INTL CONF. ON HATE, CENSORSHIP and FORBIDDEN CURRICULA DEC 2-4

                                     INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE - TLAHTOKAN

COMBATTING  HATE, CENSORSHIP & FORBIDDEN CURRICULA

DECEMBER  2-4

UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA
YWCA
EL RIO COMMUNITY CENTER

TUCSON, ARIZONA

COMBATING

HB2281 - ANTI-ETHNIC STUDIES LAW

SB 1070 - RACIAL PROFILING LAW

REPEAL OF 14TH AMENDMENT (BIRTHRIGHT CITIZENSHIP)
OPERATION STREAMLINE 
PROP 107 (ANTI-AFFIRMATIVE ACTION)

AFFIRMING OUR HUMANITY

RODOLFO ACUNA  - LESLIE MARMON SILKO  - SIMON ORTIZ - ISABEL GARCIA - TUPAK E. ACOSTA - SEAN ARCE   CHERRIE MORAGA – CELIA RODRIGUEZ - RAMSES NORIEGA - ANA O'LEARY - KARA BRIGGS -  ANITA FERNANDEZ – ANDREA ROMERO ZARCO - SANDY SOTO – DAMIAN BACA - CELESTINO FERNANDEZ - SALVADOR REZA - DULCE JUAREZ  - MARIA F. BRUMMER – JOSE GONZALEZ – NORMA GONZALEZ  - MANUEL DE JESUS HERNANDEZ-G.,  RAQUEL RUBIO GOLDSMITH - KEVAN CHUC - JULIO CAMMAROTA - GUADALUPE CASTILLO - JAMES ANAYA - AUGUSTINE ROMERO – CARLOS MONTES - LUCI TAPAHONSO - ELENA DIAZ BJORKQUIST - CIHUATL CE -  NICO-POETS DEL NORTE - FELICIA FE MONTES - FRANCISCO ALARCON – MIXPE-  STELLA POPE DUARTE – AMANDA HOLM – HEDY TREVINO – ELIAS SERNA – ALEX SOTO - TOLTEKA (Partial List)

CALL FOR PROPOSALS EXTENDED TIL OCT 15: PLEASE SEND A 150-WORD SYNOPSIS OF PROPOSED PRESENTATIONS OR PANELS BY OCTOBER 15 TO E-ADDRESS BELOW. THOSE ACCEPTED WILL BE NOTIFIED NO LATER THAN OCTOBER 25. PRESENTATIONS & PANELS CAN BE SCHOLARLY OR CREATIVE, BUT ALL SHOULD REVOLVE AROUND THE THEME OF THE CONFERENCE/FLORICANTO, PARTICULARLY AS IT RELATES TO ARIZONA.

PURPOSE: WHILE THE WORLD HAS COME TO KNOW ABOUT SHERIFF ARPAIO & THE DRACONIAN ANTI-IMMIGRANT LEGISLATION - SB 1070 & THE FORTHCOMING EFFORT TO ELIMINATE BIRTHRIGHT CITIZENSHIP IN ARIZONA. LESS ATTENTION HAS BEEN PAID TO THE INQUISITION-STYLE MEASURE  HB 2281 - A PIECE OF LEGISLATION WHOSE CLEAR INTENT IS BOTH TO CENSOR WHAT CAN BE TAUGHT IN ARIZONA SCHOOLS AND TO ELIMINATE ETHNIC/RAZA STUDIES.

THE FOCUS OF THE CONFERENCE WILL BE THE STUDENT/EDUCATOR/COMMUNITY RESISTANCE TO THESE MEASURES (WE DON'T RECOGNIZE THEM AS LAWS) & RESISTANCE TO THE POLITICAL CLIMATE WE ARE LIVING. THIS ALSO INCLUDES THE DAILY  ATTACKS AGAINST PEOPLE OF COLOR AND SPECIFICALLY, AGAINST RED-BROWN PEOPLES OF THE STATE... FROM WHITEWASHING MURALS (PRESCOTT AZ) ... TO THE KANGAROO COURT KNOWN AS OPERATION STREAMLINE CONDUCTED DAILY IN TUCSON'S FEDERAL COURT, TO THE CONTINUED COOPERATION BETWEEN LAW ENFORCEMENT & THE MIGRA. THIS EVEN INCLUDES PUBLICLY BOOING PROFESSORS OFF THE STAGE (U OF A) FOR SPEAKING ABOUT THESE ISSUES.
 

