Latino arts, history and culture
History is not a spectator sport… I taught Chicano history at the University of Arizona, and to make the material more relevant, whenever I could I gave a Tucson perspective to historical dynamics. … [Read more...]
Where is the love? And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity. Saul of Tarsus, aka Paul the Apostle (First Letter to the Corinthians) “Charity,” which … [Read more...]
If you swim in the sewer… “He who passively accepts evil is as much involved in it as he who helps to perpetrate it. He who accepts evil without protesting against it is really cooperating with … [Read more...]
Spanish is a lovely tongue... Some recent incidents involving the use of Spanish (more on these below) brought to mind an essay entitled “Saints and sinners all agree…” I wrote several years ago. I … [Read more...]
WW II GENERATION GETS IT DONE! It is beyond ironic that teaching young people about the patriotism of the Mexican American community—e.g., that Mexican Americans/Latinos have earned more … [Read more...]
The Republican party, aka Trumpian cult... I’ve written on this topic before, but I’m not being repetitious mindlessly. I believe that every time the phenomenon I discuss here emerges we need to … [Read more...]
Democrats-liberals and Republican-conservatives may be on opposite sides of the political spectrum, but if the dozens of political emails I receive daily are any guide, they seem to use the same … [Read more...]
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...]
THIS WEEK ON LATINOPIA: HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY! ALEJANDRO MOLINA ON "SAN VALENTÍN," SAL BALDENEGRO ON "TRUMPISM A DEATH CULT," 100 YEARS OF LATINO MUSIC, 100 YEARS OF LATINO LITERATURE AND 100 YEARS OF … [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...]
THIS WEEK ON LATINOPIA: SALOMON BALDENEGRO ON "IF YOU SWIM IN THE SEWER..." THE LATINOPIA TEACHER'S GUIDE: THE LATINO VOICE IN AMERICAN SOCIETY, VICTOR SÁNCHEZ CARDONA VIRTUAL GALLERY TOUR, AND ACTOR … [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, we … [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...]
