Contributions Mexico has made to California culture and cuisine are illustrated by the tamalada: the communal activity of making tamales. Tamales require several hours and many steps to make, so the concept of cutting corners or hurrying anything along is contrary to their preparation.

From soaking and folding the corn husks, to producing the masa dough, to cooking and seasoning the filling, to assembling and tying the tamales, to steaming them to the perfect moist, firm consistency, everyone participates—grandparents, neighbors, young and old.

The assembly is centered around the kitchen table, and the room is animated by chatting, gossiping, joking, playing music, singing, laughing as they work. “Tamales are made for an occasion,” writes Diana Kennedy in The Essential Cuisines of Mexico, “and an occasion is made of making them.”

The significance is in the sharing, in the dividing up of tasks and multiplying the enjoyment of savoring together the longawaited delicacy that took many hands to make.

Fifty-plus years in the food business has put me in contact with Mexican natives in every position in the restaurant—competent, kind, caring and hardworking, generously lending their cultural assets and skills to the operation.

And while it can be tempting to view Washington D.C. as a far-off place that’s distant from us here, the alarming verbal and physical attacks on Mexican immigrants come out of the White House like a cold Petaluma wind, carrying the vitriol to our Mexican neighbors to whom we owe so much.

It must stop. Following the spirit of Minneapolis, we can come together right here in Wine Country, with a sense of joy and purpose and community, to support people of all colors and origins. Together, we can continue to build a society that is stronger and more vibrant in its diversity and one we could not achieve alone.