DAY OF RECKONING: UNLESS HB 2281 IS HALTED, ON DECEMBER 31, 2010, THE RAZA STUDIES-TUSD DEPARTMENT WILL CEASE TO EXIST.

OPEN INVITE: SCHOLARS/STUDENTS FROM THROUGHOUT THE COUNTRY ARE ENCOURAGED TO ATTEND AND PRESENT, BUT MORE IMPORTANTLY, EVERYONE IS ENCOURAGED TO LEARN FROM THE COURAGEOUS YOUTHS/EDUCATORS AND COMMUNITY ACTIVISTS THAT HAVE CHALLENGED ARIZONA'S REPRESSIVE LEGISLATION. THE CHALLENGES HAVE INCLUDED A SUMMER RUN FROM TUCSON TO PHOENIX IN 115-DEGREE HEAT, ALL-NIGHT VIGILS, WALKOUTS, MARCHES, RALLIES, PROTESTS AND MASS ARRESTS. AT THIS CONFERENCE, YOU WILL ALSO BE EXPOSED TO RESEARCH BY UNDERGRADUATE & GRADUATE STUDENTS & FACULTY FROM ARIZONA  COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES,  PLUS EDUCATORS AND STUDENTS FROM THROUGHOUT THE RAZA STUDIES DEPARTMENT-TUSD.


PHILOSOPHICAL FOUNDATION: EDUCATORS, STUDENTS, ORGANIZERS AND COMMUNITY ELDERS WILL PRESENT THE PHILOSOPHICAL FOUNDATION FOR ETHNIC/RAZA STUDIES -- A DISCIPLINE THAT HAS BEEN UNDER INTENSE ATTACK SINCE ITS INCEPTION. THIS FOUNDATION - PART OF MAIZ-BASED KNOWLEDGE - IS THOUSANDS OF YEARS OLD AND INDIGENOUS TO THIS CONTINENT. THE STATE SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS HAS LABELED THIS KNOWLEDGE "UNAMERICAN," ALLEGING THAT IT LEADS TO SEGREGATION AND THAT IT CALLS FOR THE VIOLENT OVERTHROW OF THE U.S. GOVERNMENT -- THIS WHILE INSISTING THAT ONLY KNOWLEDGE ROOTED IN GRECO-ROMAN WESTERN CIVILIZATION IS WORTHY OF BEING TAUGHT IN ARIZONA SCHOOLS.

COSTS FOR THE CONFERENCE: FREE FOR STUDENTS/COMMUNITY.                             SUGGESTED $150 COLLEGE/UNIVERSITY FACULTY (NO ONE TURNED AWAY)

IN XOCHITL-IN CUICATL - FLORICANTO: CREATIVE EXPRESSION, FROM CON SAFOS THEATER, ZARCO, DANCE, PERFORMANCE ART, CORRIDOS, POETRY, SPOKEN WORD AND HIP HOP.


SPONSORED BY: UA-MEXICAN AMERICAN STUDIES - MEXICAN AMERICAN STUDIES-TUSD - YWCA-VOCES-TUCSON -PUENTE-ARIZONA - UA-MECHA - SOCIAL JUSTICE EDUCATION PROJECT - CALPOLI TEOXICALLI - NO MAS MUERTES  -NATIONAL WRITERS UNION, TUCSON CHAPTER  (UAW #1981), UA SEMILLAS  (PARTIAL LIST)

PRELIMINARY SCHEDULE

THURSDAY - 7AM RUN IN DEFENSE OF ETHNIC/RAZA STUDIES

THURSDAY 10AM OPENING CEREMONIES- UA MALL
CALPOLLI TEOXICALLI



THURSDAY OPENING DAY 11-3 PM KIVA STUDENT UNION- UA
UNDERGRADUATE & GRADUATE PRESENTATIONS


THURSDAY 3-4:30 PM REGIONWIDE MECHA SUMMIT
OLD MAIN AUD

OPENING RECEPTION - THURSDAY 5-10PM YWCA-TUCSON
FEATURING & HONORING RAZA STUDIES-TUSD STUDENTS-ALUMNI & TEACHERS/EDUCATORS
KEYNOTE: RODOLFO ACUNA - OCCUPIED AMERICA & RAQUEL RUBIO GOLDSMITH

