Scope and Content Note
The Rose Marie and Joe Eddie Lopez papers document Lopez's political activity and work in community service groups. Although the collection extends from 1941 to 2000, the bulk of the material shows Lopez's school board activities between 1969 and 1976.
Series I: Campaign Papers documents Lopez's campaigns for the County Board of Supervisors, the Arizona State Senate seat for District #23, and the Congressional Representative seat for District #3. Of particular interest are Lopez's political files, which contain a number of platform papers, campaign materials, and organizational documents.
Series II: Chicanos Por La Causa Papers contains Lopez's correspondence with various organizations, including Valle del Sol and the Barrio Youth Project. Series III: Miscellaneous Papers includes correspondence, documents on development in the Chandler community, and bilingual educational material.
Series IV: Newspaper Articles contains a variety of local newspaper articles compiled by Lopez that provide a detailed account of Lopez's activities in the Phoenix area. Included are a series of items from the Phoenix Union School Board of Education and an extensive collection of articles detailing events surrounding the 1970 walkout by Chicano students at Phoenix Union High School. Lopez's role as mediator provided exposure for his legislative bid as County supervisor. The Phoenix Union High School articles also provide a record of Lopez's involvement with the school board.
A considerable amount of material documenting local and national politics was apparently added after the initial processing of the collection was complete. These items are housed in Series V-Series XII and are not described in this Scope and Content Note.
Dates
- Creation: 1941-2000
- Creation: Majority of material found within 1969-1976
Creator
- Lopez, Joe Eddie, 1939- (Creator, Person)
Language of Materials
Material primarily in English with some Spanish.
Access Restrictions
To view this collection, make an appointment at least five business days prior to your visit by contacting Ask an Archivist or calling (480) 965-4932. Appointments in the Wurzburger Reading Room at Hayden Library (rm. 138) on the Tempe campus are available Monday through Friday. Check the ASU Library Hours page for current availability.
Copyright
The Arizona Board of Regents retains copyright to this collection for and on behalf of the Arizona State University Library. Requests to publish, display, or redistribute information from this collection must be submitted via our online application.
Biographical Note
Joe Eddie Lopez was born in Duran, New Mexico on December 8, 1939. His family settled in Arizona in 1949 and he attended Arizona State University for three years after graduating from Peoria High School in 1957. Lopez began his career as an politician and activist in the 1960s as a negotiator for migrant farm workers. He helped to found Chicanos por la Causa (1967) and Valle Del Sol Inc.'s Barrio Youth Project (1970) and was an active spokesperson in the 1970 student walkout at Phoenix Union High School. He later negotiated for the Mexican-American community to ensure that their children had access to quality education. In addition to his work as an activist, Lopez completed a five-year apprenticeship and worked as a journeyman steamfitter as a member of the Plumbers, Pipefitters and Refrigeration Workers Local 469, served as a Business Representative for the Construction, Production and Maintenance Laborers Local 383, and worked as the Affirmative Action Administrator for the Arizona Department of Transportation.
In 1972, Lopez was elected to the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors representing District #22. He left this post in 1976 to run for office, but was unsuccessful. In 1990, Lopez became the first Mexican-American elected to the Phoenix Union High School District Board of Education. He held this post until 1996, during which time he expressed his life-long interest in educational reform and bilingual education. In 1991, Lopez was elected to the Arizona State House of Representatives. He held this post until 1996, when he was elected to the Arizona State Senate, where he continues to serve as of 2013.
Joe Eddie Lopez married Rose Marie Lopez and the couple have two children, Debbie and Eddie.
Full extent
80 Box(es)
Full extent
40 Linear Feet
Abstract
The Rose Marie and Joe Eddie Lopez papers document Lopez's political activity and work in community service groups. Although the collection extends from 1941 to 2000, the bulk of the collection concerns Lopez's school board activities between 1969 and 1976.
Arrangement
This collection consists of eighty boxes divided into twelve series:
- Series I: Campaign Papers
- Series II: Chicanos Por La Causa Papers
- Series III: Miscellaneous Papers
- Series IV: Newspaper Articles
- Series V: Correspondence
- Series VI: Phoenix Union High School District
- Series VII: Arizona Hispanic Community Forum
- Series IX: Politics
- Series X: Kids Voting
- Series XI: NAFTA/LECTFE
- Series XII: English Only
- Series XIV: Community Issues
Provenance
The Rose Marie and Joe Eddie Lopez Papers papers were donated to the Chicano Research Collection by Rose Marie Lopez in January of 1989 (ACC# 1989-00123). Several additions were received between 1996 and 2000 (ACC# 1996-01691, 1999-02151, and 2000-02219).
Separated Materials
Photographs received with this collection have been removed and processed as MP SPC 209, 1-20. These images include campaign and publicity pictures as well as personal photos.
Subject
- Lopez, Rose Marie, 1939- (Creator, Person)
- Title
- Rose Marie and Joe Eddie Lopez Papers
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Processed by Christine Marin and Gilbert H. Esparza in October of 1993.
- Date
- 2013
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
- Language of description note
- Finding guide encoded in English.
Repository details
Part of the Chicano/a Research Collection Repository
Contact
Arizona State UniversityP.O. Box 871006
Tempe AZ 85287-1006 United States
(480) 965-4932
archives@asu.edu