Father Luis Olivares, a Biography: Faith Politics and the Origins of the Sanctuary Movement in Los Angeles - Hardcover

García, Mario T.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1469643316 ISBN 13: 9781469643311

Publisher: The University of North Carolina Press, 2018

Synopsis

This is the amazing untold story of the Los Angeles sanctuary movement's champion, Father Luis Olivares (1934–1993), a Catholic priest and a charismatic, faith-driven leader for social justice. Beginning in 1980 and continuing for most of the decade, hundreds of thousands of Salvadoran and Guatemalan refugees made the hazardous journey to the United States, seeking asylum from political repression and violence in their home states. Instead of being welcomed by the "country of immigrants," they were rebuffed by the Reagan administration, which supported the governments from which they fled. To counter this policy, a powerful sanctuary movement rose up to provide safe havens in churches and synagogues for thousands of Central American refugees.

Based on previously unexplored archives and over ninety oral histories, this compelling biography traces the life of a complex and constantly evolving individual, from Olivares's humble beginnings in San Antonio, Texas, to his close friendship with legendary civil rights leader Cesar Chavez and his historic leadership of the United Neighborhoods Organization and the sanctuary movement.

About this title

About the Author:

Mario T. Garcia is distinguished professor of Chicana and Chicano Studies and history at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and author of The Latino Generation: Voices of the New America.

Review:

Beautifully written and impeccably sourced. With grace and a storyteller's heart, Garcia has done an exceptional job in bringing the incredible story of Father Luis Olivares to life.--Felipe Hinojosa, Texas A&M University
A major contribution. Father Luis Olivares's story is a significant one, and in Garcia's hands, it is very well told.--Gilberto Hinojosa, University of the Incarnate Word

About this edition

• Publisher: The University of North Carolina Press
• Publication date: 2018
• ISBN 10: 1469643316
• ISBN 13: 9781469643311
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 560