CHECK OUT OUR BRAND NEW WEB SITE...  its superchingon!  Browse our photo
gallery, read our bios, band history, check out some of Grito's
poetry...
Orale, you can even buy our firme CD!!!

http://www.gritoserpentino.com

----------------------------------------------------------
GRITO SERPENTINO
San Jose's only Spoken Word and Music ensemble
will be performing on the following dates and locations:

Sunday, April 30, 3:00 p.m.
Latino Art Fair
Gilroy MACSA
7400 Railroad Street, Gilroy
Free

Friday, May 5, 12:00 p.m.
Stanford University
Coffee House, in the student union
Stanford, CA
Free

Friday, May 5, 8:00 p.m.
Verbulations 2.
Tower Theater
815 E. Olive Ave
Fresno, CA.
$12.00

FOR FURTHER INFO PLEASE CALL 408.286.8695  OR mailto:tezcat777@...
--

================================================
Calaca Press
P.O. Box 620786
San Diego, Califas 92162
calacapress@...
http://members.home.net/calacapress

Calaca Press is a family-owned, Chicano press dedicated to publishing
and producing relevant bilingual literature at an affordable price.
================================================
San Jose Floricanto Festival and Conference 2000, June 9-11
================================================

CHECK OUT OUR BRAND NEW WEB SITE...  its superchingon!  Browse our photo
gallery, read our bios, band history, check out some of Grito's poetry...
Orale, you can even buy our firme CD!!!

  www.gritoserpentino.com
  <A HREF="http://www.gritoserpentino.com/">Grito Serpentino: San Jo's Chicano
Groove/ Spoken Word Ensemble</A>

----------------------------------------------------------
GRITO SERPENTINO
San Jose's only Spoken Word and Music ensemble

will be performing on the following dates and locations:

Sunday, April 30, 3:00 p.m.
Latino Art Fair
Gilroy MACSA
7400 Railroad Street, Gilroy
Free

Friday, May 5, 12:00 p.m.
Stanford University
Coffee House, in the student union
Stanford, CA
Free

Friday, May 5, 8:00 p.m.
Verbulations 2.
Tower Theater
815 E. Olive Ave
Fresno, CA.
$12.00

FOR FURTHER INFO PLEASE CALL 408.286.8695  OR EMAIL: tezcat777@...

Q-vole Raza! Heres some info ya'all might be interested in. If ya'all know
any young Xicana/o community organizers out there...nominate them ..or
inform them about this grant award for youth leaders...there ARE plenty of
down young brothas and sistas organizing our communities...this is the
chance for them to be recognized and awarded for their dedication and
efforts. Or if you feel yourself qualified,maybe somethin you might wanna
apply for. Check it out below.
MEXICA TIAHUI!!!
Ruth


This sounds something that some of you might be able to apply for.
>
>Luis
>
>---------------------------
>
>
> >>
> >==========================================================================
> >> >>> -----DO SOMETHING BRICK AWARDS FOR YOUNG COMMUNITY LEADERS
> >> >>>
> >> >>>Do Something and Rolling Stone Magazine are launching a nationwide
>search
> >> >>>for young community leaders to apply for the Do Something BRICK
>Award
>for
> >> >>>Community Leadership and the opportunity to win a $100,000 grant.
> >> >>>
> >> >>>The annual award honors and financially supports America's best
>young
> >> >>community
> >> >>>leaders under age 30 who are taking action to measurably strengthen
>their
> >> >>>communities. Do Something BRICK Award winners each receive a $10,000
>grant
> >> >>>to support their community-building activities and a national grand
>prize
> >> >>>winner receives a $100,000 grant at an annual Do Something Gala held
> >> in New
> >> >>>York City.
> >> >>>
> >> >>>Last year's grand prize winner was Lucas Benitez, a migrant
> >> >>>farmworker from South Florida who with his fellow farmworkers
>exposed
>two
> >> >>>slave labor operations, negotiated the first wage increase for
>tomato
> >> >>>pickers in 20 years and collected more than $100,000 in unpaid back
>wages
> >> >>>for migrant workers. Other BRICK Award winners are tutoring at-risk
> >> >>>students, improving health care access for low-income families,
> >> >>>revitalizing Native American communities and helping gang members
>choose
> >> >>>peace.
> >> >>>
> >> >>>Young leaders can request a Do Something BRICK Award application by
> >> >>>calling 212-523-1175 or by sending an e-mail to
>brick@...
>  To
> >> >>>get the application online, click here.
> >> >>> http://www.dosomething.org/brick.
> >> >>>
> >> >>>The application deadline is Wednesday,
> >> >>>May 10, 2000.
> >> >>>
> >
>

________________________________________________________________________
Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com

THEY READ TACOS
FROM NEW YORK TO LA JOLLA!


The Taco Shop Poets are spreading the salsa and poetry vibe to the
contemporary art walls of the Museum of Contemporary Art, San Diego. The
group has been invited to perform at the prestigious Artists on the
Cutting Edge series curated by noted poet/writer Quincy Troupe.

When: Thursday, April 27, 7:30 p.m.
Where: Sherwood Auditorium at the La Jolla location of the Museum of
Contemporary Art.
Tickets: $15
For more information: (858) 454-3541 x444.


AND ON NATIONAL TELEVISION!
The poets are featured in the upcoming HBO documentary Americanos, next
to Carlos Santana and Tito Puente. The film airs May 5, at 6:30 p.m. on
the cable channel.

For more info, check the site:
http://www.hbo.com/homepages/cmp/docs.shtml#latinos

and check out the TSP site: http://members.xoom.com/t_s_p

READ TACOS! EAT POETRY!


--


================================================
Calaca Press
P.O. Box 620786
San Diego, Califas 92162
calacapress@...
http://members.home.net/calacapress

Calaca Press is a family-owned, Chicano press dedicated to publishing
and producing relevant bilingual literature at an affordable price.
================================================
San Jose Floricanto Festival, June 9-11, 2000
================================================

Q-Vole mis hermanos y hermanas,

Please join us tomorrow for an exciting event with the lead actor, Damian
Delgado, and the Director, Salvador Carrasco of La Otra Conquista:

When:      Thursday, April 27 from 1:00-3:00 p.m.
Where:     Cal State University, Los Angeles - free speech area
                 at the intersection of the 10 fwy and the 710 fwy
What:      Salvador Carrasco and Damian Delgado will be discussing
            their new film and autographing posters
Why:       The film has taken L.A. by storm, as it was the highest
            grossing foreign film this past weekend, and the number one
            foreign film in the country, even though the film is only
            showing in the greater LA area.  We urge you to see the film
            this weekend if you haven't seen it yet!

            We are implementing a campaign which will mount an
            aggressive assault on youth violence by giving children a
            clear view that every human being is engineered to succeed
            in life, through the dynamics of this film, which conveys a
            a very powerful message of peace, and that the spirit of the
            people can never be conquered. We are working with
            the director, Mr. Carrasco, on a community based campaign
            which we know will make a significant impact on Hollywood.
            If there is ever a time to voice out to Hollywood and the
            entertainment industry, this is it---now is the time for our
            people to speak out, with this film.  There are two things
            that are vital that each Latino must do:  1) See the movie;
            2) Call your favorite news station and radio station and ask
            them what they are doing to educate our people through this
            film.

Join Us:   Please contact us at mastapeacz@... or (888) 387-
            7907 x4659 if you would like more info regarding tomorrow's
            event, or if you would like to get involved with our on-
            going campaign.

Josof Sanchez

PS.  Salvador Carrasco and Damian Delgado will also be appearing on the
"East L.A. After Dark Show," on Buena Vision Television today at 6:30 p.m.
________________________________________________________________________
Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com

--

================================================
Calaca Press
P.O. Box 620786
San Diego, Califas 92162
calacapress@...
http://members.home.net/calacapress

Calaca Press is a family-owned, Chicano press dedicated to publishing
and producing relevant bilingual literature at an affordable price.
================================================
San Jose Floricanto Festival and Conference 2000, June 9-11
================================================

The Raza Rights Coalition extends this invitation to
the San Diego Community and all progressive
organizations to attend a forum in support of the
heroic labor struggles that are currently taking place
within the service industry in San Diego.
Come an hear messages of the Heroic struggles of:

*Justice for Janitors who are currently on strike
*Housekeepers in the Struggle for our Rights from the
Marriott Hotel and Marina
*Mission Valley Hilton Workers
*Janitors from UCSD

The forum will take place on International Workers
Day, on Monday, May 1, 2000 @ the ArtStation (Pink
Building on the Corner of Crosby and Kearny in Barrio
Logan)

Please bring non-perishable food items or monetary
contributions to assist the families of the striking janitors

__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Send online invitations with Yahoo! Invites.
http://invites.yahoo.com

CALENDARIO

APRIL 28TH (friday)
~ La Peña del Sur HOSTS:
Estación Libre, a solidarity network between US activists of color and
insurgent, indigenous Zapatista communities in Chiapas, Mexico.
     2870-A 22nd Street (off Harrison)
     San Francisco, CA
     8pm  $5-7 donation
     info 415-550-1101


APRIL 29TH (saturday)
~  Rudo Revolutionary Front Presents:
MUJERES VALIENTES: A Tribute To Dolores Huerta
    Dolores Huerta
    El Teatro Campesino
    RCAF _Royal Chicano Airforce
Special Guests: Estación Libre, Rudesa Norteña (música de acordion y bajo
sexto!!)Teatro PUENTE, teatro Huertista, Teatro Los Hijos Del Campo, Ricardo
Favela, Esteban Villa, Pancho Villa, Sor Juana Inez de la Cruz, Frida Kahlo
and the infamous Dragonfly.
    CSU Stanislaus Amphiteater
    Turlock, CA
    8 PM  $15 adults, $12 students


APRIL 30TH (sunday)
~   FESTIVAL DE LA FAMILIA
!Cambio De Piel*rock en español* and other artists and entertainment.
    Old Sacramento, CA.
    10am
    For more info email cambiodepiel@...


MAY 1ST (monday)
~   Center for Latin American Studies Presents:
ESTACIóN LIBRE Solidarity Workers of Chiapas
     UC Berkeley
     Center for Latina American Studies (Seminar Room)
     2334 Bowditch St.
     Berkeley, CA.
     510-643-3190
     4-6pm  DONATIONS welcomed!!

