La Voz - November 2014

Ofrendas y Calaveras 2014

a publication of the Esperanza Peace & Justice Center

NOVEMBER 2014 | Vol. 27 Issue 9 San Antonio, Tejas

La Voz de Esperanza November 2014 vol. 27 issue 9 Editor Gloria A. Ramírez Design Monica V. Velásquez Cover Art Celeste De Luna www.celestedeluna.com Editorial Assistance Alice Canestaro-García La Voz Mail Collective Gabe Aguilar, Miguel Alvarado, Janie Castillo, David Cisneros, Juan Díaz, Margarita Elizarde, Gloria Hernández, Mildred Hilbrich, Juan López, Josie M. Martin, Olivia Martinez, Rachel Martínez, Ray McDonald, María J. Medellin, Iliana Medrano, Angie Merla, Pájara, Ray & Lucy Pérez, Jenny Poskey, María U. Reed, Priscilla Reyna-Ovalle, Blanca Rivera, Marina Saenz, Leroy Sánchez, Guadalupe Segura, Cynthia Spielman, Helen Suárez, Argelia Soto & Lonnie Howard, Rebecca Velasco, Guillermina Valdez, Ines Valdez, Vanessa Sandoval & Aaron, June Williams Esperanza Director

Graciela I. Sánchez

LA VOZ de ESPERANZA • November 2014 Vol. 27 Issue 9•

Esperanza Staff Imelda Arismendez, Itza Carbajal, Marisol Cortez, Marina Saenz Luna, René Saenz, Saakred, Susana Segura, Monica Velásquez

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Conjunto de Nepantleras -Esperanza Board of Directors-

Brenda Davis, Rachel Jennings, Amy Kastely, Jan Olsen, Kamala Platt, Ana Lucía Ramírez, Gloria A. Ramírez, Rudy Rosales, Tiffany Ross, Lilliana Saldaña, Nadine Saliba, Graciela I. Sánchez, Lillian Stevens • We advocate for a wide variety of social, economic & environmental justice issues.

• Opinions expressed in La Voz are not necessarily those of the Esperanza Center.

La Voz de Esperanza

is a publication of Esperanza Peace & Justice Center 922 San Pedro, San Antonio, TX 78212

210.228.0201 • fax 1.877.327.5902 www.esperanzacenter.org Inquiries/Articles can be sent to:

lavoz@esperanzacenter.org Articles due by the 8th of each month Policy Statements

* We ask that articles be visionary, progressive, instructive & thoughtful. Submissions must be literate & critical; not sexist, racist, homophobic, violent, or oppressive & may be edited for length. * All letters in response to Esperanza activities or articles in La Voz will be considered for publication.

Letters with intent to slander individuals or groups will not be published.

Esperanza Peace & Justice Center is funded in part by the NEA, TCA, theFund, CoYoTe PhoeNix Fund, AKR Fdn, Peggy Meyerhoff Pearlstone Fdn, Horizons Fdn, New World Foundation, y nuestra buena gente.

Calaveras, Ofrendas & Haikus: Frank Acosta, Carol Aguero, Gloria Almaraz, Francisco Alarcón, Carolyn Atkins, Chaun Ballard, Dalia Blanco, Itza Carbajal, Janie Cepeda, Aribán Chagoya, Laura Codina, Rose García, Sandy García, Amanda Haas, Pamela M. Herrera, Amalia Ibarra, Rachel Jennings, Cathy Marston, Regina Martínez, Belva McKann, Dolores Z. Murff, Pájara, Sandy Reyes, Jo Reyes-Boitel, Norma L. Rodríguez, Nadine Saliba, Enrique Sánchez, José Sánchez, Guadalupe Segura, tk tunchez, Rita Urquijo-Ruíz, Junko Williams, Xoteaz, Ray Z Calavera Art: Anoni, Cecilia Duarte, Ed Escobedo, Melissa Hayes, Aleida Ortega Herrera, Brandon Maldonado, Stella Marroquin, Jesús Morón, Michelle Parlee, José Guadalupe Posada, Ana Sandoval, Elva Treviño

years ago, José Guadalupe Posada died leaving us with a tradition that continues on in Mexico and in La Voz each November for Day of the Dead.

This, our 16th issue of Calaveras, also includes literary ofrendas and haikus as well as a broadsheet in the centerfold.

The son of a baker, José Guadalupe Posada (JGP), was born poor in 1852 in Aguascalientes, Mexico. As a child he was constantly drawing but his first professional engravings were made at 19 years old for the newspaper, El Jicote. It was here that his first calavera and political caricatures mocking the political rival of the newspaper’s owner were published. As a result, El Jicote was shut down after only 11 months when their rival won the gubernatorial election with support from President Porfirio Díaz.

Posada continued his work denouncing the excesses of the rich protesting against impunity and the persecution of journalists. He detested violence and graphically depicted the worst of human nature and social discord with stories and scenes of domestic violence as well as war. His popular broadsheets with poetic political commentary also covered epidemics, floods and other calamaties. Diego Rivera dubbed Posada the “guerrilla fighter of the broadsheets.” He reveled in representing popular feast days and the lives of saints and also published 110 tiny booklets for children, the Biblioteca del Niño Mexicano, with legends and tales covering the history of Mexico in fantastic and instructive ways.

Up to 20,000 engravings have been attributed to Posada — but not even one original drawing of his was preserved. His prints, illustrations and poems appeared in numerous publications popular with the masses but they did not make him rich. He died living in the poorest of neighborhoods in Mexico City, El Tepito, and was buried in a 6th class grave.

Posada documented the war, pestilence, death and poverty of his times and sought to preserve popular cultural traditions. In doing so he inspired generations of artists and writers including the formation of the famous Mexican print collective, Taller de Gráfica Popular. The Buena Gente of San Antonio and La Voz are among those that he continues to inspire. —Gloria A. Ramírez

Hace 101 años falleció el periodista y artísta, José Guadalupe Posada dejándonos un legado que observamos cada Día de muertos. Posada nacío en 1852 en un barrio pobre de Aguascalientes. Desde niño empezó exhibir su don artístico.

A la edad de 19 años, Posada empezó a trabajar con el periódico, El Jicote, donde publicó su primera calavera y sus caricaturas contra el rival del dueño del periódico. Cuando el rival ganó la gobernatura con la ayuda del Presidente Porfirio Díaz, cerraron El Jicote que sobrevivió sólo 11 meses.

Se ha dicho que Posada grabó hasta 20,000 illustraciones. Las temas siempre fueron sobre la vida de los pobres, la política, las guerras, desastres naturales y todo tipo de violencia. Sus ilustraciones y escritos siempre detallaban violencía en detalles grotéscos. Si no fuera bastante, Posada tambien publicó la Biblioteca del Niño Mexicano ilustrando 110 libritos para niños relatando la historia de México en cuentos fantásticos. Posada nunca ganó mucho dinero — pero, si ganó el corazón y admiración de la gente y los artistas. El famoso Taller de Gráfica Popular fué la inspiración de artístas que admiraban Posada.

Con esta edición de La Voz tenemos ya 16 años publicando calaveras. Ademas incluimos ofrendas literarias y este año, haikus. Muchisimas gracias a la buena gente de Esperanza!v

ATTENTION VOZ READERS: If you have a mailing address correction please send it to lavoz@ esperanzacenter.org. If you want to be removed from the La Voz mailing list, for whatever reason, please let us know. La Voz is provided as a courtesy to people on the mailing list of the Esperanza Peace and Justice Center.

The subscription rate is $35 per year ($100 for institutions). The cost of producing and mailing La Voz has substantially increased and we need your help to keep it afloat. To help, send in your subscriptions, sign up as a monthly donor, or send in a donation to the Esperanza Peace and Justice Center. Thank you. -GAR VOZ VISION STATEMENT: La Voz de Esperanza speaks for many individual, progressive voices who are gente-based, multi-visioned and milagro-bound. We are diverse survivors of materialism, racism, misogyny, homophobia, classism, violence, earth-damage, speciesism and cultural and political oppression. We are recapturing the powers of alliance, activism and healthy conflict in order to achieve interdependent economic/ spiritual healing and fuerza. La Voz is a resource for peace, justice, and human rights, providing a forum for criticism, information, education, humor and other creative works. La Voz provokes bold actions in response to local and global problems, with the knowledge that the many risks we take for the earth, our body, and the dignity of all people will result in profound change for the seven generations to come.

Día de difuntos / Pan y ponche de muertos / Recuerdos, fotos —Xoteaz

Pasen a tomar atole todos los que van llegando.

Que’l atole está muy rico, Calacas está invitando.

Dos mil catorce, otro año más Tantos cambios, tantas guerras ¿Será imposible tener paz?

Calacas le importa un diente Siempre viene por la gente.

— Enrique Sánchez

Sunlight beamed through the church, whitewashing the casket where he lay — silent.

Soft prayers, tears in handkerchiefs, some fall on the waxed face of the dead.

— Chaun Ballard

Yearly she calls out Earlier and earlier each year.

She searches the feisbuk, la twitter, The websitio, el telefono…

One time I saw her at the ATM, Grabbing her plata while saying Hello, ¿’on ’ta tu calavera?

And when you think you’ve had a bad day, You can, without a doubt, hear her say: Stop whining, stop crying Be justified through calaca power!

What’s that? You have nothing to say?

I don’t believe it, not for one minute!

There — a calavera now spilling from your mouth Don’t deny it — Túmbalo ya ¡¡Calaveras one, Calaveras all!!

— jo reyes-boitel

¡vivan los Muertos!

