Chicano Moratorium Against the Vietnam War: August 29, 1970

From the blog of Luis J. Rodriguez--www.luisjrodriguez.com/blog

It will be thirty seven years today after the Chicano Moratorium against the Viet Nam War was first held in East Los Angeles -- at the time the largest anti-war demonstration in a community of color in the country. Some 30,000 people came from all over Los Angeles, the Southwest, and other parts of the country to proclaim, "Ya Basta"--that's enough. It also became the scene of one of the worse police abuse cases in the country when LA County sheriff's deputies attacked the mostly peaceful crowd at Laguna Park, enacting hundreds of arrests, causing hundreds of injuries, and resulting in at least three dead. One of those killed was Chicano reporter Ruben Salazar -- the only national media voice Chicanos had at the time.

This was as significant as the murders of anti-war protestors by National Guardsmen at Kent State University in Ohio and Jackson State University in South Carolina earlier that year of 1970.

I was sixteen years old at the time. I was a gang member, a heroin (and other drugs) user, and quite lost. Still I took part in the march and protest. This demonstration awakened me to the vital struggle for justice, peace, and the possibilities of a new society, something I had only glimpsed at but never really understood. I didn't expect to be taken in by this--I had only come to party. Soon I got swept up in the chants, the songs, the ardor for revolutionary change.

I was also one of the cholos arrested early on in the so-called riot that ensued. Hundreds were arrested, but the cholos (at the time, cholo meant Chicano gang member) were separated from the others, held in different facilities, and held for much longer than other protestors. Eventually I was placed into two adult jails (even though I was a juvenile), including the murderer's row of the old Hall of Justice jail in downtown LA. I had a cell next to Charles Manson. The reason: we were threatened with possible charges in the murders of those who died in the rioting. Of course, they really couldn't charge us for this. But the punishment was what they were after. I was placed in a cell with two murderers -- one of whom put a razor blade to my neck. But I stood up to them, as I had learned to do from my many years in the streets (since the age of seven I had been stealing, and since 11, I had been in a gang), and I survived. I was even involved in a lightweight cellblock disturbance when we heard that Ruben Salazar had been killed.

I was eventually released -- but I was never the same after this. It took me another two to three years, but I eventually left the gang, the drugs, and the jails to dedicate myself to revolutionary study, organizing, and action. In a few more years, I committed myself to becoming a writer. I've learned a lot since then, but the initial spark of my own purposeful life had been during the Chicano Moratorium.

This year, more than 35 years later, we are still at war. This year we must protest the US role in Iraq and Afghanistan -- we are not winning anything over there, but we are losing many of our men and women (and many more civilians).

Tomorrow we must protest these wars. We have not stopped terrorism -- in fact, terrorism around the world has increased since we first invaded Iraq. We cannot win a war against terror with more terror. That's a lesson we seem to have not learned in more than thirty years. There are many ways to protest -- the Internet is one of those places. If the streets still call you then join with others as much as you can against these wars that only really benefit the rich and powerful among us (it's the working class poor, of all colors, who are dying in Iraq).

Use poetry, song, dance, film, and story. But do something. In concert with others. With millions. With dignity. With creativity. And with all the moral authority we can muster. No more dead for Bush/Cheney or the ruling class of thieves they represent. Ya Basta!

An Open Letter to an Immigration Judge

The following letter was sent to us in February. It's from Margot Pepper, one of Xispas' good friends and an long-time activist for social justice and immigrant rights. We apologize for taking so long to put this on our blog. Still, we feel it's very pertinent and important even now. So here it is. Thank you, Margot.

