Mid-Month Benefit for Magu
Latinopia carries a good interview with Magu, and several notable video programs featuring Magu and his art.
The Lujan family asks gente to donate to assist with medical bills and the preservation of Magu's artwork and personal collection. The mid-August event at Pomona's dA Center for the Arts offers an opportunity to acquire a work from the artist's hand.
August 12 Special Preview
August 13-30, 2011
dA Center for the Arts
252 South Main Street, Pomona, CA 91767
Mailing address for checks:
Magulandia Fund, PO Box 94140, Pasadena, CA 91109
Francisco Alarcón and the moderators of the Facebook group Poets Responding to SB 1070 advance the following for your interest and commentary.
1. "No Books in the Barrio" by Leticia Diaz-Perez
2. "Caminante / Traveler" by Christopher Caskey
3. "Sueño" by Matt Sedillo
4. "My Mother's Hands" by David Iribarne
5. "La Pulga" by Nancy Aidé González
No Books in the Barrio
by Leticia Diaz-Perez
You can buy anything you want
in the
barrio
at
just about any time of the
day or
night
anything
I mean,
a-n-y-t-h-i-n-g.
You can buy
rice
rum
Raid
and
the lotto,
you can buy
booze
beans
batteries
and
Bustelo,
you can buy
soap
sex
salads
and
sundaes,
you can buy
calling cards
cold cream
candy
and condoms
and...
and...
and...
you can buy
ANY
drug of choice
you can buy
a-n-y-t-h-i-n-g-
at any time of the
day or
night
a-n-y-t-h-i-n-g
except
BOOKS
in the barrio.
Nope
can't buy
books
in the
barrio
no fancy bookstores with
cafe
au
lait
wifi
and
cheese cake-
nope
gotta go
much
much
lower
lower
for that-
way
way
down
down
to the
Upper
East Side
and rub elbows with the
upper
upper
types
who speak
"upper
class"
English
if, your want to buy
BOOKS
Yep,
you gotta pay the
$1.25 bus ride
that takes you from the
black and brown-toned part of town
to the pale faced territory of the
Gringo
if you want to buy
BOOKS
But...if you want to buy
anything else,
and I mean
a-n--y-t-h-i-ng-
except
BOOKS
then just
step right up!
step right up
and
walk right in
because we've
got what you need
and we're
open 24/7
in the barrio...
and hey
if you've got the
cash
we've got the
merchandise
know what I mean?
so
just step right up
step right up!
cause'
you can buy anything
you want
in the
barrio
anything
a-n-y-t-h-i-n-g
except,
BOOKS.
by Christopher Caskey
I am the Rincón Mountains
looking over Tucson.
I am the Sonoran Desert,
dust devils,
rising and falling over hard pan,
blowing,
but never blowing anything away.
I am the hawk
riding thermals
half a mile away.
I am the rodent that he sees
from half a mile
skittering, safe, into a hole.
I am the serpent that follows,
the skin he leaves behind,
too small for my new frame,
snake
and snake ghost at the same time.
I am the fence
that they are going to string across the valley
dividing what is mine from what is yours.
I am
Jamás,
dejes de amar,
dejes de soñar,
el amor es todo.
I am snow on saguaro
melting into nada
like exhaust from cars that are just passing through.
I am Interstate Nineteen
littered with rattle snakes and flat tires,
carrying our business from Nogales to Phoenix,
returning with America.
I am the gossip of dead things
rattling secrets in my bone voice,
a wash board basin,
playing Renaissance concertos translated into Mexican.
I am mojado,
crossing scrub land
with shin daggers and Gila monsters,
looking for a better life.
Sueño
by Matt Sedillo
Sueño
In tears
Praying quietly
In the back bus
Her face
Her frame
Unassuming
Untouched by the conquest
Pure Mixtec
But she
Speaks Spanish
And prays Catholic
Suffers quietly
Sacrifice
Prayer
And
Humility
Mark her days
Like her fingers
Over rosary beads
NAFTA
Has shaped
Her adult life
Uprooted
With her children
Planted in this soil
En un barrio
En Estados Unidos
Prop 187
ICE RAIDS
SB1070
And why don’t you just go home?
The marches
The petitions
The rallies
And this is my home!