MAY 11TH (thurday)
~  La Peña de Berkeley and Estación Libre Hosts:
ZAPATISTA BANDFEST!!!!!!!
    LIVE MUSIC FROM:
      *VENUS LOON
       *BLASFEMIA
        *CARADURA
         *EPIDEMIA
          *JUAN CUBA (pending)
La Peña de Berkeley
3105 shattuck Ave.
berkeley CA.
510-849-2568
$8-10 sliding scale
8 pm

MAY 12TH (friday)
~  The Women's Building and Estación Libre HOSTS:
WOMYNS STRUGGLE IN THE STRUGGLE
   Marianna Rivera- Sacramento Chiapas Solidarity Network
   Denise Alvarado- Comite98 Por un Puerto Rico Libre, Vieques    Solidarity
Coalition
   Other Speakers Pending..
(more info to come)
Women's Building
   San Francisco, CA.
   8 pm
   $6-8 sliding scale


                                                     rrf-kika ruda

________________________________________________________________________
Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com

i'm interested in the venceremos brigade, pero i'm in riverside.
send info

>From: Joel Tena <joel@...>
>Reply-To: AztlanNet@egroups.com
>To: "'Venceremos Brigade, SF/Bay Area'" <vb-sfbay@...>
>Subject: [AztlanNet/Mental Menudo] Are you interested in going to CUBA?
>Date: Tue, 18 Apr 2000 18:28:35 -0700
>
>Please forward to all interested parties-
>
>Are you interested in going to
>
>CUBA?
>
>The 31st Contingent of the
>Venceremos Brigade:
>The 31st Contingent of the Venceremos Brigade is be planned now.
>We are an educational work brigade in solidarity with the Cuban people and
>the
>Cuban Revolution. We work to end the U.S. economic blockade on Cuba and
>fight
>for social justice here at home. This will be the 31st year that we have
>traveled to
>Cuba. Please come to our FINAL interest meeting and find out how you can go
>to
>Cuba this summer:
>
>Saturday, April 29, 2000, 1-4 PM- FINAL VB Interest Meeting
>Center for Political Education
>522 Valencia St. 3rd Flr.
>San Francisco (near 16th St. BART)
>
>MAY FIRST, 2000
>International Workers of the World Day
>DEADLINE TO TURN IN APPLICATIONS FOR
>31st CONTINGENT OF THE
>VENCEREMOS BRIGADE
>
>iADELANTE EN LA LUCHA SOCIAL!
>
>For more information about
>the Venceremos Brigade, please call:
>415.267.0606
>
>or write to us at:
>Venceremos Brigade
>P.O. Box 7071
>Oakland, California
>94601
>
>_______________________
>Joel Tena
>Venceremos Brigade
>

________________________________________________________________________
Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com

As  artist(s) , we are asked constantly to donate our efforts to many
ventures and causes, endlessly.

I ,for one, cherish these particular  directions that advance and uphold the
traditions and follow the path of our antepasados, as best we can. Count me
in as a donor of artwork.

And furthermore, I have a studio-place that can be a "camp" to hold a
ceremony if  arrangements are suitable

Please contact me at 909-629-1938...Pomona ,Califas
Magu

>From: "Ruth Alejo" <ruthalejo@...>
>Reply-To: AztlanNet@egroups.com
>To: AztlanNet@egroups.com
>Subject: [AztlanNet/Mental Menudo] Cultural Center
>Date: Mon, 24 Apr 2000 18:35:54 PDT
>
>Hola Raza! Please check out the donation letter below...es muy importante
>por nuestra comunidad de Watsonville! Gracias!!!
>
>Subject: Cultural Center
> >Date: Wed, 29 Mar 2000 11:46:50 PST
> >
> >
> >>>Any resources you may contribute will be greatly apreciated
> >>>
> >>>
> >>>Below is a donaton letter
> >>>
> >>>330 Zurich Avenue
> >>>Watsonville, CA 95076
> >>>(831) 728-5460
> >>>>
> >>>>
> >>>>We are The White Hawk Dancers, (Ixtatutli Mitotianimeh) an Indigenous
> >>>>group Mexica/ Azteca/ Other), and a non-profit organization.  We have
> >>>>been in existence since 1983.  Our purpose is to cultivate and
>transmit
> >>>>the culture, value, and practices of our ancestors.  We do this
>through
> >>>>dance, mural art, drumming, arts and crafts.  At the same time, we
> >>>>advocate care for the Earth, and natural resources.  We also offer
>other
> >>>>traditional ceremonies.  The group is primarily aimed at engaging
>youth
> >>>>who are searching for an identity.  We remind them of their indigenous
> >>>>roots to the Earth.  We provide them with support, encouragement,
> >>>>safety, a sense of belonging, and a family-like atmosphere.  Many
>young
> >>>>people, who become part of White Hawk as children, are now attending
> >>>>college and many are becoming involved by helping in the community.
> >>>>
> >>>Currently we practice at school cafeterias, and we hold ceremonies as
> >>>well as other functions in borrowed facilities.  As an increasing
>number
> >>>of young people join our group, we are outgrowing the facilities; or it
> >>>is becoming more difficult to use them.  We are in dire need of our own
> >>>location, where we can practice our dance, teach the arts, and conduct
> >>>our sacred ceremonies, but we have limited funds to purchase a
>location.
> >>>We have a vision of having our own land where, perhaps some day, we can
> >>>have a cultural, educational and ceremonial center, but we need the
> >>>community's help.
> >>>
> >>>This is the reason we come to you, in hopes that you may help us with a
> >>>purchase of shirt, an art piece or a donation to our White Hawk Land
> >>>Fund.  All donations are tax deductible.  If you are interested in
> >>>learning more about what White Hawk does, we would be happy to meet
>with
> >>>you.  If you would like to see the results of our work, we invite you
>to
> >>>come and see our group.
> >>>>
> >>>In the larger scheme of life, we believe we are all one people, one
> >>>family, and the children are everyone's responsibility.  It is
>important
> >>>for the youth to know that adults in their community care.
> >>>You can mail donations to The White Hawk Dancers, at the above listed
> >>>address.  We thank you for considering our request.
> >>>>
> >>>>Noxtin Nomecayotzin (All My Relations),
> >>>>Yermo and Anai-I Aranda, e-mail: nantli@...
> >>>>Co-Directors/White Hawk Dancers
> >>>>IXTATUTLI
> >>>>
> >>>Sacramento area Contacts:
> >>>(CSUS)Eliazar Chavez, e-mail: yoatlakatl@...
> >>>(CSUS)Pedro Ortega, e-mail: tetzin@...
> >>>(DQ-U)Mari Valteirra, email: mvaltierra@...
> >>>
> >>>>"Si puede" help us by distributing this letter to other Gente.  This
>way
> >>>>others can also donate.  By grants, buying a piece of art or shirt, or
> >>>>arranging a booth or a place to sell.
> >>>
> >>>
> >>>Gracias por su apoyo!
> >>>>
> >>>>
> >>>
> >>>
> >>>>All great achievements, from the ancient past to the distant future,
> >>>>depend upon a continuous educational legacy.  Nothing is preserved,
> >>>>nothing is cherished or made to last, unless it is placed in the
>hearts
> >>>>and minds of children.  Respecting, protecting, and preserving
> >>>>traditional knowledge and custom is the first step to ensure the
> >>>>physical, spiritual, and political well-being of all ages.
> >>>
> >>>With the implementation of our plan for a cultural arts educational
> >>>center and ceremonial grounds, we will be able to both more effectively
> >>>serve our local population, and more efficiently reach the global
> >>>community.  Your support as an individual or
> >>>organization will help us establish a lasting legacy that will benefit
> >>>children for untold generations to come.
> >>>
> >>>
> >>>>______________________________________________________
> >>>>Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com
> >>>
> >>
> >
>
>________________________________________________________________________
>Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com
>

________________________________________________________________________
Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com

Spotlight On: San Diego
From Focus on California Volume IV, Number 2 Spring 2000 published by
Poets & Writers, Inc.


An occasional feature of Focus on California, the Spotlight highlights
literary activity occurring in different regions of the state. The last
Spotlight focused on the North Coast. Future articles will include the
Central Valley and the Sierra foothills as well as themes such as cowboy
and performance poetry.



In the greater San Diego region a vibrant literary scene has flourished
by drawing on the aesthetic of the border while also reaching beyond the
confines of the region to interact with literary artists from New York,
Los Angeles, and San Francisco. Bilingual literary presenting and
publishing has grown considerably, as has a multiethnic audience hungry
for the kind of language which reflects their own backgrounds and
culture. The annual Border Voices Poetry Project festival presents a
focal point for much of this activity, as does the work of the literary
presenters in the region. Brent Beltrán, a presenter and publisher
(along with his wife, Consuelo Manríquez de Beltrán) of Calaca Press
says, "I think that geography does intersect with culture, specifically
here in San Diego but also in other cities that have a large Chicano
population. Being close to the border has an enormous effect on what we
are doing as a press and as a literary presenter."

"Artists on the Cutting Edge: Cross Fertilizations" at the Museum of
Contemporary Art, San Diego, is perhaps the most high-profile series in
the region. Curated by noted poet and teacher Quincy Troupe and now in
its eighth season, the annual series of spring events meld literature
and music in an artistic conversation that exemplifies the best of a
multicultural approach to programming. During this season, for instance,
the African-American vocal duo of Vincent Henry and Stephanie McKay is
joined with Indian-American novelist Bharati Mukherjee and
Japanese-American poet Lawson Inada. Mr. Troupeís catholic tastes often
result in surprising juxtapositions (distinguished fiction writer Grace
Paley with the San Diego performance poet group the Taco Shop Poets,
Nobel-winning poet Derek Walcott with novelist Mona Simpson) and an
exciting new vision of how different disciplines speak to and through
one another. "Weíve had so many memorable performances," notes former
series administrator Jennifer Yancy. "Toni Morrison and Max Roach
together onstage was certainly memorable, and we had a fabulous evening
with Amiri Baraka and Gwendolyn Brooks, who performed separately but
perfectly complemented each other."  The events usually sell out the
Museumís 500 seat auditorium, attesting to the popularity of the varied
performers with the regionís audiences.

Local colleges and universities also play a large part in the literary
life of the San Diego community, with San Diego State University, UC San
Diego, Southwestern College, and Point Loma Nazarene University all
sponsoring literary events. These series present local writers as well
as bring writers in from other parts of the state and country. Dean
Nelson, who organizes the Writerís Symposium by the Sea at Point Loma,
sees the schools as central to the writing community, but adds, "Keep in
mind that I work at one of them!"  The yearly Writerís Symposium hosts
workshops, lectures and readings about the craft and commerce of
writing; this yearís conference featured a special appearance by Paris
Review editor George Plimpton. Nelsonís goal as a literary presenter is
to "Offer a place where dialogue about writing can occur, to show
writers and students (sometimes the same people) that good writing still
matters, that storytelling still matters, and that itís harder than it
looks."

Smaller presenters can also attract large audiences in the San Diego
area. The Porter Troupe Gallery, directed by Margaret Porter Troupe,
presents occasional literary events in a gallery setting, once again
emphasizing the connections between different arts disciplines. A large
number of open-mic nights, café readings, and bookstore events can be
found around the city; many small writing groups have sprung up since
the summer 1998 demise of The Writing Center, an important literary
center offering workshops and a meeting place for writers. Calaca
Pressís Beltrán says that while theyíve only produced "three or four"
events in their two years as publishers, each event has attracted well
over 100 people, and more events are in the works.

Beltrán considers himself a Chicano presenter, and the San Diego
regionís proximity to both Mexico and Los Angelesís large Latino
population informs the publishing and presenting of Calaca. "Being so
close to the border and being of Mexican descent is very important to
us. That does not mean that people from other ethnic backgrounds donít
attend our eventsóas a matter of fact our crowds are multiethnic people
who love poetry," states Beltrán. "Many people who are not bilingual
come to our events because they know that there are a lot of outstanding
poets in our community."  A few of those poets have joined together to
form the Taco Shop Poets, whose mission statement reads in part, "We are
a group that realizes our community's intangible treasures can be
explored through all of the arts."  As a recent San Diego Union-Tribune
article about the group of six Latino performers put it, the Poets use
"prose, poetry, and musical accompaniment [to] explore the ëborder
dwellerí experience."  In 1994, founding members Miguel Angel-Soria and
Adolfo Guzman-Lopez began reading their poetry in taco shops, a way to
bring their work into community spaces away from the usual poetry
venues. Since then, the group has performed hundreds of times and added
and lost members. The Taco Shop Poets now stand at a core of four
writers, including its two founders along with Adrian Arancibia and
Tomás Riley, and two musicians, Michael Figgins and Kevin P. Green.

