valle." i'm damian trujillo, and today, fiestas navidenas at the mexican heritage plaza, plus los mestizos de san jose, on your "comunidad del valle." male announcer: nbc bay area presents "comunidad del valle" with damian trujillo. damian: we begin today with the monthly visit by the mexican consulate in san jose. with me is the mexican consul general, the consul mauricio toussaint here on "comunidad del valle." welcome to the show. welcome back. mauricio: thank you, thank you. thanks for your invitation, and it's an honor and a pleasure as you showed to me for being here in the comunidad, with "comunidad del valle" audience particular. damian: yeah, no, absolutely. it's always a pleasure. the door is always open. well, we've had an election here in the united states, and that's drawn a lot of

fears within the mexican immigrant--well, a lot of immigrant communities, but you're in charge mostly of the mexican immigrant community. tell us what you've seen so far since the election. mauricio: well, as you know, we have a hearing in san jose area we cover, to santa cruz, santa clara, san benito, and monterey, and so the mexican community is worried about what is going to happen after january the 20, because during the political campaign were announced some threatening things to the community. we still don't know what is gonna finally happen. decisions are not clearly taken. but we have to be prepared and we have to be ready. so, the mexican government, through the 50 consulates in the united states and our embassy in washington, so we are deploying a strategy in order to protect and to advise our communities in the united states. damian: that's probably the

scariest part is the uncertainty, not knowing what's gonna happen. that can draw a lot of fears in a lot of people. mauricio: yes, because if you don't know what you have to defend off, so it's not easy to decide what you are gonna do. and this fear is unfortunately taken by some bad people, that they defrauded our communities, taking advantage of their fears and offering documents, for instance, by some money. so, the first thing that we advise to our community is try to keep calm. we know that it's not easy, this situation, but try to keep calm, as in an earthquake. you have to be calm in order to make reasonable decisions.

secondly, don't trust any guy that offers-- damian: because there's notarios that have been arrested already for fraudulent activities. mauricio: magic solutions, there are no magic solutions. but you have to do some things. first of all, be prepared with your documents, with, i mean, your mexican documents. the consulate--all of our consulates are extended, the hours of people attention in order to issue more documents. and in an easy way, we are taking mobile consulates to some areas. i mean, one week, i guess, we'll go to salinas. we are opening some saturdays too. and as birth certificates are being highly demanded now, we are organizing birth certificate journeys in order to have more availability

of services to the population. damian: you also just recently had a sit down meeting with the chief of police in san jose. you had a news conference with him. why is it important to collaborate with the chief of police and make sure that there's mutual understanding? mauricio: yes, i had a meeting with eddie garcia, the chief of police here, but with other chiefs of police, for instance, in salinas and in other places. fortunately, in california, the government, kevin de leon for instance, he proposed at the senate a statement in order that they find out the california authorities are not going to cooperate with doing immigration tasks. so, the duty for the local polices is to protect the population, to guarantee

security, and you need the confidence and trust of the population. damian: you still need them to call 911 in some of those emergencies. mauricio: so, that's good for--those are good news for our people. but, so we are recommending too that try to behave yourselves under the law, because if you commit any violations and you are taken to the court, so immediately you are reported to the immigration authorities. so, in that case, you will be--if you have no documents or you have no regular immigration citations, so the federal government will know that and some measures could be stated. damian: so, it's not too hard. just follow the law and you might be okay.

well, if you'd like more information, the mexican consulate, again, has moved. they used to be on zanker road. now they're here on enzo drive in the south end of san jose. there's the number to call for more information. thank you, senor consul. mauricio: but one more thing. but the mexican government has opened a line, an emergency line, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. it's a line "estamos contigo," we are with you. the number is 1-877-632-6678. damian: great. thank you so much. mauricio: so, you can get information there. damian: all right, and we'll see you in 1 hour on telemundo. gracias. mauricio: very good. damian: all right, and up next here on "comunidad del valle," fiestas navidenas. stay with us.

heritage plaza in san jose and the school of arts and culture there at the plaza. with me on "comunidad del valle" are omar rodriguez and also rosa castaneda, here to fill us in on all the happenings. welcome to the show. rosa castaneda: thank you. damian: a lot of these things happen under the umbrella of fiesta navidena. tell us what's happening, omar.

