Winter/Invierno 2014

Chicana(o)/Latina(o) Bilingual Student Newspaper

VENCEREMOS
2 Policing
people of color

Ayotzinapa and Ferguson

exemplify the murderous
oppression of people of color

4 Mia Love

La irona: ni amor, ni Raza,

solo desilusiones

7 Two worlds
La experiencia de ser ni de
aqu y ni de all, Colombia y
Estados Unidos

10 Surviving
sexual assault
The realities of becoming a
statistic

11 Inseguridad
alimentaria
Prioritizing between groceries,
medicine, rent, or textbooks

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Vol. 16 No. 2 Utah, Las Americas

Ayotzinapa y Ferguson:

editorial

Sanctioned militarized murder of black

and brown students must be stopped

By/Por Yajaira Peralta

Guerillera
n September 26, a group of 43 college students
from Iguala, Mexico attending Raul Isidro Burgos
College of Ayotzinapa went missing. These students
dreamt of becoming teachers. They filled buses to
protest against the cuts to their state-financed college at
at a public event featuring a speech by Igualas mayors
wife, Mara de los ngeles Pineda Villa. Students
hoped that this protest would help them raise money
that would allow them to continue their schooling.
Unbelievably, this lawful protest resulted in the
disappearance of 43 innocent students just 77 miles
from Iguala.
Police officers who confronted these students on
their way to protest reported it was Igualas Mayor Luis
Abarcas intent to stop the student protestors. Abarca
wanted to detain the rioters to prevent interruptions
to his wifes speech. It turns out that the police
officers violently stopped the buses and shot six of
the passengers, including three students. Seeing how
determined these students were and not wanting to
have the mayor go after them, police officers turned
the students over to gang members on cartel property.
It is believed that once in the hands of the gang
members, these innocent students were executed in
Coluca, burned in a garbage incinerator and dumped
By Esperanza Pieda Vasquez
carelessly into a river. According to CNN news, it is
going to happen to prevent such rampant abuses of power?
estimated that more than 75 people have been arrested
Will Mexicos government continue to be complicit to the
in regards to this mass murder. Mayor Abarca has taken
violence that occurs everyday, or will they step up and hear
a leave of absence after having been charged with six
the cries of their country? Enough is enough.
counts of aggravated homicide, so there has been some
In fact, I would like to argue that this incident was a
accountability to these horrific acts. However, this atrocity
begs the question: Will these arrests lead to justice? What is wakeup call, not only to Mexico, but also to the United

States. The United States has also had multiple protests

in communities of color showing support to the families
of the 43 students. Many Latino communities have felt
the disappearance and apparent death of these students
as if it were their own children killed.
The police brutality that happened in Mexico sounds
a lot like many of the issues with law enforcement
that the United States has been dealing with in the
past years. The police officers in Iguala turned over 43
students over to a gang without regard for their lives or
the anguish and terror it would cause thousands. This
incident of excessive police brutality can be compared
to the recent unjustified deaths of young Black men.
Michael Brown was also a student with dreams and a
family, yet the police officer who shot him carelessly was
blinded by Michaels color and was not thinking about
Michaels future. The line between protecting the peace
and militarization has been violted by police too often.
One example of this extreme militarization can be
seen in regards to the peaceful protests in Ferguson,
Missouri where the police are armed as if they were
going into battle. Many protesters were hurt by the
police including a toddler that had his face severely
burned when a flashbang grenade was fired near his crib
by police officers during a paramilitary raid. This siege
on communities of color has been going on for a long
time and isnt simply a U.S. issue. The 43 lives of those
Mexican students lie underneath the same umbrella of
black and brown bodies being militarized by the police.
Its time to stand up stop assuming that police officers are
there to simply protect and that they dont have their own
opinions about race or color because clearly that is not the
case.