While none of the presenters we spoke with saw a unified "San Diego
aesthetic," itís clear that the divergent literary arts community in San
Diego shares certain traits including a desire to explore different
cultures and a willingness to juxtapose unfamiliar elements. "San Diego
is a relatively new, spread out city thatís both connected and divided
by freeways and canyons," says Ralph Lewin, Associate Director of the
California Council for the Humanities and long-time San Diego resident.
"Not many people know about the literary history of the city, but there
are wonderful writers in San Diego, and lots of different projects for
them to participate in. The city hasnít yet found a collective
identity."


"Artists on the Cutting Edge"
Museum of Contemporary Art, San Diego
700 Prospect Street
La Jolla, CA  92037
(619) 454-3541

Writerís Symposium by the Sea
Point Loma Nazarene University
3900 Lomaland Drive
San Diego, CA  92106
(619) 849-2592

Porter Troupe Gallery
301 Spruce Street
San Diego, CA  92103
(619) 291-9096

Calaca Press
P.O. Box 620786
San Diego, CA  92162
mailto:calacapress@...
http://members.home.net/calacapress

Taco Shop Poets
(619) 500-2634
mailto:tacoshoppoets@...
http://member.xoom.com/t_s_p

--

================================================
Calaca Press
P.O. Box 620786
San Diego, Califas 92162
calacapress@...
http://members.home.net/calacapress

Calaca Press is a family-owned, Chicano press dedicated to publishing
and producing relevant bilingual literature at an affordable price.
================================================
San Jose Floricanto Festival, June 9-11, 2000
================================================

Guillermo
well here I am...I hope this time it has taken me to your cyperspace in
Aztlannet.
Magu
________________________________________________________________________
Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE!


For More info contact:
Paul Flores (415) 675-0153
mailto:madreina@...
or
Josie Aguilar (323) 461-0808
mailto:xicanobks@...


ESPRESSO MI CULTURA Books & Coffee

Presents:

Wednesday May 3, 2000
8pm
Espresso Mi Cultura
BOOKS & COFFEE
5625 Hollywood Blvd.
Hollywood, CA  90028


"WORD DESCARGA! (CON QUESO)"

Featuring San Francisco's premiere Chicano/Latino spoken word ensemble

LOS DELICADOS: Poetas del Sol
w/percussionist Jimmy Biala

Tickets:  $5-$7  General at the door
All ages invited

"WORD DESCARGA! (Con Queso)"

Featuring  LOS DELICADOS & friends

"Just imagine Pablo Neruda collaborating with Cypress Hill."
                                                         - Guillermo
Gomez Peña

Don't miss Los Delicados as they bring their hectic spoken jazz and
satirical performance art to Los Angeles for an evening of Latino poetic
improvisations, comedic impersonations, Afro-Cubano musical
collaborations all in the key of Q(ueso).

Also featuring performances by:

reina prado
and
Maria Elena Fernandez of L.A. Coyotas
Victor Carrillo
With a special appearace by the one and only
Pat "Velvet Hammer" Payne

DON'T MISS IT, GENTE!

Wednesday May 3, 2000
8pm
Espresso Mi Cultura
BOOKS & COFFEE
5625 Hollywood Blvd.
Hollywood, CA  90028
323 461-0808
http://www.latinola.com/espresso


Los Delicados Bio:

Founded in San Francisco, CA, in November of 1996, Los Delicados: Poetas
del Sol are made up of three performance poets: Darren J de León, Paul
S. Flores, Norman Antonio Zelaya, and percussionist Jimmy Biala. Whether
fusing rhythmic spoken word with percussion,  or comic theater with live
mural making, they are constantly developing new hybrid performances
aimed at drawing Latino youth and progressive minded audiences into the
conscience of Chicano/Latino artistic expression. Los Delicados have
performed all over California, the Midwest, and Nuyorican Poets Cafe
with some of todays most renown poets and performers including Miguel
Algarin, Quincy Troupe, Susana Baca, Quetzal, Guillermo Gomez Peña,
Teatro Campesino, The Welfare Poets, Latina Theater Lab, and more.

For more info on Los Delicados: mailto:losdelicados@...
--

================================================
Calaca Press
P.O. Box 620786
San Diego, Califas 92162
calacapress@...
http://members.home.net/calacapress

Calaca Press is a family-owned, Chicano press dedicated to publishing
and producing relevant bilingual literature at an affordable price.
================================================
San Jose Floricanto Festival, June 9-11, 2000
================================================

Am sorry to miss the exhibit  fromBerkeley  since it is a distance from
Los..y  todo. But you have hit on a chord of passion for Bombas, shorts,
Ranflas, Caritos Bajitos etc. Being compulsively interested in Car Culture.

And here in the Pomona Art Colony we are also having an Art Car event and
exhibition. A call to artists is now in effect, seeking any manner of
cultural vehicles.  Imagination is the trick.

"Art as a Cultural Vehicle" is the title of the event and we expect entries
to be listed in the number of wheels, in lieu of other categories more
common in Ranfla shows. You may have vehicles without wheels, as in carrying
your "carito " on a sling over your shoulders or litter-fashion.
Wheelbarrows, unicycles,strollers, adapted lawnmowers, two-wheelers, or
multiples like tandems are welcomed, as long as a safety check will allow
the parading the contraption around in a crowd is O.K.

An exhibit of customized models and remote controlled vehicles are also
encouraged.

The date of the Carito event is July 8th in conjunction with our Second
Saturday Artwalk  from Noon to 10pm.  There are food venues and galleries as
well as lots of folks interested in the Arts.   The exhibition will be at
the Da gallery and collection of entries will be in advance for  display
preparation

Please call me at  909-629-1938....Magu  for more information



________________________________________________________________________
Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com

As  artist(s) , we are asked constantly to donate our efforts to many
ventures and causes, endlessly.

I ,for one, cherish these particular  directions that advance and uphold the
traditions and follow the path of our antepasados, as best we can. Count me
in as a donor of artwork.

And furthermore, I have a studio-place that can be a "camp" to hold a
ceremony if  arrangements are suitable

Please contact me at 909-629-1938...Pomona ,Califas
Magu

>From: "Ruth Alejo" <ruthalejo@...>
>Reply-To: AztlanNet@egroups.com
>To: AztlanNet@egroups.com
>Subject: [AztlanNet/Mental Menudo] Cultural Center
>Date: Mon, 24 Apr 2000 18:35:54 PDT
>
>Hola Raza! Please check out the donation letter below...es muy importante
>por nuestra comunidad de Watsonville! Gracias!!!
>
>Subject: Cultural Center
> >Date: Wed, 29 Mar 2000 11:46:50 PST
> >
> >
> >>>Any resources you may contribute will be greatly apreciated
> >>>
> >>>
> >>>Below is a donaton letter
> >>>
> >>>330 Zurich Avenue
> >>>Watsonville, CA 95076
> >>>(831) 728-5460
> >>>>
> >>>>
> >>>>We are The White Hawk Dancers, (Ixtatutli Mitotianimeh) an Indigenous
> >>>>group Mexica/ Azteca/ Other), and a non-profit organization.  We have
> >>>>been in existence since 1983.  Our purpose is to cultivate and
>transmit
> >>>>the culture, value, and practices of our ancestors.  We do this
>through
> >>>>dance, mural art, drumming, arts and crafts.  At the same time, we
> >>>>advocate care for the Earth, and natural resources.  We also offer
>other
> >>>>traditional ceremonies.  The group is primarily aimed at engaging
>youth
> >>>>who are searching for an identity.  We remind them of their indigenous
> >>>>roots to the Earth.  We provide them with support, encouragement,
> >>>>safety, a sense of belonging, and a family-like atmosphere.  Many
>young
> >>>>people, who become part of White Hawk as children, are now attending
> >>>>college and many are becoming involved by helping in the community.
> >>>>
> >>>Currently we practice at school cafeterias, and we hold ceremonies as
> >>>well as other functions in borrowed facilities.  As an increasing
>number
> >>>of young people join our group, we are outgrowing the facilities; or it
> >>>is becoming more difficult to use them.  We are in dire need of our own
> >>>location, where we can practice our dance, teach the arts, and conduct
> >>>our sacred ceremonies, but we have limited funds to purchase a
>location.
> >>>We have a vision of having our own land where, perhaps some day, we can
> >>>have a cultural, educational and ceremonial center, but we need the
> >>>community's help.
> >>>
> >>>This is the reason we come to you, in hopes that you may help us with a
> >>>purchase of shirt, an art piece or a donation to our White Hawk Land
> >>>Fund.  All donations are tax deductible.  If you are interested in
> >>>learning more about what White Hawk does, we would be happy to meet
>with
> >>>you.  If you would like to see the results of our work, we invite you
>to
> >>>come and see our group.
> >>>>
> >>>In the larger scheme of life, we believe we are all one people, one
> >>>family, and the children are everyone's responsibility.  It is
>important
> >>>for the youth to know that adults in their community care.
> >>>You can mail donations to The White Hawk Dancers, at the above listed
> >>>address.  We thank you for considering our request.
> >>>>
> >>>>Noxtin Nomecayotzin (All My Relations),
> >>>>Yermo and Anai-I Aranda, e-mail: nantli@...
> >>>>Co-Directors/White Hawk Dancers
> >>>>IXTATUTLI
> >>>>
> >>>Sacramento area Contacts:
> >>>(CSUS)Eliazar Chavez, e-mail: yoatlakatl@...
> >>>(CSUS)Pedro Ortega, e-mail: tetzin@...
> >>>(DQ-U)Mari Valteirra, email: mvaltierra@...
> >>>
> >>>>"Si puede" help us by distributing this letter to other Gente.  This
>way
> >>>>others can also donate.  By grants, buying a piece of art or shirt, or
> >>>>arranging a booth or a place to sell.
> >>>
> >>>
> >>>Gracias por su apoyo!
> >>>>
> >>>>
> >>>
> >>>
> >>>>All great achievements, from the ancient past to the distant future,
> >>>>depend upon a continuous educational legacy.  Nothing is preserved,
> >>>>nothing is cherished or made to last, unless it is placed in the
>hearts
> >>>>and minds of children.  Respecting, protecting, and preserving
> >>>>traditional knowledge and custom is the first step to ensure the
> >>>>physical, spiritual, and political well-being of all ages.
> >>>
> >>>With the implementation of our plan for a cultural arts educational
> >>>center and ceremonial grounds, we will be able to both more effectively
> >>>serve our local population, and more efficiently reach the global
> >>>community.  Your support as an individual or
> >>>organization will help us establish a lasting legacy that will benefit
> >>>children for untold generations to come.
> >>>
> >>>
> >>>>______________________________________________________
> >>>>Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com
> >>>
> >>
> >
>
>________________________________________________________________________
>Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com
>

________________________________________________________________________
Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com

Hola Raza! Please check out the donation letter below...es muy importante
por nuestra comunidad de Watsonville! Gracias!!!

