The Latino Book & Family Festival came to Sacramento City College on Sept. 28, featuring vendors, celebrity award-winning speakers and local artists to showcase their books, art and to speak to the community.
The event was held in the City College Central Quad and the celebrity guest speakers did their presentations in the Performing Arts Center.
When I arrived, it was already packed with so many people. The event was open to the public with free admission, so I did expect a large crowd. Everything was set up so the crowd could walk and converse while purchasing books, clothing and art. There were food vendors, and I saw a massive line with many people with smiles on their faces.
The music was getting the crowd up and dancing, enjoying the moment with the family. It was refreshing to see people of all ages and different ethnicities having fun and enjoying the Latino culture. I watched a few performances where they wore their native clothes while dancing and singing.
I love to read books, so seeing so many tables where local authors are selling books inspired me, and I wanted to see more. I stopped by the Folsom Prison table, and they had a big banner with all the celebrities that were incarcerated at Folsom Prison, like Rick James, Erik Menendez (one of the Menendez brothers), Charles Manson and Danny Trejo.
The celebrity award-winning author in attendance, Reyna Grande, is known for her books “The Distance Between Us” and “A Ballad Love and Glory.” She spoke at 11 a.m. in the Performance Arts Center. Guests also heard from award-winning author Victor Villaseñor. I was looking forward to listening to all the speakers and being inspired to maybe write a book one day.
I saw a man sitting at the table, signing books and talking to fans. I immediately realized it was Edward James Olmos. Actually, the first thing that I thought was, “That’s the guy who plays Abraham Quintanilla, Selena Quintanilla’s dad.” I wanted to soak in this moment. I always wanted to meet Edward to let him know I thought he played Selena’s dad so well that I could not separate him from the character he played.
I met a woman who was almost in tears because she was excited that she finally got to meet Olmos. She told me that she became a fan when she first saw the movie “Stand and Deliver.” She was amazed at how well he played that role. From that day on, she was a fan. “Stand and Deliver” was released in 1988.
I also had the honor to speak to Omvaldo Rubio, another one of Olmo’s fans and why he was there.
“‘Stand and Deliver’ because I’m a teacher. I was able to connect with the movie,” Rubio said. “I’m here to hear him speak, and hopefully, I can speak with him.”
The line ranged from kids to elders, and everyone was eager to buy a book he could sign and take a picture with him. It was finally our turn, and we took turns taking a picture and expressing how much this experience meant to us. I made sure before I left to let him know I fell in love with Selena because of him.
I told him, “I never wanted to listen to Mexican music until I heard it in a movie. I used to call you the Mexican Joe Jackson, aka Michael Jackson. Father knew you, not the real Abraham.” He laughed and told me I was funny.
I saw a mariachi band, and I took this moment to ask the director, Luis Talamantes, about the band. The mariachi band is from Cesar Chavez High School in Stockton.
“We were invited by event coordinators. We did a news story for KCRA, and one of the news anchors is an author here, so she invited us,” Talamantes said. “Later on, we will bring in Edward James Olmos to speak.”
It was finally the time we all had been waiting for, and a long line had formed to hear Olmos speak. The Cesar Chavez High School mariachi bands led the way with music, followed by Olmos dancing and enjoying the moment. The crowd was a little distance behind him and everyone was ushered in to find seats.
The crowd grew rapidly, fans were excited to finally meet and be in the presence of an award-winning author, director and actor. It was like a dream come true, so I can only imagine the excitement for those who have been fans longer than I have been alive. The mariachi band performed three amazing songs. Then took a group picture with Olmos and a selfie with the audience.
Olmos talked to the crowd and it was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. He had the whole audience’s attention. We were eager to soak up all the information he could give us. He told us the importance of books and giving back to youth. The importance of self-esteem, self respect and self worth.
Olmos started a nonprofit organization, Youth Cinema Program, which makes 190 movies a year with the youth. About 2,000 kids are now enrolled in his program. At the end of his speech, he did a Q&A so the audience could pick his brain and I really liked that.
Overall, this was an amazing event, and I will be returning next year. Despite it being a very hot day, it was still a packed crowd. I had so much fun and learned so much, thanks to City College and the event organizers.
