Hamlin Moments

Hosted by the  Social Concern Action Committee  of the Universalist Unitarian Church in Santa Paula, the screening of the award winning documentary “ Weaving the Past ” brought viewers into the life of a revered Santa Paula minister, whose early life confronted the 19 th  century socio-political revolution in Mexico. The challenge to the filmmaker, Walter Dominguez, was the concurrent development of the discovery of the history of his maternal grandfather, Emilio Nieves Hernandez, and the history of Mexico. Dominguez’ research led him to the Malacara side of the family (surname of Emilio’s mother), the Camargo side of the family (surname of Emilio’s first wife Fausta), but the origins of the adopted name ‘Hernandez’ went undiscovered. Why is this chronology important? It is through the labyrinth of the family tree that Walter Dominguez uncovered the role his grandfather Emilio Nieves Hernandez played in 19 th  century Mexican history. For hundreds of years Mexican power was in the hand