February 14, 2007
To: The Honorable Immigration Judge,

I’m a 2nd grade Two-Way Spanish Immersion (TWI) teacher at Rosa Parks school in Berkeley. Today is Valentine’s Day. It was my last day with one of my top students, Gerardo Espinoza. His father received an order of deportation and is moving the family to Mexico to comply with the law. Gerardo is a stunning seven-year old, with unusually wide, round brown eyes, a cute little nose, full lips and round pale baby cheeks—the kind of child that Japanese anime depict. He’s wedded to a knit cap. The behavior of Gerardo and his brother Felipe, whom I taught nearly a decade ago, has been an example to everyone, including myself. They are both reasons why I love my job. Whenever I had difficult students, I’d seat them in a group with Gerardo or Felipe for a month and their behavior would improve tremendously. I attribute the brothers’ outstanding comportment in large part to their close-knit family, especially the loving care of their mother, Norma, who spends every lunch time with Gerardo.

Honorable Sir, I do not understand why Gerardo and José are being denied their rights as U.S. citizens to an education and parents, both; why, under the law, they are forced to choose. My colleagues and I envisioned their winning scholarships at U.C. Berkeley, eventually lifting them up to the middle class. Like their children, their parents are also model—I’d like to say citizens—but they’ve been denied this. Your honor is probably aware that their former attorney, Walter Pineda, was exposed on the news for defrauding immigrants and aiding in their deportation. He was disbarred on November 1, 2006, State Bar No. 97293.

Felipe Espinoza Senior has lived in the United States for 20 years. His wife Norma, has lived here for 14. Felipe Sr. has worked five to six days a week in jobs from Skates by the Bay to a steel mill in Oakland. Today, when he dropped by for Gerardo’s farewell Valentine party, in which the other students read him their going away valentines, I commented that I hadn’t seen him since Felipe Jr.’s conference a decade ago. Felipe Senior still looked about the same: like a well-groomed, dignified banker or professional. “I’ve been working,” he said, which I knew was an understatement. He is the sole provider for a family of five, six if we include his former exorbitant lawyer, Pineda.

Felipe Senior has always done everything by the book. He has always paid his taxes, car registration and insurance. He followed the letter of the law to apply for citizenship. And this, your honor is what I don’t understand. According to the SF Weekly (The Asylum Trap by Eliza Strickland, May 10, 2006,) immigrants are more likely to slip through the eye of a needle than they are to receive asylum or residency. Only 34 asylum applications were granted to Mexican immigrants nationwide. San Francisco Attorney Enrique Ramirez observes that immigrants can also apply for residency through work visas or petitions by family members who are residents. Mr. Espinoza was misled by Pineda, apparently like countless others, into falling for the “the ten-year pardon,” or cancellation of removal, though as you know less than 4,000 of these cases have been granted each year. Now I ask you, what is the goal of a system which punishes the vast majority of those who follow the letter of the law and which rewards those who manage to keep their identities off the books?

The Espinozas met two of the three requirements needed for Mr. Espinoza’s cancellation of removal to Mexico: 1.) 10 years of continuous presence in the U.S. and 2.) proof of "good moral character” including a clean police record. But Pineda didn’t bother to convince the judge that Felipe Espinoza ‘s deportation would cause 3.) "exceptional and extremely unusual hardship" to a spouse, parent, or child who is either a U.S. citizen or a permanent resident—namely Gerardo and his other son José.
Immigrations lawyers have since informed me that Mr Espinoza likely lost his appeal because Immigration judges believe Gerardo’s rights as a citizen are not being violated since he is free to stay in the country himself--in foster care. (His mother has never worked and his father would be unable to support them from Mexico.) The lawyers tell me that no immigration judge would recognize tearing a child away from his parents and placing him or her in foster care as an “exceptional and extremely unusual hardship.” Dear Honorable Sir, have you and your colleagues really become so hardened? Is the reason that you believe such a trauma is not “unusual” because you have caused such horrendous circumstances to become the norm among this population, rather than the exception?