–cempasúchiles los guíen el Día de Muerto © Francisco X. Alarcón

New Awakening Death Arriving in Silence Welcome to Heaven — Ray Z

Awake From the Dream A New Beginning Arrives Life and Death are one — Ray Z

Da vuelta, la loca ruleta de la vida ¿ A caso es tiempo apostar? “¿Vendrá por mi, La Catrina, o me tengo que esperar?”

Empiezo el año dos mil catorce otra vez calaverando.

Les advierto de antemano que nada de ésto es verdad.

Los que ignoran — les suplico que aprendan.

Nuestra cultura es muy rica.

Ojalá que me comprendan.

— Enrique Sánchez

Se me enchina el cuerpo al oir éstas palabras No importa en que situación me encuentre Mi Mexico querido siempre estará en mi corazón.

De este país ha surgido tanta historia Y en nuestra cultura — tradiciones, tales como “Las Calaveras.”

Dedico estos versos a toda la gente y a la juventud.

— Enrique Sánchez

LA VOZ de ESPERANZA • November 2014 Vol. 27 Issue 9•

Frost grips the Celtic cross. A quiver in the wind, the hedgehog snickers.

—Alice-Catherine Jennings

long live the Dead! – may marigolds guide you on the Day of the Dead

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para nuestros difuntos

LA VOZ de ESPERANZA • November 2014 Vol. 27 Issue 9•

Lucille Saenz, Mi Abuela

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I can still smell the homemade chalupas, the smell of the beans in the pot, the sizzle the fire would make and the smell of the shells warming up on the pan. I can still hear your laugh coming from the kitchen. Oh, how you had a distinct laugh, mi Abuela.

Your smile would light up a room of darkness. Your caring and warm compassion for others; how you were like mi Abuelo. Always putting others ahead of yourself.

You never denied someone respect or dignity. You were a pioneer of love and family values. You taught your family to love, honor and respect. Yet, you were not afraid to put someone in their place, if needed. Oh, how I miss you, mi Abuela. Your support and encouragement towards me and my dancing is something I miss the most. Your face, how it would light up, when you saw me dance. How you told me stories and how your stories encouraged me to continue dancing and to create stories of my own. Oh how I miss you, mi Abuela. Your undying love for your Great Granddaughter, Catalina Angelina, who carries the name of your Mother and your Aunt. She sure does miss her YaYa. The bond you two have will never be broken, even though you are no longer here physically. Oh, how I miss you, mi Abuela. You may not be here in the flesh with us anymore; however, your spirit and your love has remained a permanent spot in the family. I see more and more of you in Catalina Angelina as she grows. My Mom, or as you know her, Lizzie, has remained committed to upholding the values you taught the family. As for me, I have felt your spirit when I am dancing or just in general.

Yes, you do make your presence known and that is why I know — you will forever be with me. Oh, how I miss you, mi Abuela.

With loving affection, your Granddaughter, Pamela Michelle Herrera

María Concepción Ramírez González de Aguero.

For mommie, by Carol Aguero

The skull sits high on a pedestal Sweet bread, conchitas stacked on a plate.

With your cloudy, plastic, tall cup Filled with tea and milk.

Más importante Don’t forget the beer, just a little sip But leave the bottle so you can have many sips Mi mamá was such a freaking saint She would slap me for saying freaking.

A snake crawls up the pedestal Slithers inside through one eye hole And then slides back out the other eye What is happening?

The snake is shedding his skin And right before your wide eyes Snake grows wings of an angel Totally transformed...

Me and mommie. I took her to the Esperanza Center for Noche Azul. I had just gotten my job at Speedy’s. I was so exhausted, I fell asleep in her lap as she stroked my hair listening to Azul sing.

Grácias, Dios, Por éstas últimas vistas

De ésta vida terrestral

En tu querida presencia En este barrio

De mi Corazón

Este Lado del Sol Los árboles, las flores, las casas, la gente

Reflecciones de tu Luz Grácias, por los años

Que me dió

En ésta casa de amor

para mi mamá, Eufrasia Ortiz Parra ATANACIO GARCIA

He visto mis hijos crecer, jugando, trabajando

Seguros y alegres en estas calles,

en estos lugares

Dia y noche He cuidado mi jardín, por el día y hasta la noche, Regando mis flores

Con mis lagrimas de mi soledad.

Contigo, O, Señor, Vivo y fuerte En mi Corazón, en mi Vida

Gracias, Dios, por estos días y estas noches

De calor y de frescura Por el Viento que me toca

El piel, la cara, mis manos Trabajando la Tierra

Que nos prestas

Durante nuestro Tiempo Terrestral Te ruego, O, Señor, cuida mi gente, mis hijos

Sólos, no los dejo En tu presencia, cada día renueva Tu Amor Gracias, Dios, por éstas

Últimas Vistas de mi Vida.

Amén —Laura Parra Codina

OCTUBRE 31, 1927 – MARZO 6, 2014

fines de semana que voluntariamente recogiste firmas junto con líderes de la comunidad; para que se construyera una alberca estilo Olímpica — San Antonio Natatorium en nuestro Barrio.

Tus amigos, vecinos y familia extrañan verte caminar por nuestro Barrio recogiendo latas de aluminio para reciclar y mandar el dinero para reducir la deuda Nacional; un tema significante.

Con mucho honor continuaremos con tus cartas pidiendo apoyo a nuestros Políticos del Gobierno que hagan cambios para que no siga aumentando esta tremenda deuda. A nombre tuyo seguiremos mandando dinero con lo que juntemos de las latas.

Nos inspiraste con la importancia y seguiremos tus pasos en apoyar las organizaciones que están cerca de tu Corazón por todo lo bien que hacen Guadalupe Church, COPS/Metro Alliance, Project Quest, Library Friends, Inner City Development y varios más.

Dad, extraño mucho tus abrazos y tus ojitos verdes y brillosos que decían mucho con verlos nada más. Dad extraño tus llamadas para decir buenos días y para decir que iban a salir, por si llamábamos y no nos preocupáramos.

Dad, gracias por cantar “Las Mañanitas” en mi cumpleaños — lo llevo en mi corazón, te escucho muy presente

y me da mucha alegría.

Dad, no me he acostumbrado a no hablar contigo a diario, a no escuchar de ti “I Love You”, a no ver tu sonrisa, a no llamarte para decir que ya llegue a casa y llegue bien; a no escuchar tu voz para decir “duerme con los angelitos.”

Entiendo que la vida es preciosa y frágil, siento paz al pensar que nuestra familia disfruto de tu bella alma con reuniones, comidas, risa, lagrimas, abrazos y felicidad por muchos años.

Estos bellos recuerdos nos dan paz y tranquilidad, gracias a Dios. Descansa en Paz, Dad. TE QUEREMOS MUCHO, DAD, Y SIEMPRE ESTARÁS EN NUESTROS CORAZONES. —Rose García

LA VOZ de ESPERANZA • November 2014 Vol. 27 Issue 9•

Dad, te damos las gracias por tu manera de ser — firme, pacifico, amable, cariñoso y con un Corazón muy grande.

Más grande tu fe en Dios y en Nuestra Virgencita de Guadalupe que siempre nos cuida. Por tener la fuerza y valor de servir a nuestro País en la Fuerzas Armadas de los Estados Unidos. Por dedicarte a trabajar y terminar tu carrera con el U. S. Post Office.

Gracias por enseñarnos la importancia de amar y cuidar a nuestra familia especialmente a Mom. Qué lindo y respetable se siente al saber que ustedes, tú y Mom, celebraron 60 años de casados. ¡Felicidades! Por sus enseñanzas y valores que nos inculcaste sabemos ser responsables y como seguir adelante.

Te damos las gracias especialmente por el orgullo de llevar tu sangre Mexicana por mis venas y por enseñarnos los dos idiomas — español e inglés. Nos llevaron a conocer paisajes preciosos por la Republica Mexicana, todos apretaditos en el carro, pero íbamos bién felices!

Te agradecemos el apoyo sin falta que demostrastes a nuestra Comunidad... horas y horas atendiendo juntas de P.T.A. en las escuelas, J.T. Brackenridge, Tafolla y Lanier.

Todos aquellos días y atardeceres,

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Papi’s New Place

— Dalia Blanco

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LA VOZ de ESPERANZA • November 2014 Vol. 27 Issue 9•

rowing up, our town was divided into two sides: “el lado de los pobres y el lado do los bolillos.”

That’s what Papi’s new place reminds me of.

I can’t believe Papi has been gone over four years and his new place is now starting to feel a part of me. Papi’s place is our first stop for Sister and me as we drive in to see Mom. It has become our ritual on every trip.

Sometimes we don’t even mention it.

We just check into the hotel and we drive to Papi’s place before we head to Mom’s.

Home is now Mom’s place. My memories of Papi are still strong in the house we grew up in, but the physical presence of Papi seems to be fading a little more each visit.

Now, Papi has his own place.

Papi and Mom were savers and planners. They bought this new place

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some years back. They wanted to be ready when “the time came.”

I remember thinking then how strange that they had bought their plots “en el cementerio de los bolillos”.

Through the years things have changed. Los pobres now outnumber los bolillos. And now, the town doesn’t seem so split any more.

As we drive through the cemetery, Sister and I notice that the first part of the cemetery is occupied by gravestones with bolillo names. We see a few with flowers in their matching flower vases.

We keep driving slowly and gradually. We see many flowers held in PVC pipes buried in the ground in many bright colors, saints for every belief, and benches made of different materials. El lado de los pobres is starting but now it is getting much bigger than el lado de los bolillos. Someone has even brought in a life-size horse statue to signify that this resident lived on a ranch or possibly only worked for a bolillo at a ranch.

It feels humble and we start to feel at home.