FRIDAY SPECIAL PRE-CONFERENCE SESSIONS
8:AM-950 CHAVEZ 205-209
INDIGENOUS KNOWLEDGE BY SEMILLAS EDUCATORS
10AM-11:30 AM
DECOLONIZING RESEARCH 
11AM-NOON BOOK READINGS
ROSALIA SOLORAZANO & FRANCISCA J. HERNANDEZ -CHICANA STUDIES READER

FRIDAY NOON-1:30 COMIDA & PLATICA UA MALL
1PM EXHIBIT - MAIN LIBRARY


FRIDAY 2PM-10PM GALLAGHER THEATER-UA
CONFERENCE & CULTURAL PRESENTATIONS


FLORICANTO  SATURDAY DEC 4  NOON-7PM
EL RIO COMMUNITY CENTER  - 2 STAGES                                                                                                                                                        LESLIE MARMON SILKO - CHERIE MORAGA - TOLTEKA - CIHUATL CE - ZARCO - SAFOS THEATER - FRANCISCO X ALARCON -  JO ANN MIXPE LEY - FELICIA FE MONTES  - MARGE PELLEGRINO - MIXELLE RASCON - LALYA M. HERNANDEZ  LUCI TAPAHONSO - HEDY TREVINO - AMANDA HOLM - ELIAS SERNA 
(PARTIAL LIST) SUGGESTED DONATION FOR FLORICANTO: $20 - PROCEEDS WILL GO TOWARDS CONFERENCE.


UNDERSTANDING THAT NOT ALL WHO WISH TO PARTICIPATE WILL BE ABLE TO MAKE THE TRIP TO THIS POLITICAL DESERT, THIS HERE IS A CALL TO SUPPORT THIS CONFERENCE. SEND WHATEVER YOU CAN: $25, $50 or $100 IN THE NAME OF THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA FOUNDATION. SEND TO VERONICA VERALTA, DEPARTMENT OF MEXICAN AMERICAN AND RAZA STUDIES, UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA, CESAR CHAVEZ BLDG, 1110  E. JAMES ROGERS WAY, PO BOX 210023, TUCSON, AZ 85721-0023. 

FOR MORE INFO, CONTACT:
ROBERTO RODRIGUEZ AT MEXICAN AMERICAN STUDIES, UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA: RODRIGU7@EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU OR 520-626-0824

COLUMBUS DAY TRIAL FOR DEFENDERS OF RAZA STUDIES

By Roberto Dr. Cintli Rodriguez

The irony of standing trial on Columbus Day – for defending Tucson’s Raza Studies Program – is not lost upon the defendants. The philosophical foundation for Raza Studies-TUSD is maiz-based knowledge – knowledge that is both Indigenous to this continent, but also, at least 7,000 years old.

Despite this, the state superintendent of schools, Tom Horne – whose life mission is to eliminate Ethnic Studies in Arizona – believes that Raza Studies is “un-American,” this while embracing knowledge from Greece and Rome as the basis for Western Civilization and as acceptable for Arizona schools.

On May 14 of this year, a day after Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer signed HB 2281, legislation designed to eliminate Ethnic/Raza Studies, the police at Tucson’s state building detained a total of 15 student and community members for “criminal trespass.” The first trials, primarily of social justice students, are set for the morning of Oct 12.

Initially, after word had spread that Tom Horne was coming to Tucson to a meeting with TUSD administrators – one day after the signing of HB 2281 – hundreds of students and community members formed a human chain around the TUSD headquarters. His presence was interpreted as a victory lap. Wave after wave of students not simply surrounded the building, but the entire block itself.

Rather than face them, Horne instead opted to hold a press conference at the state building a couple of miles away.  Hundreds of students marched to, and then entered the state building, despite being told by officials that they were not welcome in this public building. Several dozen students attempted to enter the press conference on the second floor, but were locked out. As a result, they staged an impromptu sit-in. In the end, 15 refused to leave and were thus detained. Of those, 13 were arrested for criminal trespass. This included several middle, high school and college students. It also included two University of Arizona professors (including myself).

