La Chola Conference in Yakima brings together Chola leaders and innovators for a weekend of empowerment, inspiration, and culture

We are excited to announce the third annual La Chola Conference, which will take place in Yakima, Washington this October at Yakima Valley College. The conference is a celebration of Chola culture and will feature a variety of keynote speakers, panel discussions, art, political teachings, Chola community activism, and community making.

The theme of this year's conference is La Chola Xola: Reclaiming Indigenous Guerrillera Identities & Celebrating Ceremonia in Chola Spaces, and it will explore how Chola leaders embody kinship, community, and cultural practices, and how we create political proclamation in oppressive and institutional spaces. 

“The spark of the movement was born here, in the Yakima Valley. We had hosted other conferences in the past, but we had to do it in hiding,” said organizer Vanessa Alviso. “People were afraid of the word ‘Chola.’ In 2021, we opened up this conference to the public. We started inviting others to join us and the response has been inspiring. People want to talk about Cholas! People want to study Cholas! We don't have to meet in hiding anymore. I am proud to bring this conference back home, to share with my students and community.”

The events include panels, workshops, and individual presentations unpacking how La Chola establishes political praxis through Indigenous concepts as a form of reclamation and resistance. We hope that the work in this year’s conference exemplifies various iterations of La Chola’s evolution over time. Thus, we honor the OG homegirls who came before us, while inviting the new generation of Cholas whose contemporary practices continue to solidify Chola scholarship and political identity.

To kick off the conference, celebrate Cholas, Chillonas, y Chingonas!, an art show exemplifying the wide breadth of cultura and space being a Chola can take! Join us to kick it with some of the most radical community-building Chingonas, while we create joy and Chola community. 

We invite you to share your ideas/sCHOLArship with our community. For more information, visit the Chola Con page at homegirldoctora.com, or follow La Chola Conference on Instagram: @lacholaconference and Facebook: LaCholaConference