Have defined
Their lives
She gave birth to dreamers
Who risk incarceration
Deportation
Separation
Of a family
For a vision
Of an America
That might fully include them
In tears
Unassuming
Praying quietly
In the back of the bus
On her way home
She dare not go
To the station
She wishes
Her children
Would learn
To take less risks
Learn to slip
Learn to live
Between the cracks
But they can’t
They were born
Of generations
Of struggle
Who saw injustice
Who lived by the sacrifice
Of small women
In the back of buses
Of men far
Too far from home
Toiling under
A sweltering sun
On hostile ground
Yet still willing
To plant in this soil
Of women
Who lived out the best
Years of their lives
On hands and knees
Cleaning the floors
Of those who could afford
To turn their nose
At the sight of their own waste
Children born
Of such sacrifice
Under such injustice
Under no circumstance
Can afford to waste any time
Nor turn their back
On historical mission
Nor turn back the clock
No by their very
Existence
They have no choice but to move
The hands of history forward
March through that long dark night
And into the light
Of justice
Of freedom
Promised us
Only by our ability
To envision it
But that vision
Is everything
Worth living for
Worth fighting for
Worth dying for
Worth throwing away
This sub American life for
A dream
More than worthy of sacrifice
So lo siento señora
Reza por ellos
El Sueño vive
Cause these kids today
They don’t play it safe
They are practically born
Dreaming
My Mother's Hands
by David Iribarne
They used to look big
coarse and little flabby like mine
where you couldn’t
see the definitions of her bones.
Now that’s all you see.
The veins as blue as can be
looking like they want to bulge out.
She prepares the bread
hitting the dough with her fists
slamming it with all her might.
She tosses it up and down.
I ask—“Are you alright?”
She says—“I am fine as always"
She never complained
but inside I knew she was not well
I look at how she hits the dough
I know that’s how she feels.
La Pulga
By Nancy Aidé González
Vibrant Dora and
Spongebob piñatas
sway in the wind
ready for a fiesta,
Vero Mango lollipops,
De la Rosa Peanut Mazapan candy,
and spoon suckers made
with Tamarind and chili,
wait patiently on tables
a taste of Mexico,
of home.
Ripe oblong
watermelons
red juice dripping,
Large strawberries
seeds smiling,
Fragrant papaya
mustard yellow,
Red and green
chiles dancing
in their bins
ready to be
made into
savory salsa.
Imitation Gucci
and Coach purses
place among tables,
later to be filled with lipstick,
wallets, and keys.
Bumpy leather
alligator boots
lined in rows
no teeth ,
await the warmth of
macho feet.
Cumbia, salsa,
old school ,
hip hop,
rap beats,
a fusion of
sounds
meshing into
a rhapsody.
Aromas of
churros,
carne asada ,
pozole,
menudo,
barbacoa ,
gorditas
and carnitas
tantalizing
and delicious
offerings from
food trucks.
Tricked
out bikes
with low seats
and high
handle bars
gleaming
chrome grips,
seats carefully covered
in plush velvet
on display
ready to
glide down
the boulevard.
Framed pictures
of Emiliano Zapata,
Pancho Villa, and
La Virgen de Guadalupe
Mexican symbols
to be remembered
revered.
Little girls with
Black pony tails,
Small Boys with
toy trucks,
wrinkled
women with
colorful house
dresses,
men with
large silver belt buckles,
women with
silver high heel
shoes,
men with
tattoos
sleeved
arms,
all looking for
small treasures,
a slice of happiness.
Flea market
smells,
sounds,
objects,
to be experienced
and enjoyed on
Sundays
after church.
© Nancy Aidé González, 2011
BIOS
1. "No Books in the Barrio" by Leticia Diaz-Perez
2. "Caminante / Traveler" by Christopher Caskey
3. "Sueño" by Matt Sedillo
4. "My Mother's Hands" by David Iribarne
5. "La Pulga" by Nancy Aidé González
Leticia Diaz-Perez
Leticia Diaz-Perez was born in Virginia and raised in Michigan.She attended the University of Michigan, where she graduated with a BA/English and American Literature and an MA/Spanish and Latin American Literature. While at the University of Michigan she co-hosted "Radio Caliente" at WCBN FM , one of the first Latino radio shows in the Ann Arbor area. It was at WCBN that she interviewed Latino writers Pedro Pietri, Tato Laviera, Trinidad Sanchez,Sandra Cisneros and Piri Thomas-inspiring her to start writing and telling her story.Leticia has taught Spanish at the University of Michigan and in the Michigan public school system. She also taught in the New York City public school system, (4th grade bilingual teacher) where she had the opportunity to work with a group of beautiful children who had recently arrived from the Dominican Republic.Leticia is currently working on her first book of poems, "Sugar from the Sky".