Subject: Cultural Center
>Date: Wed, 29 Mar 2000 11:46:50 PST
>
>
>>>Any resources you may contribute will be greatly apreciated
>>>
>>>
>>>Below is a donaton letter
>>>
>>>330 Zurich Avenue
>>>Watsonville, CA 95076
>>>(831) 728-5460
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>We are The White Hawk Dancers, (Ixtatutli Mitotianimeh) an Indigenous
>>>>group Mexica/ Azteca/ Other), and a non-profit organization.  We have
>>>>been in existence since 1983.  Our purpose is to cultivate and transmit
>>>>the culture, value, and practices of our ancestors.  We do this through
>>>>dance, mural art, drumming, arts and crafts.  At the same time, we
>>>>advocate care for the Earth, and natural resources.  We also offer other
>>>>traditional ceremonies.  The group is primarily aimed at engaging youth
>>>>who are searching for an identity.  We remind them of their indigenous
>>>>roots to the Earth.  We provide them with support, encouragement,
>>>>safety, a sense of belonging, and a family-like atmosphere.  Many young
>>>>people, who become part of White Hawk as children, are now attending
>>>>college and many are becoming involved by helping in the community.
>>>>
>>>Currently we practice at school cafeterias, and we hold ceremonies as
>>>well as other functions in borrowed facilities.  As an increasing number
>>>of young people join our group, we are outgrowing the facilities; or it
>>>is becoming more difficult to use them.  We are in dire need of our own
>>>location, where we can practice our dance, teach the arts, and conduct
>>>our sacred ceremonies, but we have limited funds to purchase a location.
>>>We have a vision of having our own land where, perhaps some day, we can
>>>have a cultural, educational and ceremonial center, but we need the
>>>community's help.
>>>
>>>This is the reason we come to you, in hopes that you may help us with a
>>>purchase of shirt, an art piece or a donation to our White Hawk Land
>>>Fund.  All donations are tax deductible.  If you are interested in
>>>learning more about what White Hawk does, we would be happy to meet with
>>>you.  If you would like to see the results of our work, we invite you to
>>>come and see our group.
>>>>
>>>In the larger scheme of life, we believe we are all one people, one
>>>family, and the children are everyone's responsibility.  It is important
>>>for the youth to know that adults in their community care.
>>>You can mail donations to The White Hawk Dancers, at the above listed
>>>address.  We thank you for considering our request.
>>>>
>>>>Noxtin Nomecayotzin (All My Relations),
>>>>Yermo and Anai-I Aranda, e-mail: nantli@...
>>>>Co-Directors/White Hawk Dancers
>>>>IXTATUTLI
>>>>
>>>Sacramento area Contacts:
>>>(CSUS)Eliazar Chavez, e-mail: yoatlakatl@...
>>>(CSUS)Pedro Ortega, e-mail: tetzin@...
>>>(DQ-U)Mari Valteirra, email: mvaltierra@...
>>>
>>>>"Si puede" help us by distributing this letter to other Gente.  This way
>>>>others can also donate.  By grants, buying a piece of art or shirt, or
>>>>arranging a booth or a place to sell.
>>>
>>>
>>>Gracias por su apoyo!
>>>>
>>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>>All great achievements, from the ancient past to the distant future,
>>>>depend upon a continuous educational legacy.  Nothing is preserved,
>>>>nothing is cherished or made to last, unless it is placed in the hearts
>>>>and minds of children.  Respecting, protecting, and preserving
>>>>traditional knowledge and custom is the first step to ensure the
>>>>physical, spiritual, and political well-being of all ages.
>>>
>>>With the implementation of our plan for a cultural arts educational
>>>center and ceremonial grounds, we will be able to both more effectively
>>>serve our local population, and more efficiently reach the global
>>>community.  Your support as an individual or
>>>organization will help us establish a lasting legacy that will benefit
>>>children for untold generations to come.
>>>
>>>
>>>>______________________________________________________
>>>>Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com
>>>
>>
>

________________________________________________________________________
Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com

From: Sol <solomon@...>
Subject: Rigoberta Menchu


At UC Berkeley
Date: Friday, April 28, 2000
Time: 5:30PM
Title: 'Guatemalan Reflections' A Lecture by Rigoberta Mench, 1992 Nobel
Peace Prize Winner
Speaker: Rigoberta Mench
Location: Chevron Auditorium, Intl. House,UCB
Type: Lecture
Sponsor: Center for Latin American Studies
Open to: Public
Contact Phone: 642-2088
Contact Email: mlamb@...
Description: Mench will discuss the current situation of Human Rights in
Guatemala, the prosecution of those responsible for violations, and the
effects on the indigenous population. Moderator: Professor Beatriz Manz,
Departments of Ethnic Studies and Geography.

Is this the cyperspace that I've been looking for recently?
Magu
________________________________________________________________________
Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com

The following AztlanNet poll is now closed.  Here are the
final results:


POLL QUESTION: Do you know the current status of
funding for the state of Califas?
Do you know the funding profile of
organizations of the Califas Art
Council?

CHOICES AND RESULTS
- yes?, 0 votes, 0.00%
- No?, 1 votes, 100.00%



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Thanks!

--- josefina lopez <superchingona@...> wrote:
> From: "josefina lopez" <superchingona@...>
> To: katavila@...,
> aztlannet-l@..., lucha@...
> Subject: Birth Of An Art Space
> Date: Thu, 20 Apr 2000 04:40:17 PDT
> Reply-to: aztlannet-l@...
>
> Dear Friends, Theater Audiences, Supporters of Boyle
> Heights, Filmmakers,
> and Art Lovers:
>
>
> Please forward this announcement and include in your
> calendars!
>
> In Celebration Of "Cinco De Mayo", Chingona Prods. &
> Josefina Lopez request
> the honor of your presence at the birth of "Casa De
> Las Almas"/"House Of
> Souls" art space in the beautiful and historical
> community of Boyle Heights,
> located at 2009 E. First St. from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m.,
> May 6, 2000.  Come check
> out art by up and coming Chicana/o artists, mingle
> with loud & funny
> Latinas, and network with other artists and
> activists.  Learn about Boyle
> Heights history and the future writing
> (playwriting/screenwriting/creative
> writing) and art classes.  Come find out about our
> future theater and film
> productions.  ($1 dollar donation suggested.  The
> cross street is Cummings,
> off the 101, 5, & 10 freeway, plenty of street
> parking.)  For more info.
> call 323-665-5009(or 323-263-7684 the day of the
> event).
>
> Gracias for your support!
>
> Josefina Lopez
>
> Chingona Productions
>
>
______________________________________________________
> Get Your Private, Free Email at
> http://www.hotmail.com
>
>
> --------------------------------------------------
> You are currently subscribed to AztlanNet-L, an
> e-mail list server
> published by AztlanNet (c)1999. URL:
> http://www.aztlannet.com
>
> To unsubscribe send a blank email to:
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> unsubscribe "Your e-mail address"
>
> The Mental Menudo (MM) is brought to you courtesy of
> AztlanNet.com:
> Gilbert “Magu” Lujan, Guillermo Bejarano, Publisher,
> and AztecaNet

> (ISP).
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> AztecaNet Internet Services http://www.azteca.net
> AztecaNet offering LowCost 56K Internet Access in
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The Miami Myth Machine [Final Draft]

By Rodolfo F. Acuna

Almost every Mexican American, it seems today, had a
grandparent or a great-grandparent who rode with
Pancho Villa.  Few know or admit having ancestors who
opposed the Mexican Revolution or supported the
dictator Porfirio Diaz.  The events surrounding Elian
Gonzalez remind me of this tragic page in Mexican
American history, and perhaps it holds out hope that
in time the Cuban American exiles, like the Mexican
exiles of  1913, will outgrow their dangerous
infantilism.

Like the Miami Cuban Americans many of the Mexican
exiles arriving  after the 1911 overthrow of Mexican
dictator Porfirio Diaz actively pressured the U.S.
government to intervene in Mexican affairs and
overthrow the revolution that had taken away their
land and privilege. The Mexican exilados dreamed of
the day that they would return to Mexico and resume
their old ways. History, however, took care of the
fanaticism of the Mexican elites. Succeeding
generations mixed with the followers of  Villa,
Emiliano Zapata, and other revolutionaries, while
others returned to Mexico. Over time most realized
that it was not in their interest to announce that
their ancestors rode with Porfirio Diaz. Like the many
  Cuban America leaders today, who claim to be anti-
Bastistianos, the  descendants of many Mexican exiles
of 1913, claimed the revolution as their own.

Although the Cuban revolution took place over forty
years ago, on the other hand, the Cuban exiles' fervor
and dreams of returning to their  land and privilege
still burns hot.  Few Cuban Americans care to remember
  that Fulgencio Batista y Saldivar came to power as
the result of a 1952 coup and that it was Batista's
political illegitimacy and the oppressive conditions
imposed by the landed elite and owners of industry on
most  poor Cubans  that produced the conditions that
made Castro possible.  They  also choose to forget
that it was Batista and other dictators who turned the
island into a mafia fiefdom that allowed Cuba to be
monopolized by US-based international land companies
like the United Fruit Company.

Unable or unwilling to create a revolution from
within, the elites continue to pressure Americans to
fight a war that they themselves fear  to wage.
Because of the Cold War and their alliance with the
most reactionary sectors of our society, this exile
urban elite class,  mostly based in Miami and New
Jersey, has been much more effective in  controlling
American foreign policy than Mexican exile elites were
in the first  part of the 20th century.

The clout of the late Jorge Mas Canosa and groups such
as the Cuban American National Foundation, a creature
of the Republican Right-wing, lies in the perception
that they can control, or at least influence, American
foreign policy toward Cuba. Challenges to this
hegemony in the past decade have produced a paranoia
among these leaders, and it is not surprising that
they see the Elian Gonzalez controversy as a test of
this power.  Desperate that their shouts no longer
move many Americans, they fall back on their habit of
myth making.  They recite their litany, blaming every
calamity on the bearded one, angrily accusing Castro
for  the abolishment of democracy in Cuba, as if it
ever existed.  The problem  for them is that fewer
people take them seriously.

The reality is that the core group of extremist within
the Cuban  American community is hardly democratic.
The recent events in Miami expose the irrational and
thuggish tactics encouraged by the exile leadership.
Although their leaders whip up old fears, and play on
a religious fanaticism that converts Elian into a
religious symbol, they appear as pathetic as the
Mexican elites who celebrated las fiestas patrias, and
reminisced about the days of Porfirio Diaz.

Like Mexico, Cuba has evolved in the past forty years.
  First, more  people can read than in the time of
Batista.  People who read have a notion of history.
They know that Cuba has evolved racially.   Forty
years ago, privilege in Cuba was in great part based
on color.  While not they  have wiped out all vestiges
of that racism, and although the crisis has  slowed
the narrowing of the economic and social gap between
black and white,  the government does not condone
racism. The bottom-line is that racism is  not as
ingrained as it was when the older generation of Cuban
American  elites shared governance on the island.

I do not deny that there is racism among Mexicans, for
example.  However, the Mexican Revolution changed that
society, and in spite of itself, Mexico has changed in
the last sixty years.  Just in my life time the  skin
hue of Mexicans in the land of my maternal ancestors,
Sonora, for instance, has become much closer to that
of the interior of Mexico. Mexico's culture has become
less criollo (Spanish) and more, what can I say,
Mexican.

When I visited Cuba last July, I witnessed a similar
process.  The contrast that struck me most was the
differences between Cubans there  and those in the
United States.  Cuba is a racially mixed society than
the United States, with over two-thirds of the
island's population of  African ancestry.  Almost
every African-Cuban intellectual I met expressed to me
that he or she would not be a professor, writer or
artist if it had not been for the revolution. In
watching the talk shows from Miami on television or
the crowds in front of Elian's distant relative,
Lazaro Gonzalez's home, for example, well over 95
percent of the  Cuban-Americans of the TV the
audiences or the mob are obviously white Hispanics.

