<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/6a0c913731482.image.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
Keynote speaker,\u00a0Dr. Jos\u00e9 F. Moreno at \u201cNuestra Graduaci\u00f3n\u201d celebrations on May 16, 2026. (By Dr. Moreno)<\/p>\n
By:\u00a0Dr. Jos\u00e9 F. Moreno, associate professor of Latino Education & Policy Studies and former chair Chicano & Latino Studies at CSULB<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
Good Morning everyone!<\/p>\n
\u00a1Buenos d\u00edas, mi gente hermosa! \u00bfA ver c\u00f3mo estamos? \u00bfEstamos Happy!?<\/p>\n
Before I say anything else\u2026 I just want to take a moment\u2026 to feel this with you.<\/p>\n
To honor every sacrifice, every struggle, every prayer that brought us all to this beautiful day.<\/p>\n
Today, we carry dreams \u2014<\/p>\n
dreams that did not begin with us\u2026<\/p>\n
but dreams that live through us.<\/p>\n
As a faculty member \u2014 and as someone who grew up in a family that was undocumented and at one point detained, yet full of what H\u00e9ctor Tobar calls \u201cthe Migrant Soul\u201d \u2014 it is an honor to share this moment with you.<\/p>\n
And today\u2026 It is especially personal and meaningful.<\/p>\n
Because my daughter, Melina [Moreno], sits among you \u2014 graduating this year.<\/p>\n
Living out the dreams of her grandparents who crossed borders with hope in their hands.<\/p>\n
\u00a1Felicidades, mija!<\/p>\n
And felicidades to all of you, Graduates \u2014<\/p>\n
we see you.<\/p>\n
We see the long nights\u2026<\/p>\n
the sacrifices\u2026<\/p>\n
the moments you sat there and wondered, \u201cCan I really do this?\u201d \u201cDo I really belong here?\u201d<\/p>\n
And somehow\u2026 you kept going. Deserving of the flowers you have earned today.<\/p>\n
If you are first-generation \u2014<\/p>\n
we see the pathways you have created with your ganas, your brilliance, your courage.<\/p>\n
For those of you who may be second or third generation\u00a0\u2014<\/p>\n
We see how you carried expectations that often felt heavy \u2014<\/p>\n
we see your strength.<\/p>\n
If you left school and came back to finish, to fulfill your dreams \u2014<\/p>\n
we see your resilience.<\/p>\n
If you were identified as having special needs through your educational career\u2014<\/p>\n
We see you for your assets and for your intelligence.<\/p>\n
And to our immigrant students \u2014<\/p>\n
We see your courage\u2026 your fear\u2026 your hope and the love that carried you here.<\/p>\n
Today–We see all of you for your tenacity, your ganas and your brilliance!<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/6a0c92f3d1818.image.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
Dr. Moreno giving his speech during “Nuestra Graduaci\u00f3n” at CSULB. (By Jacqueline Garc\u00eda)<\/p>\n
Padres, parientes y amistades \u2014 gracias.<\/p>\n
Sin ustedes, este d\u00eda no ser\u00eda posible.<\/p>\n
Hoy celebramos con orgullo\u2026<\/p>\n
porque en cada uno de estos graduados\u2026<\/p>\n
estamos todos.<\/p>\n
Graduates, you carry more than a diploma.<\/p>\n
You carry your parents\u2019 dreams.<\/p>\n
Your Abuelita\u2019s\u2019 prayers whispered late at night.<\/p>\n
Your ancestors\u2019 sacrifices \u2014 the ones you may never fully know.<\/p>\n
You carry \u201cour Migrant Souls.\u201d<\/p>\n
And you know some people dare ask, why do we need a Latino Graduation?<\/p>\n
We celebrate\u2026 because the struggle is still real\u2026la lucha continua.<\/p>\n
Latinos are one of the fastest-growing communities in this country \u2014<\/p>\n
and yet, only a small percentage of us reach this moment.\u00a0<\/p>\n
While there are over 63 million Latinos in the United States–projected to grow to over 100 million by 2060\u2014today the United States is the 2nd largest Spanish-speaking country in the world and yet\u2026<\/p>\n
Only 20% of Latino adults in the U.S. have a college degree or higher; and only 16% of Latino adults in California have a college degree or higher.<\/p>\n
So this \u2014 right here \u2014 is not ordinary.<\/p>\n
Given our community\u2019s history and struggle\u2014<\/p>\n
This is resistance.<\/p>\n
This is love.<\/p>\n
This is legacy.<\/p>\n
Keep opening doors\u2026<\/p>\n
and don\u2019t just walk through them \u2014\u00a0 remove those doors for those coming behind you.<\/p>\n
Because your success\u2026 is never just your own.<\/p>\n
Graduates \u2014 you are stepping into a world that will challenge you.<\/p>\n
A world that will sometimes question you.<\/p>\n
A world that may try to make you forget who you are.<\/p>\n
Don\u2019t let it.<\/p>\n
Use your education not just to move up \u2014 but to lift up.<\/p>\n
To stand for what is right.<\/p>\n
To fight for what is just.<\/p>\n
To live as our UndocuYouth proclaim\u2014”unapologetic\u2026 and unafraid.\u201d<\/p>\n
Because when one of us rises \u2014 we all rise.<\/p>\n
As Dolores Huerta reminds us:<\/p>\n
\u201cEvery moment is an organizing opportunity\u2026an opportunity to change the world.\u201d<\/p>\n
