Allan Appel Photo
Rafael Melendez with admirers Ann Caruso, left, and her sister Terri Santillo, both retired city school teachers.
In 1958 Rafael A. Melendez overcame obstacles to become the first Latino in New Haven to take and pass the entrance exam for the New Haven police department. Two weeks after he passed, he received a letter that he was being removed from the eligible list for being 5 feet 9 inches when 5 feet 10 was required.
Undeterred, he went on to join the Department of Public Works, to become its first Latino supervisor, and to serve there for 32 years.
Ninety people gathered on a blustery Saturday afternoon to celebrate one of the city’s Latino pioneers through the naming of the corner of Grand Avenue and Artizan Street in Melendez’s honor. The gathering of social pioneers and political warriors had the warm feeling of a reunion.
Melendez and his wife Anna have lived in Friendship Houses on Artizan Street for 43 years.
Melendez estimated there were at most 75 Puerto Ricans in New Haven when he arrived in 1955. He had relocated to the Elm City for a job at the Winchester Repeating Arms Company after having lived in Guilford for two years, where he arrived from Puerto Rico in 1953.
There were no Latino civic or social organizations and not exactly an open embrace. The sound of Spanish was unusual in town; Melendez described walks that he and his wife used to take on the Green, always stopping if they heard people speaking Spanish so as to go over and to connect
Fellow Elm City Latino pioneers Lydia Torres and Celestino Cordova.
Lydia Torres and Celestino Cordova, also among the early movers and shakers in the Latino community, recalled how Melendez helped to found Junta for Progressive Action, organize Latino baseball leagues, provide assistance so Hispanic kids could not only start to graduate from high school in New Haven but also go to college. He also was instrumental in organizing Latino voter registration drives.
Encountering discrimination in housing, restaurants, and even in church, Melendez set an example for all who followed by not becoming bitter but “turned those lemons into lemonade,” Fair Haven Alderwoman Migdalia Castro said.
Hill Alderwoman Dolores Colon confessed she had never met Melendez until Saturday’s ceremony but acknowledged she is standing on his shoulders. She thanked him for the “quiet dignity” he showed as he encountered and overcame the obstacles in his life.
Melendez is 76 years old. He and his wife have four children (along with 10 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren), including Ariel, who retired from the New Haven police department as an assistant chief.
The former assistant chief Saturday helped his dad pull the string that unveiled the new street sign.
When it was Melendez’s turn to speak, after the many words of praise that had been spoken, he said, with characteristic modesty, “You heard my story. You got it. Thank you so much!”
Wooster Square Alderman Michael Smart organized the festive event and was joined by what appeared to be half the Board of Aldermen, the mayor, and many other officials and friends.