[1] The CPLR was concerned with the discrimination and hypocrisy of the church's institutional power and wealth, arguing that such should be "brought to bear in solving the current Chicano urban and rural crisis".
[2] CPLR sought to transform the Church into an institution for social change, creating projects focused on housing development, education, and small business development; believing that the Catholic Church in Los Angeles should use its power and wealth to address the economic and social needs of Mexican Americans.
Oscar Zeta Acosta referred to the building in The Revolt of the Cockroach People as a "monstrosity with a fantastic organ [that] pumps out a spooky religious hymn to this Christ Child of Golden Locks and Blue Eyes overlooking the richest drag in town".
In June 1969, at the church's dedication service, concerned Catholics protested outside, holding signs that read: "$1,000,000 for glass and stone, but for the poor ???
"[10] On October 11, 1969, a group of Chicano students tried to see Cardinal James Francis McIntyre, but only Cruz and Joe Aragon were admitted.
The cardinal reportedly treated Cruz and Aragon "like trash",[citation needed] and threatened to arrest the other CPLR members that had entered.
[11] The following day the LAPD launched an investigation of the protest, resulting in the arrest of 21 CPLR activists charged with "disrupting a religious service".
Historian Richard Martínez argues that "During the period between 1848 and 1960, the church effectively functioned as a partner in the colonization process by helping to maintain the racial and capitalist order in the Southwest.