We drive and search so we don’t pass up Papi’s place. One of his neighbors has a tall black marble grave stone with

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ainting to honor my dad who loved to BBQ for us each Sunday, making sure we had a Barbacoa and big Red breakfast first thing that morning. He drank Pearl beer, smoked Pall Mall cigarettes, had freckles covering his body, a perfectly trimmed and painted mustache, wore a curl he pulled down on his forehead and taught me to trust in God by always saying “If God is willing” and “If there is a will, there is a way” which I believe and repeat to this day.

—Art and Ofrenda by Sandy S. Garcia

Tony (Red) Sandoval September 19, 1921 - February 14, 1990

a cross that makes it easy to find Papi.

We just need to walk a little further and there we see Papi’s bench with our name “Ortiz” engraved on it. In front of it is Papi’s matching gravestone (not too small but not too big). Papi was a simple man and it fits him perfectly. He still has his flowers. One of them is the purple “ramo” that I got him last time. Each time I change it, I end up getting another purple one. Purple is my favorite color and I guess I just want him to know it’s from me.

Sister and I sit down on the bench and usually talk about a memory or just about Papi’s new place. Sometimes, though.

I’m only half-listening because this is also my time with Papi.

Other times, I’m talking to him without speaking, “here we are Papi, together, because nomas somos las dos like you used to say to us all the time.”

That is our unspoken promise to him now.

We only stay a few minutes but leave with Papi’s love heavy in our hearts.

Sister and I walk away together and Papi stays there watching us smiling, I know, sitting under his tree in his new place. v

EN MEMORIA A MI MADRE, GLORIA GÓMEZ RAMÍREZ,

“GLORIA RIOS”

— Reina del Roc and Rol de Mexico

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LA VOZ • NoV 2014 Vol. 27 Issue 9

i madre nacio en Agua Dulce, Texas un 17 de Diciembre de 1928. Cuando era muy pequeña, se vinieron a residir al Westside de San Antonio, ciudad que adoptó como suya, pues siempre la mencionaba en sus actuaciones. A los 14 años, formó parte de la compania de “La Chata Noloesca”, y gracias a ella empezó a viajar con ellos desde muy joven. A los 16 años, toma la valiente decisión de ir a la capital de Mexico con una visión y determinación admirable. Al poco tiempo de llegar, conoce a mi padre, Adalberto Martínez “Resortes” y deciden formar una relación, de la cual naci yo, desafortunadamente, no duro más que 3 años, pero ellos siempre mantuvieron una gran amistad y se tenian mutua admiración. Después se unió en matrimonio con Mario Patrón y de esa relacion nacieron mis hermanos Mónica y Mauricio Patrón. Ella filmo 14 peliculas al lado de grandes celebridades y fue en 1955 que ella se lanza — llevando de Estados Unidos a Mexico, el gran ritmo de Rock & Roll, formando su propio grupo musical, “Gloria Rios y sus 5 Estrellas”, formado por cinco de los mejores músicos de jazz de ese entonces. Ésto le acreditó a mi mamá el titulo de “Pionera” y “ Reina Del Rock & Roll de Mexico”. Ella reunía todos los atributos necesarios para triunfar, pues ella nacío artista, y el escenario era su pasión, donde se entregaba, día tras día, con todo el corazón. Su gran anhelo era representar siempre, con mucho orgullo, a su gran ciudad de San Antonio, Texas. Su carrera artística, como ella lo decía, pasó como un cometa, llena de triunfos, caídas, decepciones, pero nunca se rindió ante la adversidad, ni permitió que su público la viera decaer. A los 41 años y con mis hermanos, decide regresar, a su lugar de partida, y enfrentarse a nuevos retos de salud, pero siempre de pie — y es aquí, en San Antonio, dónde ella fallece, un 2 de Marzo del 2002, a los 73 años. Me orgullese ser la hija de una persona que todo lo que hizo, lo hizo con amor y dedicación. Ella es mi ejemplo — y mi misión es preserver su legado, para el bien de nuestras nuevas generaciones. Gracias a The Esperanza Peace & Justice Center, por darme espacio en La Voz de Esperanza para poder narrar, en pocas palabras, lo que “Gloria Rios” representa para mi y para los que saben el legado que ella dejó!—Con todo cariño, Regina Martínez

anish version in Mexico. Her sp ol nr ca Ro l de a rock & roll music n as La Reyn s in 1928 is know d an explosion of te xa ni Te , ig lce at th Du ish ua Ag ng in span án Apache courts : Gloria Rios born in as the 1st Rock so tonio at the Alaz d An ite n ed Sa cr of ly e de id EDITOR’S NOTE wi sts lojito”, is in the we loesca’s vaudeville the Clock, “El Re with her parents rt of La Chata No ed pa liv e e m sh ca z, be íre e m of Rock Around Sh mez Ra City where she nior High. ico. Born Gloria Gó well as Lanier Ju moved to Mexico e as s sh , ol en ho te Sc six ry At ta and dance in Mex to the world at teatros. ge Elemen l and Brackenrid and performing ed her an entry in id as rp ov pr ca e o th wh th ), or wi attending Driscol oreographer frenda auth ed traveling n, dancer and ch ther of Regina (o e sang and danc ica fa sh us s, e m er rte r, so wh ite e Re wr up n, ng ia tro n comed d San Antonio. g artist, so actress, recordin artínez, the Mexica 2003 in her belove ge M in sta d rto n ol be s ow al ar kn ye Ad llet 73 m came a we s of La Voz. She died at os in future issue inment. Gloria be stars of the day.

Ri rta m ia te fil or n en Gl n ica on ica ex e M ex or p M of Look for m site the to 7 in 17 movies oppo in Mexico starring

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VIOLENCE ,

THE GODDESS OF AMERICA

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by Tarcísio Beal

s we watch horrified, the multiplication of guns and the killing of so many innocent people, it is easy to forget that violence has been a constant in the history of our country.

LA VOZ de ESPERANZA • November 2014 Vol. 27 Issue 9•

For two hundred years, slavery stained the soil of the

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South, then, for another one hundred years, the former slaves and their descendants were denied the most basic human rights and often “legally” killed by the Ku Klux Klan and the believers in “White Supremacy.” In the early 20th century, Charles Drew, founder of the Blood Bank, died because the ambulance medics refused to give him a transfusion of “white” blood. An elderly black man was hanged for having stolen $5 dollars to buy food.

White juries in the South sentenced young blacks to death just for ogling a white woman. The invasion of the Mexican nation in 1846-1848, carried out by President James Polk and his supporters of “Manifest Destiny” because Mexico would not sell California, was so blatantly wrong that a number of Irish Catholic soldiers switched sides and died defending Mexico City. Also, how can we forget the tragedy of Hiroshima and Nagasaki which points to the United States as the only nation ever to use atomic weapons to defeat an enemy?!?

The acclaimed movie “Birth of a Nation” (1915), directed by D. W. Griffith and based on The Klansman, written by the Baptist minister, Thomas Dixon, glorified the Ku Klux Klansmen as heroic and courageous for trying to keep America pure by slaying African Americans. From the 1880s to the 1900s, eleven Southern States amended their Constitutions to restrict the voting rights of African Americans and passed segregation laws which legalized pre-Civil War practices. The 1920s was the worst of times for Jews, Catholics, and African Americans. It all started in Chicago with the “Red Summer” of 1919, when a young black boy was

killed for swimming in the Chicago River; it was followed by the killing of 120 blacks in the Midwest and South.

Even after the passage of the Civil Rights Acts in 1967-68, African Americans have been widely discriminated against and been victims of “profiling” by the police, the color of their skin being enough to make them crime suspects. In 2011 alone, the New York police, for no reason other than the color of their skin, stopped and frisked 168,126 young blacks, ages 18-24, a sum greater than the entire black population of the city. Only a very small number were found to be engaged in unlawful activities.

Unemployment among young blacks hovers around 20%, while for young whites it is around 9%. Most of the unrelenting criticism against President Obama is essentially based on the fact that he is an African American, although this is hotly denied.

The conquest of the American West started with the “Trail of Tears,” i.e., the evacuation of the Southern tribes (Cherokees, Choctaws, Chickasaws, Shawnees, Seminoles) into Oklahoma Territory. The 1832 order from President Andrew Jackson was carried out by the federal Army in the middle of the winter, causing the death of thousands of Native Americans. In 1862, Arizona’s Governor John R. Baylor, reminding the State militiamen that the Confederacy had approved laws for the extermination of the Indians, ordered the soldiers to assemble the natives under the pretext of making peace, then “kill them all!” No surprise, then, that utmost violence was used against the Plains and Western tribes under the command of General William Sherman.

What followed were massacre upon massacre which read like a

litany of horrors: Yellow Medicine (09/22/1862), Galina Springs (1862), Bear River (1863), Arivapai Village (04/03/1863) Sand Creek (01/23/1863), Washita Village (11/26/1867), Marias River (01/23/1967), Cheyenne Lodges (Spring 1974), Wounded Knee (12/29/1890) and many others that went unrecorded. One of the most shameful occurred in April 1878: assassins marched from Tucson onto the sleeping Camp Grant (a reservation of the Arivapai Apache) and butchered 108 people, only eight being men because the warriors were out hunting.

As far as I know, no other nation used the might of the federal Army to force the original inhabitants off their land.