If so, dear Honorable Immigration Judge, my question to you is, how can I go on teaching about equal rights and freedom of speech and all the things our constitution is supposed to defend, and that the very name of our school is supposed to represent, when the father of my students is deported simply because his skin is darker? Both my Latino and white students are U.S. citizens. So how do I explain to the class that one has the right to a family in the United States and the other citizens do not? Do you think they’ll understand why Felipe and Gerardo’s parents cannot gain citizenship in a country in which they’ve lived for 20 years and in which their children were born, yet it is all right for U.S. citizens to buy up all the beach front property in the Espinoza’s motherland? Do you think such an incident is going to convince my students and their families that the United States is the compassionate model of democracy for the rest of the world?

Dear Honorable Judge, I ask you, what are you and your colleagues doing to shatter or foment these dreams and ideals?

The last time I saw Gerardo, I asked him to let me make a video so I could remember him. He stands below the letters that read Rosa Parks School and recites by heart our Rosa Parks school pledge, which he and I still believe:

“To this day, I believe, we are here on this planet earth to live, grow up and do what we can to make this world a better place for ALL people to enjoy freedom.”

I’d like to conclude with a poem Gerardo wrote for his parents for their Christmas present. Happy Valentine’s Day.
Margot Pepper


WITHOUT YOU
Oh Mamá and Papá,
Without you,
I’d never be able to
cook or eat your enchiladas again;
we wouldn’t play “trains” together anymore,
or go to the park
without you.

Without you,
I wouldn’t be able to have any fun;
I wouldn’t be able to feel even the breeze anymore,
or love;
I wouldn’t have anyone to play with
Without you.

Without you, I’d be as lonely as a baby abandoned
and left to cry alone in a house,
As sad as a little bird
that can no longer sing.

by Gerardo Espinoza,Age 7,
©December 2006
Written in a Christmas/holiday card to his parents


###

Margot Pepper is a journalist and author whose work has been published internationally by the Utne Reader, the San Francisco Bay Guardian, City Lights, Monthly Review, Hampton Brown and others. Her memoir, Through the Wall: A Year in Havana, was a top nomination for the 2006 American Book Award.

"We repudiate the Pope's comments"

Indigenous people and their elders have reacted angrily to remarks Pope Benedict made during his trip to Brazil, calling the conservative leader of the Roman Catholic Church "arrogant and disrespectful" for saying that Indian people "willingly" converted to Christianity. Pope Benedict XVI made his first official visit to the Americas with a four day visit to Brazil, where he railed against premarital sex, Marxism, abortion rights and drug dealers while offering a tepid, moderate critique of capitalism… saying only that it had "failed" the poor of Latin America.

But the Pope’s alternative to the materialist realities of capitalism and globalization is to simply reinstate the power of the Church. Turning his back on Latin America’s Liberation Theology - those clergy and laity who champion social justice through a leftwing reading of Christianity - Benedict said, "The Marxist system, where it found its way into government, not only left a sad heritage of economic and ecological destruction, but also a painful destruction of the human spirit."

Pope Benedict’s visit to Brazil no doubt inspired conservatives and traditionalists, but his words seemed to upset just about everyone else. Those most offended, and rightly so, where Brazil’s indigenous people. At a talk before Latin American and Caribbean Bishops made at the end of his visit, the Pontiff said that American Indians had "welcomed" the arrival of the Europeans 500 years ago, as they had been "silently longing" for Christianity. The Pontiff alleged that the Church had "purified" native peoples, and that a revival of indigenous spiritual beliefs would be "a backward step." Moreover, the Pontiff said the Christian Church had not imposed its teachings upon the indigenous people of the Americas. Shockingly, the Pope made no mention of the documented violence and genocide in Latin America directed against native peoples by the Conquistadors and the Christian Church. As the Washington Post reported:

Indian leaders in Brazil said on Monday they were offended by Pope Benedict’s ‘arrogant and disrespectful’ comments that the Roman Catholic Church had purified them. Several Indian groups sent a letter to the Pope last week asking for his support in defending their ancestral lands and culture. They said the Indians had suffered a ‘process of genocide’ since the first European colonizers had arrived. (….) "The state used the Church to do the dirty work in colonizing the Indians but they already asked forgiveness for that ... so is the Pope taking back the Church's word?" said Dionito Jose de Souza a leader of the Makuxi tribe in northern Roraima state.