Christopher Caskey
Christopher Caskey received BA in creative writing and Spanish at SUNY Oswego. His MA in Spanish came from San José State University. He has taught Spanish for ten years and written poetry for fifteen.
Matt Sedillo
Two time national slam poet, Grandslam Champion Damn Slam Los Angeles CA 2011, published author as featured on KPFK and the Los Angeles Times.
I am the Rincón Mountains
looking over Tucson.
I am the Sonoran Desert,
dust devils,
rising and falling over hard pan,
blowing,
but never blowing anything away.
I am the hawk
riding thermals
half a mile away.
I am the rodent that he sees
from half a mile
skittering, safe, into a hole.
I am the serpent that follows,
the skin he leaves behind,
too small for my new frame,
snake
and snake ghost at the same time.
I am the fence
that they are going to string across the valley
dividing what is mine from what is yours.
I am
Jamás,
dejes de amar,
dejes de soñar,
el amor es todo.
I am snow on saguaro
melting into nada
like exhaust from cars that are just passing through.
I am Interstate Nineteen
littered with rattle snakes and flat tires,
carrying our business from Nogales to Phoenix,
returning with America.
I am the gossip of dead things
rattling secrets in my bone voice,
a wash board basin,
playing Renaissance concertos translated into Mexican.
I am mojado,
crossing scrub land
with shin daggers and Gila monsters,
looking for a better life.
Sueño
by Matt Sedillo
Sueño
In tears
Praying quietly
In the back bus
Her face
Her frame
Unassuming
Untouched by the conquest
Pure Mixtec
But she
Speaks Spanish
And prays Catholic
Suffers quietly
Sacrifice
Prayer
And
Humility
Mark her days
Like her fingers
Over rosary beads
NAFTA
Has shaped
Her adult life
Uprooted
With her children
Planted in this soil
En un barrio
En Estados Unidos
Prop 187
ICE RAIDS
SB1070
And why don’t you just go home?
The marches
The petitions
The rallies
And this is my home!
Have defined
Their lives
She gave birth to dreamers
Who risk incarceration
Deportation
Separation
Of a family
For a vision
Of an America
That might fully include them
In tears
Unassuming
Praying quietly
In the back of the bus
On her way home
She dare not go
To the station
She wishes
Her children
Would learn
To take less risks
Learn to slip
Learn to live
Between the cracks
But they can’t
They were born
Of generations
Of struggle
Who saw injustice
Who lived by the sacrifice
Of small women
In the back of buses
Of men far
Too far from home
Toiling under
A sweltering sun
On hostile ground
Yet still willing
To plant in this soil
Of women
Who lived out the best
Years of their lives
On hands and knees
Cleaning the floors
Of those who could afford
To turn their nose
At the sight of their own waste
Children born
Of such sacrifice
Under such injustice
Under no circumstance
Can afford to waste any time
Nor turn their back
On historical mission
Nor turn back the clock
No by their very
Existence
They have no choice but to move
The hands of history forward
March through that long dark night
And into the light
Of justice
Of freedom
Promised us
Only by our ability
To envision it
But that vision
Is everything
Worth living for
Worth fighting for
Worth dying for
Worth throwing away
This sub American life for
A dream
More than worthy of sacrifice
So lo siento señora
Reza por ellos
El Sueño vive
Cause these kids today
They don’t play it safe
They are practically born
Dreaming
My Mother's Hands
by David Iribarne
They used to look big
coarse and little flabby like mine
where you couldn’t
see the definitions of her bones.
Now that’s all you see.
The veins as blue as can be
looking like they want to bulge out.
She prepares the bread
hitting the dough with her fists
slamming it with all her might.
She tosses it up and down.
I ask—“Are you alright?”
She says—“I am fine as always"
She never complained
but inside I knew she was not well
I look at how she hits the dough
I know that’s how she feels.
La Pulga
By Nancy Aidé González
Vibrant Dora and
Spongebob piñatas
sway in the wind
ready for a fiesta,
Vero Mango lollipops,
De la Rosa Peanut Mazapan candy,
and spoon suckers made
with Tamarind and chili,
wait patiently on tables
a taste of Mexico,
of home.