ElE sancionato y asesinamiento de estudiantes de color debe parar

l 26 de Septiembre 2014 un grupo

de cuarenta y tres estudiantes
universitarios de Iguala, Mxico que asistan
a la escuela Ral Isidro Burgos Colegio de
Ayotzinapa fueron desaparecidos. Estos
estudiantes tenan el sueo de convertirse en
maestros. Llenaron autobuses para protestar
contra los recortes en su universidad que
es financiada por el estado de Guerrero.
Esperaban que esta protesta ayudara a
recaudar dinero para continuar su carrera.
Nadie sospechaba que esta protesta legtima
se convertira en la desaparicin de 43
estudiantes inocentes slo a 77 millas de
Iguala.
Los agentes de polica que se enfrentaron
a estos estudiantes han informado de que
era el gran plan del alcalde para poner fin a
estos manifestantes. El Alcalde Luis Abarca
no quera ningn tipo de interrupciones a
voz de su esposa. Qu mejor manera de
evitar el caos que detener los autobuses
llenos de manifestantes? Resulta que los
agentes de polica detuvieron violentamente
a los autobuses y le dispararon a seis de
los pasajeros incluyendo a tres estudiantes.
Despus los policas le entregaron los
estudiantes a una pandilla en la propiedad
de un cartel mafioso. Se cree que una
vez en manos de los miembros de las
pandillas, estos estudiantes inocentes

fueron ejecutados en Coluca, quemados

en un incinerador de basura y arrojados
descuidadamente a un ro. Esto es una
atrocidad que hace que todos en su sano
juicio se pregunten
qu va a ocurrir
a continuacin,
ms crimen o ms
accin? Es decir,
el gobierno de
Mxico seguir
siendo cmplice de
la violencia que se
produce todos los
das, o por fin va a
escuchar los gritos
de su pas? Ya es
suficiente.
Me gustara argumentar que este
incidente fue una llamada de atencin no
slo a Mxico, sino tambin a los Estados
Unidos. En Mxico ha habido varios
ataques contra el gobierno. De acuerdo
a las noticias de CNN, se estima tambin
que ms de setenta y cinco personas han
sido detenidas en relacin con este gran
asesinato. El Gobernador Luis Abarca ha
tomado un permiso de ausencia, despus
de haber sido acusado con seis cargos de
homicidio agravados. Los Estados Unidos
tambin ha tenido mltiples protestas en

La militarizacin se ha visto a lo
largo de Mxico y en la historia
de los Estados Unidos sobre todo
recientemente con varias protestas.
Un ejemplo reciente en los Estados
Unidos sobre todo recientemente
con varias protestas.

VENCEREMOS

Editorial Policy:

Venceremos is a bilingual
Chicana/o student publication
founded in 1993 and is
recognized as official campus
print media by the University of
Utah Publications Council.
Venceremos is published twice
every fall and spring semester.
We are a free, non profit,
alternative campus newspaper
dedicated to representing
and serving the Chicana/o
community by advocating for
social change and equality in its
content and news production on

Winter 2014

the everyday issues that affect

Chicana/o students and the
working-class Chicana/o and/
or Latina/o community, as well
as their struggles with racial,
gender, and economic inequality.
We encourage letters and
contributions from our readers,
and reserve the right to edit
correspondence for grammar,
style, clarity and length, but
cannot guarantee publication.
Unsigned editorials represent
a majority opinion of the
Venceremos staff.

las comunidades de color demostrando el

apoyo a las familias de los cuarenta y tres
estudiantes. Muchas comunidades latinas
han sentido la desaparicin y muerte de
estos estudiantes
como si se tratara
de sus propios
hijos. La brutalidad
policial que ocurri
en Mxico se parece
mucho a muchas
de las cuestiones
que los Estados
Unidos ha estado
tratando en los
ltimos aos. Los
policas tomaron la
libertad de regular a
los 43 estudiantes a una banda sin pensar en
el dao emocional que esto traera a miles
de personas. Este incidente de excesiva
brutalidad policial se puede comparar con
las recientes muertes de los jvenes negros
en el sur de los Estados Unidos. Michael
Brown tambin era un estudiante con
sueos y una familia sin embargo, el agente
de polica que le dispar por descuido fue
cegado por el color de Michael sin pensar
en el futuro de el joven. Es necesario
que haya una lnea entre protestas y la
militarizacin que la polica toma sobre los

The views expressed in

Venceremos represent the views
of individual writers and do not
necessarily reflect the views of
the University of Utah or its
Board of Regents.
Contributors to Venceremos
are identified as guerrilleras or
guerrilleros, meaning warriors of
the pen, to signify their collective
efforts to use this paper as a
weapon against the inequities
and injustices suffered by their
communities.