Pope John Paul spoke in 1992 of mistakes in the evangelization of native peoples of the Americas. Pope Benedict not only upset many Indians but also Catholic priests who have joined their struggle, said Sandro Tuxa, who heads the movement of northeastern tribes."We repudiate the Pope's comments," Tuxa said. "To say the cultural decimation of our people represents a purification is offensive, and frankly, frightening. "I think the Pope has been poorly advised."

The Basis of Black & Brown Unity in the US

From the weblog of Luis J. Rodriguez:

All good things must come to an end. Today, I ended my week of guest hosting on the Front Page talk show with Dominique Di Prima on KJLH-102.3 FM. It was a wonderful experience. According to Dominique, I was the first Latino guest host on the show. I commend her and KJLH for having me and allowing me this opportunity to speak on some crucial issues confronting both the African American and Mexican/Latino community.

Yesterday, I was able to address key concerns about Black & Brown unity—including the value of working together when the interests of our communities converge. It’s not about unity for unity’s sake. We have common issues of poverty, bad schools, bad police relations, gangs, domestic abuse, disproportionate health problems, and disproportionate rates in prisons. We cannot move fully forward in these areas unless we forge important strategic aims and actions mutually beneficial to both communities.

It must be a principled and purposeful unity, not a makeshift or superficial one.

I’ve had a lifetime of working in this area. Including from living in South Central LA as a child, then working on police abuse actions with people like Michael Zinzun, may he rest in peace, to the coalition for Harold Washington for Mayor in Chicago (I lived there from 1985 until 2000), and the work I've currently done for many years with gang intervention/prevention and street peace, particularly in Chicago and LA.

Even now, as we move to bring developmental and policy changes in the poor working class community of Pacoima in the Northeast San Fernando Valley, which has a large Mexican/Latino population and a significant African American population, I’m involved in a Community Benefits Agreement process with the old Price Pfister Brass Foundry site that is slated to become a new mall/park/community gathering place. I’m also working through Tia Chucha’s Bookstore and Cultural Center to bring in more diverse aesthetics to our current workshop, events, and cultural expressions with African Americans as well as other communities.

Today, we had Marqueese Dawson Hawkins of the Community Coalition in studio to speak on the Coalition’s work in South Los Angeles concerning the lack of clean and adequate grocery stores (many that came in after the 1992 Civil Unrest have now left), school exit exams, and more. The Coalition has had an organic Black and Brown organizing process since its inception.

Historically Mexicans and Central Americans (who are mostly of indigenous descent) and African Americans have a long history of slavery, peonage, colonialism, and capitalist exploitation. We have more in common as far as working for the advancement of economic, social, and cultural well being than differences. I understand that there is a lot of ignorance, prejudice, and fear in both communities about each other. I have condemned the racially-based attacks against Blacks by Latinos in Los Angeles and elsewhere, and whenever this happens to Latinos from Blacks. There is already enough hate in this world—I personally don’t want to contribute any more or do anything to perpetuate it.

In addition, Mexicans have African ties from when the Spanish first brought African slaves to Mexico in the 1500s. The Native population of Mexico was greatly and quickly decimated by wars, hunger, tortures, and disease. The Valley of Mexico—the most populous area in the hemisphere before the Spanish arrived—had an estimated 25 million inhabitants when Cortez and his conquistadors first set foot there in 1519. In 50 years, only 2.5 million survived. In fact, most of the continent lost from 80 to 95 percent of their populations shortly after the Europeans came. The Spanish numbers reached a height of 150,000 during the colonial period; African slaves were believed to number around 300,000. In addition, some 100,000 Malaysians (from the Spanish colonies of the Philippines and other Asian areas) were also brought in.

