La Peña

La Peña Cultural Center is a community-based organization rooted in the belief that art and culture are powerful tools for social change. Founded in 1975 in Berkeley, California, La Peña was established in response to the 1973 Chilean coup, with the vision of creating a safe and creative space for artistic expression and cultural preservation. Over the decades, it has evolved into a multicultural hub that showcases diverse voices of the Bay Area (in California) through music, dance, visual arts, poetry, theater, and community dialogue. Highiting the Latin American and Caribbean diaspora in all their endeavors, La Peña Cultural Center collaborates with and unites communities by preserving and celebrating cultural traditions; producing creative new works; and nurturing global grassroots social justice movements with artists, activists, and allies.

La Peña is committed to social justice, equity, and collective liberation. It provides an inclusive platform for artists and activists from marginalized communities to share their stories and experiences. The center regularly hosts multidisciplinary educational programs, workshops, and performances that address pressing social issues such as immigration, racial justice, gender equity, and environmental sustainability. By fostering cross-cultural understanding and solidarity, La Peña continues to be a location for positive change and community empowerment.

La Peña is a cultural homeplace where every week, toddlers, children, teens and adults study the musical and performance traditions that have nourished struggles of resistance, sustained cultures, and contributed to the well-being of communities in the Latin American and Caribbean diaspora. Through its intersectional approach, La Peña remains a beloved space where creativity meets activism and where community members gather not just to witness art but to be inspired, to heal, and to organize for a better world.