Address

200 South Central Campus Drive

Salt Lake City, Utah 84112

protestantes. Los protestantes tambin son

miembros de una comunidad con vidas que
importan.
La militarizacin se ha visto a lo largo
de Mxico y en la historia de los Estados
Unidos sobre todo recientemente con
varias protestas. Un ejemplo reciente en los
Estados Unidos puede ser visto durante las
protestas pacficas en Ferguson, Missouri
donde los polica se ponen bien armados
como si van a ir a una la batalla. A causa
de esto, muchos manifestantes resultaron
heridos por la polica incluyendo un nio
que tena el rostro quemado severamente
cuando una granada fue tirada cerca de su
cuna por agentes de polica durante una
incursin paramilitar. Este asedio a las
comunidades de color ha estado ocurriendo
durante mucho tiempo y no es simplemente
una cuestin de los Estados Unidos. Las
43 vidas de los estudiantes mexicanos se
encuentran por debajo del mismo paraguas
de cuerpos negros y marrones. Es hora de
dejar de asumir que los policas estn ah
para simplemente proteger y que no tienen
sus propias opiniones sobre la raza o el
color de las personas porque es evidente
que ese no es el caso.

Guerrilleras/os

Email

Kristbal Batty-Reyes, Juliana Castro, Edgar

Estrada, Laura Gonzalez, Sheila Lazcano,
Elizabeth Morales, Abby Reyes, Vanessa
Robles

Website

Cover Art

www.venceremos.utah.edu

Jazmin Martinez

Mobile

Photographers / Artists

utahvenceremos@gmail.com

801-613-7292

Co-Editors in Chief

Manuel Bernal Adame, Camila Cardozo, Edgar

Estrada, Laura Gonzalez, Rodolfo Mendoza,
Esperanza Pieda Vasquez

Advisor

Camila Cardozo, Yajaira Peralta

Translation Manager
Ivn Ottviano

Sonya M. Alemn

Thanks to all the faculty, staff and community members that have advocated for this publication.

Stepfamilies:Similar, yet so different

By Alessandra Zamora
Guerrillera

The stepfamily. There are countless

stories of teens from newly merged
families struggling to adjust to a new family
structure made up of new siblings, and a
new parent. It is a difficult thing to adjust
to, and racial tensions can make that new
life adjustment even harder to get used
to. I have a stepfamily. When I was fifteen
years old, my mother died and my father
found a girlfriend. She was a kind woman,
sweet and funny, and had three children of
her own, all younger than I was. It seemed
like a good match for me and my siblings,
and it made my father happy. As their
relationship progressed, my dads girlfriend
and her children moved into our home and
we started beginning our lives together. For
the most part, it was a smooth transition,
but soon underlying racial tensions began
to emerge. My father, siblings and I are all
Latina/o. My whole stepfamily is white.
My stepmother and her children were
definitely not overtly racist, but as privileged
white people, they did hold typical deficit
thoughts and stereotypes of Latina/os.
These misperceptions made things
difficult for me and my siblings. For
example, they didnt understand the pain
and anger we felt when people would give
my father dirty looks for holding her hand
walking down the street, or for holding my
little half-brother (who looks completely
white) in his arms. They would say things
like, You guys dont act like most other
Mexican people, and thats why we like
you. It was nearly impossible to not
explode at their ignorance. What was a

normal day for us in the city of West Valley

was ghetto to them. Half of the time I
wanted to scream at them, tell them that
they didnt know what it was like to be poor,
what it was like to be a racially oppressed.
They would tell stories about how they
struggled to make ends meet, yet they could
afford an annual trip to Disneyland and
Sea World. Dont tell me that you struggle
when you can go on vacation yearly, and I
was lucky to go once every five years! They
didnt know what it was like to be hungry,
what it was like to have your parents live
paycheck to paycheck, unable to afford
you. The only reason I had nice things
was because of my grandparents. They
lived with their grandparents, and had
almost everything provided for them. My
stepmother didnt even have to work.
Things would get even more heated when
we would talk about academics. As a child,
my elderly aunts babysat me and taught
me how to read and write at a young age.
By the time I entered kindergarten, I was
almost three years ahead of other children
my age. Ive always been very proud of how
hard Ive had to work to get the straight
As I did. I was forced to get those good
grades, but it was also a part of my pride.
If I slipped, my father would punish me,
usually hitting me, taking away my toys or
things, and grounding me. I was hit a lot by
el cinto, and I feared my father. I also had
to do everything on my own. My mother
dropped out of high school when she was
sixteen because she was pregnant with my
sister, and my father dropped out of college
to provide for my mother and siblings.
So when I reached about fifth grade, my