In fact, Mexico had the first recorded African slave uprising in the Americas in 1546. Later rebellious slaves established the first free African pueblo in the Western Hemisphere in 1609. It was called Yanga, located in the present-day state of Vera Cruz, Mexico.

A leader of the Mexican war of independence from Spain in 1820 was Vicente Ramon Guerrero—an African-Mexican. He also became Mexico’s second president (Benito Juarez, of Zapoteca Indian, became the first full-blooded native president in the 1860s). And then Mexico eventually lost Texas and later half of its national territory in the US invasion of 1848 after Mexico refused to return runaway slaves to US slave masters after Mexico had abolished slavery in the 1820s.

Still, with all this history, the remaining native population of Mexico is the main root and source of the Mexican character and makeup. Today there are 240 native languages in Mexico. Many of the newer so-called immigrants are coming from highly Native areas of central and southern Mexico, including tribal members of Mayans, Huicholes, Raramuri, Yaquis, Mixtecos, Zapotecas, and more. There are an estimated 2 million full-blooded Mayans in the US, almost as many as the whole Native American population (believed to number 3 million, with a majority of mixed blood). Many of these tribal peoples don’t even speak Spanish, let alone English.

Now things have turned on their heads. Now the brown-red indigenous peoples of these lands, with connections here that go back tens of thousands of years, have become the “foreigners,” “immigrants” and “illegals”—mostly by people of European descent who have only been in the US areas a little more than 300 years. This is how man-made and superficial borders, created by conquerors, colonialists and capitalists, have now determined who we are, our relationships, and who we unite with and who we fight with.

To find out more about this history, the racial/cultural make up of Mexico, and the African American/Mexican/Native connections, please look up the following publications:

Occupied America by Rudy Acuna
Anything but Mexican by Rudy Acuna
The Fifth Sun by James Russell
The American Holocaust by David Stannard
1491 by Charles Mann
Cycles of Conquest by Edward Spicer
Indian Givers by Jack Weatherford

This is a beginning list. There are so many great books and articles that spell out our common historical, cultural and strategic ties. On the World Wide Web, there are now many sites and informational links. It’s important for all of us to be armed with knowledge, books, history, and stories as we move forward to better all of our communities.

I also recommend, to those who are interested, to visit the website of Xispas Magazine; I am a co-founder and now editor of this online Chicano magazine. You can check it out at www.xispas.com.

A’ho.

Academia Semillas Del Pueblo Wins Important Victory

We are very excited to inform you that Academia Semillas Del Pueblo’s charter has been renewed for another 5 years!

On Thursday, March 29, 2007 over 1,000 parents, students, educators, community members and supporters walked from Plaza Olvera to LAUSD headquarters to attend the history-making board meeting for Academia Semillas del Pueblo. If you didn’t have an opportunity to watch the LAUSD Board meeting, you can watch it this Sunday on KLCS, Channel 58. Academia’s charter renewal will be shown between the hours of 2-4:30pm.

Thank you to everyone who called the board members, sent support letters, signed our pledge for educational equity, informed others about our school, joined us in our various marches and board meetings, and showed your support in many other ways. You helped save our school, now help us grow! Save the date, June 7th for our fundraiser/celebration. Featuring art works by: B+, Coronado Press, Emilia Garcia, Eric Coleman, Gabriel Benavides, Jose Ramirez, Mare, Mario Ybarra Jr., Martha Cooper, Omar Ramirez, Oscar Magallanes, Ritzy Periwinkle, Self Help Graphics & Art, Shawn Mortensen, Slick, Steve Marcus, Wane, West…and more TBA. Plus Special Guest and Live Performances.

Xie Xie, Tlazomakamatli, Thank you, Gracias,

Academia Semillas Del Pueblo

Save Academia Semillas Del Pueblo; March and Rally on Thursday, March 29

Academia Semillas del Pueblo is a vital indigenous-centered educational institution. Based in El Sereno, it was created five years ago by members of the greater East Los Angeles community for the community, which for decades has suffered with some of the worse schools in the LA Unified School District.