Of course, no charges were filed against Horne who has single-handedly set it as his life’s mission to eliminate the highly successful Raza Studies program. This program graduates students at a 97.5% rate and the college-going rate is upwards of 70%. Rather than export this program nationwide, this at a time of extremely high nationwide dropout-pushout rates, Horne seeks its elimination. He charges that it is “un-American,” that it promotes ethnic solidarity and that it breeds resentment against other races and the United States itself.

Through HB 2281, Horne has charged that Raza Studies promotes segregation and calls for the violent overthrow of the U.S. government. And true to form, HB 2281 creates false exemptions for American Indian Studies and African American Studies – a clumsy attempt to isolate Tucson’s Raza Studies and this community under siege.

HB 2281 sets up a state mechanism by which books and curriculums will be approved or disapproved. Worse, Horne’s actual intent is to rule Raza Studies-TUSD out of compliance and eliminate it by Dec 31, 2010. Despite his wishes, the state lacks the power to shut it down in such a dictatorial manner. The district would get a chance to appeal the decision before Raza Studies could be shut down.

On its face, Horne’s charges – that Raza Studies is out of compliance with a law that doesn’t even go into effect until Jan. 1, 2011 – is bizarre. Having never visited a Raza Studies classroom, he has demanded that TUSD videotape all Raza Studies classes. TUSD has rebuffed his demands.

That aside, a historic lawsuit is pending which will seek to prevent the state from implementing HB 2281. In this lawsuit, Horne will be greatly handicapped because TUSD has affirmed that Raza Studies is in full compliance. He is further handicapped because all the terms used in the legislation are ambiguous. For instance, the notion of what is American or unAmerican has never been litigated. What is ethnic and what constitutes ethnic studies has also never been litigated. The notion that teaching history via Raza Studies breeds resentment and hate also is ambiguous (and false), but it also tramples upon the traditional precept of academic freedom.

The danger of HB 2281 is that similar to SB 1070 – Arizona’s racial profiling legislation – it can also be replicated nationwide and it can also be expanded to the college and university levels. This is the importance of these Columbus Day trials and the forthcoming lawsuit. It is when and where Ethnic/Raza Studies will be defended.

·      Just several days ago, I was informed that my own trial was unexpectedly moved from Oct 21 to Oct 12 – which in actuality is nowadays, Indigenous Peoples’ Day.

·      On Dec 2-4, Mexican American Studies at the University of Arizona will host a conference on hate, censorship & forbidden curriculums:
http://drcintli.blogspot.com/2010/09/intl-conf-on-hate-censorship-forbidden.html

Rodriguez, a member of the MAS-TUSD community advisory board is a professor at the University of Arizona. He can be reached at: XColumn@gmail.com

Column of the Americas
PO BOX 3812
Tucson, AZ 85722

COUNTDOWN: TODOS SOMOS (WE ARE ALL) RAZA STUDIES

photo by Layla Marie Hernandez

COUNTDOWN: TODOS SOMOS (WE ARE ALL) RAZA STUDIES

By Roberto Dr. Cintli Rodriguez

Part 1 of a II Part Column

The lines have been drawn. Or rather, the date has been set and the countdown has begun. If Arizona State Schools Superintendent Tom Horne has his way, after Dec 31, 2010, Tucson Unified School District’s highly successful Mexican American Studies K-12 department will cease to exist.

Despite Gov. Jan Brewer having signed HB 2281, the anti-Ethnic Studies measure – in May of this year – supporters have good reason to feel confident that on Jan 1, Raza Studies will be alive and well.

The measure bans schools from teaching hate, anti-Americanism and the violent overthrow of the U.S. government. Horne, 2281’s “intellectual author,” claims that Raza Studies advocates these things, and promotes “ethnic solidarity” and results in racial segregation in schools.

The Draconian measure and Orwellian effort does not call for the outright elimination of Raza/Ethnic Studies. Instead, it calls for the withdrawing of 10% of district funds every month that a program is found to be out of compliance. For TUSD, that would amount to  $3 million per month, a sum it can ill-afford to lose.

