James Crowley while hiding behind the "blue shield," sticks to his guns that he did nothing wrong. In his report he writes that Gates did provide identification. Yet, Crowley calls for back up. Shouldn't this be done before arriving to the scene of a potential dangerous site? Don't mind me I'm not a cop. Any way, so here is an old man who can't walk without a cane and this dirty-Harry-macho kind of cop taunting him to "take it outside" where he can arrest him. What a brave cop. Then President Obama says they acted (the cops) acted stupidly - acted mind you - not - they are stupid. Well by now you know the rest of the story. So, the bogus charges were dropped, the cop refuses to apologize and the question in everyones mind is: Where is a wise latina when you need one. What will it take to let cooler heads prevail? El que tenga más saliva traga más pinole. You can read the police report here: http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/years/2009/0723092gates1.html

Dolores Huerta was invited to CSUB because she is a respected activist admired for her lifelong achievements and her dedication to civil rights. She has long been followed because of her hard work, ongoing advocacy and her ability to see the bigger picture. She is a visionary who has earned the respect of many. An icon who in 1993 was inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame. That same year she received the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) Roger Baldwin Medal of Liberty Award; and the Eugene V. Debs Foundation Outstanding American Award, and the Ellis Island Medal of Freedom Award. She is also the recipient of the Consumers’ Union Trumpeter’s Award. In 1998 she was one of three Ms. Magazine’s, "Women of the Year", and the Ladies Home Journal’s, "100 Most Important Women of the 20th Century". Dolores is a woman of tremendous faith who represents hope and the importance of love in action. Martin Luther King said "The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy". Thanks be to God for creating Dolores, a woman who has the courage to speak out on the importance of supporting civil rights. With much respect, Audrey Chavez

On behalf of the staff at MÁS, I want to thank all of you for the great comments and thoughtful discussion re: Dolores Huerta's commencement speech. You've proved that there can be agreement and/or dissension without dragging the forum or the people who choose to participate in it into the gutter! We appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts -- look for them in the July 2009 issue of MÁS, which comes out in Sunday's Bakersfield Californian! -- Teresa Adamo/Associate Editor

Some of Dolores Huerta’s critics don’t even criticize the speech. They criticize her as a person. They claim that ever since Cesar Chavez died the UFW has ignored the farm workers and that Dolores is out of touch with Cesar’s original mission. Other’s claim that the UFW in general are a bunch of trouble makers who only made it worse for them when they worked in the agricultural fields.

I admit that the UFW's agenda has changed a lot. It's been diverted from the farm workers to other more pressing recent political matters.They do a lot of voter registration, political awareness of certain issues, and are still very involved in community matters.

However, it's because of the union that farm laborers have much better conditions. Can we at least all admit that?

Yeah, growing up my parents also thought the UFW was just causing problems for them. But now that conditions have changed for the better they admit that if it weren't for the UFW's fight they would have never gotten to where they are.My mom still works in the fields to this day and does it without complaints. But she's grateful for the changes.

Now, what did I think about her speech? All in all it was excellent and very educational. Did she "push her agenda?" Except for a couple of Union comments? Not necessarily.

OK, ok, so maybe she did. But she's old school like that. That's how she rolls.

I think the countless of times she’s been arrested, mistreated and beaten half to death during protests has earned her that luxury. And you don't invite Dolores Huerta to speak at an event if you don't agree with her views, right? So whoever booked her for an appearance obviously did it for a reason. They felt that the Central Valley would be VERY interested in what she had to say.

And most people were. I think I heard a few people boo her. However, I can almost 99.99% guaranty it was people who have never encountered the hate, violence, and inequalities as Dolores Huerta and many of us have because of our race, gender, or social status.

It was with great sadness that I viewed the video of the commencement and witnessed Bakersfield's negative cultural stereotypes were once again reinforced to those not within our dynamic community. Digging a little deeper into the videographer one gets an overwhelming sense of a snickering and snobbish gun-toting ruthlessness... As a CSUB graduate I am offended by those who displayed such myopic views while at a university event. Please keep those people out of the university library. If they find out what is in there they will burn it down.

I previously commented under "Xochimilco." I would like to add that I'm glad to see more comments speaking favorably about Dolores Huerta. I'm sure Kern County is proud of Huerta, but she is a national icon. There are six schools named after her between California, Texas and Colorado. Huerta inspires and empowers the youth of any culture with the knowledge drawn from her experience. She has been not only a champion for fair labor laws, inadvertently she broke many culturally self-imposed barries to femenine equality. She was Cesar Chávez' "right-hand man." She endured many hardships even being arrested multiple times for her peaceful protests. At one point the police broke four ribs and ruptured her spleen. For exercising her constitutional right. Someone said "wrong place wrong time." Her message is timely; now and as long as social disparity exists in this country. I would like to see some comments from the younger generation. Don't have the ganas? Consider that at 84 years of age and being a great-grandmother, Dolores Huerta still puts the miles and remains steadfast in her passion for social equality. As for the staff of Más Magazine, I commend you for providing the medium for this invaluable discussion.

