Epilogue to The Activist Spirit
Victor Narro has been a good friend and colleague at the UCLA Labor Center for nearly twenty years. His pathbreaking work to infuse spirituality and self-kindness within labor and social justice movements has had a profound impact. Victor has taught us that we activists must take care of ourselves. We can’t separate our political lives from our personal lives, and we must promote thoughtful self-care to avoid burn-out that can lead to dropping out of the movement.
The work of an activist is physically and emotion- ally demanding. Yet it is a calling that can bring great joy and fulfillment. Victor is regularly called on to assist unions, worker centers, and community organizations to strengthen their work through spirituality and self-kindness. He has also taught courses at UCLA which helped to prepare our stu- dents for a life of activism.
On December 11, 2021, the UCLA Labor Center dedicated our building in Los Angeles in honor of Rev. James Lawson Jr. It is appropriate that this is the very building where Victor has worked for the past two decades. Rev. Lawson worked closely with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on the Nashville Sit-In campaign and the Memphis Sanitation Workers strike, and has had a historic impact in infusing the philosophy of nonviolence to the U.S. experience.
We recently published a new book with Rev. Lawson entitled Revolutionary Nonviolence: Organizing for Freedom (UC Press, 2021.) Victor’s new book The Activist Spirit aligns well with Rev. Lawson’s teachings on nonviolence. Here is a quote from Rev. Lawson in Revolutionary Nonviolence:
“So where do we go from here? I think that the most important soil that you and I must cultivate is to lay the seeds for the movements of the twenty-first century that will reclaim democracy for the Unit- ed States, that will reclaim justice, reclaim equality, reclaim liberty for all in the United States. I think that we have to lay the seeds by which we can take government out of the hands of the oligarchy and out of the hands of the military and put it back into the hands of truth and the beloved community. That needs to be our goal in the twenty-first century, and I think that it’s a goal that we can achieve if all around the country ordinary people get involved in it.”
We hope that these two important books will inspire generations to come to join our movement for peace and human liberation.
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Kent Wong was the director of the UCLA Labor Center and a good friend and colleague of Victor Narro for two decades. His passing grieves us all.
Victor Narro
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Victor Narro has been involved with immigrant rights and labor issues for over 30 years. Currently Victor is Project Director for the UCLA Center for Labor Research and Education (UCLA Labor Center) and Professor for the UCLA Labor and Workplace Studies Minor. He is also a Lecturer In Law for UCLA School of Law. Victor is co-editor of Working for Justice: The L.A. Model of Organizing and Advocacy (Cornell University Press, 2010); coauthor of Undocumented and Unafraid: Tam Tran, Cinthya Felix, and the Immigrant Youth Movement. (UCLA Center for Labor Research and Education, 2012); and author of Living Peace: Connecting Your Spiritualitywith Your Work for Justice (CreateSpace Publication, 2014). Victor is happily married to Laureen Lazarovici, a long time labor activist and journalist.
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Victor Narro is a lifelong abor and immigrant rights activist who believes there is a spiritual core within social justice activism from which we can deepen our solidarity with each other. We can strengthen, our inter-connection and deepen our compassion.
The work for justice is filled with the values often attributed to spirituality – love, compassion, empathy for those in need, and a lifetime commitment to bring justice into their lives. His books and his work call us to integrate that inner spiritual core into our work to make the struggle for justice more compassionate, fulfilling, caring, and sustainable.
To be an activist for justice is to love humanity and all of creation.
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Victor's charming children's book, Jimmy's Car Wash Adventure/La Aventura de Jaime En El Autolavado tells two important stories. First, the carwash workers who labor under dangerous conditions for little pay and no labor rights stand up for their rights. And second, a little boy shows his father where true solidarity lies: with the workers. An inspiring story for young and old.
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Epilogue to The Activist Spirit
Victor Narro has been a good friend and colleague at the UCLA Labor Center for nearly twenty years. His pathbreaking work to infuse spirituality and self-kindness within labor and social justice movements has had a profound impact. Victor has taught us that we activists must take care of ourselves. We can’t separate our political lives from our personal lives, and we must promote thoughtful self-care to avoid burn-out that can lead to dropping out of the movement.
The work of an activist is physically and emotion- ally demanding. Yet it is a calling that can bring great joy and fulfillment. Victor is regularly called on to assist unions, worker centers, and community organizations to strengthen their work through spirituality and self-kindness. He has also taught courses at UCLA which helped to prepare our stu- dents for a life of activism.
On December 11, 2021, the UCLA Labor Center dedicated our building in Los Angeles in honor of Rev. James Lawson Jr. It is appropriate that this is the very building where Victor has worked for the past two decades. Rev. Lawson worked closely with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on the Nashville Sit-In campaign and the Memphis Sanitation Workers strike, and has had a historic impact in infusing the philosophy of nonviolence to the U.S. experience.
We recently published a new book with Rev. Lawson entitled Revolutionary Nonviolence: Organizing for Freedom (UC Press, 2021.) Victor’s new book The Activist Spirit aligns well with Rev. Lawson’s teachings on nonviolence. Here is a quote from Rev. Lawson in Revolutionary Nonviolence:
“So where do we go from here? I think that the most important soil that you and I must cultivate is to lay the seeds for the movements of the twenty-first century that will reclaim democracy for the Unit- ed States, that will reclaim justice, reclaim equality, reclaim liberty for all in the United States. I think that we have to lay the seeds by which we can take government out of the hands of the oligarchy and out of the hands of the military and put it back into the hands of truth and the beloved community. That needs to be our goal in the twenty-first century, and I think that it’s a goal that we can achieve if all around the country ordinary people get involved in it.”
We hope that these two important books will in- spire generations to come to join our movement for peace and human liberation.
___________________________________
Kent Wong was the director of the UCLA Labor Center and a good friend and colleague of Victor Narro for two decades. His passing grieves us all.