The day after 2281 was signed and after Horne threatened to show up to TUSD headquarters to do a victory lap – hundreds upon hundreds of K-16 students and community activists laid siege to both TUSD headquarters and then later the state building, resulting in 15 arrests. During this siege, TUSD’s Board of Governors issued a May 14 statement from the acting superintendent. In its entirety, it reads:

“TUSD proudly supports our Ethnic Studies classes. We have no plans to eliminate or reduce course offerings. We believe these courses are relevant, engaging, meet state standards and are in full compliance with the law. Additionally, they are part our unitary status plan. We stand firmly behind our Ethnic Studies Department, staff members and students.”

The statements are a clear indication that if the program is ruled out of compliance, it will be the anti-thesis of local control and the epitome of foreign [state] intervention. His goal – as he has repeatedly stated – is to rule Raza Studies out of compliance and to eliminate it by the end of the year.

As a result, a historic lawsuit against Tom Horne is forthcoming. The consensus amongst Tucson’s Mexican American community is that come Jan. 3, Raza Studies will be fully operational – continuing to educate and inspire minds and continuing its successful mission of preparing its students to attend colleges and universities nationwide. This program is virtually an anti-dropout program (more than a 90% graduation rate) and more than that, it is now virtually a college student factory (upwards of 70%). But Horne doesn’t care about that. Instead, his primary concern is ensuring that only Greco-Roman knowledge – the purported basis for Western Civilization – is taught in Arizona schools.

Raza Studies grounds students in Critical Thinking, and in  Indigenous Pedagogies – on maiz-based or Maya-Nahua knowledge(s) that is thousands-of-years old and that originates on this very continent. Despite this, Horne and his legislative allies claim that Raza Studies is un-American. In court, Horne will have his hands full in defining these terms. Can things that originate in Greece and Rome be considered American, while knowledge that originates on the American continent be considered  un-American and not part of Western Civilization?

The measure makes a clumsy attempt to isolate Raza Studies; it allows for the teaching of the Holocaust and purportedly exempts both American Indian Studies classes [required by federal law] and African American Studies classes [that are open to everyone). These are false exemptions because all Ethnic Studies classes are open to everyone and there are no American Indian Ethnic Studies classes required by federal law.  Despite this, the measure appears to be a clear discriminatory effort to eliminate Raza Studies.

In the realm of definitions – will maiz-based knowledge also be ruled as not Indigenous or not “American Indian”?

The forthcoming lawsuit will be historic in nature. Think Monkey Scopes Trial or Brown v. Topeka Board of Education. What happens here in Arizona will set a legal precedent of not simply what can be taught in public schools – but also whether states have the right to restrict, censor, dictate, intimidate and overrule what  districts and educators can teach in local schools.

HB 2281 is the epitome of [cultural] mind control or forced assimilation. Ultimately, the struggle -- as depicted in the forthcoming Precious Knowledge documentary (http://vimeo.com/15062646 ) is about the inherent right – also enshrined in treaties and international laws – of children to learn about their own histories and cultures. At TUSD, it is about the right of all children to learn about these histories and cultures and thus the forthcoming lawsuit (Saveethnicstudies.org). 

Rodriguez, a professor at the University of Arizona and a member of the Mexican American Studies Community Advisory Board, can be reached at: XColumn@gmail.com

·      A national mobilization in support of TUSD’s Raza Studies is currently underway and the primary focus of National Ethnic Studies Week. For more information, go to: http://ethnicstudiesweekoctober1-7.org/

·      A National conference on hate, censorship & Forbidden Curriculums will take place at The University of Arizona Dec 2-4. For info: http://drcintli.blogspot.com/ or: rodrigu7@email.arizona.edu 

Column of the Americas
PO BOX 3812
Tucson, AZ 85722

COLUMN: http://drcintli.blogspot.com/

ARCHIVED COLUMN OF THE AMERICAS
http://web.me.com/columnoftheamericas


You change my way of writing, you change my way of thinking. You change my way of thinking, you change who I am.

TRILOGY OF TERROR by TOLTEKA:

HIP-HOP RENDITION OF TRILOGY OF TERROR, BASED ON MY JUNE 15 "FROM MANIFEST DESTINY TO MANIFEST INSANITY" COLUMN.