Tomorrow, March 29, the LAUSD will decide whether or not to renew the school's charter. Please attend a march and rally in support of Academia Semillas del Pueblo at Olvera Street from 12:30 PM. The march will continue on to LAUSD's headquarters at 3rd and Beaudry. The rally will start at 1:30 PM.

For more information, please go to the website of Academia Semillas del Pueblo at www.dignidad.org.

Grand Opening of Tia Chucha's New Space -- March 31 from 4 to 8 PM

From the weblog of Luis J. Rodriguez, March 26, 2007:

I'm glad to invite everyone to the grand opening of Tia Chucha's Centro Cultural this Saturday, March 31, from 4 to 8 PM. It will be at the new space that we've finally painted and organized after we were forced to vacate our old store/center in Sylmar (the new location is only 10 minutes away from there).

This will be an easy-going evening of food, poetry, raffles, and presentations by our instructors and some of their students from our various workshops, including Son Jarocho Mexican traditional music, Guitar, African Drumming, DJing, Reiki Healing, Danza Azteca, Mexikayotl Indigenous Cosmology, and more. Books will also be on sale as well as sign-ups for our events and workshops.

Your humble servant will be your host.

We will also be starting our regular schedule for "Noche Bohemias" (guitar, song, and poetry, mostly for our Spanish-speaking community), Open Mic (poetry, Hip Hop, Song for anyone), Film, and more (this schedule will be available on Saturday).

The new space is nice and clean, located at 10258 Foothill Blvd., Lake View Terrace, CA 91340 (on the corner of Foothill and Wheatland, in front of the Number 91 Bustop). Our new phone number is 818-896-1479.

Please join us as we try to re-weave the amazing tapestry of song, dance, words, theater, art, and ideas that temporarily unraveled with our move. However, we have the regenerative power as community to start anew, to continue our important work, and to prepare for better days ahead. You'll love our new space.

Tia Chucha's has Moved -- We're not Closed

From a blog post by Luis J. Rodriguez at www.luisjrodriguez.com/blog/

Wow, we’ve had a crazy month – with the benefit event on February 17 that brought around 600 people (we also raised $10,000 – thanks to everyone) – and Tia Chucha’s move. Let me tell you—it’s extremely difficult to tear down a café, bookstore, and cultural center (it was hard enough to create it). My wife Trini organized the move, and she did an amazing job. The staff came through, beyond their hours, but we also had an army of volunteers. They packed boxes, moved furniture and heavy bookshelves, unhooked computers, and even tore down some of the Mayan wood motifs and other specialty wood items we had at the shop.

The hardest thing to move was the café stuff (refrigerators, water heaters, espresso machines, ice makers, display cases, and more had to be removed along with pipes and electrical lines). Most of this stuff went into storage, many of which we plan to sell (anyone interested, please contact us). Some of these things went to our new temporary location in Lake View Terrace. The new space is less than half the size of what the old space consisted of, so we won’t have a café, but we’ll have some books, our offices, a little storage, and a performance space (we'll have some drinks for sale and hot water at least). More on this later.

Anyway, last Wednesday Trini turned in the keys. It was sad, heartbreaking really, considering how much money, work, love, and caring went into this space. But as we have been saying, Tia Chucha’s is not about any particular building or structure. It’s a spirit, an essential way to be alive, to be indigenous, to be active and conscious. We will take that spirit to the temporary location, and carry it forward until we create a new permanent or semi-permanent Tia Chucha’s in about two to three years.

It’s about knowing how to rise up stronger and more prepared out of any adversity and crisis, like the Phoenix renewed out of the ashes. It’s something we have to teach and model for our community, our youth, our families. We’re going to stay positive, hopeful. So we’re ready for our move, our next phase, our new beginnings.

