Latino arts, history and culture
Listen to the children… As I write this, young people are in the frontlines of political change. High-school students, survivors of the Feb 14 massacre in Parkland, Fla., are confronting … [Read more...]
Special-ed placements: we get it from both sides As they say: “The more things change, the more they stay the same.” The Trump administration is looking to delay an Obama-era rule meant to counter … [Read more...]
A “warrior nation” produces a warrior legislator… Today’s politics are simultaneously depressing and infuriating. From President Trump on down to Republican-dominated state legislatures, right-wing … [Read more...]
Trump focuses his racist tendencies on American Indians The racist tendencies Donald Trump brought with him to the presidency are still alive and well. Just this month Trump enthusiastically endorsed … [Read more...]
The times call for action, not platitudes… The times we live in—when innocents are being slaughtered by the dozens—demand leadership and decisive action to prevent future horrific events. Instead, … [Read more...]
Anything but Mexican—still! It’s October, and we again find ourselves in the midst of “Hispanic Heritage Month.” I find the foundation of “Hispanic Heritage Month” objectionable on many levels, … [Read more...]
The arc of the moral universe is long … Arizonans recently experienced two doses of good news. One was the determination by a federal judge that the banning of Tucson Unified School District’s … [Read more...]
Whom would Jesus stand with? One would think that denouncing racism and murder in the service of white supremacy and denouncing those who defend such things would be a super easy call for truly … [Read more...]
Sacred Goals—The MAS struggle in Tucson My son Salomon (aka Sal, Jr.) and his colleague Fausto Olmos (more on them below) are producing a film, “Sacred Goals,” highlighting the fierce and inspiring … [Read more...]
The times, they surely did change… Bob Dylan’s 1964 song “The times, they are a-changing” was popular during a dynamic political era, a period when grassroots movements—civil rights, Black Power, … [Read more...]
Language racism… He couldn't speak English, so me and the other workers made fun of him. State Rep. Russell Pearce, referring to a teenage co-worker. Arizona Republic, February 11, 2005 Native … [Read more...]
For the Mexican American-Chicano community St. Patrick’s Day is—or at least should be—more than a day to have fun and drink green beer. By way of their Mexican heritage, Chicanos/as have an historical … [Read more...]
False heroes… The unsavory business of “Hispanic/Latino” organizations giving awards to non-deserving people, often for political reasons, is wrong and needs to stop. A couple of points before I … [Read more...]
Honoring MLK and Chávez correctly… It’s the season to honor two human-rights icons and role models who put into practice the Gospel instruction: Insofar as you do this unto the least of my … [Read more...]
The recent passing of Chicano music icon Ramón “Chunky” Sánchez generated many accolades commenting on his musical activism. Indeed, Chunky epitomized the trovadores (singers, musicians) who have made … [Read more...]
Standing with the unions My wife and I recently participated in a rally and picket on behalf of the United Steelworkers and other unions representing nearly 2000 employees who work in ASARCO copper … [Read more...]
The DNC has nobody to blame but themselves… Some quick thoughts on the recent election. The Democratic establishment, who decided in 2008 that Clinton would be the next President, is in a state of … [Read more...]
Democracy be damned—let’s hate! Conservatives and progressives claim to be polar opposites, but when it comes to hating on people whose political views and actions they don’t like, conservatives … [Read more...]
During the political season, politicos and others wail and whine about low voter turnout among Mexican Americans. The same laments are made about Native Americans. The implication is that we, and the … [Read more...]
Do what I tell you … or the Cucuy will get you! By now I figured I had said everything I wanted to say regarding the current presidential campaign. But then came the onslaught of emails, Facebook … [Read more...]
Forget history—let’s drink some beer! Let’s celebrate what we don’t know… Americans love to celebrate—even when they do not exactly know what it is they’re celebrating. The Fourth of July, for … [Read more...]
