A crowd watches a Muwekma Ohlone cleansing ceremony at the former site of a statue of Thomas Fallon, an early San Jose mayor, raising the U.S. flag in downtown San Jose on Friday, Aug. 4, 2023. (Sal Pizarro/Bay Area News Group)
Drivers stopped near Julian Street and Highway 87 in downtown San Jose on Friday morning may have wondered what was happening on the concrete island near the ramps. Were the 50 or so people there gathered in protest or celebration? A little bit of both, actually.
The event was led by members of the Muwekma Ohlone tribe and Centro Aztlan Chicomoztoc at the former site of a statue of Thomas Fallon, an early San Jose mayor, and a companion on horseback raising the U.S. flag over San Jose. After more than three decades as a controversial flashpoint in the city, the statue was removed this past spring and put into storage. The groups called for a ritual cleansing of the site, which they say symbolized genocide and white supremacy.
Muwekma Ohlone Chairwoman Charlene Nijmeh, who led the solemn ceremony along with tribal dancer Joey Torres, said the spiritual cleansing of the area would be followed by mobilization “to put in an installation that reflects us all.” The ceremony, attended by San Jose City Councilmembers Peter Ortiz and Omar Torres, was followed by a procession that stopped at Plaza de Cesar Chavez and ended at St. James Park.
A contingent of people against the statue’s removal have argued it simply represented a moment in the city’s history and did not glorify colonization (a charge that falls on Spain, not the U.S., in California’s case). Others — including myself, a San Jose native of mostly Mexican descent — weren’t offended by the statue but thought commissioning it without community input was wrong. And I’m willing to bet most of San Jose’s nearly 1 million residents rarely — if ever — noticed it.
But some folks, like Kathy Chavez Napoli have been actively opposing the statue since its inception. Chavez Napoli ran for San Jose mayor in 1994 and 1998 and is now a member of the Gavilan Community College District board of trustees. She was there Friday, too, and reminded the crowd that the statue was never destroyed (an action the city council was unable to order because artist Robert Glen wouldn’t agree to it). That was her recommendation, but she doesn’t think it should have been hidden away, either.
“If it’s going to be placed somewhere, it should be placed at the historical museum here in San Jose so our story could be told about the Latino community, the Chicano community, the Native community,” she said. “We need to have that story, our voices told. So over 30 years later, we’re still fighting and we’ll continue to fight.”
Chavez Napoli says the statue should never have been built to begin with. Looking back at the anguish, controversy and cost over three decades, it’s hard to disagree.
BRUNCHING WITH CHEF GATOR: It’s been great to see Chef Glenn “Gator” Thompson back doing his thing for Mama Kin in downtown San Jose. As someone who loved his Southern food at Bayonne (where Petiscos now rules on South First Street) over a decade ago, seeing him back in a kitchen was good for my soul — though not so much for my waistline.
Mama Kin’s been experimenting with a weekend Boogie Brunch this summer from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., with a Southern and Cajun menu that’s worth checking out. Thompson says he’s got big plans for Mama Kin’s dinner menu, too, and hopes to make it as much a destination for dining as for music.
SETTING THE STAGE: San Jose Playhouse’s Scott and Shannon Guggenheim were surprised to see the Washington Post had used the set design for their new live production “Thanks for Playing! The Game Show Show” as the background for TikTok videos about COVID boosters. They don’t mind the appreciation but hope audiences come see the set in person at 3Below Theaters before the comedy closes its run on Aug. 20. You can get tickets at www.sanjoseplayhouse.org.
And if you’re checking your calendar, City Lights Theater Company’s exuberant production of “Kinky Boots” has been extended until Aug. 27. The musical features San Jose resident Ricardo Cortés in his third role this season for City Lights: He had a standout scene selling tamales in “Miss You Like Hell,” showed his mysterious side as a man with a secret in “The River Bride” and is wrapping up the season as a sassy drag entertainer.
GOOD DEED DEPT.: Soccer fans were disappointed when the Barcelona vs. Juventus match at Levi’s Stadium was canceled abruptly in late July. But it also left a ton of food that was going to go unsold. Fortunately, Hunger at Home stepped in with its food rescue program and distributed that as 1,400 boxed lunches and more than 30 trays of food filled with carnitas, chicken, fruit and vegetables. Does that count as a goal or a save?
Originally published at Sal Pizarro