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City proclaims June 20, 2025 as Cheech Marin Day; Cheech Marin and artists highlight Chicano art’s role in Los Angeles
Summary
The Los Angeles City Council recognized actor, collector and Chicano‑art advocate Cheech Marin with a proclamation declaring June 20, 2025, Cheech Marin Day. Councilmembers and artists praised Marin’s work building the Cheech Marin Center for Chicano Art and urged continued support for Chicano artists and cultural preservation.
The Los Angeles City Council on June 20, 2025 presented a certificate declaring June 20, 2025 as Cheech Marin Day in the City of Los Angeles and honored the actor, collector and cultural advocate Cheech Marin in a series of remarks in the council chamber.
Councilmember Hugo Soto‑Martínez (Thirteenth District), who brought the celebration to the chamber, introduced a short video and invited the council and audience to welcome Marin. Speakers praised Marin’s decades‑long effort to collect and preserve Chicano art and his role in founding the Cheech Marin Center for Chicano Art and Culture in Riverside, which the council noted houses more than 700 works from Marin’s personal collection and recently marked its third anniversary.
Artist Margaret Garcia described Marin’s collection as a means of preserving histories that are often overlooked, and called Chicano art “American art” that should be recognized within the larger national art canon. Drew Oberjerkirky, identified in the meeting as the executive director of the Riverside Art Museum, urged Angelenos to visit the Cheech and noted more than 310,000 people have visited the center.
Cheech Marin accepted the recognition and spoke from the lectern about his family’s roots in Los Angeles and the importance of artists speaking out on contemporary issues. “Cheech Marin Day” was presented as a ceremonial recognition by the council; no ordinance or binding obligation followed as part of the proclamation.
Why it mattered
Speakers framed the recognition as both a celebration of Marin’s personal career and a broader affirmation of Chicano art’s place in American culture. Several councilmembers—among them Heather Hutt, Kevin de‑identified in the transcript as Padilla, and others—offered brief tributes that tied Marin’s work to the council’s broader goals of cultural equity, representation and support for artists.
Looking ahead
Speakers encouraged Angelenos to visit the Cheech Marin Center in Riverside to view rotating exhibitions and to support local artists. Marin and presenters also urged artists to use their work to respond to current challenges facing immigrant and Latino communities.
Provenance: the presentation and proclamation appear in the meeting record beginning with councilmember Soto‑Martínez’s introduction and video and conclude with the certificate presentation and applause.
