Corona, Bert N.

Community and labor organizer for the Mexican American community in Los Angeles during the 1930s, 40s, and 50s. In the 1960s political organizer (President of the Mexican-American Political Association) and founding force in La Raza Unida Party, with particular interest in undocumented Mexican workers and immigration problems. Founder of El Centro de Ayuda which evolved into Centro de Acción Social Autónomo (CASA).

Bert Corona was political activist, union organizer and professor, born on May 1918 in El Paso Texas. He grew up in Southern California, attended the University of Southern California and it was during his college years working as a stevedore that he first became active in a union. Between 1936 and 1942,he was heavily involved in union organizing for the Congress of Industrial Organization (CIO) and its affiliate, the United Cannery, Agricultural, Packing and Alied Workers of America.

In 1938, Corona campaigned for the election of Latino politician Eduardo Quevedo and later Edward Roybal. By 1950 he was regional organizer for the National Association of Mexican Americans and was passionately involved in opposing the McCarran-Walter Immigration act. In 1959, he and Quevedo among other activists gathered to organize the Mexican American Political Association (MAPA) and in 1960 he served on the national Viva Kennedy campaign committees . In 1967, he was appointed to the U.S. Civil Rights Commission. During the mid 1960s Corona was deeply involved in the immigration issue as a consultant to the Labor Department.

Corona helped to organize the Hermandad General de Trabajadores, the National Congress of Spanish-speaking people, the Community Service Organization, and the Mexican Youth Conference. As a Professor, he has lectured at Stanford, San Diego State University, California State University at Northridge, Los Angeles, and was President of the Association of California School Administrators.

Biographical Note

Born in El Paso, Texas, in 1918, Corona joined the labor movement soon after his arrival in Los Angeles in 1936. He became a prominent organizer within the CIO, helping to organize Spanish-speaking workers in low-paying jobs. During the 1930s he was also involved in organizational work within the Mexican American community and, along with Luisa Moreno, Josefina Fierro, Eduardo Quevedo and others, he participated in El Congreso de Pueblos de Habla Española, one of the earliest Mexican American groups to address political concerns. During the 1940s, when animosity between the Los Angeles Police Department and the Mexican American community was growing, Corona was instrumental in defusing the tensions. He was active in the Citizens' Committee for te Defense of Mexican-American Youth (also known as the Sleepy Lagoon Defense Committee) which represented the first organized effort led by Mexican Americans to resist police attacks on their community.

The 1950s were a quieter period for Corona, since the hysteria generated by Sen. Joseph McCarthy and the McCarran-Walter Acts made it difficult for political activists to function. Despite the period's conservatism and xenophobia, Corona continued to be politically active, serving as Regional Organizer for ANMA (National Association of Mexican-Americans), an organization formed in 1948 which fought to preserve the cultural heritage of Mexican Americans. As Regional Organizer, Corona spent a good amount of time traveling, organizing local chapters, and working with braceros, who were among the organizations strongest supporters.

When the Chicano movement emerged in the late 1960s, Corona was able to provide experienced leadership. He worked with organizations whose activities were strictly political, serving as President of the Mexican-American Political Association (MAPA) and encouraging the formation of an independent Chicano political party, La Raza Unida Party. At the same time Corona grew increasingly concerned with the welfare of undocumented Mexican workers who were less likely to participate openly in political organizations. Unhappy with the United Farm Workers policy towards the undocumented workers, he formed El Centro de Ayuda. Staffed by volunteers from various law firms, the center assisted workers with immigration problems, while at the same time encouraging the workers to organize. El Centro grew quickly and eventually changed its name to reflect its expanded functions, becoming the Centro de Acción Social Autónoma (CASA).

In addition to work on immigration policy, Corona has taught Chicano Studies at the California State University Los Angeles, where he worked for over a decade.