Interview with Activist Rommel

“I grew up with a lot of problems. My mom was undocumented and my father was absent although he lived in our town. I never saw him nor ever saw him with my mother. When I was a child my mother would take us to work in the field and on the weekends because we needed food. I tested into a program for people with intellectual disabilities. I couldn’t read or write–even when I got to high school. I was able to go get services through the Central Valley Regional Center. But that didn’t stop me from hanging out with the wrong crowd and ending up in prison. 

While incarcerated, I ended up in a cell with a person who spoke truth. He said, ‘You’ve got to get educated.” I was “forced” to learn how to read–reading 30 pages a day. I was uneducated. I didn’t even know things like the order of the months in the calendar year. So, it was important that I met a mentor. This mentor that I was incarcerated with was a leader of a movement and I learned to recruit people to join the movement. I had influence because I was incarcerated with the leader. Until then, I was just trying to stay away from people and hide my disabilities and lack of education.

Back in 2013, while incarcerated, I learned about how the chain of command works. There was a system-wide hunger strike that was organized with orders sent down from Pelican Bay (facility). We successfully completed the hunger strike and that lead to allowing inmates to see the light of day after being locked up in cells with no windows and not allowed outside all day. We also won family contact time and better medical care.  All of this was organized by the [hierarchy of] gangs [in prison]. 

Later on, while still incarcerated, I became what they called a ‘jailhouse lawyer’. I learned how to write and to present all types of grievances and ended up writing class action suits against the administration about things like the Fresno County jail’s bad food. So, in jail I learned to advocate for others. When I was released I became a driver for the Central California Food Bank. A real turning point for me was when inmates were released to help at the food bank. I taught them about how to work there, no colors, how to phone bank, just educating them about general life skills. From there, I met the current non-profit where I work.

I’m 37 years old now, but started this part of my journey when I was 25. At some point behind the walls, I realized I was learning how to engage in community service. I was already organizing, and my darkest moments were preparing me for my new life outside.

It started helping and through that, I learned that I had a gift of being able to get people to open up.

We are currently working on a campaign for the Dairy workers. We are  educating workers on their rights related to voting and immigration.  An example was that I wanted to get out the vote and I ended up getting four people to register,  then the next outing I got eleven to register. 

If I could go back and advise myself on good steps to take, it would be to go to school, get an education, find and listen to mentors. I have/had two people who have been people who have looked out for me. One was a pastor and one was a teacher. When the school decided to send me home for half the the school day because I was what they thought ‘was a problem’, my teacher, Raul Rodriguez noticed and sent me to Central Valley Regional Centers. I helped change the direction of my life.

Mentors have taught me to value the simple things in life. A lot of motivation comes from people seeing me.

I struggle with anxiety. I want to go to work. Work hard, take action, Empower people and flip a district.

As for the central valley, the community members are beautiful. There are so few resources but there is so much that is worth praising and fighting for.  I also learned and now live by this motto:  Pave the way; go through it; don’t try to go around. I used to have a hard time holding a job because people didn’t know how to cope with me. I’m still learning. I still want to further my education. Keep going.