A day prior to a grand celebration honoring the late Gloria Molina in Boyle Heights, the Los Angeles City Council on Wednesday proclaimed Aug. 29 as “Gloria Molina Day” as a kick off to the events.
Council members Kevin de León and Monica Rodriguez led the presentation, featuring several Molina family members. The council members had introduced a resolution on Aug. 8 intended to mark Thursday as “Gloria Molina Day” in the city of Los Angeles.
“We gather on the eve of a day in which we will honor the memory and the legacy of a true trailblazer here in Los Angeles — that’s no other than our very own Gloria Molina,” de León said.
“This date holds profound significance, marking the anniversary of the Chicano moratorium — the pivotal moment that ignited Gloria’s journey as an activist, a dedicated public official and a national figure in the battle for equity and justice,” he added.
Molina, the pioneering former LA County supervisor, city councilwoman and California Assemblywoman — and the first Latina to serve on each of those bodies — died of cancer May 14, 2023, at the age of 74.
Rodriguez said it was a “tragic loss for our city,” and described Molina as a “trailblazer” who opened up opportunities for people in many communities to be seen and recognized.
“It was through her example and leadership that there were subsequently opportunities afforded to other Latinas to serve in legislative bodies, not just in Los Angeles, not just in California, but across the country,” Rodriguez said.
On Thursday, Mayor Karen Bass, de León, Rodriguez, Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Los Angeles, County Supervisor Hilda Solis and labor leader Dolores Huerta, among others, will host a mural dedication ceremony at 5:15 p.m. in Boyle Heights on Saint Louis Street between First and Second streets. Margaret Garcia was commissioned to create the mural.
At 6:45 p.m., CASA 0101 Theater will host a reception and viewing of a new art exhibit titled “Gloria Molina: Madrina of the Eastside.” Following the exhibit, guests will watch the premiere of playwright Josefina López’s “A Woman Named Gloria” in the Gloria Molina Auditorium at 8 p.m.
Molina, who grew up in Pico Rivera, was active in the early days of the Chicano movement, becoming an advocate for women’s health issues — which she continued into her time in elected office. She also founded a nurse mentoring program through local community colleges to address a nurse shortage at the time.
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She first gained elective office in 1982, winning the 56th Assembly District seat and eventually leading a fight to quash a proposed prison in East L.A.
Molina won the City Council’s First District seat in 1987, and was elected to the Board of Supervisors from the county’s First District in 1991. She served as a supervisor through 2014, becoming known as a sharp fiscal watchdog before being termed out. Her district encompassed Koreatown, Pico-Union, East Los Angeles and parts of the San Gabriel Valley.
Molina was also the first woman elected to the Board of Supervisors —once known as the “Five Little Kings” — though Yvonne Brathwaite Burke, who was appointed to fill a vacancy, was the first woman to serve on the board.
Prior to her elected positions, Molina worked as a deputy for presidential personnel in the Jimmy Carter White House.
In recognition of Molina’s leadership, the Board of Supervisors in 2023 renamed Grand Park — a project Molina also championed — in her honor. It is now called Gloria Molina Grand Park.