Ripe oblong
watermelons
red juice dripping,
Large strawberries
seeds smiling,
Fragrant papaya
mustard yellow,
Red and green
chiles dancing
in their bins
ready to be
made into
savory salsa.
Imitation Gucci
and Coach purses
place among tables,
later to be filled with lipstick,
wallets, and keys.
Bumpy leather
alligator boots
lined in rows
no teeth ,
await the warmth of
macho feet.
Cumbia, salsa,
old school ,
hip hop,
rap beats,
a fusion of
sounds
meshing into
a rhapsody.
Aromas of
churros,
carne asada ,
pozole,
menudo,
barbacoa ,
gorditas
and carnitas
tantalizing
and delicious
offerings from
food trucks.
Tricked
out bikes
with low seats
and high
handle bars
gleaming
chrome grips,
seats carefully covered
in plush velvet
on display
ready to
glide down
the boulevard.
Framed pictures
of Emiliano Zapata,
Pancho Villa, and
La Virgen de Guadalupe
Mexican symbols
to be remembered
revered.
Little girls with
Black pony tails,
Small Boys with
toy trucks,
wrinkled
women with
colorful house
dresses,
men with
large silver belt buckles,
women with
silver high heel
shoes,
men with
tattoos
sleeved
arms,
all looking for
small treasures,
a slice of happiness.
Flea market
smells,
sounds,
objects,
to be experienced
and enjoyed on
Sundays
after church.
© Nancy Aidé González, 2011
BIOS
1. "No Books in the Barrio" by Leticia Diaz-Perez
2. "Caminante / Traveler" by Christopher Caskey
3. "Sueño" by Matt Sedillo
4. "My Mother's Hands" by David Iribarne
5. "La Pulga" by Nancy Aidé González
Leticia Diaz-Perez
Leticia Diaz-Perez was born in Virginia and raised in Michigan.She attended the University of Michigan, where she graduated with a BA/English and American Literature and an MA/Spanish and Latin American Literature. While at the University of Michigan she co-hosted "Radio Caliente" at WCBN FM , one of the first Latino radio shows in the Ann Arbor area. It was at WCBN that she interviewed Latino writers Pedro Pietri, Tato Laviera, Trinidad Sanchez,Sandra Cisneros and Piri Thomas-inspiring her to start writing and telling her story.Leticia has taught Spanish at the University of Michigan and in the Michigan public school system. She also taught in the New York City public school system, (4th grade bilingual teacher) where she had the opportunity to work with a group of beautiful children who had recently arrived from the Dominican Republic.Leticia is currently working on her first book of poems, "Sugar from the Sky".Christopher Caskey
Christopher Caskey received BA in creative writing and Spanish at SUNY Oswego. His MA in Spanish came from San José State University. He has taught Spanish for ten years and written poetry for fifteen.Matt Sedillo
Two time national slam poet, Grandslam Champion Damn Slam Los Angeles CA 2011, published author as featured on KPFK and the Los Angeles Times.David Iribarne
David Iribarne graduated from CSUS where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in English. He resides in Sacramento, CA where he has lived for 38 years. He works in social services and plans to enter the Masters of Social Work program in fall 2012. He has had several poems published in Poetry Now, Susurrus, Catchword, and won second prize in Sacramento News & Review’s student poetry contest in 2005. Iribarne has a book entitled Bones, Skin, and Soul which covers such subjects as breast and skin cancer. He also recently finished a chapbook entitled The Soul of Love.Nancy Aidé González
Nancy Aidé González is a Chicana poet, writer and educator. She currently resides in California’s San Joaquin Valley. Nancy began scribbling stories and poems in tattered notebooks in junior high. Writing is a wonderful and sometimes painful journey of self-discovery for Nancy.Nancy graduated from California State University, Sacramento with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English Literature. Miss González also has a Master’s degree in Education with an emphasis in School Administration from California State University, Stanislaus. She has been teaching in high-poverty schools with limited English proficient and migratory children for ten years. She enjoys teaching her students on a daily basis. Nancy believes the best part of teaching is seeing the light in her student’s eyes when they finally grasp a difficult concept. She also enjoys witnessing her students grow as individuals throughout the school year. Each year she tries to motivate her students to become lifelong readers and writers.
Francisco X. Alarcón is visionary behind this project, not me....
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