A minority but vocal minority in the Cuban American
community remains trapped in a cesspool of
intransigent nationalism.  Extremist groups  such as
the Cuban American National Foundation have played a
determining  role in preventing a lessening of
tensions and thus contact with the island. They have
used the Elian Gonzalez tragedy to whip up a hysteria
to solidify their base, giving the impression that
Cuban Americans speak  with one voice.  According to
the Miami Herald, some 50 percent of Cubans  even in
Miami do not agree with the demonstrations.

Yet, the lack of audible opposition within the Cuban
American community presents a major problem for other
Latinos.  Because of the habit of American society to
generalize, they believe that all Latinos are the
same.   Because the extremist voices from within the
Cuban American community drown everyone else out,
other Latinos are forced to disassociate themselves
from the minority in the Cuban American community's
dangerous infantilism. The mob in front of Lazaro
Gonzalez's house perpetuates this myth by flying the
Mexican and other Latin  American flags.

The case of Elian Gonzalez has made me and others less
tolerant of the Miami zealots.  Many of us are
unwilling to keep quiet while some in  the Cuban
American community indulge themselves at the expense
of a small six-year-old boy. Many of us have Cuban
American friends who we do not want to insult.  Still,
we realize that they are part of the problem because
too often their condemnation is hidden in the crevices
of  academic journals or relegated to one or two op-ed
articles.  So we hear so few  of them that all we hear
are the shrill voices the Lincoln Diaz-Balarts  and
Ileana Ros-Lehtinens, allowing the few Cuban Americans
who do speak out  to often be put at risk or at very
least ostracized by the more powerful elements of
their community.   The truth is that Cuban Americans
do not have an overwhelming presence within the US
Latino population. Census 2000 will show some 32
million  US Latinos, 21 million of whom are of Mexican
origin.  Cuban Americans are only some tiny fractions
of this total--about 1.4 million, contrasted  with
about three million Puerto Ricans and three million
Central Americans;  a statistic that is startling when
one considers that these areas have  much smaller
populations than Cuba. We estimate that the proportion
who have left those countries were about 3 to 4 times
greater than the number of Cubans who have left their
island.

The Census will also show differences between Latinos.
  Cuban  Americans, for example, are of a median age of
40.8 years, whereas Mexican  Americans have a median
age of 24.3.  What the statistics will also show is
that while the Cuban American is more prosperous than
the others, or at  least, the wealth of its elite
skews the figures in that direction -- most  Cubans in
the US are not rich, and many scrape by, its leaders
are sacrificing the poor Cuban Americans for their own
purposes.  The blind obsession  of these leaders with
Castro prevents a healthier relationship with not
only other Latinos but also African Americans, to
evolve better social programs, which would benefit
large segments of the Cuban American community.  More
important it prevents a full and objective assessment
of how Cuban American elites have amassed their great
wealth, often illicitly, or via various government
contracts or outright government handouts . . .

Both Latinos and African Americans have suffered from
the arrogance of this Cuban American elite.  Latino
politicos and business leaders  resent the likes of
Cuban Congressional Representatives Lincoln
Diaz-Balart  and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen and their crude
efforts to make them tow the line. The two mentioned
congressional representatives resigned from the
Hispanic Congressional Caucus because Mexican American
Congressman Xavier  Becerra was elected its chair.
Becerra committed the sin of visiting Cuba  without
their permission.

The pages of the Miami Herald are replete with
examples of African American resentment to being
bullied by extremist elements in the Cuban American
community.  Especially galling to African Americans
and many  of us who experienced the civil rights
movement is the appeal of these  elites to the moral
authority of the civil rights movement.  History shows
  that during the 1960s Cuban American exile leaders,
sought to advance their interventionist politics by
crawling in bed with almost every  reactionary group
and leader, working and supporting the Republican
party against  the best interests of other Latinos and
the working poor within the Cuban American community.

Let history also show that less than a decade ago the
failure of Miami  in 1990 to honor Nelson Mandela
resulted boycotts in that city, and an ideological
conflict between Cubans and blacks. We must remember
that  when the Cuban American cabal demanded that
Mandela, as a former political prisoner should condemn
Castro, he reminded them how staunchly Fidel  and the
Revolution had supported the anti-colonial,
anti-apartheid  struggle, asking them, "Where were
you?" Many of us believe that Mandela earned  an
answer to his question!  We should also demand why
they are making a political pawn out of Elian.


__________________________________________________
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Greetings My Brothers and Sisters.

Un Dia Sin Fronteras-A Day Without Borders
Marcha 1 de Mayo-May 1st March
Dia International del Trabajo-International Labor Day
3:00 P.M.@ Clark Park
Vernor/Clark St. (Detroit, Michigan)

Demandas/Demands:
1. Nueva Amnestia para Trabajadores sin papeles/ General Amnesty for
undocumented workers
2. Alto a la Brutalidad policiaca/End police brutality
3. Globalizacion de los Derechos Humanos/ Globalize Liberation, Not
Corporate Control


Peace.

PILLAR OF THE COMMUNITY
Logan Heights' shining star will mark its 30th birthday

By Ozzie Roberts
STAFF WRITER -San Diego Union-Tribune

April 18, 2000

   If the state had gotten its way 30 years ago, a California Highway
Patrol substation would now sit in Logan Heights in the shadows of the
San Diego-Coronado Bridge and its stanchions.

   But Chicano Park sprawls there on 7.4 acres between National and Logan
avenues.

   Hundreds of passionate souls, activists such as the neighborhood's
late icon Laura Rodriguez, put their feet down and said, "no" to the
bureaucrats.

   Their long-established neighborhood, they said, had already been
"raped" and disrupted by the bridge and a legion of other unwanted
intrusions, including Interstate 5. A CHP substation would be yet
another insult.

   And on April 22, 1970, with Rodriguez, then a 60-year-old grandmother,
standing in front of a revving bulldozer, the protesters took over the
site.

   They held up grading work on it for 12 days and vowed that this chunk
of earth would become something meaningful to the people of el Barrio de
la Logan.

   From that struggle rose Chicano Park, a landmark celebrating its 30th
anniversary this weekend, and one of the most recognized community parks
in the world.

Back to the community
   Artists, such as Victor Orozco Ochoa, have recounted that trial and
other toils of their neighborhood and its culture through dozens of
powerful murals they've painted on park walls and bridge columns.

   "I was 22 years old at the time (of the land takeover)," recalls
Ochoa, who was among the original protesters. "It was kind of magical,
with the spirit of the elders and the young people together.
Grandmothers are highly respected in this culture, and with the
grandmothers involved, we knew it was something that was right to be
doing.

   "There was unity, too. There were people there, not just from Logan,
but from barrios as far away as Oceanside and Los Angeles. And it all
kind of symbolized the Chicanos taking the land back to
   the community -- that was a real important thing."

   More people than just the veterans of that battle believe that the
park is in the right place.

   Fourteen-year-old David Guzman, and his family, including his three
brothers and one sister, ranging in age from 6 to 15, have long lived
across one of the two main thoroughfares bordering the park.

   "It's great having it so close to the house -- it's a good place for
us to play," says David. "The murals remind us of Mexican history."

   Longtime Logan Heights resident Jose Mendoza, 35, grew up playing at
the park.

   "All different nationalities come to the park and enjoy it," says
Mendoza. "Some people have said that it's a dangerous place -- but it's
not."

   Throughout the '70s and early '80s, before youth curfews and bans on
alcohol in parks took hold across the nation, Chicano Park developed
some notoriety as a frequent, mostly late-night hangout for gangs and
other young rowdies.

   But especially within Logan Heights, the bad activities were viewed as
aberrations. Over the years, says Chicano Park Steering Committee chair
Tommie Camarillo, "more and more family activities have been held in the
park. And they helped (greatly) to push out the bad element."

   Few in Barrio Logan have stronger ties to Chicano Park than Camarillo,
and no one takes more pride in the place.

   She was one of the original protesters, too. And the professional cook
puts in more hours than she can count for weeks and weeks, getting the
annual park celebration ready around this time every year.

   "People recognize the park's true value and importance to the
community," she says. "And I get tired from the work, but never tired of
it.

   "It puts a feeling all around you that goes into your heart." And,
just like the park and its art, that feeling "is beautiful."

Preserving the past
   Camarillo's volunteer committee acts as the park's official/unofficial
caretaker and political watchdog on all issues -- political and social
-- affecting it. And the committee's 80 members (although not all are
active) favor extending the park's boundaries an additional four blocks
west to San Diego Bay.

   Most active members, like Ochoa, now 52, and the 53-year-old
Camarillo, were but young adults in those heady days when their elders
stood up for la raza (the people).

   They learned from the likes of Rodriguez, Alfonso Johnston, Jose Gomez
and others -- most of whom are gone now -- says Ochoa, that pride in the
park must be passed on.

   And younger generations throughout the community at large must be
charged with a sense of responsibility for preserving and enhancing the
park and its art.

   "The park is in Barrio Logan, and we fought to get it," says Ochoa.
"But it's for everyone -- it belongs to the people."

   Elders, like 67-year-old Eduardo Johnston, Alfonso Johnston's son,
never forget.

   Johnston's old Victorian-style home, standing just beyond the bridge
shadows, is a constant  reminder of why all the original commotion was
so important.

   "There used to be rows of Victorian houses lining Logan Avenue,
between Evans Street and Dewey Street, and there were several more
multilevel Victorians in the spot where the park now sits," Johnston
recalls. "But first in the (mid '50s, the state) came in with Interstate
5, then in the late '60s, they came with the bridge. Each time, they
took houses and cut into people's property.

   "They uprooted families, forcing them to move. And along with the fact
that junkyards and other polluting businesses were being allowed to
proliferate here, my dad and the others said enough was enough.

   "They fought hard for the park. And it became good for the
neighborhood because it's a place for the kids to use and for the
community to gather."

Copyright 2000 Union-Tribune Publishing Co.
http://www.uniontrib.com/news/uniontrib/tue/currents/index.html

=================================================

Chicano Park's colorful murals make it a virtual living museum

By Robert L. Pincus
ART CRITIC - San Diego Union-Tribune

April 18, 2000

   You need only look around Chicano Park to know it's celebrating an
anniversary. At least two of the many murals on the support columns and
adjoining walls of the San Diego-Coronado Bridge let you know that it's
turning 30.

   The park, which commemorates its own history at several turns, is also
a vital part of art history and local cultural history. Its fame would
endure even if the murals were to fade -- and some are in worrisome
condition.

   On the positive side, new murals have appeared in every decade and
some have been restored. The park is a remarkable artifact, testimony to
grass-roots activism of the '60s and '70s. It remains a thriving entity,
an ebullient expression of Barrio Logan, as well as a living museum.

   A new mural is being created to coincide with this milestone. Artist
Victor Ochoa -- who was on hand to help found the park and to create
some of its first murals -- is working with middle and high school
students to mark the occasion. In a program administered through San
Diego State University, college students helped recruit the younger
artists and serve as their mentors.

   The finishing touches on this latest mural will be complete for the
30th anniversary weekend this Saturday and Sunday. It's perfectly in
keeping with the spirit of the park that not one artist but many would
craft this latest mural, and that some of these artists would be
students. It is a place for the people and by the people -- the
quintessential example, in San Diego County, of a harmonious meshing of
community and public art.