parents ceased to be able to aid me with

my homework. I worked hard to maintain
high grades own, and I was very prideful
of my hard work. I would be infuriated
when my step-siblings would get away with
subpar grades, and they had constant help
from their mother. She was always there to
hold their hand with their schoolwork, even
doing their homework for them at times.
Yet my father and stepmother claimed my
step siblings worked as hard as I did. That
made my blood boil. A B grade earned a
beating for me, but for them, they simply
heard, Oh its okay, youre a bad test
taker. Youll do better next time. It was
a constant never-ending farcity of them
preaching equality between us children, yet
we knew that couldnt be further from the
truth.
It worsened when we both applied
for scholarships during our senior year.
My saving grace came in the form of a
diversity scholarship: The Utah Opportunity
Scholarship, a four-year, full tuition, full fees
scholarship with an allotment for books.
It is designated for underrepresented and
first generation students. Upon receiving
the wonderful news that I would be able
to attend college with this funding, I cried.
I couldnt believe my diligence paid off.
My family and I rejoiced, and my father
congratulated me. He told me he was proud
of me, yet added, that it was not fair that I
received it. Umm---what? That statement
hit me like a freight train.
He explained that it wasnt fair that I could
receive a full ride diversity scholarship,
unavailable to White students. He argued
that my step sister worked just as hard as I

opinion
did, and it was unfair that she was ineligible
for the same scholarship. It was as if he
had stabbed me in the heart. It seemed my
3.98 GPA, five Advanced Placement tests,
and 60 earned college credits compared to
her 3.7 GPA wasnt proof enough that I
deserved that scholarship because of my
academic abilities.
Despite the constant complaints about
how unfair it was for me to have a diversity
scholarship, I knew I deserved it. I found
pride and strength in my marginality. I work
just as hard in my college courses as I did
before, amidst my step familys narrow
minded thinking. Though it has been a
struggle to live with a White stepfamily and
a father who changed, I still care for them.
They are not bad people for what they
believe or say, they are simply a product
of the system of racism and oppression
that we live in. Though I still get angry and
frustrated, and I mourn the loss of the once
critically aware, color conscious father I
once had, I use the knowledge I have from
ethnic studies to help me identify what I go
through. It helps me to brush it off instead
of holding onto it.

Familias reconstituidas:

Cuando dos culturas se unen en matrimonio

Por Alessandra Zamora

Guerrillera

Una segunda familia. Hay innumerables

historias de adolescentes con familias
recin reconstuidas que luchan por
adaptarse a una nueva estructura de la
familia formada por nuevos hermanos, y
a un nuevo padre. Es una cosa difcil de
ajustarse, y las tensiones raciales pueden
hacer que la nueva adaptacin sea an
ms difcil a acostumbrarse. Tengo una
familia ensamblada. Cuando yo tena quince
aos de edad, muri mi madre y mi padre
encontr una novia. Ella era una mujer
amable, dulce y divertida, ella tenia tres hijos
propios, todos ms jvenes que yo. Pareca
un buen partido para m y mis hermanos,
y hacia feliz a mi padre. A medida que su
relacin progresaba, la novia de mi padre
y sus hijos se mudaron a nuestra casa y
empezamos a partir en nuestras vidas
juntos. Caasi siempre fue una transicin
sin problemas, pero las tensiones raciales
subyacentes pronto comenzaron a salir.
Mi padre, hermanos y yo somos Latinos.
Toda mi familia reconstituida es blanca y
eso causa gran diferencia. Mi madrastra y
sus hijos no son racistas abiertamente. Ellos
constityen de los blancos privilegiados, ellos
tienen pensamientos diferentes a los mios,
tpicos y estereotipos de los Latinos.
Estas percepciones errneas han hecho

Foto por Camila Cardoza

las cosas difciles para m y mis hermanos.