Already in 1867, the U. S. Government decreed that all Western Indians must move into two large reservations, in a move that amounted to the destruction of their culture and way of life and nothing else but ethnocide. The thinking was – as General Sherman put it – that “the only good Indian is a dead Indian.” Soon enough the Army and the settlers coming from the East carried out the slaughter of the buffalo, the main source of food for the aborigines, taking the hides while letting the carcasses rot in the hot sun. In 1848, one year before the gold rush of the Forty-Niners, the California Indians numbered 100,000; by 1859, they were reduced to 30,000; by 1915 only 15,000 were left.

white policeman in Ferguson, Missouri, sharply illustrates the need for a thorough re-examination of the violence of racism in America. Anyone who reads Racing to Justice (2012) by John Powell, Director of the Haas Diversity Research Center at the University of California - Berkeley, will come to realize that “white supremacy” has been entrenched in our socio-economic and political institutions to a point that it will take a much different approach than the courts’ silliness of “color blindness” which does not address the issue at all. How can we argue that we must treat blacks and whites from the same point of departure when whites have and continue to be given preferential treatment for five hundred years!

Today violence surrounds us everywhere and threatens to destroy our society from within. The environment is now being mercilessly polluted by the greed for shale oil and profit through a fracking mechanism that is destroying fresh water sources and adding to the warming of the planet. Our film industry and our television channels have been inundated by the goddess of violence.

Even the i-pods and i-pads of our children present violence, destruction, killing, and mayhem as routine entertainment.

This culture of violence has also entered the sports arena, with winning at all costs replacing sportsmanship and skill. The 2012 scandal of the New Orleans football coach paying bonuses to some of the defensemen to deliberately hurt the opponent’s key players is but an illustration of a sport essentially based on violence to the human body. How can we say we truly respect the human body when we idolize American football, boxing, and some varieties of wrestling? From my viewpoint, no Catholic or Christian school should be involved in football because it is a sport based on violence and it is a major threat to the health, especially of young people.

In “Is Football Worth it?” (Time, 09/29/2014), Sean Gregory analyzes the recent findings about the dangers of football. The NFL estimates that 1/3 of all professional players end up developing dementia, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s or some other debilitating brain disorder. Now 5,000 players have sued the NFL for covering up the risks of concussion, not to mention the fact that the “legal”

violence of football players make them more aggressive in human relations. That spills out into how they treat children and girlfriends, as in the current cases of the Ravens’ Ray Rice, who beat his fiancée unconscious and the Vikings’ Adrian Peterson who violently spanked his four year-old son. During the eight years of Roger Goodell as Commissioner of the NFL, 56 players have been arrested for domestic violence, but they were suspended for a paltry 13 games combined. Rice and Peterson got no more than a 2-game suspension thus far.

Football, along with boxing, are well known for causing serious injuries because it is essentially based on violence to the human body. 45% of the brain injuries among high-schoolers are due to football. And it takes no more than a concussion to cause lasting damage. Younger brains – says Boston University’s neurosurgeon Robert Cantú – are more susceptible to injury. It is simply impossible to play football without getting hit on the head. Yes, the NFL is compensating the injured players to the tune of $180 million dollars, but that’s peanuts to an organization with revenues over $10 billion in 2013 and expected to reach $25 billion by 2027. Football frenzy grips colleges and universities that reap tens of millions every year on TV contracts and audiences who

LA VOZ de esperanza • Nov. 2014 Vol. 27 Issue 9•

The recent killing of an unarmed black youth by a

Haven’t the horrible incidents of the mass slaughter of innocent school children by one of their own alerted us to the fact that we are creating the monsters who commit such acts? Disgruntled employees settle their unhappiness by shooting down managers and fellow employees. Bullying through the Internet has led to a number of suicides.

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LA VOZ de ESPERANZA • November 2014 Vol. 27 Issue 9•

pack stadiums all over the country, while the public at large never seems to have enough of it. The last Super Bowl was watched by 20.8 million people. Universities are reaping huge profits from football, so much so that some students are now demanding a share of the profits. The latest finding about the dangers of football come from the Brain Bank organized by Boston University and

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the Department of Veteran Affairs, as reported in Time magazine (10/13/14, p. 16): 96% of deceased NFL players showed signs of degenerative disease related to brain injuries.

To top it all, the American craze for guns has reached an alltime frenzy and is threatening to turn America into a madhouse.

Arizona parents took a 9 year-old to a shooting range to learn how to use a Uzi and she accidentally killed her instructor. Why does a child need to learn how to shoot a submachine-gun? Well, indoor shooting ranges with high-powered weapons have become a popular attraction. In Las Vegas, bullet-riddled bachelor parties and shotgun weddings, where newlyweds can fire submachine gun rounds and pose with Uzis, are now the fad. Our media carries almost daily reports of murder-suicides by guns. Pistolpacking Melanie Hain, who fought successfully the revocation of her license, was killed by her husband in a murder-suicide. A disgruntled lover, 39, shot a 6 year-old boy and an 11 year-old girl who were in a car with their mother. In 2012, Michael Dunn, licensed to carry a concealed gun, killed the black youth Jordan Davis inside his car near a Jacksonville convenience store because the youngster was playing music too loud. A white jury convicted him only of 2nd-degree murder. In San Antonio, a son shot down his father during a family barbecue and was acquitted by a jury.

State after state is passing the so-called “Castle Law” or “Stand Your Ground” doctrine, and now we have the “Open Carry” nuts, which means that property is valued higher than human life. And we call this a “Christian” nation!

Despite the shoddy argument that “guns don’t kill, people kill,” the irony is that guns do not improve safety but rather multiply the killings. As Tom Díaz (“The Last Gun,” National Catholic Reporter, 01/03/2014) notes - most of gun deaths are suicides, not homicides and the majority of the victims are acquaintances or family members. Deregulation and the “Castle doctrine” in Florida have resulted in more killings of policemen than of criminals. 1.7 million children live in homes with unlocked guns where they might end up killing themselves or another family member. In May, 6 year-old Jennilynn Montana was killed either

by herself or by her 8 year-old sister with a gun they found in a bedroom of their home on San Antonio’s Aransas Ave. Then, in Boerne, 2 year-old Adrian Rojo, left alone inside a car, killed himself with a pistol he found in the console. A 14 year-old found a gun in a ditch on the West side of town, took it home, began playing with it, and ended up killing his 12-year-old friend as he walked into the room at 2am. (Express-News, 08/30/14). Can anybody explain why children are still fooling around at 2 o’clock in the morning?

The old argument that the solution to gun killings is to detect and treat the mentally unbalanced is countered by the fact that most killings are not carried out by crazy people but by pretty sane and law-abiding citizens. These lose their temper in an argument and end it by firing a gun simply because the weapon was there, within reach. The student who shot three people to death on the campus of the University of California-Santa Barbara was interviewed the day before his rampage and found to be a nice, normal guy.

Too many people, including judges, value their reading of the 2nd Amendment more than human life. Those who stand for unrestricted gun ownership seem to have an unbalanced view of reality and misread the 2nd Amendment, which must be interpreted within its time. The Founding Fathers spoke of the necessity to have “a well-regulated militia” to insure “the security of the State” in face of British attempts to keep Americans as colonial subjects. The people to whom the Amendment refers is the militia, not every citizen. Franklin, Madison and Co. would be horrified at the thought of allowing everyone to bear arms, most of all the kind of military hardware so common today. And in Texas we find congressmen who wish to license school teachers to carry guns into the classrooms! These same legislators impose strict laws to prevent abortions but, hypocritically, see nothing wrong with facilitating the multiplication of guns of all kind.

The worship of guns was recently highlighted in San Antonio by a shower of “Letters to the Editor” of the Express-News (06/22/2014). Most of the writers blasted the very sensible article of columnist O. Ricardo Pimentel, who argued for the need to rein the multiplication of gun ownership. In the long run, as in the case of football, it is profit that rules gun manufacturers and gun lobbies. We deplore the violence of the Mexican cartels, yet they enforce their drug trade, of which Americans are the main buyers, through weapons made in the United States and sold in stores and gun shows all over the country. In Mexico, there is only one gun store, located in Mexico City; in Texas, there are now 9, 239; in California, 7, 731; in Arizona, 2,812; and in New Mexico, 1,052, for a total of 20,826 in the four border States. Besides, you can easily acquire a gun through websites as well.

Will all this madness stop before it is too late? Dorothy Day, whose process of beatification the American bishops now support, in her “letter to America” for the Christmas of 1976, published in the National Catholic Reporter, had only one powerful word to say: “Repent!” Now, that will be a first step to bring down the goddess of violence from America’s altars. v Bio: Tarcísio Beal, S.T.L. Ph.D. is Professor Emeritus at the UIW, where he’s taught History, Theology, & Languages for 37 years.

CALAVERAS

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la muerte, Tired of Going to City Council Meetings… Watches from Home on Cable The residents of Mission Trails Put the whole City Council to shame Shedding light on the dark details Of the “Economic Development” game For some high-end apartments and games of golf Hundreds would be displaced Neighbors would scatter far and wide So the gentry could move into place Families living in mobile homes With many mouths to feed Would be “re-zoned” out of housing In the name of corporate greed

“There’s money to be made,” they said, “Along the grassy BANK$,” “In the long run, we are helping you,” “The least you could say is ‘THANK$!’”

One by one, The People spoke In humble but righteous voices Simply pleading to keep their homes And questioning the City’s choices

Some Council members sympathized But their votes were outweighed The mayor stood and philosophized But the decision was already made

Many called out the developers’ names Though they never showed their faces The Council heard some troubling claims Of corruption and other disgraces After hours of words from community Council members took their turns La Catrina watched at home on TV Would the Council sound concerned?

“There’s nothing we can do!” they claimed “A new mandate points South!”

“You’re in the way of progress,” “So shut your big fat mouths!”

Children, men and women cried They couldn’t change the facts All the people and their pets Would be booted from their tracts —Anoni

La Muerte, watching the day unfold Has developed her own proposition Her warning applies to us all, my friends So be mindful of your position: People who put self-interest ahead Of those who have less than they do Will soon enough hear a Developer’s bid For them to be “re-zoned” too!