   There is no greater concentration of murals anywhere in California or
even the United States. Los Angeles has more Chicano murals from the
same period, but Chicano Park is an outdoor museum without rivals.

   No doubt some of the park's muralists looked to the pioneers of the
20th-century mural for inspiration. There is one devoted to the big
three of the form: Diego Rivera, Jose Clemente Orozco and David
Siqueiros.

   It is especially significant that the trio of historically pivotal
muralists were Mexican, since the heritage that the park celebrates is
so intimately linked to Mexican history, recent and ancient. Aztec
iconography abounds, expressing not only a paean to Chicano roots but a
vision of a place that transcends the international border a few miles
south of the park: Aztlan. It is a term credited to the Nauhatl Indians
of pre-Colonial days, describing a land that spans Northern Mexico and
the Southwestern United States.

   "Hecho (Made) in Aztlan," emblazoned on some murals, is a statement of
a visionary future -- with mythic and utopian implications. But Chicano
Park also narrates real history, of the community and the larger world.

   "Varrio Si! Yonkes No!" declares an example from 1977. A loose
translation: yes to anything that helps the neighborhood flourish; no to
junkyards, which are a blight to it.

   Ochoa was the driving force behind this mural, like several others.
And he enlisted an unusual group of collaborators: "hard dudes" who
frequented the park. This approach to creating a mural blurred
boundaries between artist and audience in a salutary way, and it's
indicative of the deep bond between the community and this art.

   Chicano Park was a prime example of the second great wave of
mural-making in the 20th century, which took place in the second half of
the '60s and in the '70s -- roughly coinciding with the Chicano Civil
Rights Movement or "el movemiento." Political ferment went hand in hand
with artistic ferment.

   Local artists made all of the first murals, in the early '70s; names
are too numerous to list. Ochoa, Salvador Roberto Torres and Mario
Torero are key figures from the park's formative years who still take an
active role in its preservation and growth.

   By the last years of the decade, prominent Chicano muralists from
across the state had contributed to its images. The bold mural with the
faces of Rivera, Orozco, Siqueiros and Kahlo was designed by the noted
Bay Area artist Rupert Garcia. Sacramento's Royal Chicano Air Force, led
by Jose Montoya Esteban Villa and Juanishi Orosco, made a contribution,
as did Charles "Cat" Felix Jr. from the Boyle Heights area of Los
Angeles.

   Though several murals were conserved or renovated in the '90s, many
continue to age dramatically. They survived potential destruction from
the ongoing retrofit project on the bridge, when Caltrans decided to
take extreme measures to protect them. But it may prove more difficult
to save them from the ravages of time and urban pollution.

   Any officeholder -- on the federal, state or local level -- who wants
to mitigate the pervasive cynicism about politicians and politics, would
do well to champion their preservation. It would be an eminently wise
use of tax dollars. Future milestones for Chicano park should be as
celebratory as this one.

Copyright 2000 Union-Tribune Publishing Co.
http://www.uniontrib.com/news/uniontrib/tue/currents/index.html

=============================================

Commemorating
30 Years
of Chicano Park
1970 - 2000

Chicano Park Days
April 22-23, 2000
Barrio Logan - Under the SD-Coronado Bay Bridge
San Diego, Califas

Music * Poetry * Speakers * Danza Azteca * Ballet Folklorico * Lowrider
Car Show * Children's Activities * and more!

Directions: I-5 South to Crosby St. (just South of Downtown SD). Make a
left at the stop. Look for parking. Walk towards the bridge.

For more info call (619) 563-4661 or visit the Chicano Park Steering
Committee website: <http://members.home.net/calacapress/cpsc.html>.


Performance Schedule:

Saturday, April 22, 2000
Kiosko Stage
9:45 Blessing of Chicano Park by Aztleca
10:00 Welcome - MC
10:05 Ballet Folklorico Cristo Rey
10:30 Duo Moreno
10:55 Alurista
11:10 Adriana Jasso - Unión del Barrio
11:25 Grupo Folklorico Chicano
11:50 Chunky Sanchez - Chicano Park Steering Committee
12:00 Flag raising
12:15 Danza Mexicayotl
12:45 Culture Clash - MCís
12:55 David Rico - Brown Berets de Aztlán
1:15 Koryn Cuevas
1:45 Los Alacranes
2:25 Ballet Folklorico Yaqui
2:55 José Montoya
3:10 Corky Gonzales & Popos Rodriguez - Crusade for Justice
3:20 TBA
3:55 Danza Zaachila
4:20 Agustin Lira & ALMA

Plazita Stage
10:00 Grito Serpentino
11:00 Rod Ricardo-Livingstone
11:10 The Revelations
12:00 Flag raising
12:15 Taco Shop Poets
1:05 Phil Goldvarg
1:15 Gilbert Castellanos & the Latin Trumpet Summit
2:25 Olga Angelina García Echeverría
2:35 Quetzal
3:45 Poet TBA
3:55 Los Blazers

Plus:
The Fern Street Circus
Lowrider Car Show organized by Amigos Car Club
Food, organization, and cultural booths


Sunday, April 23, 2000
Kiosko Stage
10:00 Easter Mass
11:00 Danza Mexicayotl indigenous ceremony

Plazita Stage
11:00 TBA
11:30 Ballet Folklorico del Centro Comunitario Sherman
12:00 Ballet Folklorico Yima
12:40 Ballet las Guadalupanitas del Centro Comunitario de las Artes
1:10 Cuicani - Irma Rangel
2:40 Los Otros

Plus
Children's Activities: Free Raffles, Free Chicano Park Coloring Book,
Piñatas for different age groups y mucho más!

Performers and times subject to change.

Chicano Park Days is organized by the Chicano Park Steering Committee
and co-organized by Amigos Car Club, Brown Berets de Aztlán, Calaca
Press, Danza Mexicayotl, and Unión del Barrio.

For more info call (619) 563-4661 or visit the Chicano Park Steering
Committee website: <http://members.home.net/calacapress/cpsc.html>.
--

================================================
Calaca Press
P.O. Box 620786
San Diego, Califas 92162
calacapress@...
http://members.home.net/calacapress

Calaca Press is a family-owned, Chicano press dedicated to publishing
and producing relevant bilingual literature at an affordable price.
================================================
Commemorating 30 Years of Chicano Park 1970-2000
Chicano Park Days: April 22-23, 2000 - San Diego, Califas
================================================

Jose Montoya, poet, artist, musician, educator and co-founder of the
Royal Chicano Air Force, will be the in-studio guest on KPBS's The
Lounge, Thursday, April 20, 6:30 - 7:30 p.m. (KPBS-FM is
89.5 in San Diego).

He will be joined with Chicano Park muralist Salvador "Queso" Torrez.

Phone calls during the show are welcomed!

Montoya is in San Diego to participate in the 30th anniversary
celebration of Chicano Park, Saturday and Sunday, April 22 & 23,  in
Chicano Park.

(He is scheduled to read on Saturday, April 22, at 2:55 p.m., on the
Kiosko Stage)
--

================================================
Calaca Press
P.O. Box 620786
San Diego, Califas 92162
calacapress@...
http://members.home.net/calacapress

Calaca Press is a family-owned, Chicano press dedicated to publishing
and producing relevant bilingual literature at an affordable price.
================================================
Commemorating 30 Years of Chicano Park 1970-2000
Chicano Park Days: April 22-23, 2000 - San Diego, Califas
================================================

Please forward to all interested parties-

Are you interested in going to

CUBA?

The 31st Contingent of the
Venceremos Brigade:
The 31st Contingent of the Venceremos Brigade is be planned now.
We are an educational work brigade in solidarity with the Cuban people and the
Cuban Revolution. We work to end the U.S. economic blockade on Cuba and fight
for social justice here at home. This will be the 31st year that we have
traveled to
Cuba. Please come to our FINAL interest meeting and find out how you can go to
Cuba this summer:

Saturday, April 29, 2000, 1-4 PM- FINAL VB Interest Meeting
Center for Political Education
522 Valencia St. 3rd Flr.
San Francisco (near 16th St. BART)

MAY FIRST, 2000
International Workers of the World Day
DEADLINE TO TURN IN APPLICATIONS FOR
31st CONTINGENT OF THE
VENCEREMOS BRIGADE

iADELANTE EN LA LUCHA SOCIAL!

For more information about
the Venceremos Brigade, please call:
415.267.0606

or write to us at:
Venceremos Brigade
P.O. Box 7071
Oakland, California
94601

_______________________
Joel Tena
Venceremos Brigade

ANNOUCEMENT
AztlanNet
http://AztlanNet.com

Thank you very much for being a member of this AztlanNet / Mental
Menudo e-Group. It is getting so that AztlanNet.com is very much on
top
of the Arte-Xicano. In this vein, your participation in this e-Group
is
an effective contingency for further advancements of the Arte-Xicano
movimiento.

Comment: The other night, where I was exhibiting my artwork, an
artist
who had recently graduated from the Claremont Graduate School for the
Arts wanted to invite me to be part of a photography shoot made up of
many, many well known Los Angeles€  '² Chican@. This artist further
stated
that there was some concern by some artists having declined the photo
invitation in fear that the association with these Chican@ would
damage
their image in their professional careers. She would not give me the
names of the artists as she feared that my denouncement of them would
be unappreciative, especially if these artists were presently showing
at this predominant Anglo gallery.

Are we truly seeing passivity y puro pedo for the principality of
Arte-
Xicano?

Please respond to this comment and do not forget to visit the
following
venue:

Galeria Las Americas an e-commerce art gallery.

Library: 'Siquio Last Thoughts' by Ralph F. Lopez-Urbina / To come.

Murals de Aztlan: I had time to go through the ChismeArte Magazine
archives recently and placed some admirable examples of Los
Muralistas
de Aztlan.

Please help expand this mural collection by sending photos and slides
or jpeg€  '²s with a self address stamped envelope to AztlanNet, 300
S.
Thomas Street. Suite 208, Pomona, CA 91766. e-mail:
webmaster@...

Your contribution to the e-Group and the web site would be very
appreciative.

Guillermo Bejarano

Commemorating
30 Years
of Chicano Park
1970 - 2000

Chicano Park Days
April 22-23, 2000
Barrio Logan - Under the SD-Coronado Bay Bridge
San Diego, Califas

Directions: I-5 South to Crosby St. (just South of Downtown SD). Make a
left at the stop. Look for parking. Walk towards the bridge.

For more info call (619) 563-4661 or visit the Chicano Park Steering
Committee website: <http://members.home.net/calacapress/cpsc.html>.