omar rodriguez: so, a lot of things actually. mainly, it's our fall recital for the kids, so the kids will be performing. but also, we'll have a tree lighting. we will have actually a tree giveaway for all the district five residents through a collaboration through the council member--the office of council member carrasco. damian: all right. omar: and then, we'll also have, you know, vendors, and we'll also have kids activities, so it's an event for the whole family. damian: that's it, it's a fiesta navidena. we do have some great video that you all provided us on all the activities there at the plaza, or the school of arts and culture. and you're starting something new there called celebra mayfair. tell us about this new venture with the school of arts and culture. rosa: yes, so, the celebra mayfair project, thanks to the knight foundation and the james irvine foundation, the school of arts and culture tries to celebrate the beauty, the talent, and the history of the community in mayfair. and we believe that equating platforms and spaces where

people could come together through arts and culture experiences really helps create a more positive perception of the community and more positive experiences, especially in a community where, a lot of times, it's perceived in a negative way. and with that project, we have two main aspects. and the first one, it's what we're calling the mayferias, which will be a series of events throughout the whole next year. damian: mayferias. rosa: yeah, mayferias. so, it's a feria for the mayfair. and our first one is launching next to fiesta navidena on december 9, which is a friday, from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. so, i invite you all. it's free for the community. and we're featuring some new aspects. so, we're having cocina, which is a demonstration of healthy eating, healthy cooking, through a partnership with veggielution and their cocina program. and we're also having loteria, we're having food vendors, and we're having arts and cultural vendors, and activities for kids. so, i invite you all to come,

yeah. and let me talk to you a little bit one more aspect of it is our beautification projects, which will also take place in the next year. and we're gonna be working with organizations in the community and also residents in the community to identify three sites that have been identified as negative zones, blight zones, and really coming together and having a conversation on how do we transform these spaces to more positive, vibrant space that really represents the community and what it is. damian: wow, a lot of great things happening there. now, y'all were given the keys to the mexican heritage plaza and the school of arts and culture, and from what i've seen over the last years, you're not sitting on your hands there. i mean, you guys are rolling up your sleeves and going to work. omar: yeah, definitely. personally, i've been with the school of arts and culture under contract to provide marketing and graphic design services, and been there since the beginning, since 2005, since we got the keys. so, definitely a lot of things happening there,

you know, from classes to events. and it's really open to--you know, it is a mexican heritage plaza, but it's definitely open to all communities. you know, we have indian performances there pretty much, you know, every week, every other week. we have the, you know, asian community, mexican community, we've had columbian festivals. so, just pretty wide range and very open to the community which, you know, as you may know from previous history, that was not the case. damian: right. talk about maybe the pride, rosa, that you think the group and all these efforts might be bringing back. not that it left--ever left the east side, but the fact that we're promoting what we do have in each pocket of that community. rosa: yeah. definitely, i think the school of arts and culture is a platform for that and a space for people to come in and show what they are. and i mean, just recently wee, powerful to community members to come together and to know that there's other people like them there.

and to celebrate who we are through arts and culture, that really helps us have pride. and i think, through pride, it helps us, you know, have more confidence, you know, in our everyday lives, and to get to know our neighbors as well. it eases the tensions, it creates a more positive perception of the place we live in, and i think not just for us, but for people outside. damian: very well said. and again, it's all under the umbrella of the fiesta of arts and culture mexicanhe l heritage plaza in san jose. omar, any final thoughts? omar: no. just if everybody, you know, lives in san jose, please come out. you know, it is in the east side at the mexican heritage plaza. you know, a great facility. if you haven't visited, please, you know, come and join us. and you know, for just a great, you know, family event, you know, through the christmas spirit, so. damian: all right. thank you for your efforts. rosa: gracias. damian: and up next here on "comunidad del valle," los mestizos de san jose. stay with us.

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gala. with me on "comunidad del valle" are three of the dancers, alejandro gonzalez, daisy nava, and malyna gomez trujillo. welcome to the show. my baby girl, malyna. alejandro, i know you've been dancing for a long time. tell us how young you were, and after awhile, you've kept it going. tell us when you started and why you keep doing it. alejandro gonzalez: i started when i was 8 years old. i kept doing it because it's a family--it's been a family tradition. i've always loved to make my dad proud, and i've always had a passion for dancing. anytime, you know, i hear music or i see people dancing, i always have my toes tapping. so, it's always been a passion of mine and it's what's kept me going. damian: how about you, daisy? daisy: i'd have to say the same, like, the passion part. i started young too, and so i've just grown with it and it's something you just kind of love--you start to love and you just grow with it. damian: 'cause folklorico's one of those things, i would imagine, that as you grow older,

it's not the hip thing to do. i wanna do something else. and we do have some video of one of your last performances. and i mean, you all started at this age, you know. but there's something about it, i guess, that keeps it going for you guys? rosa: yeah, like, i honestly don't know what it is. it's just kind of the passion you just have, you gain from dancing for so many years. damian: now, malyna, i know that sometimes i hear a lot of zapateados going on in the other room when you and your little sister are dancing away. are you also kind of following in the footsteps of your mom? malyna gomez trujillo: yes. my mom started when she was 8 years old, and she stopped when she was in her 20s, and so she danced for a long time, and i want to dance for a long time too. damian: now, you also are getting good grades at school. how difficult is it to study and get those good grades, and at the same time, you have to devote a lot of time to practicing and making sure that you have all the steps there. malyna: well, i don't always finish my homework before we go