— Amanda Haas

En La Zona

–Posada

La muerte, harta de mitins, observa el Concilio en la cable de su casa. ¡Que vergúenza lo que hacen!

Codicia corporativa y dinero aquí reinan Las súplicas de la gente — ¡Ni les entra en la mente!

Politicos ambiciosos Aquí va la advertencia El que zonas imponará ¡Muerte pronto lo sonará!

Gente pobre de Mission Trails deslojan de sus hogares creando una zona nueva ¡Que cada traila se mueva!

Los empresarios deciden — el Concilio, de acuerdo Hay que hacer vía al progreso ¡A la gente, ni un hueso!

—Xoteaz

LA VOZ de ESPERANZA • November 2014 Vol. 27 Issue 9• P.11

Los Supremes were having a fitful sleep For months it seemed they barely peeped But like most toddlers needing a nap They stomped and argued and started a flap.

Los Supremes

—Posada

—Enrique Sánchez

El otoño ya llegó.

Estación del año comprendida entre el verano y el invierno.

Los que aspiran varios puestos se la pasan corriendo.

Gastan sumas fabulosas y la cosa sigue ardiendo.

Se fueron los cuates Castro y representan a Tejas Ojalá hagan bien su trabajo y no se les caigan bandejas.

No vale la pena incluír al más gastador al que viaja sin cesar Comentó La Catrina, “Ya es tiempo demandarlo a volar.”

Los Politicos - Castro

a z n a r e p s E e d LaLaVo VVozozdede Epseprearnaznaza

She put the trolley plan on hold, Which really was a huge relief.

Think twice about Ivy Taylor.

She said “no” to the NDO. Now she has become the mayor.

Devils sing her praises below.

Mayor Ivy Taylor

*CAFTA - Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA)

—Alegra Gordís

con venas abiertas y sangre ardiente algun dia nos despertaremos y ya no seremos el títere de los Estados Unidos

can we blame them for leaving with no work, no jobs, just bleeding our countries are left intellectually depleted pero CAFTA si sobrevive

Now our unaccompanied children roam the train tracks searching for mother or father or no one, at that

Violence storms our cities and murders infect our native lands that the santa muerta alone cannot make its own rounds as planned

United Fruit Company workers to the victims of the Battalion 316 countless years of economic strangulation even wars with stories still left untold

Waves of people surge the border products of supposed protections but in reality we are products of oppressions

lloran sangre roja de los niños, ancianos, madres y luchador@s indígenas

Las Calles de Centro America

2014

— Nadine Saliba

Enough killing – even figuratively – except for war’s bloody parade.

Whom do I want to kill in my calavera-tirade?

The pilot or the journalists and the condescension they conveyed?

A woman serving in the army is not progress, it’s a charade ISIS has its own all-women unit called al-Khansaa Brigade

It is not a triumph of feminism Bombing people from up high Your astonishment betrays your sexism and racism Shocked that an Arab woman learned to fly!

Western mainstream media is all over the story A woman from the Emirates is flying a warplane But she deserves neither praise nor glory Dropping bombs is not women’s liberation, it’s insane

War’s “Feminism”

—jo reyes-boitel

They squabbled on the government playground Ending our choice with their decisions unsound Electing that corporations can screw the people While they walked off looking all cheerful

People are left scrambling not only to choose But can’t walk through crowds justified by a 1st Amendment fuse.

Put Los Supremes to bed with hot cocoa and a story Hoping their nightmares illuminate our new life in purgatory.

—Brandon Maldonado

— Janie Cepeda

es Drácula con sangre en los colmillos “a mí ya no me engañas con artimañas”

al Condado de Maricopa en Arizona y directo va con el aguacil Joe Arpaio

La Huesuda lo desnuda hasta el calzón

por perseguir y humillar a tanta gente

le dice riendo La Catrina muy dientuda –

ahí va un injusto aguacil panzón tieso al panteón

“tus papeles valen menos que claveles”

de color rosa y se lo lleva en su carretón

LA VOZ de ESPERANZA Nov 2014 • Vol. 27 Issue 9 • Page 13

que todavía tiene disfraz de Halloween

La Catrina llega indocumentada como mariposa

—© Francisco X. Alarcón

pero prónto a éste continente llegó ¿!! Como fue!!? ¿Pero, cómo sucedió?

Que ni el Vicks ni las velas, ni las limpias lo detuvieron y con todo Americano arrasó!

— Janie Cepeda

Por allá en Ferguson donde los rinches son racistas y sadistas, se enfriaron al inocente Michael Brown.

Le quitaron la Vida con 6 balazos diciendo que él fue el que atacó?

Luego el maldito Darren Wilson, escondido en un rincón, escuchaba los lloridos repetidos en su almohada...

“Hands up don’t shoot!

Hands up don’t shoot!!”

Y de allí mismo La Pelona al meritito infierno se lo llevó!

Darren Wilson

CALAVERA INDOCUMENTADA CARGA CON EL AGUACIL JOE ARPAIO

En los lugares lejanos del Africa, el Ebola virus se estendió, matando a todos sin excepción .

Mientras en las Américas decían que el Ebola no cruzariá mares,

EBOLA

—Rachel Jennings

With Hays Street Bridge, she drank the brew.

You can see where I am going.

When she takes a progressive view, Hell’s red hot skies will be snowing.

Please, City Council, just grow mold.

Lame ducks: no harm. That’s my belief.

Por la Vuelta- Perry

Por ser fiél a su partido, y traer la rienda suelta “La Catrina” lo paró y le dió su media vuelta ¡Como viajaba y gastaba ese hombre!

Mandó Perry a la guardia nacional que cuidara la frontera Pues estaban entrando muchos niños.

Imagínense el gran gasto que no lo hace cualquiera.

—Enrique Sánchez

Los hermanos Castro, Julián y Joaquín

LA VOZ de ESPERANZA • November 2014 Vol. 27 Issue 9•

Llegaron juntos al punto al fin.

A la misma pachanga fueron invitados, A la misma mesa se hallaron sentados.

La música de Lydia Mendoza encantaba A todo la gente feliz que entraba.

Los hermanos platicando juntos con risas, Entre gente, fiesta, la luna, y brisas.

Ricos tacos, guacamole, deliciosas fresas, Multisensorialmente una vida buena, Dos por dos tomaron sus cervezas, Dos por dos, durante la cena.

Ray Rice KO’d Janay, his wife, with a single blow to the face.

Their marriage had been one of strife.

Janay’s life was a lonely race.

If he had known of the filmed punch, wholly taped by his own devil, the Raven would have lost his lunch.

El diablo rang the fire bell.

Screwtape and Ray rushed down pell-mell on the elevator to Hell.

—Rachel Jennings

Y luego el plieto salió de repente, Tocante cual de ellos sería un buen presidente.

Como los dos califican, y los dos andaban pedo, Los dos querian ser presidente, primero.

Se empujaron, y gritaron, y se dieron patadas, guitarazos, y riatazos, carreras olvidadas.

Los hermanos Castro, Joaquín y Julián, Por causa de esa noche fatal, jamás correrán.

—José Sánchez

Ted Cruz has no shoes,

not fancy shoes, nor silly shoes, nor shoes in which to dance the blues.

The shoes he really ought to choose are shoes you see in all the news: the shoes of babies never fed; the shoes of those who have no bed; the shoes of us who have no meds.

The shoes instead that Cruz does shine are worn by those who drink fine wine; the rich, the lucky, and the blind J o s e G uada to whom he gladly takes a shine. lu Power, money, stolen votes-P os a da sadness, hurt and dying hope are Cruz’s gifts to all of us he daily shoves beneath the bus.

Hate, hypocrisy, and greed he spews from every hill and ditch; but Teddy will get his some day, for Karma is a fickle bitch.

—Belva McKann pe

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Ray Rice

—Cecilia Sánchez Duarte

BUSCA JUSTICIA CATRINA Por los pasillos corría, de la Corte Colorada, Buscaba desesperada, la Katrina angustiada. ¿A quién buscas, mi huesuda?

El Juez Canales pregunta, Le dicen “La Peace and Justice”, Su nombre “La Esperanza” Quiero me haga justicia, De la fama que yo tengo, Búscate otro defensor, De esas cosas no defienden, Todos comen saludable, nadie se quiere morir Vete a buscar a Perry, Casi muerto el pobre está, Leave alone a San Antonio, ¡Qué tenga su fiesta en paz!

—Guadalupe Segura

Davy Crockett

Calaveras y Haikus Ceiba Real (El Fin de un árbol)

Here we love our Davy Crockett.

If it is coonskin, we stock it.

He was King of the Wild Frontier.

Two months in Texas, he died here.

What did that hillman’s short life mean?

Figuring it out gives me spleen.

He loved Pretty Polly in life.

Now old Catrina is his wife.

— Rachel Jennings

Bill Moyers

, Our own a Baptist from hot Texas, knows what Hell’s game is.

—tk tunchez

Koch Brothers

These Kochs, who are they?

I don’t want them in my day.

Out, devils, away!

Amy Goodman, yup, tells Satan his game is up.

To her, a mere pup.

Rachel Maddow, yes, interviews Hell’s worst, her guests.

A great journalist!

—Rachel Jennings

Hermoso árbol era ésta ceiba real Árbol que el hombre usaba para su bien.

Era frondoso y su fruto (kapok) Se usaba para hacer almohadas Y su sombra bienvenida en las tardeadas Por la ignorancia del hombre fué cortado Quemado y sus cenizas desparramadas.

— Enrique Sánchez

Pobre Joe López,

Ese de la Gallista, Que murió en su silla Durante una entrevista.

Nota: Este árbol dejó de existír en un hogar situado en la calle Zarzamora Le preguntaron si sabia entre las calles Salinas y Martin en San Antonio. ¡Qué lastima!

