Legal Trailblazer Justice Cruz Reynoso to Receive 2004 César E. Chávez

Spirit Award at UCLA

For Immediate Use
March 24, 2004

Letisia Márquez, lmarquez@support.ucla.edu
(310) 206-3986

Legal Trailblazer Justice Cruz Reynoso to Receive 2004 César E. Chávez
Spirit Award at UCLA

Justice Cruz Reynoso, who was the first Latino to serve on the California
Supreme Court and has been widely honored for his leadership and public
service, will receive the UCLA César E. Chávez Spirit Award on Thursday,
April 29, at UCLA s Covel Commons.

The event will begin with a reception at 6 p.m., followed by dinner at 7
a.m. and a program at 8 p.m. Linda Alvarez, weekend anchor and special
assignment reporter with KCBS-Channel 2, will serve as emcee.

As a former California Supreme Court Associate Justice, Cruz Reynoso, like
Chávez, is a champion of the poor, the worker and those who were treated
unfairly, said Abel Valenzuela, interim director of UCLA César E. Chávez
Center for Interdisciplinary Instruction in Chicana/o Studies. He is a
guardian of fairness and deliberates in a thoughtful and honest manner.
His compassion and work on behalf of the downtrodden are a living
testament to Chávez s legacy.

Reynoso grew up in a family of 11 children in Orange County. As a youth,
he picked fruit and attended segregated schools with other Latinos. At 14,
he petitioned Washington, D.C., to get mail service for his La Habra
community. The son of Mexican farm workers, he ignored friends who warned
he would never be admitted to college. He earned a B.A. degree from Pomona
College in 1953 and a law degree from the University of California,
Berkeley, in 1958.

Reynoso began his career in private law practice in El Centro, Calif., and
subsequently took two leaves from his practice to accept positions in
public service. He first left to serve as assistant director of the
California Fair Employment Practice Commission and as a secretary to Gov.
Pat Brown. Reynoso later served the federal government as associate
general counsel of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in
Washington, D.C. In 1968 he returned to his home state to head California
Rural Legal Assistance, one of the pioneering programs of the legal
services movement.

In 1972 Reynoso joined the University of New Mexico School of Law. He was
appointed associate justice of the California Court of Appeal in 1976, and
then served on the California Supreme Court from 1982 to 1987. Reynoso was
the first Latino to serve on the state s highest court.

Reynoso returned to private practice and in 1991, he joined the UCLA
School of Law. He was a beloved educator; law students selected him as
professor of the year in 1995. Reynoso became the first Boochever and Bird
Chair for the Study and Teaching of Freedom and Equality at the University
of California, Davis, School of Law in 2001. In that position, he
continues to pursue his academic interests in the areas of professional
responsibility, remedies, appellate advocacy and civil rights.

Continuing his longstanding commitment to public service, Reynoso
currently serves as the vice chair of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights.
Previous service at the national level includes an appointment by
President Jimmy Carter to the Select Commission on Immigration and Human
Rights. Reynoso also has served in numerous positions at the state and
local level.

In recognition of Reynoso s service, President Bill Clinton awarded him
the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation s highest civilian honor, in
2000; Reynoso received the Hispanic Heritage Foundation Award in Education
that same year. He holds a number of honorary degrees, and serves on the
boards of several civil rights, environmental and educational organizations.

Established in 2000, the UCLA César E. Chávez Spirit Award honors
individuals who embody the principles, leadership and humanitarian
qualities of the prolific late labor leader. Past award recipients include
Luis Valdez, playwright and artistic director/founder of El Teatro
Campesino; actor/activist Martin Sheen; labor leader and United Farm
Workers co-founder Dolores Huerta; and Carlos and Deborah Santana for
their philanthropic work through The Milagro Foundation.

Tickets to the event are $75 per person, and $40 for students with valid
ID. R.S.V.P.s are requested by April 22. For more information on the
awards dinner or to find out about possible sponsorship opportunities,
call (310) 825-9199 or visit www.chavez.ucla.edu/spiritaward.

A portion of the proceeds from the event will support the creation of an
endowment for an undergraduate scholarship in Chicana/o Studies. The
center also is accepting additional donations for the César E. Chávez
Spirit Scholarship Fund. These scholarships are for students pursuing a
degree in Chicana/o Studies who have demonstrated a strong academic record
and a commitment to social justice.

-UCLA-
LM149