Sept, 2009 -  When Adam Diaz secured a city council seat in 1953, it had been almost 70 years since a Mexican American served as an elected city official in Phoenix.  For the past century, his story has been the chronicle of Hispanic pioneers who contributed to the development of this desert city. 

In 1906 José and Soledad Diaz fled north to escape the violence and destruction of the Mexican Revolution, like thousands of others, and joined the well-established Mexican American community of Arizona.  Diaz was born in Flagstaff in 1909 and his family moved to Phoenix shortly thereafter.  He attended Washington and Monroe elementary schools but his father’s death barred the continuation of his education beyond 8^th grade.

Diaz went to work at age 14 and secured a job as an elevator operator in the Luhrs Hotel.  George Luhrs recognized Adam’s abilities and later employed him as a building manager and bookkeeper.  The young Mexican American encountered prominent Anglo politicians and businessmen who patronized the Arizona Club located in the building. 

Hispanics experienced discrimination but worked together to overcome obstacles and, in turn, created social and political organizations as a voice for their underrepresented population.  Diaz and other Mexican American children had to receive First Communion in St. Mary’s basement because they were not allowed to worship with the Anglos upstairs.  His family donated to build Immaculate Heart where he was married in 1929.

As newlyweds, he and his wife Feliz purchased a home at 25^th Street and Monte Vista only to be told by Anglo neighbors that they were not welcome so they moved to Grant Park neighborhood.  It is in this close-knit community that Diaz developed into a leader and advocate for equality.  Arizona law mandated a literacy test for voting and it was common for Hispanics to be “challenged” at the polls to intimidate potential voters.  The solution was to teach the Spanish-speaking to read the preamble to the Constitution.

During the postwar years, he served as president of Friendly House guiding a fundraising campaign for a new building.  He is a firm believer in education as the answer to Hispanic problems.  Diaz headed the Lowell-Grant School Neighborhood Council raising funds for students who wished to attend high school but could not afford books and uniforms. 

As a member of American Legion Post 41, outspoken advocate for social equity, he gained visibility along with the organization that was becoming a voting force in Phoenix politics.  Diaz was approached by the Charter Government Committee (CGC) to run for city council because he was a proven community leader, respected for his generosity and service.  His term ended in 1955 opening the door to be followed by another Mexican American, future judge Valdemar Cordova.

In the 1950’s Diaz helped form the Vesta Club, an organization of Mexican American professionals that focused on educational issues.  He founded Leadership and Education for the Advancement of Phoenix (LEAP), and was a board member of Urban League, National conference of Christians and Jews, and Chicanos Por La Causa.

 Throughout his long and rich live, Adam Diaz has exemplified the characteristics that are the core of this nation:  family, community, faith, duty to country, education, and service to others.  It is my privilege and honor to congratulate him on the occasion of his 100^th birthday.  ¡Felicidades!