34. ¡Sí, se Puede! Yes, We Can! Janitor Strike in L.A.

Finally, a book about social activism that is based in the present. While I love reading to my kids about César Chavez, I also want them to know that the same sorts of injustice can still be seen in today's society...and people can still do something about it. No, I am not trying to create students who hate our country or our government. Quite the contrary...I want my students to practice their Constitutional rights to free speech and protest should they ever need to. This book portrays that well.


Written by Diana Cohn and illustrated by Francisco Delgado, ¡Sí se Puede! (2002) is based on true events. 8,ooo janitors in L.A. went on strike in 2000 to raise awareness-- they believed that janitors should get pay raises so they could receive a living wage. The story is told from the point of view of Carlitos, a boy whose mom works nights as a janitor and also has to pick up other jobs in order to take care of him and his grandmother. This story is one that my students would immediately connect to-- their parents work multiple jobs and barely ever see them, just to scrape by and try to build a better life for their kids. 


Delgado's dynamic artwork accompanies Cohn's text. His colored pencil sketches are rich in color and movement. He uses outlines to border his characters, giving them shape and stability. The scenes burst with action, as we are often given the perspective of looking up at everyone, watching the drama unfold. Delgado is also masterful at adding in little details that make the drawings realistic, for example the Virgen de Guadalupe hanging on the wall in Carlitos' room or the Aztec-style calendar hanging up in the kitchen. Delgado works a lot with light and shadow to create realism (though the figures are slightly cartoonish as well).

In summary, not only is the book about activism and 1st amendment rights, it is also a culturally relevant text than can relate to the students. Oh, and did I forget to mention that it is bilingual? Well, it is. This would be a great book to use in a study of political activism, exposing children to such important figures as César Chavez, Martin Luther King, Jr., Dolores Huerta, Emma Tenayuca, etc. I want them to know that there is nothing wrong with speaking out and getting your voice heard (as long as it is not violent of course). In the end, I loved seeing how Carlitos is able to spend more time with his mom now that she got her pay raise and doesn't have to work 3 jobs. How I wish that for my students, too.