This hip-hop rendition was created to support our struggle in Arizona. It will soon be on sale to help support the Saveethnicstudies.org fund. Info forthcoming.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yiG8p1MUXxA

Leaving Footprints: Running for Justice

2010 Run In Defense of Tucson's Raza Studies

Leaving Footprints; Running for Justice

By Roberto Dr. Cintli Rodriguez

"We move energy the way our ancestors have shown us - in a way that enhances our humanity and brings beauty to our physical world." 

Maria Vai Sevoi, Calpolli Teoxicalli

In Arizona, we know that the eyes of the world are upon us.

Perhaps this is why many of us hold vigils and forums, why we march, protest, rally, get arrested… and run.

In the past several years, the Sonora desert has become a super magnet for the forces of hate, bigotry, ignorance, false patriotism, censorship, demagoguery and especially, scapegoatery – or the art of blaming Mexicans or red/brown peoples for everything. So too has it become a magnet for those who struggle for peace, dignity, justice and human rights.

I am a newcomer to the desert and as such, I marvel at the amount of activism all around me, especially by youths. Actually, activism is not the right word for what I have been witnessing here for the past 3 years. Commitment is a better word. The level of commitment to social justice and for the right to a culturally relevant education has been affirming. What is daily affirmed is the belief that all human beings are created equal and all are entitled to full human rights, regardless of race, color, creed, religion, citizenship or migration status.

All this resistance has occurred as a result of a relentless campaign against the red-brown peoples of this state – whether they have been here for many thousands of years or if they just got here today. The racial profiling that everyone fears has always existed along the U.S.-Mexico border, so much so that labor leader Cesar Chavez used to refer to the migra or the U.S. Border Patrol as the “Gestapo of the Mexican people.”

That’s the reason for the relentless pushback against the state’s SB 1070 law. It seeks to federalize local police – giving them the “rights” that the migra has long exercised against the red-brown peoples they have always illegally and inhumanely profiled. In Tucson, the pushback has been against both SB 1070, and HB 2281, the effort to ban the teaching of ethnic studies.

What’s most impressive about the resistance is that it has been waged largely by K-16 students. That’s not to minimize the role of community organizers and community elders; quite the contrary. It is precisely this sector, led by groups such as Derechos Humanos, that has trained and essentially grown these young activists and organizers.

One group that rarely is recognized by the media – and the group likes it this way – is Calpolli Teoxicalli – a family of families that live Indigenous ways and who live by a sacred calendar. The Calpolli in Tucson or Tlamanalco as they refer to the Old Pueblo – has been present the past several years at virtually all the events and/or actions in regards to these assaults, albeit with a different role.

A passerby might see them as either simply those that lead the opening or closing prayers at events or those that provide the cultural expression (Aztec Dancing). But that would be to fundamentally misunderstand their role. While I am not a member of this Calpolli, I do take part in their runs – ceremonial runs and barrio runs. All the runs are spiritual and are not done in response to the actions of others, though they are indeed done with an awareness of all the negative forces – external and internal – that continually beset our communities.

We run for ourselves and those closest to us. We do the runs to help heal our communities – whether it is from diseases such as drugs and alcohol or gang and domestic violence – or from the diseases of hate and bigotry. A summer run last year included one from Tucson to Phoenix to defeat an attempt to eliminate Raza Studies statewide while another one was done as an effort to bring consciousness to our communities regarding the sky-high high rates of obesity, diabetes and heart disease.  The barrio/ceremonial runs are connected to the Peace and Dignity Journeys that take place every four years from Alaska and Chile to Central America. They are part of an Indigenous prophecy that seeks to unite Pacha Mama – Abya Yalla or North and South America.

The early morning barrio runs have a powerful effect, especially upon onlookers when they see the ceremonial staffs we run with. Onlookers might think that this is how we protest in Tucson, but we run not for the media nor for or against politicians. As the youngsters say, we speak with our feet and our feet do leave huellas or footprints.

In a few months, there will be a very special barrio run, co-sponsored by the American Cancer Society, to bring about cancer awareness to our communities – part of a dream of one of our young leaders – Consuelo Aguilar – who passed away a year-and a half ago in the heat of battle at the age of 27. That run will mark the second anniversary of her death in February and we expect our entire community to be there. She too will be there. Presente!

