HR 56
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Date of Hearing: August 21, 2025
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON RULES
Blanca Pacheco, Chair
HR 56 (Valencia) – As Introduced August 18, 2025
SUBJECT: Chicano Heritage Month.
SUMMARY: Recognizes August 2025 as Chicano Heritage Month; and, encourages
Californians to join in acknowledging and celebrating diversity in California. Specifically, this
resolution makes the following legislative findings:
1) Chicano Heritage Month is celebrated in August to recognize the significant contributions of
Mexican Americans to the history of the United States.
2) In 2021, the City of Santa Ana, California, became the first major city in the United States to
declare August as “Chicano Heritage Month.” “Chicano” or “Chicana” are sometimes used
interchangeably with “Mexican American,” although the terms have different meanings for
different people. Nonetheless, “Chicano” and “Chicana” were reclaimed by ethnic Mexicans
in the 1960s and 1970s to express political empowerment, ethnic solidarity, and pride in
being of Indigenous descent.
3) The Chicano Movement was a social and political movement in the United States inspired by
prior acts of resistance among people of Mexican descent that worked to embrace a
Chicano/Chicana identity and world view that combated structural racism, encouraged
cultural revitalization, and achieved community empowerment by rejecting assimilation.
4) The Chicano Movement was influenced by the Black Power movement, and both movements
held similar objectives of community empowerment and liberation while also calling for
Black-Brown unity.
5) According to the 2019 American Community Survey, people from Mexico comprised 11.3
percent of the foreign-born population in the United States. Chicanos/Chicanas have been a
long-standing part of the culture of the United States, with an undeniable influence in
education, public safety, infrastructure, economic development, culinary arts, and
governance.
6) This year, Latinos are projected to make up 42 percent of California’s population and
Chicanos and Chicanas form a significant part of that group.
7) Latino lawmakers hold 44 seats in the California State Legislature: 30 in the Assembly and
14 in the Senate. Chicanos/Chicanas represent a significant and rapidly growing
demographic, and we honor their invaluable accomplishments and contributions.
FISCAL EFFECT: This resolution is keyed non-fiscal by Legislative Counsel.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:
Support
None on file
 HR 56
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Opposition
None on file
Analysis Prepared by: Michael Erke / RLS. / (916) 319-2800