Pedro Robles personifies grassroots leadership. Part of a younger generation of community organizers arising in East Palo Alto, his strength comes from his community ties and cultural values, and his growth has been in understanding other communities in his adopted homeland. But along the way, the frustrations he experienced led him to realize the need for community leaders to defend the rights of Hispanic immigrants. He frequently cites his efforts to learn English at a local school where it was the teachers, not the students, who regularly skipped class.
On one occasion when the class didn’t happen and Robles had extra time on his hands, he happened upon a community organizing meeting at a nearby church. The group was known as the Base Committee, and when Robles heard about its mission to fight for better housing, education, and police protection for the local community, he became hooked. He also became involved in another organization, the Committee for Immigrant Rights, and busied himself organizing car washes and garage sales, and anything the group could do to expand its activities.
His disappointment with the local school district is one of the key factors motivating Robles. “When I was a child, I wanted to study to help others. That was my dream. My parents put me in school, but after 2 or 3 months a year, they pulled me out to help on the farm. That’s how we survive in Mexico. I thought that in this country, there wasn’t any corruption,” he said.
With three children in the local schools, Robles observed that the school district did not seem to take their education seriously. “I realized we needed a change,” he said. He was part of a successful campaign to replace the school board with reform-minded candidates who are working to end mismanagement in the school district.
Robles also serves on the board of One East Palo Alto, a group
that is bringing Palo Alto’s diverse populations together to revitalize
and strengthen the community. In all that he does, he infuses his projects
with traditional values from his Mexican background. “I think about
the youth and elderly a lot,” he said. “A child has to be cared
for, and when he reaches old age he has to be cared for. In this country,
parents aren’t important. We need to teach our new generation to
care for our elderly.”
Robles became a Wildflowers fellow in 2003.