SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Shaded by trees and often blocked by parked cars, a soldier stands at attention towards the American flag flying over the California State Capitol. You wouldn’t know it unless you walked up and read the writing on the concrete pedestal, but the marble statue is the California Mexican-American Veterans Memorial. Also known as El Soldado, it’s the only Latino military monument on Capitol grounds.
Pedro Hernandez, Mina Perez and Robert Ruiz are among the many caretakers of the statue. Their non-profit group El Soldado Latino aims to preserve the and enhance the monument.
“At one time period it was called 'the homeless soldier' because it turned green because of the moss,” says Pedro Hernandez.
It’s estimated that a half million Latinos, mostly Mexican Americans, served in World War II. They were pilots, infantry, and seamen. Some of those Latino service members made the ultimate sacrifice.
“The Latinos have always contributed to this country," said Robert Ruiz.
The statue, which portrays a Latino soldier, was sculpted to honor those lost in WWII, but the only reason it’s standing in front of the Capitol is because of mothers. Mothers who had no public place to honor their sons.
“Mothers have been the driving force of getting this statue where it is today,” said Ruiz.
In 1948, a group of Mexican wives and mothers formed "La Sociedad de Madres Mexicanas," or the Society of Mexican Mothers. Their goal was to create a memorial for Latino soldiers, and they did it through a series of grassroots fundraisers.
“They raised money by selling tamales and other food,” said Mina Perez.
With thousands of dollars earned from bake sales and donations, the mothers commissioned Italian sculptors to carve the marble statue. It was originally placed at the Sacramento Mexican-American Center where it stood for over 20 years.
“Then, in 1975, my aunt was part of the mothers that helped move the statue to its permanent place, where it is today,” said Hernandez.
In a way, El Soldado is a generational monument. Latino mothers of WWII built the statue to honor their fallen sons, then Latino mothers of the Vietnam War moved the monument to the Capitol to honor Latino veterans of all wars.
“The daughters took over and now the daughters to some extent have passed away, as well. So, it is now up to the younger generation,” said Ruiz.
Today, Latinos make up more than 17% of enlisted military members and to honor future Latino veterans, the El Soldado Latino group wants to add benches, a decorative wall, and a marble stone naming Latino Medal of Honor recipients.
“We are in phase two and three, but to finish we will need $1 million,” said Hernandez.
Fundraising for the $1 million has been slow. Thousands of dollars were spent after vandals damaged the statue in 2015, and then again when protestors spray painted the base in 2020. Much like the mothers and wives before them, the El Soldado Latino group will continue their grassroots efforts to honor fallen Latino soldiers.
“We want to be respected and the best way to get respect is to respect ourselves,” said Hernandez.
To learn more about the “El Soldado” enhancement efforts, visit the El Soldado Latino website.