I don't understand exactly why people who attended the speech got so riled up about it. Dolores Huerta made a very similar speech at the UCLA 2009 Commencement ceremony and people there didn't seem to find her opinions offensive. It's quite ironic to me that she spoke on her home turf and was boo'ed the way she was. All of the people bashing on her and criticizing her for her right to freedom of speech are honestly the most ignorant individuals out there. I am not trying to insult anyone nor degrade anyone's level of education or intellect, but I do believe that without individuals like Dolores Huerta (notice I am not emphasizing her gender nor her race, although I do find that because she is a colored woman, many of the conservatives attending the graduation found themselves uneasy with her strength)many of the CSUB graduates sitting before her wouldn't even be there. Without the struggle and the fight she put on along side many of the great grandparents, grandparents, or even parents of some of those individuals graduating, many of those people sitting before her would have probably found themselves picking grapes under the worst environmental conditions, exposing themselves to the most atrocious pesticides for a living.
Now, I find it even more ironic, that when she stated "loans are a rip off" the entire audience auplauded her for stating that. Why this statement and not the others?
"Education is the soul of our nation" yet in the San Joaquin Valley only one university has been built since the UFW was founded...but 17 prisons? Now that's food for thought, no?
She was right in advocating for us to read the New York Times, pick up the Progressive and become informed! "We cannot have justice if people are not educated" I do believe that many of those responding negatively to her speech, are in fact those she was targeting. You find offense because she told you to pick up a newspaper?
I come from the central valley, I plan to return and plant my seed and watch it grow. It's sad that at CSUB they don't offer labor studies. I come from one of the few universities who does have a labor studies department and despite how much unions are looked down upon, she is right! I applaud people who have the strength to rally, shout, fight, and end up in jail for the night because of what they believe in. There are many people in this world who are much less fortunate than I, who struggle with the fact that they are undocumented and must remain invisible to the US government and to individuals who deem them "aliens." Now you tell me, who are you to bash on this woman? This woman who has played such a major role on the life you are currently living now? Next time you take a bite out of a big juicy strawberry, or crunch into a nice cold ripe grape, take a little more consideration for the hand that fed you and "GET OVER IT!"

Dolores Huerta is the best living icon we have in Kern County! Although not everyone agrees with her choice of words, we are all worthy of learning something from her, at least she was invited; she spoke and caused SOMETHING to happen. Stepping up and standing for social justice is the best lesson to teach the young graduates and the other people that were among the audience at the Commencement ceremony. Some of the lessons these recent graduates heard from Dolores were worthy of note-taking, I bet it was something that most had never learned from other professors in their years of lessons, especially in Bakersfield. When one invites the great Dolores Huerta to speak, be ready for a lesson. One must pay attention to every word and if one is smart enough to not just listen, but show action after hearing her out. If not, Dolores wasted a morning on people that are not ready to react or act upon her heavy message. This would be a shame!

In my humble opinion, I think she delivered her speech well and did not find it to be offensive. I think we need someone to stand up and speak up for the people and that is just what she did. I think she had a lot of courage to stand up and speak about her passion knowing that it could cause controversy. But the graduates need to know the real issues at hand and someone has to make them aware of it. I truly admire Dolores and I got to know her when my dad worked for the UFW. Her passion is politics and fighting for people's rights. I went to march with the UFW many times to support farm labor worker rights. I think the sometimes the "truth hurts" and this is one of those situations. I found her speech inspiring and very truthful. I really loved the part where she said "we are all one race, the human race." I don't think you can disagree with that. If everyone truly believed this and embraced this statement we would have a better world and possibly less wars. I'm glad she brought these issues up because I think she believes that these graduates can make a difference. Some comments I read said she attacks college education; but I don't think she does. I think she wants to make us all aware that a college education is a blessing and that we need to use it the right way, by making positive impacts in politics and helping the less fortunate. My parents were and are farm labor workers. I too did it in my youth. So I know what she talks about when she discusses the working conditions of farm labor workers and how they do not have benefits. I support her and congratulate her.

wrong place wrong time.

Dolores wouldn't be Dolores had she not delivered a speech about social justice. If CSUB didn't realize that she stands for social justice, speaks about social justice, and doesn't hold back, then their bad for inviting her to speak at commencement. That is her mission, to bring awareness to the injustices of our society. Her presence alone is inspiring, words are not necessary but her words have served us well as a community of historically oppressed people. Had it not been for her dedication, conviction, and inspiration, we might still be laboring under inhumane conditions. Dolores is admired by world leaders who regularly call upon her for her advice and support. The fact that she's being criticized just reinforces what she stands for and that's getting people to think upon their human condition. Si se puede! Viva la raza! Vive Dolores! She's always inspired me!!

Dolores Huerta is one of the few people I admire. She is not one that I would consider a great speaker. Having read what The Californian wrote about her speech and then listening to it on "You Tube", it is my opinion that the speech may have been a bit blunt for the unsuspecting audience. While she did advocate pursuing higher education and remaining vigilant of potential social injustice, she addressed actual and pertinent issues faced by society in the United States Particularly by Hispanics). According to CSBU rep Kathy Miller, the speech was not vetted and the president's office received only one complaint. I'm certain that the negative comments come from intolerant people who have difficulty saying something positive about Hispanics. I applaud her passion for social equality and would consider it a privilege to listen to her speak. The speech was not inappropriate; it was just not palatable for some.