De donde venian sus ideas, Pero pobre Joe no entendia Aún que se sentía muy de aquellas.

Y empezó a cantar, y bailar, Y gritó – ésta entrevista ha terminado!

Y se cayó pa’tras en su silla, Y allí se quedó sentado.

Ya no pintó gallos Ni la gente de los labores Ni las canicas, ni las florecitas, Ni las troquitas de todos colores.

Y hay se quedó muerto, Inerto, acabado, sentado, Y lo dejaron como una estatua En su galeria permanente desdibujado.

—José Sánchez

ÁNIMO Y CONCIERTO La muerte andaba rondando asomando su esperpento con la alegría abundando prefería aburrimiento

¿Y cómo no alebrestarse con ritmos maravillosos? no hay por qué aplatanarse con artistas fabulosas

En San Antonio la gente muy contenta se encontraba de ver a la Lila alegre que sus canciones cantaba

El lugar, impresionante de magia se desbordaba y unos cuantos asistentes por todo se molestaban

Al final ellas ganaron hasta Graciela ayudó ya que el público encantado enfrente se amontonó

Al principiar la función cual gallina fue pisada, por el hombre de acordeón, y la gente fascinada

El escándalo empezó al bailar dos profesoras el ritmo las contagió, del decoro destructoras

Pero como nunca falta Catrina, muy amargada llega y todos asalta y acaba la gran velada.

Su música conmovió a su público adorado en cada canción entregó su espíritu enamorado

Porque así las acusaron, asistentes preocupados, que “qué vergüenza” causaron querían a todos sentados

—Rita E. Urquijo-Ruiz

“Paloma negra” se oyó muy fuerte, muy poderosa ya que Lila la cantó con una voz lastimosa

Ni la Rosana, ni Rita hicieron caso de nada con música favorita, untada la regañada

LA VOZ • November 2014 Vol. 27 Issue 9•

El 31 de agosto al Majestic recaló la famosa Lila Downs que todo el teatro llenó

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Gubernatorial Math

MONSANTO MONSTRO

Abbott’s slush-fund blues Davis’s filibuster shoes Guv Wendy it is!

—Cathy Marston

DEMONIO DE LA TIERRA ¡VENGOA MATARTE! —Aribán Chagoya

“La Katrina cuenta los regalos de CPS Energy”

HUD Secretary Julián Castro

Nuclear waste, coal lung disease, dirty fossils: gifts from our city.

—Alice Canestaro-García

Julián Castro of Harvard: City Council member, mayor, and now Secretary of HUD. Could his core values be grayer?

Chief William McManus

Housing, no, but development for high rises, hotels, and banks.

I never knew that HUD was meant to give condos to the rich swanks.

—Rachel Jennings

Chief McManus hates panhandlers.

He has no love or good manners.

To him the homeless are a stain.

The rich are nice, the poor a pain.

Where can the homeless sleep tonight?

Where will they be safe and all right?

Travis? Pecan? Navarro? Main?

Nowhere. No place. That much is plain.

LA VOZ de ESPERANZA • November 2014 Vol. 27 Issue 9•

When can the hungry get some food?

When McManus is in the mood?

When can the weary get some rest?

When Weston or Frost thinks it’s best?

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No rest at all for the weary.

Their feet are tired, their eyes bleary.

Of police they must be wary.

The streets are hard, tough and scary.

Chief McManus will see the day, perhaps in March, perhaps in May, when he is hot, smelly and tired.

To roast him, Hell’s grills will be fired.

In marinade, he will be mired.

No one below will be famished unless McManus is banished.

He might, of course, break Hell’s window and flee until he has vanished.

Hell’s police will catch him, though.

—Rachel Jennings

—Ed Escobedo

UNDOCUMENTED CALAVERA COMES FOR SHERIFF JOE ARPAIO the undocumented and dressy Catrina arrives as butterfly

with blood trickling down from fangs

the Bony-One undresses him exposing his pink

to the County of Maricopa in Arizona

“Joe, you can’t dupe me anymore with your tricks”

underwear and carries him off on her cart

she directly goes for Sheriff Joe Arpaio

Catrina tells him off laughing with her long front teeth –

“your papers here aren’t worth what worms”

who’s still sporting his Halloween Dracula guise

for persecuting and humiliating so many people

here an unfair plump sheriff is led stiff to the graveyard © Francisco X. Alarcón

La Gloria

Yearly she calls out Earlier and earlier Calaveras all!!

—jo reyes-boitel

Death of a Run

Perry indicted Thank you, La Santa!

President? Hell no!

—Cathy Marston

—Stella Marroquin

—

Ana

S

o an d

va l

But, wait, says Gloria 2015 is quite near Send them now, and here!

—Xoteaz

El Pueblo’s Poet Laureate (Honoring José Montoya)

Tu familia, amistades, el pueblo de tu corazón Warrior, maestro, composer of human poetry Artista’s flor y canto gave us tapestries of life Colors of justice, songs of hope, the call to action Litanies of nuestra historia, cultura cura, y destino Chicanismo; beauty and belonging to La Raza Cósmica

Pueblo’s prayer of love brought you to the crossroads Supplications to Tata Dios, Ometeotl, La Virgen Farewell scenes of reminiscence; reckoning; veneration We offer ceremonies of gratitude and peaceful passage The pueblo’s poet laureate draws his last three breaths Sweet sunset of courage, dignity, humility; eternal harvest of love Poem by: Frank de Jesús Acosta Image: José Montoya, Royal Chicano Air Force (RCAF) One-year Anniversary of Passing (September 25, 2013)

BASS REEVES

Sisters and Miners

by Rachel Jennings --in memory of Julie Jennings, 1962-2014

In the front yard, my father has grown tomato vines, not mums, around the rotten stump of the maple—our old third base, but known, too, as my sister’s place, to honor custom.

Growing up, each of us claimed a tree below which a child could build a nest or stir a stew of leaves and grass.

Aged 51, alcoholic, my sister died last March.

My parents buried her by their own plots atop a ridge that overlooks the county jail, the Clinch River, and train cars filled with coal and wood chips. Grandview Memorial Garden sits but a few miles from Leach Cemetery, where many killed in the ‘02 inferno are buried around a granite obelisk in the Fraterville Miners’ Circle.

The mystery is how the silent speak: the dead in graves, coal miners in tunnels, the cloistered in convents, lawbreakers in cells.

History is often overlooked and fails to generate interest amongst most people. It is often perceived as boring and a wasteful use of time. However, those perceptions are gradually changing as more information becomes available. As a child of the 60s, I never saw a lawman of color on those Saturday morning TV westerns! As I grew older, I learned of Pat Garrett, Wild Bill Hickok, Doc Holliday, The Earps and The Pinkertons. Recently, a dear friend and mentor of mine sent me some material describing Bass Reeves, a little known historical figure from the Old West. Elated and curious about Mr. Reeves, I chose to learn more about him and his story.

Bass Reeves was a former slave appointed by Judge Isaac Charles Parker as a US Deputy Marshall in Indian Territory in 1875!

He was known for having used disguises and incredible tracking skills. He lived amongst Native Americans and learned several of their languages! He was also a skilled horseman and shooter! Sounds familiar? It did to me! It is more likely than not, that the legendary stories of “The Lone Ranger” were inspired by Bass Reeves’ legacy.

Read more about Bass Reeves in the digital library of Oklahoma State University: http://digital.library.okstate.edu. Also, at the US Marshals Museum website: www.usmarshalmuseum. com. There are also books

by Art T. Burton that are available.

History may not be as boring if more stories are brought to the forefront.

Hopefully, you will explore History with renewed vigor!

Learn more about the heroes and legends who have been overlooked. Share their legacies. Who knows? Some may be your own ancestors!

—Junko Williams

LA VOZ de ESPERANZA • November 2014 Vol. 27 Issue 9•

This July, my mother serves sliced tomatoes heaped on a platter.

Their texture is tender, their taste tangy.

Their dark fire reminds me of sunsets.

As I spear the meat with my fork, seeds, juice, and bits of pulp spill onto the tablecloth.

—Brandon Maldonado

Beautiful heart of the spirit warrior Lifetime of loving, creativity, sacrifice In the twilight of your journey; only grace Malady could not deny a last sweet sunset Smiling upon the harvest of your milpa Surrounded by grateful flowers

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Tienda de Postín (Joske’s)

Desapareció Joske’s ocultamente.

De prónto apareció en el diario Una foto de lo que fué Joske’s.

Creo que la razón que tomaron Ésta foto aereal fué para que la gente No hiciera alboroteo y preguntaran porqué Destruyeron ésta histórica tienda.

— Enrique Sánchez

Lerma’s

La Catrina anda buscando, Por Susana preguntando, Quiero en Lerma’s celebrar, con la Música de “Pavo”, Al ritmo del Acordeón, el esqueleto mover.

No hay dinero todavía, Ya mero será ese día, en que Lerma’s abrirá y con pavo a “Pavo” celebramos, a Selena y los demás….

—Guadalupe Segura

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—Elva Treviño

LA VOZ de ESPERANZA • November 2014 Vol. 27 Issue 9•

by Norma L. Rodriguez my grandfather, was a rancher and farmer in Hidalgo County, Texas. Through the years he took on the additional roles of schoolteacher, postmaster, deputy sheriff and school board member. He took an active interest in education and politics to better serve the needs and improve the rights of the disenfranchised.

In 1896, 1898, 1900 and 1902 Antonio was certified to teach the primary grades in Hidalgo County. For a schoolhouse to teach his children and those of the ranch community, he used a storeroom adjacent to the homestead that he had built for his wife, Antonia. Both buildings were constructed by Antonio from sillar (mixture of lime and clay) .

