Los Aztecas

I am not a Mexican... I am too American to be considered such.

I am not American... I am too Mexican to considered such.

I am not a Mexican-American... I have too many complexities to be described as such. There is no way I can put my Mexican side in front of American and I cant put my American in front of my Mexican side.

You know what I am? I am a Chicano. A Chicano! Gives me chills just writing it. The best way to describe a Chicano is by looking at me. What do I mean? Well, as many of you know and can tell by some of my post, I am very political. I like to talk about issues that affect everyone in this country and I especially like to write and think about the political atmosphere for the Hispanic/Latino/Chicano person. Well to many a Chicano is someone who is politicized Mexican-American. According to the handbook of Texas: They used Chicano to denote their rediscovered heritage, their youthful assertiveness, and their militant agenda.

I have rediscovered my heritage. I have found who I am as a person, what it means to be a foreigner in a land and what it means to live a life where you are not treated as others. I have found my youthful assertiveness, because I feel free to express my feelings, thoughts, and desires; I know my rights and I have control over my anger.

The last point is tricky. I have a militant agenda, yes I do. By I am also assertive and know my place. I know when a militant agenda should be used. Most of the time, I am able to compromise and use logic to push for something without confronting a militant agenda.

Way too much on why I am a Chicano...

So I am a Chicano.

The last two weekends I have made my way to doing a hunger strike. I fasted for 6 days (on water) and slept at the encampment at the Placita Olvera, dowtown LA. Being part of this fight for an end in the ICE raids, I began to notice something about my surroundings. APU does not give me an opportunity to express my Chicano views. And it is not like there is a gun to my head or rules that say I can't, there are just not enough people to start a moviemiento, a revolucion.

As I sat there contemplating about different things, I had the opportunity to watch a group of dancers perform. These people began by expressing reverence and prayer to the supernatural gods of the sun, earth and water. Then they created lively music with the howling of the sea conch, and with rhythms produced by drums and by dried seeds which were tied to the feet of the dancers. They expressed their anger on the ICE raids and focus on the inhumane treatment of the immigrants here in the US.

The Aztec Dance is special for many reasons. It empowers. You do
not have to believe
in the religious values of it to know that it empowers us. It
revives our people.
It is a deep expression of social, political, and cultural issues,
and it has a deep impact on a Mexican-American or Chicano's life.

After watching these dancers, It crossed my mind that at
Azusa Pacific, we needed
to stand and be revived. Yes, I know God is the ultimate
revival mechanism but
for some, there is more to that. Wouldnt it be nice to have
a group of Aztec dancers
Dancing at APU. It will honestly empower my raza to be the
awaking Giant it has been
called to be.

It is time to be empowered and rise!

Si Se Puede!... Si Se Puede!...

Que viva la revolucion!

Imagine a President...

Matthew 25:35-36 ---> For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.'

We had the privilege of having an amazing speaker talk to us tonight about her decision to support Presidential Candidate, Senator Barack Obama and interestingly enough be pro-life.

Mara Vanderslice is the organizing force behind the Matthew 25 Network. Let me tell you, what a blessing and what a great treat it was to have her on Azusa Pacific's campus. She brought a fresh breath and a great point of view that many evangelical Christians today don't necessarily are happy to accept.

I personally support Barack Obama for President of the United States as well. I support him because of the issues that are important to me. Immigration is number 1. Although McCain was a strong support of Immigrant Reform and even co-sponsored an immigration reform act in 2006 with Senator Ted Kennedy, he has said that he would vote against his own bill. Don't believe me?

From The 2008 Republican debate at Reagan Library in Simi Valley on January 30, 2008

Q: Your 2006 immigration proposal was much broader and included a pathway to citizenship for illegal immigrants who were already here. At this point, if your original proposal came to a vote on the Senate floor, would you vote for it?

A: No, because we know what the situation is today. So to say that that would come to the floor of the Senate, it won't. We went through various amendments which prevented that proposal. We will secure the borders first when I am president. I know how to do that. I come from a border state, where we know about building walls, and vehicle barriers, and sensors, and all of the things necessary. I will have the border state governors certify the borders are secured. Then we will move onto the other aspects of this issue, as importantly as tamper-proof biometric documents, which then, unless an employer hires someone with those documents, that employer will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. That will cause a lot of people to leave voluntarily.

