Centro Chinampa Yakima

507 W. Chestnut Ave

Yakima, WA 98902

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Centro Chinampa is a gathering place where we come together as immigrants and workers to build power for our communities and  stand up for our rights. This space hosts Know Your Rights workshops, voter registration drives, trainings, leadership development, community celebrations, and more.

 

Upcoming Events

 

 

Who we are

Centro Chinampa is a collaboration between Fair Work Center, OneAmerica, the Washington Immigrant Solidarity Network, and the Washington State Labor Council.

 

Fair Work Center: We build power through education, organizing, and enforcement. We work to raise and uphold standards in the workplace. And we fight for economic and racial justice in our communities. We see a future where all jobs are good jobs, and where all workers are respected and thrive in our workplaces and our communities. 

 

 

 OneAmerica: We advance the fundamental principles of democracy and justice at the local, state, and national levels by building power within immigrant communities in collaboration with key allies. OneAmerica envisions a peaceful world where every person’s human rights and dignity are respected, where communities appreciate differences and stand together for justice and equality, and where each person contributes to the common good.

 

 

WA Immigrant Solidarity Network: We protect and advance the power of immigrant and refugee communities through a multiracial, multilingual, and multi-faith coalition. Our organizing strategy educates and mobilizes statewide to uphold and defend the rights and dignity of all immigrants and refugees, centering the voices of impacted communities.

 

 

WA State Labor Council: the Washington State Labor Council, AFL-CIO, represents and provides services for hundreds of local unions throughout Washington state.

 

 

History of Chinampas

A Chinampa is a pre-colonial engineering marvel of agricultural ingenuity. The Mexica people would create floating gardens in their lakes, held together by trees planted around the edges. This attracted fish and other aquatic creatures that provided nutrients to the water. The trees would create a windbreak, protecting the young seedlings and providing shade for the harvest. Crops were irrigated from below and without human intervention. They fed millions of people in Anahuac—what is now known as Mexico—providing two, three and even four harvests a year, depending on the crop. 

Every family cultivated its own Chinampa, but the construction, maintenance, upkeep of the canals that surrounded them was done in community by all of the Chinamperos. These practices bonded people to each other and the places they inhabited. We see many parallels between these traditions and the space we have created here. 

Together, we want to create a community and provide a place for people to grow into their power and when the time comes have their voices nourish our community and just like our ancestors do it time and again for the benefit of everyone.

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