Parents Are the Experts on "La Placita Bilingüe"

In the opening minutes of the radio program "La Placita Bilingüe," the sounds of a Mexican plaza are heard. Birds chirp and church bells ring. A mariachi band plays in the background as we hear two friends talk about their children. Welcome to "La Placita Bilingüe," a unique show on parenting produced by KHDC in Salinas, California.
"La Placita Bilingüe," like the plazas and zocalos of Mexican communities, is a place where parents can share experiences, exchange information and ask advice. Each week a different parenting issue is discussed by a panel of local parenting experts and ordinary parents much like the listeners who call in with questions and comments. The hour-long program is broadcast every Sunday morning at 10 a.m., a time when its target audience, Spanish-speaking farm workers in the Salinas and Pajaro Valleys of California, are most likely to be at home getting ready for church. In addition to Salinas, the program is heard in four other cities — Fresno, Bakersfield, Modesto and El Centro — that have stations that are part of the Radio Bilingüe network.
"The most unique part of the program is bringing together parents and professionals," explains producer and host of the program Graciela Orozco, herself the daughter of Mexican immigrants. Orozco clearly identifies with her listeners, their devotion to their children and their determination to make a better life for their families. She knew that having parents as part of the program was key to its effectiveness. And usually the parents get more questions than the experts.
"Our parents feel comfortable calling in because it isn't just experts, these are real people," says Sally Torres, parent services coordinator of the Salinas Head Start program. Orozco works closely with Head Start, a project partner that serves over 1,000 parents at 25 sites throughout the valley. Head Start helps recruit parents to be on air each week, serves as part of the project's advisory board and promotes the show to parents whose children are enrolled in Head Start classes. Five other partners, ranging from the Monterey County Family newspaper to the Salinas Adult School, are also involved in the project. "La Placita Bilingüe" is also supported by a grant from the California Wellness Foundation.
Topics on "La Placita Bilingüe" run the gamut of parental concerns: immunizations, toilet training, discipline, gang violence. One of the most popular shows concerned circumcision, something rarely talked about in traditional Hispanic families. "Sex is usually a taboo in the Latin culture; you just don't talk about it," says Orozco. But that has not stopped the program from having lively discussions on issues such as AIDS and how to talk with teens about sex.
"La Placita Bilingüe" allows parents to talk openly about their concerns, and the expert panelists to introduce listeners to the various agencies in the community they can access - health clinics, government programs, Head Start and other organizations that serve parents and children. "You know," says Torres, "I wasn't sure it would work, getting parents to talk on the radio. But 'La Placita Bilingüe' has really been embraced by our parents, and it is definitely helping them find resources in the community."
The best part of the project, according to Torres, is watching the parents change as they participate in the on-air program. "Their first reaction is, 'Oh no, I can't be on the radio'", says Torres. "Then you hear them and you can tell that their self-esteem has really grown." One of the parent panelists has become interested in radio production. Another man, who at first would come and sit silently by his wife, now contributes regularly to the discussion.
For many listeners who are farm workers from Mexico, the show takes away some of the loneliness and isolation of raising children far from their extended family. "La Placita Bilingüe" tries to evoke the sounds and style of their homeland, opening with a mini-drama, which draws the audience into the discussion. And every 15 minutes there is a music break in which popular and traditional Mexican songs are played.
"La Placita Bilingüe" succeeds in creating an atmosphere where Spanish-speaking parents can help each other become confident about raising their families in a new culture. As producer Orozco says, "On 'La Placita Bilingüe,' our immigrant parents are learning that they are truly the experts on parenting."

For more information, contact KHDC general manager Delia Saldivar at (408) 757-8039 or Head Start parent services coordinator Sally Torres at (408) 755-0358.