This blog is not to talk about immigration and which president is best for the job on that issue. I'll leave that conversation for another post.

After hearing and getting to know a little more about the Matthew 25 network and really focusing on the Christian perspective of the candidates, I have intertwined my top concerns such as immigration within a Christian perspective. Barack Obama really a great example of what Jesus called us to do.

When asked about how she can trust Senator Obama, assuming that there are some questionable things in his past and his lack of experience, Vanderslice answered the question with such poise and such a profound way, I swear it could had convinced even the most conservatives. (Maybe Not, but I can dream)

She said, and I am not quoting her... (I will have a copy of her discussion later to maybe post some video footage of the event)... Senator Barack Obama, having gone to Colombia University, Harvard Law School and been President of the Harvard Law Review... knowing that this man could had made a lot of money, been a very powerful man, decided to go to Chicago and help the underpriviliged.

After Colombia University, He became a community organizer with a church-based group seeking to improve living conditions in poor neighborhoods plagued with crime and high unemployment. Ring a bell? (Matthew 25)

Went back to school and graduate from Harvard Law and what did he do after? Went back to Chicago and became a CIVIL RIGHTS lawyer and a professor.

... Still Paraphrasing with what Vanderslice said...

He has been married to one wife for 16 years. Talk about Obama, look at his wife... After graduating from Harvard, Michelle worked as a corporate lawyer and she realized it was not her calling... so she left and went back to helping the community she loves. She worked for City Hall, becoming the assistant commissioner of planning and development. Then she became the founding executive director of the Chicago chapter of Public Allies, an AmeriCorps program that prepares young people for public service. Today, more than 350 young leaders have graduated from Public Allies Chicago.

Barack and Michelle have an amazing family with 3 beautiful girls.

...In my house we give glory to achievement, self-respect and hard work. It’s up to us to set these high expectations. And that means meeting those expectations ourselves. That means setting examples of excellence in our own lives."
- Father’s Day Speech, Chicago, IL, June 2008

That is trust. That is why Vanderslice trust him... He is morally acting on the calling of Jesus Christ and has strong family values.

"My Bible tells me that when God sent his only Son to Earth, it was to heal the sick and comfort the weary; to feed the hungry and clothe the naked; to befriend the outcast and redeem those who strayed from righteousness.

Living His example is the hardest kind of faith - but it is surely the most rewarding. It is a way of life that can not only light our way as people of faith, but guide us to a new and better politics as Americans."
- Saddleback Church, Lake Forest, CA, December 2006

This is the type of president I want to have. Is he going to make mistake... of course... is he going to go against things people believe... yes... is he going to be perfect... no.

Is he going to try to live an honorary example of what our Jesus Christ called us to do, to love our neighbors as ourselves? I cannot be certain but I can trust him to work his butt off to do this everyday of his life, now, tomorrow and forever.

We all screw up... Lets keep in mind! Barack is human, a Christian, a sinner and a brother in Christ who will make mistakes... Do you?

I know I do.

Hate and Fear in America

40 years after the devastating deaths of Bobby Kennedy, of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and the end of the "civil rights movement", many would had thought that racial reconciliation was at the forefront and racism was disappearing. Although the issue of racism and hatred was talked about behind close doors, the current presidential election has re-surfaced the issue and put it at the forefront of our politics.

Following the September 11 attacks on our country, many Americans fear the idea that anyone associated with Muslims are terrorist. Although the attackers who where part of the attacks where Muslim, not all who proclaim the faith are terrorist.

If the election where held today, the polls would conclude that Obama would win the presidency of the United States. Interestingly enough, to many people in this country, having a black president would surely allow them to say, "there is no racism in America".

Although we have come a long way from the 1960s, there is still social injustices in our country that constitute racism. There are still people in part of the US that are showing hatred and fear for change, not the change that Obama preaches, but the psychological change that US citizens would face having an African American in the highest office.



An example of this can be seen on the Al-Jazeera English News Broadcast, which portrays the ideology of some of the anti-Obama supporters. It seems that for many, McCain is the best choice, not necessarily because of his stance on the issues, but because he is not the assumed Black muslim man with connections to terrorist.

