Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that.
Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.
--Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr.

Facing Hate: A Community Responds, an exhibit documenting the response of the East Bay Latino community to the March 2002 hate-mail incident targeting leaders of the local Latino community, opened Friday, April 4, 2003, at the Oakland Museum of California. The exhibit is a prototype designed to test a possible model for updating the museum's Cowell Hall of California History and to promote discussion in the community.

The opening reception for the exhibit took place Friday, April 4, from 6 to 8 p.m. on the terrace at the back of the History Gallery. This evening of recognition, inspiration and celebration included comments from people recognized in the exhibit, dialogue regarding ways to maintain a sense of community in these times, and a celebration of this community's triumph. Speakers included Chris Arriola, president of California La Raza Lawyers, and Alameda County District Attorney Tom Orloff.

The hate letters, received during last year's national anthrax scare, contained a white powder that was later determined not to be anthrax. The letters were addressed to many leading Latino lawyers and activists, as well as community agencies. The response of Rocio V. Fierro, president of the East Bay La Raza Lawyers Association, sums up the feelings of many in the community:

Personal letters expressing hate may initially disturb one's feelings of comfort, belonging and clarity of purpose. Then you remember your family's history of hard work and sacrifices and begin to appreciate hate expressions for what they are: ignorant and repugnant. In appreciation of my heritage and in furtherance of the human spirit, I chose to counter this hateful ignorance by leading the effort to educate our communities about the ugliness of ignorance and hate. The Unity Reception, the reception in honor of California Supreme Court Justice Carlos Moreno and Justice Emeritus Cruz Reynoso, and this magnificent Oakland Museum exhibit will forever stay in my mind as triumphant illustrations of the power of human dignity and respect over ignorance and hate.

Facing Hate: A Community Responds was conceived as a way of educating the community about positive responses to racism and hate. It includes profiles of some of the letter's recipients and cites nationally recognized programs designed to respond to intolerance.

The exhibit was organized by Evelyn Orantes, education projects coordinator, and Aimee Klask, history researcher, both of the Oakland Museum of California, in collaboration with the Unity Council, a community development organization based in the Fruitvale District of Oakland. Additional participants include La Peña Cultural Center; Chicano/Latino Agenda at the University of California, Berkeley; East Bay La Raza Attorneys and the following community leaders: Leandro Duran, Rocio Fierro, Lupe Gallegos, Rebeca Mendoza and Roberto Vargas.

To provide feedback or for more information please contact Evelyn Orantes. Information and teaching materials are also available through Teaching Tolerance Organization's website: www.tolerance.org.

The exhibit was made possible in part by the generous support of the Oakland Museum History Guild.

© 2003 Oakland Museum of California | Credits |Phone: 510-238-2200