Performance Schedule:

Saturday, April 22, 2000
Kiosko Stage
9:45 Blessing of Chicano Park by Aztleca
10:00 Welcome - MC
10:05 Ballet Folklorico Cristo Rey
10:30 Duo Moreno
10:55 Alurista
11:10 Adriana Jasso - Unión del Barrio
11:25 Grupo Folklorico Chicano
11:50 Chunky Sanchez - Chicano Park Steering Committee
12:00 Flag raising
12:15 Danza Mexicayotl
12:45 Culture Clash - MCís
12:55 David Rico - Brown Berets de Aztlán
1:15 Koryn Cuevas
1:45 Los Alacranes
2:25 Ballet Folklorico Yaqui
2:55 José Montoya
3:10 Corky Gonzales & Popos Rodriguez - Crusade for Justice
3:20 Mariachi Femenil Las Aguilas
3:55 Danza Zaachila
4:20 Agustin Lira & ALMA

Plazita Stage
10:00 Grito Serpentino
11:00 Rod Ricardo-Livingstone
11:10 The Revelations
12:00 Flag raising
12:15 Taco Shop Poets
1:05 Phil Goldvarg
1:15 Gilbert Castellanos & the Latin Trumpet Summit
2:25 Olga Angelina García Echeverría
2:35 Quetzal
3:45 Poet
3:55 Los Blazers

Plus:
The Fern Street Circus
Lowrider Car Show organized by Amigos Car Club
Food, organization, and cultural booths


Sunday, April 23, 2000
Kiosko Stage
10:00 Easter Mass
11:00 Danza Mexicayotl indigenous ceremony

Plazita Stage
11:00 Ballet Folklorico en Aztlán
11:30 Ballet Folklorico del Centro Comunitario Sherman
12:00 Ballet Folklorico Yima
12:40 Ballet las Guadalupanitas del Centro Comunitario de las Artes
1:10 Cuicani - Irma Rangel
2:40 Los Otros

Plus
Children's Activities: Free Raffles, Free Chicano Park Coloring Book,
Piñatas for different age groups y mucho más!

Performers and times subject to change.

Chicano Park Days is organized by the Chicano Park Steering Committee
and co-organized by Amigos Car Club, Brown Berets de Aztlán, Calaca
Press, Danza Mexicayotl, and Unión del Barrio.

For more info call (619) 563-4661 or visit the Chicano Park Steering
Committee website: <http://members.home.net/calacapress/cpsc.html>.

=====================================
Chicano Park Day 2000 posters and calendars still available!
$10 per poster and $12 per calendar (includes s/h, CA residents add
appropriate sales tax).

Send check or money order to:
Calaca Press
P.O. Box 620786
San Diego. Califas 92162
Credit card orders call (619) 231-9210.

$5 of every poster and $6 of every calendar goes to the non-profit
Chicano Park Steering Committee.
=====================================

The Battle of Chicano Park
By Marco Anguiano, Chicano Park Steering Committee

Chicano Park - Reclaiming Aztlán
      On April 22nd and 23rd, 2000, we celebrate the 30th birthday of
Chicano Park - ìLa Tierra Miaî - ìOur Land.î  We commemorate this sacred
place and we honor those people - some alive, some passed away - who
planted, painted, protected and nurtured Chicano Park.  The birth of the
Park is the story of a barrio tragedy transformed into triumph.  It is
the history of the Chicano Mexicano people struggling to reclaim our
heritage and our right to self-determination.  The Park is where our
history is enshrined in monumental murals.  It is where we keep making
history as we fight to preserve and defend a small piece of Aztlán known
as Chicano Park in Barrio Logan, San Diego.

      By taking Chicano Park, the ìmythî of Aztlán metamorphosed to
reality.  Aztlán - the southwestern United States was the ancestral land
of the Aztecs.  These ancient people migrated to the Valley of Mexico
and founded an empire whose capital was Tenochitlan, now Mexico City.
By claiming Chicano Park, the descendants of the Aztecs the Chicano
Mexicano people begin a project of historical reclamation.  We have
returned to Aztlán - our home.


A Park for the Raza of Logan Heights, Aztlán
      In many ways Chicano Park is like any other park.  Itís where
families gather to have a reunion or a picnic.  Where the crisp tempting
smell of carne asada floats in the air.  Where the high pitched giggles
of chamaquitos and chamaquitas reverberate against the cement pillars as
they climb, slide and swing on a playground that people struggled and
sweated for.
      Itís a park where youngsters bounce a basketball on the court or
challenge each other to a round of handball; Where couples exchange
wedding vows in the Kiosko.  Where a grandmother - nana - gently pushes
a stroller along the walkways to pacify a grinning, gurgling baby.

      Unlike other parks, el Parque Chicano pulsates when trumpeting
shells, throbbing drums and percussive rattles proclaim the beginning of
a Danza Azteca ceremony.

      Unlike other parks, Chicano Park displays on its monolithic
pillars, one of the largest assemblages of public murals in North
America.  These awe inspiring murals are giant mirrors of our Chicano
Mexicano history.

      Unlike other parks, Brown Berets fired raised shotguns in militant
salute while a Mexican flag was raised and waved defiantly during
Chicano Park Day ceremonies.  And unlike other parks, Chicano Park was
taken by militant force by a community angered by decades of neglect,
ignorance and racism.


La Raza Moves to Take the Land
      For decades, the Chicano community in Logan Heights had thrived as
a small, self-reliant neighborhood.  Mexicanos had always been part of
the community.  Since the 30ís many more moved there as laborers,
cannery workers, welders, pipefitters, longshoremen, etc.  For decades,
community residents had asked city officials to build a park in the
barrio.

      After World War II, the city, with complete disregard for Barrio
Logan residents rezoned Barrio Logan to allow the influx of industry,
junkyards, metal shops and other toxic businesses incompatible with a
residential community.  City burrocrats and politicians seemed to care
less about the predominantly Chicano barrio.

      By the mid-1960ís, the community was bisected by the construction
of Interstate 5, an eight lane freeway that tore Barrio Logan in half
and displaced many lifelong residents.  A community gathering place, the
Church of Our Lady of Guadalupe was no longer in the center of the
Barrio.  It now faced a barren asphalt freeway flanked by a 40 foot high
cement retaining wall.

      According to Victor Ochoa, a Chicano Park mural coordinator from
1974 through 1979, ìThey threw Interstate 5 in the barrio, taking
something like 5000 families out of the barrio.î

      When the Coronado Bridge, which intersects Interstate 5 in the
heart of Logan Heights, was completed in 1969, it left a jungle of
concrete pillars where many families had lived before.


The ìPaul Revereî of Chicano Park
      On April 22, 1970, Mario Solis, a student at San Diego City College
ditched class and was strolling casually through the Barrio Logan in the
area below the bridge.  He ran into construction crews, equipment,
machines and bulldozers.

      Solis asked the construction workers, ìwhat are you going to be
doing here?î

      The crewmen responded that they were ìbuilding a parking lot for a
Highway Patrol stationî

      Solis was stunned.  He told the crew that the people of the
community had other plans.  He said, ìItíll be a park!î  The
construction crew cackled and laughed in response.  Little did they know
who would have the last laugh.

      Solis rushed back to City College and interrupted a Chicano Studies
class taught by Gil Robledo.  He alerted the students in the class and
demanded to know, ì...what are you guys gonna do?î


Students and Activists on High Alert
      Robledoís students who included Rico Bueno, Josie Talamantez, David
Rico and others ìwent on red alert,î according to some of those
present.  Bueno wrote and printed flyers and directed others to area
schools and to surrounding barrios to sound the alarm - that this was
the final straw.  Bueno, a Vietnam veteran later threw away his service
medals in protest against the war at a Chicano Moratorium march.

      Women, men, children, activists, students, residents the youth, the
elderly and entire families gathered at the construction site.  At dayís
end, two to three hundred people had congregated.  They evicted the
construction crew and seized the land.

      Solis, a Brown Beret, as well as a student, commandeered a
bulldozer and ignited and gunned its engine.  He begin flattening the
land while others planted cactus, plants and trees.  The people begin to
build a park.  Long time barrio residents like Laura Rodriguez brought
tortillas, rice, beans and tamales to feed the rebels.

      ìWhat I still remember is that there were bulldozers out there,î
says Ochoa.  ìAnd women and children making human chains around the
bulldozers and they stopped the construction work. They actually took
over those bulldozers to flatten out the ground, and they started
planting nopales and magueys and flowers.  And there was a telephone
pole there, where the Chicano flag was raised.î


Police and Authorities are Stunned
      According to veteran activist David Rico, current chairman of the
Brown Berets de Aztlán,  ìWhen the cops showed up during the takeover of
the Park, they demanded to know who the leaders were, so we pointed to
somebody over there and that somebody would point to somebody else who
would then point somebody else - you had a lot of confused cops.  We had
the system very, very confused.î

      Al Puente, then a San Diego police officer on the Barrio Logan
beat, years later divulged that the police department was confused since
they had never experienced such an incident before - where an entire
community had rebelled.  Although Puente had earned a reputation as
rough cop in the barrio, years later he related that he warned police
against attacking the protesters since many women and children were
among those at the site.

      The land underneath the bridge was occupied.  An unprecedented
coalition of barrio residents, students, and community activists, Brown
Berets and Raza from barrios throughout San Diego and Aztlán united and
confronted the bulldozers and stopped the construction of a Highway
Patrol station.  At a community meeting that night, activist Jose Gomez
stated, ìthe only way to take that park away is to wade through our
blood.î


Chicano Park Steering Committee Formed
      On April 23 the Chicano Park Steering Committee was formed to
direct the community effort to build a park and confront state and city
authorities.  Activists demanded that the property be donated to the
community as a park in which Chicano culture could be expressed through
art.

      ìOur community had already been invaded by the junkyards, the
factories and a bridge had even been built through our barrio,î declared
Jose Gomez, ìsome of us decided it was time to put a stop to the
destruction and begin to make this place more livable.î

      ìWe are ready to die for the park,î Salvador ìQuesoî Torres, a
community artist shouted to a gathering of city and state officials
while supporters stamped their feet in rhythm and shouted, ìViva la
Raza!î

      The Coronado Bay Bridge was built at the height of the Chicano
Movement.  There was a great awareness at the time about the militancy
that was all to often necessary to attain our rights.  The establishment
of a California Highway Patrol station under the bridge was a final
insult to the people of Barrio Logan, a community that already had many
grievances against local police.

      The occupation of Chicano Park lasted twelve days.  People of all
ages worked together to clear the land and plant it.  Supporters arrived
from all over the state.  Finally an agreement was reached between the
Chicano community and the city, which agreed to acquire the site from
the state for the development of a community park.


Chicano Power Peaks in San Diego
      Many of the same activists involved in the takeover of Chicano Park
were also central to the occupation and founding of the Chicano Free
Clinic (now know as the Logan Heights Family Health Clinic) and the
Centro Cultural de la Raza in Balboa Park.

      The creation of Chicano Park was a defining moment in Chicano
history and in the history of Barrio Logan, as well as the City of San
Diego.  Respected leader Josie Talamantez, then an 18 year old student
at San Diego City College and a resident of Barrio Logan, explained the
exaltation of the community in the park takeover:

      ìI was living a block from the site and my family had been very
much involved with trying to get a park in this area for a long timeÖI
felt proud.  It was the first time that I had seen Joseís (Gomez) mother
and my mother and the little kids and a lot of the people in between all
working together.î

      One of the parkís original muralists Mario Torero, linked the Park
to Chicano identity: ìWe canít think of Chicanos in San Diego without
thinking of Chicano Park.  It is the main evidence, the open book of our
culture, energy and determination as a people.î

      Ramon ìChunkyî Sanchez, composer and singer of the rousing anthem
ìChicano Park Samba,î said,  ìThereís an energy there thatís hard to
describe - when you see your people struggling for something positive,
itís very inspiring.  The park was brought about by sacrifice and it
demonstrates what a community can do when they stick together and make
it happen.î

      Ernesto Bustillos, another veteran activist termed Chicano Park, ìA
Liberated Zone,î where Raza from all walks of life, students, barrio
residents and activists joined forces to retake our land.  Chicano Park
has provided us with the freedom to practice and express our ideas, our
culture and our traditions.  In short, the struggle for Chicano Park has
become symbolic of our Razaís struggle for self-determination, our right
to Aztlán and who we are as an indigenous people.


