Graciela Sanchez | |
|---|---|
| Born | April 24, 1960 |
| Education | Yale University |
| Occupation(s) | Social activist, executive director |
| Known for | Founder of Esperanza Peace and Justice Center |
Graciela Sanchez (born April 24, 1960) is a community organizer and social justice activist based out of San Antonio, Texas. She is the founder and executive director of the Esperanza Peace and Justice Center, known for being a long-time organizer in the queer community.
Sanchez was born April 24, 1960 in San Antonio, Texas. [1] While in junior high school, Sanchez joined with her classmates to organize a protest over the quality of the cafeteria food. She cites their successful results in collectively organizing as teaching her the value of advocating for a cause. [2] Sanchez also was influenced by her parent's involvement in the Chicano Movement of the late 1960s. [1]
Sanchez attended Yale University. [3] While at school, Sanchez recounts finding inspiration in the feminist anthology This Bridge Called My Back: Writings By Radical Women of Color . [4]
Sanchez started her career working for the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund. [2] She also worked with activist Willie Velasquez on the Southwest Voter Registration Education Project. [3] 1986, Sanchez became the first American accepted to Escuela Internacional de Cine y Televisión, a film school in Cuba. [5] Interested in how America's policies at the time impacted people throughout the world, Sanchez made a documentary called Testimonios de Nicaragua on the Sandinista revolution. [2] She produced another film in 1988 about queer rights in Cuba entitled No porque lo diga Fidel Castro. [2]
In 1987, Sanchez founded the Esperanza Peace and Justice Center. [6] The center was established to advocate for LGBTQ rights, basic civil rights, and economic justice. [7] The center also works to preserve historic buildings in San Antonio’s West Side. [8] In founding the center, Sanchez aimed to create a new organization that was more broadly focused than other civic organizations in San Antonio at the time. [9] Sanchez became director of Esperanza in 1988. [9]
Sanchez is a founding member of multiple organizations in San Antonio, including the Lesbian Gay assembly and the Lesbian/Gay Media Project. [1]
In 2019, Sanchez was honored by the National Women's History Alliance as a "Champion of Peace and Nonviolence". [5] In 2021, she received a Cornerstone Award from the Texas Society of Architects at its 82nd Annual Conference and Design Expo. [8]
The National Women's History Alliance describes her leadership as having "changed the political character of San Antonio". [5] Journalist Jade Esteban Estrada has said of Sanchez: "If it's unjust, she's on it." [4] In response to death threats she has received over her life's work, she says: "You can't separate art and culture from justice and respect". [10]