The L.A. Times – Teresa Watanabe, Ruben Vives and Angel Jennings
“Yolanda Garcia’s grandparents migrated from Mexico and worked multiple jobs — in farm fields and school cafeterias — to save money to send all six children to college. Garcia’s father attended Brown University and had five children. In turn, she graduated from UC Santa Cruz, worked as a teacher and now runs a gallery and boutique store in Whittier selling Latin American folklore art and other items. Along the way, the family moved up the ladder, from South Los Angeles to the upscale Friendly Hills neighborhood of Whittier. They were the first Latinos in their immediate area. Now, there are four other Latino families there. The Garcias’ story represents a common California immigrant dream. But it’s far from the reality for all Latinos, who the U.S. Census Bureau now says have surpassed non-Latino whites to become California’s largest ethnic group.”(more)