“Cada momento es una oportunidad para organizarnos\u2026una oportunidad para cambiar el mundo.”<\/p>\n
And graduates \u2014<\/p>\n
you and your families are that change.<\/p>\n
And Yes \u2014 it wasn\u2019t easy.<\/p>\n
This system was not built for you. It was not built for us.<\/p>\n
But you showed up anyway.<\/p>\n
You stayed anyway.<\/p>\n
You succeeded anyway.<\/p>\n
You are not just graduates.<\/p>\n
You are history makers.<\/p>\n
You are barrier breakers. You are path makers.<\/p>\n
You are the answer to prayers spoken generations ago.<\/p>\n
Representation matters\u2026 because you matter.<\/p>\n
Because when you walk into those spaces \u2014<\/p>\n
you don\u2019t just enter them\u2026<\/p>\n
You transform them.<\/p>\n
You bring your language.<\/p>\n
Your culture.<\/p>\n
and as Bad Bunny says, \u201cYour saz\u00f3n.\u201d<\/p>\n
You bring us with you.<\/p>\n
Stay true.<\/p>\n
Stay rooted.<\/p>\n
Stay proud.<\/p>\n
Padres, parientes, y amistades \u2014\u00a0<\/p>\n
De nuevo, les damos las gracias por prestarnos sus hijos\/as, sus primos\/as, hasta tal vez sus pap\u00e1s\/mam\u00e1s. Todos sabemos que sin ustedes este d\u00eda no ser\u00eda posible.<\/p>\n
Aqu\u00ed estamos en este d\u00eda con nuestros graduados con todo el orgullo de nuestra comunidad\u2026 por qu\u00e9 en cada uno de ustedes nos encontramos todos!\u00a0<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/6a0c9397aa03e.image.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
Dr. Moreno with his daughter Melina Moreno and family members. (Courtesy of Dr. Moreno)<\/p>\n
Es un gran d\u00eda \u2026el d\u00eda en que celebramos juntos y con todo orgullo y humildad declaramos que hoy,\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMi hijo, mi hija ; mi hermana\/o ; mi primo\/prima ; mi nieta\/o ; mi querida\/o ; o hasta mi papi mi mami\u00a0 — se recibi\u00f3 de la Universidad!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
So–Today we celebrate. Hoy celebramos.<\/p>\n
But tomorrow \u2014 we continue. Pero manana continuamos.<\/p>\n
We open doors.<\/p>\n
We make space.<\/p>\n
We lift others as we rise.<\/p>\n
And if you ever doubt yourself\u2026<\/p>\n
I ask you\u2014<\/p>\n
Remember the words of the Chicano poet Manuel Gomez, who proclaimed in the midst of social struggle for our gente\u2019s freedom\u2026<\/p>\n
\u201cI do not ask for freedom\u2026 I am freedom.\u201d<\/p>\n
A reminder of struggle \u2014 but also of identity, agency, power and self-determination.<\/p>\n
Because we will not be defined simply as \u201cno sabos\u201d or their imaginary \u201caliens\u201d or simply their \u201clabor.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
WE are what Dra. Diane Mendoza Nevarez, Chicano Studies de CSULB alum once said–<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u201cWe are a beautiful, bold and brilliant people who nourish this country with joy, culture and yes brilliance!<\/p>\n
We are not \u201cless than.\u201d And we will not be invisible.\u00a0<\/p>\n
We are a people who have always shaped this country \u2014 and always will.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a1Somos de aqu\u00ed y de all\u00e1!<\/p>\n
We are here.<\/p>\n
And we are rising.<\/p>\n
Remember this moment.<\/p>\n
Hold onto it.<\/p>\n
Remember your roots.<\/p>\n
Remember your family.<\/p>\n
Remember who you are.<\/p>\n
May your roots always keep you grounded and inspired, and your futures shine with a brilliance and warmth that brings the world the joy and justice it so desperately needs and our ancestors dreamed of\u2026\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a1Que vivan los latinos!<\/p>\n
Abolish ICE!<\/p>\n
\u00a1Y que viva Palestina!<\/p>\n
\u00a1S\u00ed se pudo!<\/p>\n
\u00a1S\u00ed se puede!<\/p>\n
\u00a1S\u00ed se podr\u00e1!<\/p>\n
\u201cQue sigan pa\u2019lante, siempre pa\u2019lante!”<\/p>\n
\u00a1Much\u00edsimas gracias y felicidades!\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Keynote speaker,\u00a0Dr. Jos\u00e9 F. Moreno at \u201cNuestra Graduaci\u00f3n\u201d celebrations on May 16, 2026. (By Dr. Moreno) By:\u00a0Dr. Jos\u00e9…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":323101,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[10760,1822,8600,133486,134604,8606,134605,131,133,132],"class_list":["post-323100","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-long-beach","tag-cal-state-long-beach","tag-csulb","tag-graduation","tag-graduation-2026","tag-jos-f-moreno","tag-keynote-speaker","tag-latino-graduates","tag-long-beach","tag-long-beach-headlines","tag-long-beach-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/323100","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=323100"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/323100\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/323101"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=323100"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=323100"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=323100"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}