ASUA senator honored for diversity leadership

Nicholas Valenzuela Arizona Daily Wildcat ASUA Senator Josue Limon was honored Friday afternoon at the 10th International "Sounding of the Drum" ceremony. The ceremony started in 1990 and begins African American History Month.

"It's something that my mom had always told me," he said.

Limon said the story helped him as he "grew up a little faster" than most, eventually leaving his family's Los Angeles neighborhood because "it was just getting pretty bad."

Now a Mexican-American studies and political science senior, he received the Martin Luther King Jr. Distinguished Leadership Award Friday along with 37 other UA students, employees and community members.

Limon was nominated by Norma Navarro, UA's interim program coordinator for the Chicano/Hispano resource center, who said Limon's leadership and activism made him a good candidate.

"He's so full of energy," Navarro said. "Martin Luther (King Jr.) wanted to create a lot of change against all types of oppression. The kind of commitments Josue makes are along those lines."

At the UA, Limon has led an affirmative action rally, campaigned for cultural resource centers, served as president of Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlan (MEChA) and acted as an ASUA senator.

"I feel the point we need to reach is where everyone sees the benefit of not being discriminatory and not being bigoted," Limon said.

Born in central Los Angeles, Calif., the son of illegal immigrants, Limon learned the importance of equal rights early on.

"I always understood that I was different," Limon said. "I could never (understand)... the whole idea that people like myself and my family don't belong here."

Limon said although he feels Arizona has made "great strides" in civil rights, he still feels compelled to fight legislation he feels is discriminatory -including the "English-only" laws being debated in Arizona.

"It needs to be where everyone values (our) diversity," he said.

Limon said his dedication to leadership came from the guidance of several UA minority leaders - former UA President Manuel Pacheco, former ASUA Sen. J.J. Rico, and Salomon Baldenegro, assistant dean of student affairs.

"Because those people have helped me, I feel obligated to follow in their footsteps," Limon said. "These people inspired me not to give up."

He said he has tried to encourage other minority students to get involved at UA by vying for a spot as Homecoming King and becoming an ASUA senator.

"I was showing other students of color that anyone can do this," he said.

ASUA Executive Vice President Cisco Aguilar said he has known Limon since their freshman year at UA, and was proud of him for receiving this award.

"If you look at Martin Luther King, he was a leader," Aguilar said. "He was digging in the trenches- with the people. That's what Josue does."

Associated Students President Tara Taylor announced Limon's award at last Wednesday's senate meeting.

"We're so proud of him," she said.

Limon will graduate in May, but said his days at UA are not over. He has applied to the Mexican-American Studies graduate program and hopes to become UA's student regent next year.

Limon said although there is still progress to be made at UA in terms of civil rights, his interest lies with advocating the rights of all students.

"I want to give other students hope," Limon said. "I want to make changes. . .to speak for people."

Erin Mahoney can be reached at Erin.Mahoney@wildcat.arizona.edu