Latino arts, history and culture
Stereotypes are not funny… A subscriber to a Listserv I am a member of recently criticized Jewish comedians from yesteryear for having invoked Mexican stereotypes in their routines. He’s right to … [Read more...]
The hypocrisy overwhelms… It’s discouraging to think how many people are shocked by honesty and how few by deceit. Noel Coward, English playwright, composer, director, and singer Esa gente no … [Read more...]
There once was a Republican Party. It had a set of principles that formed the basis of a defined ideology. To be sure, I didn’t subscribe to those principles nor agree with the ideology they … [Read more...]
Trumpism: A Death Cult… “The (Republican) party is his. It doesn’t belong to anybody else.” QAnon Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) Whom are you not allowed to criticize? Following the … [Read more...]
Decency is not transactional… Again, by your leave, I’m going to deviate from my usual diet of politics and such and focus on a topic that is more personal, more intimate, yet just as important as … [Read more...]
Trump lied, people died… That sign is ubiquitous at civil-rights marches and other rallies. But the sign is more than a clever slogan. It’s a four-word essay reflecting reality. Some people have … [Read more...]
Corridos: “singing newspapers” and community organizers… The corrido, which tells a true story in song, has served us well over the years. It has informed and inspired us and has moved us to … [Read more...]
Let us forgive… By your leave, I’m going to deviate from my usual diet of politics and such and focus on a topic that is more personal, more intimate yet just as important as (community-based or … [Read more...]
“Hypocrites chasing windmills…” It’s the Christmas season, and, predictably, the right-wing “war on Christmas” nonsense has begun. Former Wisconsin governor Scott Walker and other Republicans are … [Read more...]
Voting and self-determination… People love to complain about the government (what it does, and more often, what it doesn’t do) and the elected officials in charge of the government, … [Read more...]
"Safe" events don't create real change... It's the season to honor César E. Chávez and his legacy of labor activism on behalf of farm workers. However, many of the contemporary Chávez celebrations … [Read more...]
Sanctuary cities-a civil initiative... A local activist coalition, Tucson Families Free and Together, has launched a petition drive to change our city's status from being an "immigrant-welcoming" … [Read more...]
The good, the bad, and the ugly… In the immortal words of Charles Dickens: “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times … it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair.” Dickens … [Read more...]
Indigenous political representation… Arizona recently made history by electing three Indigenous women—Jamescita Peshlakai (Navajo), Victoria Steele (Seneca), and Sally Ann Gonzales (Pascua … [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...]
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...]
We’ve been priced out of higher education… In the recent Democratic Presidential Debate, self-proclaimed “Democratic Socialist” Sen. Bernie Sanders reiterated his call for free college tuition. … [Read more...]
Barrio self-determination An underlying principle of all Liberation movements—labor, women, civil rights, etc.— is the most fundamental civil right, self-determination: the right of people to … [Read more...]
TRUE PATRIOTS PRACTICE THE CONSTITUTION! The perversion of what is a “patriot” by right-wingers and racists is breathtaking. Case in point: is it “patriotic” to aim loaded guns and rifles at … [Read more...]
I like your Christ, but… How things change. When I was growing up, religious folks railed against the commercialization of Christmas. They believed and taught that publicly, Christmas was to be … [Read more...]
Mexican American baseball “tiros” and their legacy… Historically, baseball has been very much a part of Mexican American life. In Arizona, the mining towns, which played a huge role in the state’s … [Read more...]