More importantly what is interesting in this news clip is the negative slander on Obama's affiliation to terrorist, or the idea that he is a Muslim.

First of all, it is disturbing that the McCain campaign would allow such type of slander happen when it comes to his affiliation to an ex domestic terrorist. Obama was 8 years old when this man was a domestic terrorist and the only connection that we see is the partnership as members of a school reform project.

Secondly, Obama is not Muslim! But if he was, so what?! If he was a Muslim, not only would he continue to be a honest and honorable man, he would still be an American, a loyal one for that matter. Muslim is a faith practice, just like Christians and/or Jews.

Lets Assume he is a Muslim. Would that give him ties to Terrorist? No. Would that make him a terrorist? No. It is hard for me to understand why people associate Muslim with Terrorist. It shows fear through ignorance. Fact Check: Not all terrorist are Muslim. And not All Muslims are terrorist.

Have you ever watched the show 24? Well if you are a fan, you would see that the writers give a great idea that terrorist are not all from the Middle East, or Muslim for that matter. In many occasions, it is those from our own country or people from European countries.

Going back to the discussion of fear. I understand that Sept 11 has brought fear to many. But to assume that if Obama is elected president, on the false assumption that he is a Muslim, that he will promote terrorism or allow for our country to be attacked is ridiculous. I have the belief that if someone is running for office of a country, they have complete loyalty, they want to make that particular office better and run their position to the best of their ability, regardless of race, gender, faith etc.

When the Lady in the video says, "I am afraid if he wins, the black will takeover" or the lady that says, "I dont like the fact that he thinks us White people are trash, because we are not", it shows anger in these people. Obama has NEVER said Whites are trash! And to say that if he wins, the Blacks will takeover is beyond belief with no statistical evidence.

These are ignorant statements, but the dangerous part of this is not that they are ignorant, they have the illusion of knowledge. What if the blacks do take over? It would definitely bring a new perspective to the table, but Obama is clearly not about overpowering the government with blacks? He is about bringing those who are better equip to run this country. Those can be Whites, Blacks, Hispanics, Asians, Men, Women, Muslims, Jews, Christians, etc.

Even though, an Obama win will bring a new idea of change, the past ideas of racism and hatred will continue to haunt our country. Similar to a situation in Senior chapel, incidents (can be good or bad) can bring out discussion about issues of racism and prejudices. An Obama administration might just do that.

Are we ready to bring it to the table?

Why do we focus on injustice halfway around the world when we can impact social injustice right in our own backyard?

When people think of helping the least of these, who is the first to cross their mind? African Children, Latin American Children, Asian Children?

When people want to fight a social injustice, do they automatically assume Darfur? Or China? Maybe somewhere in Latin America?

But sometimes we tend to forget somewhere very close to home. No, not Latin America or Canada, but here. Where? Here, in your home town.

In our current social injustice issue, Immigration Customs Enforcement and the Bush administration are hunting down those who have entered this country without proper documentation and taking them back to their homelands. ICE invade our community homes, and invade the factories where men and women are working double shifts to maintain a family, to feed a family and even to save money for that dream home.

Have you seen movies like SWAT, where the police men come into a home, with automatic weapons, with ski mask and full body armor? Well imagine yourself working, finishing putting a piece of metal on the final product when the doors are slammed opened and all you see is men with automatic weapons and a full body armor? That is a scary thought.

Or imagine yourself cooking a nice home meal when the ICE agents come into your house and terrorize you and your family.

These are social injustices that are affecting everyday people living in America. Yet, we tend to think of a social injustice in terms of abroad. But why?

Here is why:
First of all, going abroad and worrying about issues out there allows us to live as far as possible from the injustices and when we are home, we are able to not think about them.
Secondly, there is no accountability because you can come home and ignore it. We go to Africa for a couple of months, send money to the missionaries and not have to worry about it in the future. The good Samaritan card played.

But why don't we worry about the issues that are being lived out domestically?
Because we know that these injustices are right in front of us and once we are witness and participants of that, we cannot ignore.
And unlike doing something abroad, the issues in our backyard are total accountable when it is happening right in front of you, so you just turn your head.

So let us, as soldiers against social injustices think about the domestic issues because they are everyday struggles that directly affect us.