Rey León is the founder and executive director of the San Joaquin Valley Latino Environmental Advancement and Policy Project, known as Valley LEAP. His work focuses on advancing environmental justice in the region’s institutions and culture, from air quality and climate change to green jobs and transportation. Before joining the panel at a Zócalo/The California Wellness Foundation event, “Are Valley Communities Giving Up on Government?” León talked about holidays, the phrases he keeps saying, and his mother’s hot chocolate.
The Valley is known for its tacos. Which is your favorite taco place?
In Huron, one good place that isn’t precisely in town, Taco Tren. If not there, I’ll go to the original Chris Meat Market.
What superpower would you most like to have?
If not flight, time travel.
What year, past or future, would you time travel to if you could?
I’m a sci-fi guy, so I would like to go to the future. But I would also like to be part of the struggle during the Pachucada in the ‘30s and ‘40s.
What’s your favorite holiday?
Día de la Raza … and I intend to change the name California calls it, which is Columbus Day.
What word or phrase do you use most often?
“Si mon,” probably, in Spanish. “Right on” would be second.
What’s your favorite spot on the San Joaquin River?
At the anchor of the San Joaquin River Parkway near Herndon Town, which was recently incorporated into the city of Fresno in the 1980s.
What dessert do you find impossible to resist?
I can resist any dessert, but you know what? Late at night, when I go visit my mom, she makes that Mexican hot chocolate. The Ibarra brand.