Por ejemplo, ellos no entenden el dolor
y la ira que sentimos cuando la gente
mira a mi padre suciamente solo porque
esta caminando en la calle con un nino
blanco. La gente siempre dice cosas como:
Ustedes no actan como la mayora de
los mexicanos, y es por eso que nos gusta
rodearnos con ustedes. Siempre era casi
imposible no explotar en su ignorancia. Lo
que era un da normal para nosotros en la
ciudad de West Valley era ghetto para
ellos. La mitad de las veces que les quera
gritar a ellos, decirles que ellos no saban lo
que era ser pobre, lo que era ser racialmente
oprimidos. Ellos contaban historias sobre
cmo luchaban para para llegar al fin de
mes con pocos recursos. Sin embargo
ellos podan permitirse un viaje anual a
Disneyland y a Sea World. No me gusta
cuando la gente me dice que esta luchando
cuando se pueden ir de vacaciones cada
ao, cundo yo tenia suerte de ir una vez
cada cinco aos! Ellos no saban lo que era
irse a dormir con hambre, lo que era tener
a sus padres vivendo de cheque en cheque,
y que no podian pagar los biles de utulidad.
La nica razn por la que ellos tenan cosas
buenas fue a causa de sus abuelos. Ellos
vivan con sus abuelos, y tenan casi todo lo
mejor para ellos. Mi madrastra ni siquiera
tena que trabajar para sostenerlos.

Las cosas se ponian an ms complicadas

cuando hablbamos de lo acadmico.
Cuando era nia, mis tas abuelas me
cuidaban y me ensearon a leer y a escribir
a una edad temprana. En el momento en
que entr en el jardn de infantes, estaba
casi tres aos por delante de otros nios de
mi edad. Siempre he estado muy orgullosa
de lo difcil que he tenido que trabajar para
obtener mis grados que casi siempre eran
A. Me veia obligada a conseguir esas buenas
calificaciones, pero tambin era una parte
de mi orgullo. Si me sacaba malos grados,
mi padre me castigaba, por lo general
le gustaba golpearme, o me quitaba mis
juguetes o cosas. Me golpearon mucho con
el cinto, y le tem mucho a mi padre por
eso. Tambin aprendi que tenia que hacer
todo por mi cuenta. Mi madre abandon
la escuela cuando tena diecisis aos
porque estaba embarazada de mi hermana,
y mi padre abandon la universidad para
mantener a mi madre y hermanos. As que
cuando llegu al quinto grado, mis padres
dejaron de ser capazes de ayudarme con
mi tarea. He trabajado duro para mantener
altos grados solita, y yo estoy muy orgullosa
de mi trabajo duro. Yo estaba enfurecida
cuando mis hermanastros escapavan con
calificaciones mediocres, y tenan ayuda
constante de su madre gringa. Ella siempre
estaba all para celebrar con ellos por su
trabajo escolar. Ella incluso les hacia la tarea
porque ellos se sentian cansados por el
largo dia. Sin embargo, mi padre y su nueva
esposa le afirmaron a mis hermanastros que
deberian de trabajar igual de duro como
yo. Eso hizo que me hiervera la sangre.
Una calificacin de B y yo salgo ganando
una paliza, pero para ellos, simplemente
escuchaba, Oh est bien, eres un nervioso
para tomar examenes. Que va a ir mejor la
prxima vez yo se wue tu puedes. Siempre
era una mentira o otra para decirles que su
trabajo no era tn mal pero estaban ms lejos
de la verdad.
Todo esto se agrav cuando mi
hermanastra y yo aplicamos a becas durante
nuestro ltimo ao de prepa. Mi salvacin
lleg en la forma de una beca de diversidad:
La Beca Opotunidad en Utah, esta beca
era para el perodo de cuatro aos, una
matrcula completa. Esta beca tambien

