Company Man

Following his ordination, Olivares embarked on a teaching and administrative career within the Claretian order. After teaching back at Del Amo Seminary, Olivares soon rose up through the administration of his order. Within a few short years in the mid-1960s he was selected as treasurer of the order. As treasurer and as a good company man, Olivares administered a multi-million dollar fund which he invested in Wall Street. To entice him to invest with particular investment companies, Olivares was wined and dined by Wall Street. He grew to enjoy this role and seemed oblivious to the political upheavals of the 1960s including the Chicano Movement.

Seminary

This chapter concerns the young Luis Olivares at age 14 going to study to become a Catholic priest as a member of the Claretian order in Compton, California. It deals with his socialization and training first in the minor seminary (high school) at Del Amo Seminary. This chapter examines the particularities of seminary life and culture including the strict discipline administered by the faculty and how Olivares adjusted to it.

Introduction

The introduction concerns the role of Chicano/Latino leadership in history and faith politics. It also introduces the reader to Fr. Luis Olivares and his place in history, especially in his key leadership of the sanctuary movement in Los Angeles during the 1980s. There is also a discussion of the research strategy to write the biography.Finally, the introduction connects the earlier struggles to protect refugees and immigrants with the present issues of immigration and refugee policies.

¡Presente!

This chapter deals with Fr. Olivares being diagnosed with the HIV-AIDS virus in 1990. His illness prevented him for being as engaged in sanctuary and other public protests. He had to now fight for his life. The chapter examines his last years of life in retirement and his failing health. He died in 1993 and his funeral Mass was attended by thousands. This chapter concludes with a discussion of Fr. Olivares’ legacy.

The Good Pastor

This chapter discusses Fr. Olivares’s pastoral duties. Besides working on sanctuary, Fr. Olivares as the pastor of La Placita Church alsohad to administer the religious services of his church. These included Masses, baptisms, weddings, and confessions, among other services. This chapter also looks at Fr. Olivares’s downtime when he could relax from the hectic pace of his work. On his off-day, he visited with families who invited him to their home for dinner. At the same time, political crises often got in the way of Fr. Olivares’s efforts to have some semblance of a normal life. This chapter also deals with Fr. Olivares’s dismissal as pastor of La Placita in 1989.

Declaring Sanctuary

This chapter focuses on the formal declaration of public sanctuary at La Placita Church by Fr. Olivares. In step with the national sanctuary movement in the country, Fr. Olivares believed that after four years of assisting the refugees the time had come to announce public sanctuary. La Placita would be a safe space for refugees against immigration officials who regarded them as “illegal aliens.” On December 12, 1985-the feast day of Our Lady of Guadalupe-and in a formal Mass, Fr. Olivares declared La Placita a public sanctuary. This chapter also deals with the tense relationship of Fr. Olivares with Archbishop Roger Mahony over sanctuary.

Organizing the Barrio

This chapter concerns the establishment of a community organization in East Los Angeles aimed at empowering Mexican Americans. This was the United Neighborhoods Organization or UNO. Fr. Olivares from his parish in the barrio welcomed it and quickly became one of its key leaders. This chapter discusses the nature of UNO and its philosophy and strategies of organizing as a faith-based organization.

Priesthood

This chapter follows Olivares to the concluding years of his seminary training.After the minor seminary, he spent one year on intense spiritual exercises at the novitiate at the Claretian headquarters in Los Angeles. He then moved on to the major seminary, Dominguez Seminary, back in Compton.Graduation was followed by four more years of theology study, principally at Catholic University in Washington, D.C. After thirteen long years, Olivares was finally ordained a priest in 1961.

Preparing Sanctuary

This chapter concerns the preparation of the sanctuary movement at La Placita Church in downtown Los Angeles. In 1981, Fr. Olivares was transferred by his order to this church at the same time that thousands of Central Americans entered into the United States seeking refugee status after fleeing civil wars and repression in El Salvador and Guatemala. Fr. Olivares immediately embraced them as children of God and commenced programs at La Placita to assist them. He fed and clothed the refugees, and provided health services, legal services, and other forms of assistance. The most controversial part of this outreach was allowing some of the men to sleep overnight in the church itself. All of these activities prepared the way for Fr. Olivares to formally declare his church a public sanctuary.

Epilogue

The Epilogue puts this biography in context by presenting the author’s personal reflection on the process of chronicling the Fr. Olivares story. It considers the challenge of presenting someone’s story and outlines the author’s attempt to understand his subject as closely as possible.