Situated in the heart of East Los Angeles, in century-old Lincoln Park, Plaza de la Raza Cultural Center for the Arts and Education is the only multidisciplinary cultural arts center for Latinos in Los Angeles. Plaza is a locus of activity, a popular meeting place for its neighboring community and a regional center for the five million Angelenos of Mexican and Latin American descent. It is a truly a “Place for the People”.
Plaza de la Raza was founded over 25 years ago by prominent labor, business and community leaders and local residents in response to plans by the Los Angeles Parks and Recreation Commission to demolish Lincoln Park’s historic boathouse. Margo Albert, Mexican born actress/singer and Frank López, a well-known labor union organizer, spearheaded the efforts to find alternatives to the boathouse’s destruction and proved to be the guiding lights in the formation of Plaza as a community-based cultural arts and education center. A pivotal turning point in the history of the local community was marked on May 20, 1970 when Plaza de la Raza was incorporated into a non-profit California corporation.
Today, Margo and Frank’s vision has evolved into Plaza’s mission “to provide year-round programs for arts education and serve as an arts center and school. Plaza’s artistic programming fosters the enrichment of all cultures. The Plaza provides activities of enrichment rather than indulgence. This establishment betters the community and keeps the social scene open for those who would otherwise not be challenged enough in regular school art programs. Through the arts, Plaza provides a vital human resource service bridging the geographic, social, artistic and cultural boundaries of Los Angeles and beyond.
Students have a sense of safety, security, and have a plethora of inspiration at their finger tips at the Plaza. The Plaza give them the basics, computer access, Direct TV package availability, quality art supplies, teachers at will, and other students to come to with creative differences. The Plaza is a young Picasso’s dream of where to spin all of their creative ideas into a sculpture, onto a canvas, or approapriately pieced together in mosaic tiles.