There will be a number of runs prior to the one for Consuelo. All are important. If you would like to participate in them, in preparation for the February run, please contact Calpolli Teoxicalli at: chuchruiz@yahoo.com or teoxicalli@yahoo.com. Regardless if you take part in the Barrio Runs, please consider fulfilling Consuelo’s dream this February.

Rodriguez, an assistant professor at the University of Arizona, can be reached at: XColumn@gmail.com.

Column of the Americas

PO BOX 3812

Tucson, AZ 85722

We Are Spirit

We are confident we will easily win against the forces of fear, hate and ignorance

Commentary:
By Roberto Dr. Cintli Rodriguez, PhD

In Arizona, we fight because we are spirit. Yet, in recent travels, I’ve gotten the distinct impression that many people think that human beings are made simply of flesh and blood and that only things material have consequence.

Human beings also have spirits. In Arizona, bigot forces are not content with simply getting rid of as many brown bodies as possible, but also ensuring that those that remain become assimilated into intolerant copies of themselves.

The world appears to be knowledgeable about the effort – via SB 1070 – to legalize hate, fear and racial profiling in Arizona. What most seem to be unaware of is that there is also an effort by state schools superintendent, Tom Horne, to brainwash the state’s school children via HB 2281 – the anti-Ethnic/Raza Studies law that unless stopped – will go into effect on Jan 1, 2011.

There is a third law in the works; the effort by state rep. Russell Pierce, chief sponsor of the state’s apartheid laws, to nullify the 14th Amendment in Arizona [guarantees U.S. birthright citizenship].

Tolteka, a renowned Los Angeles hip hop artist – inspired by a recent column – From Manifest Destiny to Manifest Insanity – has penned a rhyme called: The Trilogy of Terror. It breaks down these so-called laws that are intended to destroy our minds and spirits.

Those of us here in Arizona do not recognize these apartheid schemes as laws. At least not as moral or legitimate laws. Even the courts have already struck down the most odious parts of SB 1070.

But back to HB 2281. This is the one people are paying least attention to. While denouncing SB 1070 in May, five UN Special Rapporteurs also denounced HB 2281. They said: “Such law and attitude are at odds with the State’s responsibility to respect the right of everyone to have access to his or her own cultural and linguistic heritage and to participate in cultural life… Everyone has the right to seek and develop cultural knowledge and to know and understand his or her own culture and that of others through education and information.”

They further pointed out that controlling immigration and adhering to fundamental principles of non-discrimination are not mutually exclusive. “States are obligated to not only eradicate racial discrimination, but also to promote a social and political environment conducive to respect for ethnic and cultural diversity.”

Their report is self-evident, yet, we should pay close attention to the illogic of the bigoted forces; they claim they are not against immigration: only illegal immigration. So what does anti-bilingualism and Ethnic Studies have to do with illegal immigration?

There is an equal danger to both SB 1070 and HB 2281; one attacks our bodies, the other our minds and spirits. HB 2281 targets Tucson’s highly successful Raza Studies program. But as written, it applies to the entire state, and it can become copycat legislation – state by state – not simply targeting K-12 education, but universities as well. The authors erroneously claim Ethnic Studies result in hate, segregation, anti-americanism and advocates the violent overthrow of the U.S. government.

What’s at stake with HB 2281 is not simply an attack on a program (Raza Studies), but on the right to teach/learn and the right of students to succeed as a result. As signed, HB 2281 creates a mechanism by which books and curriculums will be subject to approval by the state. The premise is that only Greco-Roman culture (“Western Civilization”) is acceptable for Arizona curriculums. Knowledge from other cultures is henceforth deemed to be “un-American.” Books such as Occupied America (Acuña) and Pedagogy of the Oppressed (Freire) have already been singled out.

In Arizona, the state superintendant of schools has appointed himself not simply education czar (opposing local control), but also, royal cosmographer – determining that not only is maiz-based or Maya-Nahua culture and knowledge – the philosophical foundation for Raza Studies – outside of Western Civilization, but also outside of humanity. In effect, he also fancies himself head of the BIA – determining who/what is Indigenous.

