SGV Connect 151: Hilda Solis’ Environmental Justice Center
In this episode Chris Greenspon interviews Los Angeles County Supervisor Hilda Solis. The interview was recorded at the dedication of Solis’ new Environmental Justice Center at the foot of what is to become the county’s first new regional park in decades: Esperanza Hills. An embed of the podcast can be found at the bottom of the article, or click here to go straight to the podcast and transcript.
Solis is perhaps best known for her role in President Barack Obama’s cabinet as Secretary of Labor from 2009 to 2013, but she has a deep history both as a resident and elected official in the Puente area of the San Gabriel Valley.
In this sit-down, Solis spoke about how her upbringing in the shadow of the former Puente Hills Landfill shaped her career mission of environmentalism, labor advocacy, and gender equality.
Listen to learn about the personal impact of her father’s work as a shop steward for the Teamsters, and her friendship with the late labor icon Dolores Huerta (read Solis’ remembrance). Solis also gives us a preview of her goals as a returning member of Congress, and reflects on the challenges of serving as Supervisor.
Of course, the interview centers on the new Environmental Justice Center. At the ceremony several contractors and Public Works employees remarked what an incredibly fast and high-pressure build the project was. It was literally finished several days before the event, and some rooms remain to be built out.
The results of the 14 months of work are impressive. The building’s angular design and warm colors immediately give the sense that one has arrived somewhere unique, and the open air entrance rotunda – designed by Studio-MLA – is truly stunning.
Solis’ longtime friends and allies Belinda Faustinos of the Rivers and Mountains Conservancy and L.A. County Parks and Rec Director Norma Garcia toasted her career leading up to this, her legacy project. Sylvia Sacal paid the most stirring tribute when she unveiled a statue by her late husband, the Mexican sculptor José Sacal.
“My Sacal had a very special way of looking at people and the world through his art,” Ms. Sacal said. “He loved to explore what lies beneath the surface, incorporating hidden meanings and symbols that reveal themselves the longer you look. In this sculpture, he wanted to capture not only Hilda’s likeness, but also the identity and the spirit of the community she dedicated her life serving.”
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