Taco Blitz

Happy Cinco de Mayo.

When I was a kid I thought this was a national holiday. We always had a school celebration and a huge festival in the park. Now I’m lucky if I get to honor the holiday with a taco dinner. Today my family is seeking out a taco truck in honor of the “Carne Asada is not a Crime” movement in Los Angeles.

A new taco controversy has hit the national media by storm, thanks to two schoolteachers with a knack for marketing. The LA Times, the New York Times, Time Magazine, NPR, Slate, and more have all converged on the story about the effort to run taco trucks out of business in LA County by criminalizing the activity and increasing fines.

If you’ve ever eaten a meal at a taco truck you understand the impetus behind the save the taco truck campaign in Los Angeles. Motivated by complaints from restaurant owners, local city council officials have promised to crack down on taco trucks vendors, whose food trucks attract a loyal following. The rules say the taco trucks must move every hour, which few abide by. The new hefty fines and criminal penalties promise to put many taco trucks out of business, which is a tough regulatory pill for local residents to swallow. When I lived in Washington DC I used to follow my burrito truck around downtown even in winter months.

It’s easy to underestimate the taco truck culture. The LA Times covered the issue last week and spoke to government officials behind the crackdown, “To me it is surprising that these young people are taking such an interest” said Maria Cerdas, a deputy for Supervisor Yvonne B. Burke. “I did not foresee it’.

The LA Times published an editorial titled “Long live the taco trucks” and noted food critic Jonathan Gold published a list of his favorite taco trucks called “Keep on (taco) trucking”.

Two local schoolteachers, Aaron Sonderleiter and Chris Rutherford, were the brainstorm behind www.saveourtacotrucks.org. They were soon joined by other taco truck lovers who used new media such as Facebook to broaden the movement. Marketing has included a poster drive, a petition, and a day of action (we were all supposed to visit taco trucks on May 1). I’m not sure if these two schoolteachers had help with their marketing plan, but they’ve followed a classic formula: easy to understand (and catchy) messaging plus action for supporters to take plus a human interest angle for reporters.

Supervisor Gloria Molina is on the defensive, telling reporters that “we’re trying to create a better and more livable community”. Molina’s policy director, Gerry Hertzberg, told the NY Times that “the trucks had become ‘a big quality of life’ in some neighborhoods”. The media coverage, however, has not found community voices in opposition to the trucks, but rather has quoted local business owners worried about competition. The big showdown is May 15 when the new law is slated to take effect.

If the supervisors had underestimated the organizing prowess of taco truck lovers, the media blitz should prompt them to re-evaluate the situation. The story has a life of its own (and some catchy slogans). If I were advising the supervisors on media relations I’d recommend they move decisively and quickly on a new strategy.