While singling out people of color, these Inquisition-era “laws” in reality, are an attack against all people. The legalization of racial profiling and cultural mind-control belongs in the Dark Ages and the battle against the sanctioning of hate, censorship and forbidden curriculums is being fought right here in Arizona (This is the subject of a forthcoming conference in December at the University of Arizona). Within weeks, this battle will step into the courtroom via a lawsuit against the state. We are confident we will easily win against the forces of fear, hate and ignorance.

Rodriguez, an assistant professor at the University of Arizona, is a member of TUSD’s Mexican American Studies Community Advisory board.

Amoxtli X - The X Codex

In Lak Ech, Panche Be & Hunab Ku & The Forgotten 1524 Debate

Eagle Feather Research Institute 2010 Collective Copyright

 

By Roberto Dr. Cintli Rodriguez, Arnoldo Vento, PhD, Vivian Garcia Lopez, PhD, Mixelle Rascon, Pricila Rodriguez, Norma Gonzalez, Crystal Terriquez, Jo Anna Mixpe Ley,          Grecia Ramirez & Luis A Valdez

 

SAVE ETHNIC/RAZA STUDIES 
 

Why did several communities support a run from Tucson to Phoenix through the Arizona desert in 115-degree heat in the middle of the summer last year? Probably for the same reason 15 of us were arrested for criminal trespass at Tucson’s state building this May: We did it to combat the effort to terminate, via HB 2281, Tucson’s highly successful Raza Studies program. This came on the heels of the anti-immigrant bill, SB 1070. One attacks our bodies; the other, our spirits.

 

While the bill was dropped in 2009, this year, the know-nothing Republican-dominated state legislature passed both bills, whereas the state’s unelected governor, Jan Brewer, promptly signed both “laws.” HB 2281 is particularly onerous because it is a Dark Ages-era law that attacks the thinking/teaching/learning process. It also creates an Inquisition-style mechanism to approve acceptable books and curriculums. Arizona State Schools Superintendent, Tom Horne, who has never set foot in an Ethnic/Raza Studies classroom, first mounted his campaign in 2006 when Dolores Huerta stated at Tucson HS that Republicans hate Latinos. Since then, he has isolated Rodolfo Acuña’s Occupied America and Paulo Freire’s Pedagogy of the Oppressed, as examples of books that promote hate, segregation and advocate anti-American views while calling for the violent overthrow of the U.S. government. He is claiming that Raza Studies is out of compliance of the new law and is now calling on TUSD to force Raza Studies to videotape its classes.

 

Lost in this “debate” is the nature or contents of Raza Studies and its philosophical foundation. As a result, a collaborative mini-book: Amoxtli X – The X Codex, has been written to provide such an answer. The book stresses the concepts of In Lak Ech – tu eres mi otro yo – you are my other self – Panche Be – Buscar la Raiz en la Verdad – To Seek the Root of the Truth – and Hunab Ku – a view of the world that explains the nature of the universe.

 

These concepts are part of a maiz-based philosophy and curriculum that stress a human rights ethos. Maiz is the only food in history that was created by human beings, and the peoples of this continent – Cemanahuak or Abya Yalla – are the only peoples to have created their own food. Horne insists that Greco-Roman knowledge – as opposed to the maiz-based AmerIndigenous knowledge taught in Raza Studies-TUSD – should be exclusively taught in Arizona schools. For the past several years, these ethos have been in full display as Raza Studies youths have led the protests against both bills. More than protest, they have fully lived their peaceful meaning.

 

“This philosophy comes direct from the cereal that was created by the ancient settlers of the continent: maiz… yes, the maiz, that creation of the savage beast, and that thanks to them, lies the hope for humanity.” – Maya Linguist, Domingo Martinez Paredez, 1960.

 

Amoxtli X – The X Codex, in part, was also created to raise funds to combat HB 2281. Aside from forthcoming trials for the 15 of us, a lawsuit against the state is forthcoming. If you would like a signed copy, please make a $10 check per copy to the University of Arizona Foundation. Send to Roberto Rodriguez PO BOX 3812, Tucson, AZ 85722. If you would like to donate more, either add a greater amount to check or buy more books. (Discounted class sets are available. proceeds will go toward the Dec 2-4 Conference on Hate, Censorship & Forbidden Curriculums. For more info re books: 520-626-0824 XColumn@gmail.com).  Panche Be T-Shirts are also available for $20.