By Linda Y. Brown

Ricardo Martinez has been an activist for most of his life. He began when he was 12 years old as a farm worker in California. He was there in the beginning as the United Farm Workers Union, led by Caesar Chavez, was forming. His inspiration came from the Filipino workers who protested harsh working conditions in the field.

Martinez and his wife, Pam, are co-directors of Padres Unidos (or Parents United), a non-profit organization with headquarters in Northwest Denver. There they fight for equality in education, student advocacy and immigrant rights. Jóvenes Unidos (Youth United), part of Padres Unidos, helps young people become their own advocates in the schools. It has chapters at Lincoln, North and Montbello high schools.

When the Ricardo and Pam Martinez moved to Colorado, they found the terrain for children of color was not much smoother than what they saw in California or Texas.

“Spanish-speaking children were being made to eat on the floor for misbehaving. It was a school policy,” Martinez said. “The principal wouldn’t budge on this issue. Parents began to protest. We went to support them. We tried to negotiate with the school but there was no apology. It took a year to get the principal removed. After that, other schools began calling on us for help.”

Parents at other schools took notice of this and realized by banding together they could bring about positive change on behalf of their children. Martinez began to receive calls from parents in Jefferson County, requesting help with organizing because their kids were being spat on by the football team, called racial slurs and getting beaten up. The Martinezes decided to form Padres Unidos in 1991.

One and a half years later the Congress of Hispanic Educators and Denver Public Schools (DPS) teachers and administrators filed a lawsuit against DPS, alleging DPS was not fulfilling its obligation to Latino children. It took just over three years, but DPS was found guilty of discrimination. A second filing 10 years later affected other neglected students, including those with special needs. The National Council of La Raza approached Padres Unidos because DPS was trying to get out of the court order. The group wanted to help Padres Unidos broaden its campaign.

“We weren’t able to help because we were all volunteers and had full time jobs,” said Martinez.

Realizing the need for Padres Unidos to have a firm footing in the community, La Raza assisted them in becoming a non-profit organization and wrote a grant to help fund full-time positions. The original headquarters was on the second floor of Rosa Linda’s Mexican Café on 33rd and Tejon, “a place where you could always go to find out what was happening in the community,” said Martinez.

Pam Martinez was the first to come on board with Padres Unidos full-time. Ricardo Matrinez later joined her as co-director. Together, they have gained recognition across the country for the work they do in the community.

“Education is a complicated process. All of us have to work together. All of us have to be in charge of assessing our schools. We need true participation. That’s what we help build in the community,” said Martinez. “You have to be willing to dedicate part of your time to the school. Not just send your kid to school. Not just baking cookies for the PTA. You’re not there to complain. You’re there to improve it.

“That’s what we’re asking as a society – how do we all work together to improve our schools? How do we work together to improve ourselves and others? So we fight for better schools and communities.”

One of the most pressing issues for Padres Unidos is improving the quality of education.

“We can’t keep doing business in schools like we are continuing to do. It’s unacceptable to have such a low graduation rate and high drop-out rates,” Martinez said. “Prisons are built on statistics on the drop-out rate. It’s no accident that Colorado has a high number of prisons. Reforming public schools is paramount.”

Padres Unidos attracts mostly Hispanic parents and students, but Martinez said that it is not by design. Commenting on the effects of the public school system on Hispanics and African-American students, he said, “There is an equal opportunity of failure. We’re both suffering from the same thing. The perception (that one group is doing better than the other) is false. No one is getting a better deal. It is in our absolute interest as parents and students to unite and improve the quality of education for all children. It’s the moral and ethical thing to do. We have no other option.”

In 2002, Padres Unidos teamed with African-American parents to work on a reform plan for Cole Middle School, which ranked lowest on student achievement in Colorado. The school closed, which Martinez said, “doesn’t speak well for the district as a whole,” but he credited the teachers and students for putting forth a valiant effort.

“The teachers worked their hearts out,” he said. “I’ve not seen a more dedicated staff. That’s what we want to create for all schools. We need support for students, teachers, counselors – it’s all a team process.”

Padres Unidos is currently working with students and staff at North High School, another struggling DPS school. Martinez said he feels more hopeful about North.

“I’ve been there from the beginning in drafting the reform plan. Writing grants has been a multi-year effort,” he said. “The reform was only for one year, but the work behind it had been going on for a number of years – but it wasn’t working.

“The real brunt of the problem at North, Manual and Cole was borne by the students. Our obligation is to the students and parents. We’ll continue to work with North to help turn the school around.”

Jóvenes Unidos teaches students how to research and prepare speeches and have sent them to DPS board meetings to speak. During Spring Break in March, Jovenes students went to the state capital to speak to legislators about the Dream Act, a bill to help undocumented students attend college.

“Public education is the foundation for democracy,” said Martinez. “There is a perception that young people don’t care, but it’s the opposite. You give students the opportunity to develop their ideas and develop their skills, and they’ll take it up and run with it. You see how they act with each other and the impact they have on one another. That’s the beauty of it.”

Padres Unidos continues to take on tough issues, but Martinez doesn’t see himself slowing down.

“It’s going to take us a while to improve the schools,” he said. “Most of the students in school now are not going to be around when these changes finally take effect. But it will take effect for their siblings. It will take effect for their neighbor’s kids. It will take effect for their children, and for people they don’t even know. That’s what keeps me motivated to keep up this work.”

Editor’s note: For more information, call 303-458-6545 or visit www.padresunidos.org.