to practice, so in the morning i wake up early and i do my homework. damian: mmm-hmm. it's a lot of practice, right, alejandro? i mean, it's not something that kind of--like anything else, you have to practice it. you play soccer as well, and you practice that, and so you have to practice folklorico. alejandro: yes, it's a lot of time managing with soccer and also folklorico. so, it's a lot of, you know, extra hours, staying up late, like malyna said, doing in the morning. whatever it takes, those extra hours, good grades. school's first. damian: talk about--'cause monica, my wife, always talks about posture and smiling, always doing that. talk about how easy or difficult that is when you're trying to learn the steps, and count the steps, and follow your partner, and what not. rosa: i think it's grown to, like, just happen. like, i feel that--before it was hard, just like, smiling while dancing. it was kind of something hard to do. it's not very easy. but you get used to it and over time it gets easier. damian: and now you have this big gala coming up.

there's two performances. one, you're inviting a lot of other groups to come and perform with you guys at the evergreen valley college theater. you have a lot of other groups who are coming to dance with you. that's at 2 o'clock on december 10, and then there's a gala that starts at 6 o'clock. tell us what folks can expect when they come out. rosa: i feel a lot of hard work, a lot of dedication. you'll see it in everybody. you'll see all the hard work we've put in, so many hours, and like, our weekends. we practice weekends, so we give those up to just make sure this is gonna be a good show. damian: yeah. and is it a little harder knowing that your dad is leading the group, alejandro? alejandro: at times, we do bump heads, but i know what he's accomplished, and you know, the accolades that he has and the reputation that he has, so i try to--you know, i try to follow in his footsteps. and i feel anything that he tries to coach me on or instruct me on, he's correct, so i do my best to,

you know, just follow him. damian: and you're in the intermediate level, malyna, and they're in the advanced level. do you look at them kind of as your role models, to look at their steps, and see what they're doing, and how fast they learn? 'cause you know that once you move up to different levels, it gets a little harder and it moves a little faster. malyna: yeah, i see them practicing before we practice, and it's fun to watch them because they do it and they do it so fast, and it's really fun to watch them. damian: now, this is a tradition. i mean, for over 40 years, los mestizos of san jose has been around. your dad used to dance for the leaders back then, and now he's taken on the leadership. and so, you're kind of following along in those traditions, tambien, no? alejandro: yeah. damian: all right. anything else that we can expect from this great gala that we're having? i mean, you're having some groups like folklorico, let's see, los laureles, also lupenos juvenil, groupo folklorico yolotli, and mariachi herencia mexicana. that's a packed agenda. rosa: yeah.

alejandro: go ahead. rosa: so, that's gonna be for the matinee show. so, they're gonna--we're gonna bring in their youth as well. and then for the gala, we're gonna have-- alejandro: alika del nayar. damian: okay. rosa: yeah. damian: now, you've also danced for the last couple of years with the mariachi vargas. talk about that experience in sharing the backstage with them, and sharing the main stage with them, and dancing to their music. what was that like, alejandro? alejandro: it's very--i love the drive. i love the--as soon as you take your first step out there, seeing the lights and seeing a full, packed audience, and people just kind of amazed because not a lot of people--you know, they know about folklorico, but they don't--i feel it's different having it live versus seeing it on tv. and i just love the audience. i love, you know, the drive, the energy, the adrenaline that it brings to me. and backstage, they're amazing. you know, vargas, they're

welcoming. you know, "do you need anything? we're here to help." you know, just things like that. damian: yeah, it's like you're part of the family it seems. again, this gala's happening on december 10 at the evergreen valley college theater. two shows, one at two o'clock, the matinee, and at six o'clock is the gala. and log onto the website for more information. good luck guys, and thanks for being here. alejandro: thank you. rosa: thank you so much for having us. damian: thank you. and up next here on "comunidad del valle," we'll show you a little bit of clip of one of their performances that you don't want to miss, so stay with us.

you can follow me on twitter. my handle is @newsdamian. also, pick up a copy of "el observador" newspaper and support your bilingual weeklies all across the bay area. you can also watch us in espanol on telemundo canal 48. your "comunidad del valle," every sunday, 1 hour from now, at 11 o'clock on telemundo, canal 48. we thank you once again for sharing a part of your sunday with us. we're gonna leave you now

with los mestizos de san jose. buenos dias. [music] [music] [music] [music]

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