For over a century the little schoolhouse has been referred to as la escuelita by family members. According to Antonio’s daughter Adela (1900-1986), when people asked Antonio if he was going to continue teaching, he answered, “Voy a dar clases aquí hasta que venga alguien que verdaderamente sepa lo que esta haciendo.” (I am going to continue teaching

here until someone comes along who really knows what he or she is doing.)

In 2003 Richard Martínez, Antonio’s grandson, restored the homestead and schoolhouse. While visiting the homestead, I am drawn to la escuelita. As I cross the threshold, I imagine I hear children’s voices. In my mind’s eye, I see the schoolchildren in la escuelita. They are seated around a long wooden table as Antonio teaches the three R’s. The younger children recite the alphabet.

The older read from their readers, solve arithmetic problems, write spelling words or practice penmanship on slates. He works patiently with each pupil. What an idyllic place this must have been in the early 1900’s.

Tragically, in 1915 this pastoral lifestyle came to an end when Antonio and his father-in-law, Jesús Bazán (18471915) were murdered on the Bazán Ranch by Texas Rangers in an atrocious act of violence. With much fortitude and faith, Antonia and her

mother, Epigmenia, and other family members gave the children the love and support to overcome the struggles they faced without a loving father and grandfather. Despite the great loss in their lives, and harsh economic times, the children forged ahead and eventually became highly regarded citizens who gave back to their communities in myriad ways. They encouraged the next generation to embrace education, as have succeeding generations, thus fulfilling Antonio’s legacy.

This literary ofrenda is dedicated to Richard Martínez, a good steward of the land and its historic structures, who today maintains the restored homestead, where his mother was born, and la escuelita on his ranch in memory of our ancestors. v

JUNE 30, 1960 -

MARCH 1, 2013

Bio: Dolores Zapata Murff, LPC-INTERN, was recently diagnosed with Breast Cancer and is taking time to heal and write. Creating Art is a passion and she uses it with her patients and clients. Dolores shares her love of art with Magdalena Alvarado, her partner of almost 10 years. (just look at the walls)!!

My heart and stomach seem Linked 170lbs on my chest Countless more upon my head I could have done without This sea of salty tears Good time words Beer flavored kiss How far can you fall from cloud 9 My safety net with massive holes Not yet repaired Not yet sewn Gaping like a mouth wide with Woe Tumble down further, dear sweet Rabbit A nest made out of shedded hair Like you were never away Like you belong here —Sandi Reyes, poem & artwork

Manuel

You were the perfect child, always obedient, The good son, the ideal brother, the cherished friend So handsome, so tall, so perfect in every way.

Everyone just radiated toward you.

But you had a secret, one that you thought no one would understand at that time.

So when you came of age, you left because you could not be yourself.

You left your world to save your family and friends from what you thought would be shame.

You sacrificed security and comfort for your loved ones’ sake.

You wandered far to keep us from the secret.

But the secret was always known, we chose to ignore it.

I am sorry we did not say, “ Stay, everything will be fine, we love you. “ When we finally accepted the secret, it was too late.

We were with you when you died, but does that make up for the past?

Even after your death, some of us were still afraid of the secret.

People would ask the cause of death, the reply was “stomach cancer.”

We denied you acceptance in life and now even in death.

At the end, I know you forgave us, but how do we forgive ourselves? — Amalia

LA VOZ • Nov. 2014 Vol. 27 Issue 9•

I can still hear her voice “I could have danced all night, singing along with me. How I could have danced all night... do I describe, introduce, and still I’d ask for more...I could present to you, my dearest of have spread my wings and done a dearest friends? WE LOVED thousand things...”

EACH OTHER…ah yes! We —song from My Fair Lady used to say to my kids, that we were going to grow old together…then we would go into a slapstick routine that we developed after living, loving, welcoming new people, saying goodbye to others for 33 years. We had many sayings too…like…. “oh NOooooooo Miz Thang ….YOU are not going out looking like THAT!” “We gots to look Vogue” or we would sing “red red wine…” or “slipping away to Margaritaville” you see she was my bestfriend and we’d break out into a favorite movie scene like in BEACHES… “I wrote you everyday…if you would have opened just one of my letters …JUST ONE..” or “WHY? WHY CHRISTINA? DO YOU NOT SHOW ME THE RESPECT THAT MY FANS SHOW ME…WHY?” “Because, MOTHER, I AM NOT ONE OF YOUR FANS!” CINDI spent 33 years being my friend, my angel, my co-parent at times. We met at Datapoint…Loyd was our boss. She thought I was stuck up….I thought she was too. But, somehow, no one else liked either one of us. We noticed that WE actually LIKED each other. This is a friend ship that is NOT without the occassional misunderstanding..We had many… lol..like any old married couple (Oh. yeah!)

Cindi was there for my divorce from Juan, she was there during the courtship and marriage of my second husband..she was there for the birth of two of my children and grandchildren..she was like a sister-wife I guess. My children adored her….although once while she babysat for two weeks, one of my girls called her a BITCH. When we got back from our trip she told us during dinner, in front of the girls, because that’s how we rolled.

Cindy loved to dance…she introduced me to Salsa. We took classes, we used to hang out at a little bar on Hildebrand..cuz there were men that would ask us to dance…just dance.. She introduced me to the Gypsy Kings…Una Mor…was our favorite. Cindy loved life and she considered it part of her ministry to help those who were overwhelmed. She was always …just a phone call away….But, “Love Doesn’t Live Here Any More” and I WEEP….

Death of a Decade

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by Gloria Almaraz

LA VOZ • Nov 2014 Vol. 27 Issue 9•

T

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he celebration of November 11 as Veterans Day was created by a grateful nation to thank and to honor all who served honorably in the military – in wartime and in peacetime. The only exception to this premise has been the Vietnam veterans who were mistreated as a result of obeying their country’s orders to fight in South Vietnam.

From the 1960’s to the mid 1970’s, Vietnam placed a tremendous burden on the young men of that era. The U.S. was involved in the military strife taking place between North and South Vietnam. Upon high school graduation, thousands of 17 – 18 year olds, nationwide, were faced with the decision of whether to voluntarily join the military or be drafted into military service. Either choice would likely send them into Southeast Asia to fight in South Vietnam, a country that was virtually unknown to millions of Americans.

If these students were fortunate enough to be able to attend college, they were given a deferment until they completed their college education; and Uncle Sam waited for their graduation day to summon them to military service and send them to officer training school. My brother was one of these students.

At the time, the U.S. believed that, by not helping South Vietnam in its fight against North Vietnam, the entire region would become communist. This “domino effect” theory was not realized and proved to be a costly mistake in human terms that later resulted in over 58,000 American lives being lost and an even higher number of wounded soldiers. The Vietnam era lasted from 1962 to 1975. The years with the highest number of casualties were 1968, 1969, and 1967, in that order.

In Bexar County, more than 60,000 young men and women served in Vietnam. There were 362 casualties of which 169 (47%) were Hispanic. To date, there are still ten MIAs, Missing in Action, of which three are Hispanics (two are from the Edgewood District).

The listing, at right, reflects the schools with the highest losses. Space does not permit the entire list of local high schools to be included.

Statistical data were provided by Charles Calderon, a researcher with UTSA’s “Echo From the Wall” project, who has been collecting data on Vietnam casualties for more

than five years. The information is current, but the list is not conclusive as additional names continue to be received.

Annually, the Edgewood I.S.D. remembers its students who made the ultimate sacrifice at a very moving ceremony that includes the roll call of all Edgewood casualties.

During the Vietnam era, students at numerous American college campuses were protesting the U.S. involvement in Vietnam. President Lyndon Johnson’s political career was severely damaged because of his escalation of the “war” sending large numbers of American troops to fight in Southeast Asia. He refused to run for re-election knowing he would be defeated if he ran.

Furthermore, returning Vietnam veterans were subjected to the worst treatment ever experienced by military veterans.

They were jeered, called names, spat on, engaged in fights, denied employment, etc. The situation was so grave that the U.S. Congress passed the “Vietnam Era Veterans Readjustment Act of 1974” to try to end the discrimination that Vietnam veterans encountered trying to find employment or being denied employment benefits. I was an investigator with the federal agency that investigated these complaints.

Those of us who lived through the Vietnam era are very proud of the men and women who honorably served in Vietnam. Though many still have scars from that conflict, it is hoped that this mistreatment against veterans will never be repeated. As such, the federal government now proclaims all veterans as heroes and acknowledges their contributions for our national security.

If you have questions or information on a family member or friend who was KIA, Killed in Action, or MIA, Missing in Action, in Vietnam, please call Charles Calderon at 210.834.8514. v

HIGH SCHOOL Edgewood Lanier Harlandale Fox Tech Brackenridge

Anita Janet Cortez, August 17, 1931 - August 24, 2014

La Perla Tapatía, parte de Las Tesoros de San Antonio, siempre estará en el corazón de la Esperanza. —QEPD

LOSSES HISPANICS MIAS 36 35 2 24 24 23 11 21 19 19 15

—Melissa Hayes

Saturday November 1, 2014, 3-9:30PM @ Rinconcito de Esperanza, 816 S. Colorado 3pm: Cemetery tour of San Fernando #1 3:30-7:30pm: Face Painting 4pm: Música y danza — Son Jarocho

free family friendly event

4:30pm: Música — Bene Medina y Conjunto Aguila 5:30pm: Dance procession w/ Urban-15 6:15pm: Calavera Readings —Jesus Moron

7:30pm: Música: Las Tesoros de SA w/ Mariachi Durango 8:30pm: Música: Los de Esta Noche Viewing of Community Ofrendas Nov. 1: 3-9:30pm -and- Nov. 2-7: 10am-6pm

uin

• Hourly Raffles! (free tickets with each purchase) • Local and global homemade/ heartmade products!