Our resident Mexika Danza group, the staff, board members, and key volunteers held a beautiful ceremony last Tuesday, a day before we closed up everything. We buried some sacred medicine and other items near a tree in the back of the old space. We said prayers and a good many wonderful words about Tia Chucha’s – our impact, our importance, and the future. There were also many sentiments of thanks, so many thanks, for the blessings we’ve been bestowed and the community we’ve helped engender and grow.

Our new temporary location is at 10258 Foothill Blvd., Lake View Terrace, CA 91342. Our new main number is 818-896-1479 and our fax number is 818-896-1489. However, we are not yet open. We will inform everybody about our opening date – we’ll have a new Grand Opening event – and our plans for future workshops, events, meetings.

I do want to remind everyone to keep May 19 on you calendar. That day we’ll hold our 2nd Annual “Celebrating Words: Written, Performed & Sung” Festival at Sylmar Park, free to the public (with poets, bands, speakers, booths, books, and more).

And to set aside July 29, 2007 for the “Tia Chucha Under the Stars: First Annual Celebration of Community & Culure” benefit to be held at the Ford Amphitheater – 2580 Cahuenga Blvd., Hollywood, CA 90068 – from 6 PM to 8 PM. Our theme this year is “Si Se Puede/Yes We Can” and we’ll be joined by the bands Tierra, Ollin, Upground, and others. We’ll have poetry by John Densmore of the Doors and Luis Rodriguez, the Chicano comedy group, Culture Clash, and our host will be comedian Ernie G. Our Azteca Danza group will open the event and Power 106 DJs will be on hand for music and entertainment. Tickets are $30. You can get more information at the Ford Box Office at 323-461-3673 or go to our website at www.tiachucha.com.

The Closing of Tia Chucha's Cafe

[ On January 9th, 2007, Luis J. Rodriguez, the co-founder and creative director of Tia Chucha's Cafe & Centro Cultural, gave us the following sad news, Tia Chucha’s Café at its present location is closing - permanently. Here's Rodriguez's statement on the closing: ]

"Tia Chucha's must move--but our Spirit, Creativity, and Unity are intact. Just after the holidays, Tia Chucha's Cafe & Cultural Center was served with a notice forcing us to move. We have to leave by February 28, 2007. A powerfully energized and thriving bookstore/cafe/performance space/cultural center is to be replaced by high-tech laundry machines. The laundry company is apparently investing $8 million in the strip mall, something we can't compete with.

Maintain a vibrant community space? Of course not! Instead, make way for another laundry outlet! That's capitalism. Money follows money, not needs, not literacy, not community, or cultural expression. In the world we've inherited, most creativity and expression has to make big money, or it's out.

We created a space that requires a lot of personal and community investment. The community came to embrace Tia Chucha's and make this space its own. We plan to take the spirit, creativity, and unity we helped nurture to a temporary site as we plan and prepare to obtain a larger permanent site in the Northeast San Fernando Valley. This is a time to come together, strategize, and work to keep Tia Chucha's viable as a cultural center while we explore our options. We will not give up. We will find a temporary space; we will also curtail our retail operations while we concentrate on our programming, events, outreach, fundraising, and growth.

We ask that you strengthen our efforts and sign this petition in support of Tia Chucha's coming back stronger, bigger, and better endowed than ever (Editor's Note: The petition is only available at the Cafe - but you can e-mail letters of support to the address given below.) We need this written support to show the various developers; city, county, and state agencies; and foundations that this community will fight for the arts, music, dance, theater, writing, film, publishing, and a vital gathering place where we can share ideas, history, politics, economics, and our indigenous traditions and thinking.

Our strategy this year includes implementing a fundraising plan with a 5th Anniversary event at Tia Chucha's on February 17 . We will also have another "Celebrating Words: Written, Performed & Sung" festival at Sylmar Park on May 19. And we have been approved to do a benefit event for Tia Chucha's at the Ford Amphitheater in Hollywood on July 29. Sign up for our e-mail newsletter, or call 818-362-7060 for more information."