A Never Ending Story
      There is no end to the story of Chicano Park.  It is a living
history.  As long as Raza take responsibility to preserve and defend the
park and Barrio Logan, it will survive and thrive.

      Since the reclamation of the land, there have been many difficult
and exhausting struggles to preserve and defend the park.  We highlight
a few:


Grand Jury Attacks
      The battles included the San Diego County Grand Juryís so called
ìinvestigationî into Chicano Park Steering Committee which resulted in
the evacuation of the Park building by the Chicano Federation in 1979.
The Chicano Park Steering Committee has been homeless since, but holds
meetings throughout the community and is open to anyone who wants to be
involved.


Building the Kiosko
      The construction of the Kiosko (1972-77) went through a maze of San
Diego City burrocratic red tape. After years of meetings the project was
hijacked and funding withheld by so called city council representative
Jess Haro.  Haro wanted a ìSpanish styleî architecture for the kiosko.î
When finally confronted at a community meeting, Haro backed off.  The
Kiosko was dedicated in 1977.


All the Way to the Bay
      The ìAll the Way to the Bayî (1970-88) campaign spearheaded by
Ronnie Trujillo of the CPSC asserted the right of Barrio Logan residents
to have the only access to the bay and to extend Chicano Park all the
way to the waterfront.  Activists challenged the San Diego Port District
and other agencies from San Diego to Sacramento.  Ground was broken for
the bay park in 1987 and the park completed in 1990.


The Murals and the Retrofit
      In the mid-1990ís, Cal Trans, the agency responsible for the San
Diego Coronado Bay Bridge, proposed an earthquake safety bridge retrofit
plan that wouldíve destroyed the Chicano Park murals.  In response
certain community ìrepresentativesî formed the ìRight Directions
Committeeî to squeeze Cal Trans for ìmitigation money.î

      The Right Directions Committee assumed that the retrofit was a
foregone conclusion and the murals would be inevitably destroyed.  They
wanted to press CalTrans for their pet projects in exchange.  This
ìcommitteeî began holding forums at the Barrio Station.  When the
Chicano Park Steering Committee found out about this ìmovida,î mural
supporters rallied to the forums and challenged Cal Trans and their
proposals.  The Right Directions committee dissolved itself in the face
of community opposition to the retrofit.

      After many militant marches, press conferences and negotiating
sessions with Cal Trans, they relented and under the advise of
professional engineers found a method of retrofitting the pillars that
spared the murals.  This retrofit work continues to this day, while the
Chicano Park Steering Committee is the watchdog of the construction.


Even in the Quietest Moments
      Then there are the meditative moments in Chicano Park - when the
din of the traffic evaporates and youíre alone facing the monoliths of
history - prisms reflecting our lives, our history, and our struggle.

      Itís our church, where we reflect on the spirit of those who
struggled to create and preserve the Park.

      It is our school, where we learn our story - our history written,
painted and told by us for generations to come.

      Itís also during these contemplative moments when Chicano Park
becomes the paramount icon of our Razaís aspiration to control something
meaningful in our lives - Chicano Park symbolizes our sacred right to
self-determination.


References:
ï Historic Resource Evaluation Report for the SD-Coronado Bay Bridge,
Chicano Park and the Chicano Park Murals, Jim Fisher, staff
historian/planner; 1996
ï Made in Aztlán, Centro Cultural de la Raza, fifteenth anniversary
exhibition catalog; Philip Brookman and Guillermo Gomez -Peña, editors;
1986
ï Chicano Park Day programs, 18th, 20th and 27th anniversary editions;
1978, 1980, 1998
ï San Diego Union Tribune, 1995,1996, 1997


For more info call (619) 563-4661 or visit the Chicano Park Steering
Committee website: <http://members.home.net/calacapress/cpsc.html>.
--

================================================
Calaca Press
P.O. Box 620786
San Diego, Califas 92162
calacapress@...
http://members.home.net/calacapress

Calaca Press is a family-owned, Chicano press dedicated to
publishing/producing relevant bilingual literature at an affordable
price.
================================================
Commemorating 30 Years of Chicano Park 1970-2000
Chicano Park Days: April 22-23, 2000 - San Diego, Califas
================================================

Orale Guillermo
You did it, cool in that we don't have to have but interested parties.
congradulations,
Magu
______________________________________________________


DITTO

PEDRO FERRAL JR.

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Note: forwarded message attached.


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"I am part of all that I have read."  --John Kieran

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Please plan on attending or pass along to friends.

Friday, April 28^th, 8pm  $5 Donation
"Espresso Mi Cultura Bookstore" presents
An intimate, acoustic presentation from
Michael Heralda's "Aztec Stories" Project.

"Aztec Stories" is an intriguing and thought provoking way to learn about the culture of ancient Mexico.  For some it may be a way to reconnect to a wonderfully rich legacy that unfortunately lies dormant within them, buried for many, many years.  For others it may awaken a new understanding of a culture that for many years was revealed only through the eyes of the Europeans where the beauty, art, and high levels of sophisticated philosophical understanding were ignored or suppressed.

What is a Tlaxkalli?  What does In Kuikatl, In Xochitl mean?  Who was Kuitlahuak, Kuauhtemok, or Ketzalkoatl?  What is Ometeotl?  What is meant by a "duality" with regards to the indigenous society?  These types of questions and more will be addressed in an evening of music, words, and song.

Through the use of narratives (based on oral tradition stories and documented accounts) and acoustic music, the history, philosophy, culture, and arts of ancient Mexico are revealed from an indigenous perspective.  Unique in its presentation, it has been described as Edu-tainment.

Among other subjects, songs and ballads revolving around the origins of Tlaolli/Corn will be presented giving the listener an insight into the ancient roles of men and women - the duality of the family unit.  Listed below are just some of the songs/ballads and narratives that will be presented:

"She is the Earth," a narrative and song, reveals the role of the woman in preparing the food and the ritual and symbolism of each stage of the processes utilized.

The "Planting Song," based on an ancient Nahuatl poem, reveals the metaphorical symbolism and lyrical imagery representative of the Nahuatl language and the understanding between the ancient farmer and the seed we call corn (reflective of the feminine aspect with regards to nature).

The ballad "Beast" is an emotionally moving piece that presents the cruelty and sorrow that befell the indigenous people of Anahuac at the hands of the invaders.  This piece, although based on the past, is also reflective of the cruelty that lies within us all.

A narrative based on the writings of the invaders titled "Imagery of Tenochtitlan" transports the listener back through time to the wondrous city of Mexico-Tenochtitlan as first seen by the Spaniards before its ruin.  This piece truly gives a sense of the beauty and scale of a city that had no match in any part of the world at the time.

These and other pieces make for an enlightening and educational experience.  Join Michael as he, Roberta Martinez, and Delfina Silva bring to you a unique experience that is rare in its beauty and sincerity.  This presentation is from the heart; and you will learn something about yourself, your relationship to nature, and your heritage regardless of your cultural ancestry.  Some ballads are sung in the Nahuatl language and some welcome audience participation such as the song "Tortilla's/Tlaxkalli's" (a children's song teaching you how to make Tlaxkalli's).

Michael Heralda produced and financed the first  "Aztec Stories" CD as an independent under his own label "Tochtli Productions." The second CD is in the works and as a spin-off project, "Ketzalkoatl Magazine" - a bilingual cultural resource was created (of which he is the editor).

For info or directions to Espresso Mi Cultura Bookstore call: 323-461-0808 5625
5625 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood, CA.  90028
For more information on the "Aztec Stories" project or
the "Ketzalkoatl" magazine contact: aztecstories@...

The "Aztec Stories" CD  and "Ketzalkoatl" magazine are available for purchase at Espresso Mi Cultura Bookstore.

--- Alfredo DeBatuc <debatuc@...> wrote:
> Reply-to: "Alfredo DeBatuc" <debatuc@...>
> From: "Alfredo DeBatuc" <debatuc@...>
> To: "Guillermo Bejarano" <Bejarano@...>
> Subject: Dreams of DispLAcement
> Date: Mon, 10 Apr 2000 13:52:54 -0700
>
>                        BIGOUDI International
> Osaka    __________________Los Angeles
>                         Madrid
>
>                                     Invites you to
>           DREAMS OF DISPLACEMENT
>
> Man Remembering Sky, 1998. oil on canvas © Alfredo
> de Batuc
>
>                                   an art exhibit by
>
>                             Alfredo de Batuc
>                                April 16 - July 1,
> 2000
>
>                     Reception: Sunday, April 16
>                                 7:00 - 11:00 p.m.
>
> Tuesday - Saturday, 10 a.m. - 6 p.m.
> ________________________________________________
> BIGOUDI International
> 21720 Ventura Boulevard
> Woodland Hills, CA
> 818-887-3627
>
> [Curated by Granados 2 Gallery]
>
---------------------------------------------------------
> Alfredo de Batuc
> 240 South Broadway, # 407-B
> Los Angeles, CA 90012-3610
> Voice: 213 626 0577
> Fax:    213 6173160
> To reply please click here: alfredo@...
> Web site: www.debatuc.com
>
>
>
>

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As many of you probably know, there will be a major convergence of
progressive, anti-imperialist and anti-racist activists in Washington DC
this April 9-16 to protest meetings of the International Monetary
Fund and the World Bank.

The opposition to these two predatory institutions--which have
wreaked such great suffering on the oppressed countries and peoples
of the world for more than a half-century--comes from a wide range
of organizations. The events on April 16-17 promise to be the biggest
manifestation of opposition to the IMF and World Bank yet seen inside
the United States.

The International Action Center will be in Washington that week. We
will have an IAC affinity group and a contingent on Sunday, April 16 and
Monday, April 17 that focuses on opposition to U.S. imperialism and
the struggle against racism and repression within the U.S.  We will
also be calling a march on the Justice Department for Saturday, April
15 to say Shut down the prison-industrial complex! (Gather 3 pm at the
Justice Department, 9th St. and Pennsylvania, NW.)

FOLLOWING WILL BE TWO EMAILS.
PLEASE POST THEM WIDELY:

A Call for Saturday, April 15 march and rally at the Department of
IN-Justice: Shut down the Prison-Industrial Complex!

A Call to join the International Action Center on April 16 and 17:
Shut down the World Bank and IMF!
Fight U.S. militarism and racist repression!

*In Washington DC, look for our banners or call to find gathering
locations.
NY national office: 212-633-6646, Washington DC office: 202-588- 1205*

There will be a Free Mumia party and concert on Saturday, April 15
at 8 pm.  It will be at Calvery Church, 1459 Colombia Rd., between
14 and 15 Sts. (Metro: Green line to Colombia Heights) $5 donation to
benefit Mumia organizing; food, drinks, dancing

"For globalization to work, America can't be afraid to act like
the almighty superpower that it is. The hidden hand of the market
will never work without a hidden fist. McDonald's cannot
flourish without McDonald-Douglas, the designer of the F-15,
and the hidden fist that keeps the world safe for Silicon Valley's
technology is called the United States Army, Air Force, Navy and
Marine Corps."
       --Thomas Friedman, New York Times, March 28, 1999

International Action Center
39 West 14th Street, Room 206
New York, NY 10011
email: iacenter@...
web: www.iacenter.org
CHECK OUT THE NEW SITE www.mumia2000.org
phone: 212 633-6646
fax:   212 633-2889
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