• International eats and treats!

• Music, singing and dancing ALL day!

• JOIN US IN CELEBRATING 25 YEARS!

Fri & Sat

NOV 28-29 10am-6pM

LA VOZ de ESPERANZA • November 2014 Vol. 27 Issue 9•

• Over 100 Vendors rolling onto streets and patio!

• Fair trade, vendor-friendly, family fun!

la

tel

—S

q rro Ma

@ Esperanza peace & Justice Center, 922 San Pedro | free event | 210.228.0201 21

* community meetings *

Amnesty International #127 For info. call Arthur @ 210.213.5919.

Bexar Co. Green Party: Call 210.

471.1791 or info@bexargreens.org Celebration Circle meets Sun., 11am@SA Garden Ctr., 3310 N. New Braunfels. Meditation: Weds @7:30pm, Quaker Meeting House, 7052 Vandiver.

210.533.6767.

Adult Wellness Support Group of PRIDE Center meets 4th Mon., 7-9 pm @ Lions Field, 2809 Broadway. Call 210.213.5919.

Rape Crisis Center 7500 US Hwy 90W. Hotline: 210.349.7273 | 210.521.7273 Email: sgabriel@ rapecrisis.com

Energía Mía: Call 512.838.3351.

The Religious Society of Friends meets Sunday @10am @ The Friends Meeting House, 7052 N. Vandiver. | 210.945.8456.

LULAC Council #22198, Orgullo de SA, meets 3rd Weds, 6:30pm @ Luby’s, 911 Main Ave., Alamo Room.

To join e-mail: salgbtlulac@gmail.com NOW SA Chapter meets 3rd Wed’s.

For time and location check FB/satx.now | 210. 802.9068 | nowsaareachapter@ gmail.com Pax Christi, SA meets monthly on Saturdays. Call 210.460.8448

LA VOZ de ESPERANZA • November 2014 Vol. 27 Issue 9•

PFLAG, meets 1st Thurs. @ 7pm, University Presbyterian Church 300 Bushnell Ave. | 210.848.7407.

Parents of Murdered Children, meets 2nd Mondays @ Balcones Heights Community Ctr, 107 Glenarm | www. pomcsanantonio.org.

Fuerza Unida, 710 New Laredo Hwy. www.lafuerzaunida.org | 210.927.2294

The United Way Combined Federal Campaign is Here!

People’s Power Coalition meets last Thursdays | 210.878.6751

DIGNITY SA mass, 5:30 pm, Sun. @ Beacon Hill Presbyterian Church, 1101 W. Woodlawn. | 210.340.2230

Habitat for Humanity meets 1st Tues. for volunteer orientation, 6pm, HFHSA Office @ 311 Probandt.

22

Overeaters Anonymous meets MWF in Spanish & daily in English | www. oasanantonio.org | 210.492.5400.

Give to the Esperanza Peace & Justice Center at your workplace, today!

Use the appropriate code:

S.A. Gender Association meets 1st & 3rd Thursday, 6-9pm @ 611 E. Myrtle, Metropolitan Community Church.

Combined Federal Campaign (Gov’t/military) code: 77773

SA AIDS Fdn 818 E. Grayson St. offers free Syphilis & HIV testing | 210.225.4715 | www.txsaaf.org.

City of San Antonio: 8022

SGI-USA LGBT Buddhists meet 2nd Sat. at 10am @ 7142 San Pedro Ave., Ste 117 | 210.653.7755.

Bexar County: 8022 City/County I.S.D.s: 8022

Shambhala Buddhist Meditation Tues. 7pm & Sun. 9:30am 257 E. Hildebrand Ave. | 210.222.9303.

Proyecto Hospitalidad Liturgy meets Thurs. 7pm, 325 Courtland.

S.N.A.P. (Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests). Contact Barbara at 210.725.8329.

SA Women Will March: www. sawomenwillmarch.org|210.262.0654

Voice for Animals: 210.737.3138 or www.voiceforanimals.org

Metropolitan Community Church services & Sunday school @10:30am, 611 East Myrtle. Call 210.472.3597

SA’s LGBTQA Youth meets Tues., 6:30pm at Univ. Presby. Church, 300 Bushnell Ave. | www.fiesta-youth.org

State of Texas Employee Charitable Campaign: 413013

¡Todos Somos Esperanza!

For more info: call 210.228.0201 or email esperanza@esperanzacenter.org

Start your 2014 tax-deductible donations to Esperanza today!

La Voz Subscription $35 Individuals $100 Institutions

for more info call 210.228.0201

Please use my donation for the Rinconcito de Esperanza

Notas Notas YY Más Más

November 2014

A Night of Hope, a fund-raiser for the children of Gaza takes place Sunday Nov. 2nd, 6-9pm at The Episcopal Church of Reconciliation, 8900 Starcrest Dr. in San Antonio. The keynote speaker is Dr. Laila Al-Marayati, Chairwoman of KinderUSA. For tickets or donations see www.texansforpalestine.org or call 210.410.9007 or 210.410.7005.

Brief news items on upcoming community events.

Send items for Notas y Más to: lavoz@esperanzacenter.org or mail to: 922 San Pedro, San Antonio, TX 78212.

The deadline is the 8th of each month.

in Social Change program promotes the potential of artists to be catalysts for social change. Deadline: Nov. 12 at 11:59pm EST. Go to: www.surdna.org/rfp

An Autumn Oldies Dance on Nov. 14th featuring Sauce González and the Westside Horns from 8pm-12am will honor VietNam veterans and benefit the Frank Tejeda Texas Veterans Home at Pueblo Hall, 3315 Join Texas Families for Justice in a rally Northwestern Dr. Tickets: $15 presale at th Friday, Nov. 7 , 12-3pm on the South steps Janie’s Record Shop & Del Bravo Records. of the State Capitol in Austin, TX. CoCall 210.222.2023 for info. sponsored by Texas C.U.R.E., Texas Inmate Family Association, and Texas Voic- The SHUT DOWN the School of the es. | www.texasfamiliesforjustice.org Americas, Resist Empire & Militarization

The Center for Mexican American Studies (CMAS) at UT-Austin & the Society for the Study of Gloria Anzaldúa hosts “El Mundo Zurdo 2015: Memoria y Conocimiento, Interdisciplinary Anzaldúan Studies -- Archive, Legacy, and Thought” May 27-30, 2015 @ UT-Austin. Proposals for papers, panels, discussions, workshops can be submitted through November 15.

Send to: ssga2015.submittable.com/submit

Join the campaign to urge the US Post Office to honor civil rights leader Bayard Rustin with a stamp. The campaign is led by the International Court System and rally takes place at Fort Benning, GA. Nov. The Surdna Foundation has issued a rethe National Gay & Lesbian Task Force.

21-23 Visit SOAW.org/november or call quest for proposals to artists and nonprofit Read how to help at: www.rustinstamp.org 202.234.3440 for info. cultural arts groups. The Artists Engaging

Calling all Buena Gente!

Celebrate 25 years of Peace Market • El Mercado de Paz by helping us make this year the best mercado yet!

Donate “home-made” casseroles, desserts, and family comfort-foods from your casa.

Parlee,

t vendor eace Marke

2014 P

Volunteer to be part of this 2-day market and celebration bringing together pueblo, gusto, y arte de corazón • people, fun and heartfelt products!

To donate food, drinks or time as a buena gente volunteer during Peace Market call 228.0201! We need help: in the concession stand, with event logistics, with social media outreach, the hourly raffle and in the Esperanza tiendita.

A.K.A. Hochata

Haiku for my canine compañera

No tenga temor Mi compañera, Mitzi ¡Córrele, feliz!

—Carolyn Atkins

ARBOL VIVO

lIVING TREE © Francisco X. Alarcón

© Francisco X. Alarcón

el árbol suspira con la primera hoja que en otoño cae

el árbol se regocija con sus primeros brotes verdes de primavera –

el árbol llora con la última hoja que queda a la vista

dolor y alegría pérdida y ganancia todos parte de la vida

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—

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M

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q rro

the tree sighs as its first leaf falling in Autumn

the tree rejoices with its first green sprouts in Spring –

the tree weeps at its last leaf that is in sight

grief and joy lose and gain all part of life

LA VOZ de ESPERANZA • November 2014 Vol. 27 Issue 9•

—Michele

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LA VOZ de ESPERANZA • November 2014 Vol. 27 Issue 9• Centro esperanza por la paz y justicia presenta

25th Annual International

Saturday, Nov. 1st 3-9pm

&

@ Rinconcito de esperanza

816 S. Colorado

Nov. 1 & 2

Full schedule on p.21

muertosfest.com

Join us for our monthly concert series

Noche Azul

Peace Market Fri. & Sat. Nov. 28-29 10am - 6pm @ Esperanza Check pgs 21 & 23

La Voz de Esperanza

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TO CANCEL A SUBSCRIPTION EMAIL lavoz@esperanzacenter.org CALL: 210.228.0201

anza

sper

de E

Saturday Nov. 15th 8pm

@ Esperanza, $5 más o menos

for friends and family

Composed of 3 lines: 1ST LINE: 5 SYLLABLES, 2ND LINE: 7 SYLLABLES & 3rd: LINE 5 SYLLABLES. LIMIT 3 HAIKUS PER PERSON. Send to:lavoz@esperanzacenter.org

Ofrenda: Liliana Wilson’s Art of Dissidence and Dreams

BOOK RELEASE SATURDAY, DEC 6 6PM @ Esperanza FILM SCREENING: SATURDAY, NOV. 8 at 8PM @ Esperanza, $5