tenia una asignacin para que yo comprara

mis libros universitarios ya que son muy
caros. Es designada para estudiantes menos
representados y de primera generacin. Al
recibir la maravillosa noticia de que yo sera
capaz de asistir a la universidad con esta bea
que me pagaba todo, llor. No poda creer
que mi diligencia dio sus frutos. Mi familia y
yo nos regocijamos, y mi padre me felicito.
Me dijo que estaba orgulloso de m, pero
aadi, que no era justo que yo la recib.
Umm --- qu? Esa declaracin me golpe
como un tren de carga.
Explic que no era justo que yo podra
recibir una beca de diversidad por ser
mexicana porque no habia una disponible
para los estudiantes blancos. Sostuvo que
mi hermana de paso trabaj tan duro como
yo lo hice, y no era justo que ella no era
elegible para la misma beca. Era como
si l me haba apualado en el corazn.
Pareca mi 3.98 GPA, cinco pruebas de nivel
avanzado, y 60 crditos universitarios en
comparacin con su 3.7 GPA no era prueba
suficiente de que me mereca esa beca
debido a mis habilidades acadmicas. Yo era
Latina y ella no.
A pesar de las quejas constantes sobre
la injustisia de mi beca de diversidad, saba
que me la mereca. Encontr el orgullo y la
fuerza en mi marginalidad. Yo trabajo tan
duro en mis cursos de la universidad como
lo haca antes, en medio de pensamientos
mentales de lo loco que es mi padre por
enojarse de mi beca. A pesar de que ha sido
una lucha vivir con una familia ensamblada
blanca y un padre mexicano que cambi
su manera de ser cuando se fusion con
esta nueva familia, todava me preocupo
por ellos. Ellos no son malas personas por
lo que digo, son simplemente un producto
del sistema de racismo y la opresin en
que vivimos. Aunque sigo teniendo enojo
y frustrasion, por sus opiniones diferentes.
Tambien me la paso lamentando la prdida
del padre que antes tenia una conciencia
crtica. Yo aun uso el conocimiento que
tengo de los estudios tnicos que he tomado
para ayudarme a identificar por lo que paso.
Me ayuda a dejarlos decir lo que quiran y
no me importa porque mi Latinidad es algo
bello.

Invierno 2014

Pendeja del ao:

editorial
By/Por Venceremos Guerrilleras/os
A medida que el final del ao se acerca,
podemos echar un vistazo atrs a todos los
acontecimientos y las personas que fueron
perjudiciales para el progreso de nuestras
comunidades. Mientras que la competencia
fue dura en esta ocasin; hemos encontrado
una manera de reducirlo a una candidata.
Este ao encontramos que la Representante
Ludmya Love aka Mia Love, nos caus ms
dolores de cabeza y en nuestra opinin, no
cumple con su apellido.
Durante las elecciones legislativas de este
ao, Mia Love fue votada en el Congreso
como la primera mujer republicana, Negra.
En este estado conservador, que puede
parecer un paso adelante para nosotros,
pero en realidad su historia, su plataforma,
sus ideales y la moral no se alinean con la
comunidad que se supone que representa.
Mia Love es hija de inmigrantes de
Hait, y huy de la guerra y la dictadura. El
Representante electo de Brooklyn nacido
en Utah se mud a Newark Connecticut y
finalmente adopt a Utah cuando conoci a
un misionero y se convirti al mormonismo.
Ella no parece ser una republicana tpica,
sobre todo cuando habla de la raza; ella
afirma que la raza no es un factor en su
xito poltico, sin embargo, ella sirve como
una mujer ejemplar de testigos por su
propio partido. Ella se deja llevar por la
idea de que porque ella gan las elecciones
para su distrito que los republicanos no son
racistas, un partido que a menudo se retrata.
Histricamente sabemos que no es el casi su
elejimiento no significa que ella representa a
las comunidades de color.
A Mia Love no le gustan las ideas de
Obama, ella afirma que est dividiendo a

Congresista Mia Love falla

representar el amor & la raza
la nacin con su aprobacin de la Ley de
Asistencia que permite el acceso a un seguro
de salud a millones de estadounidenses,
y a su accin ejecutiva sobre el sistema
de inmigracin de Estados Unidos. Sin
embargo, ella ha declarado que la reforma
migratoria debe incluir asegurar la frontera
y no permitirle educacin a los hijos de
inmigrantes indocumentados. Ella quiere
que la gente viva sin acceso a aseguransas
de salud y no tiene intencin de mantener a
las familias de inmigrantes juntas. As que a
pesar de que puede parecer como un triunfo
para el partido conservador de Utah, ella
sigue siendo una republicana: En contra de
Obamacare, y ignora los derechos de las

mujeres.
Venceremos selecciona a una persona para
Pendejo/a del ao para alguien que no
representa el mayor inters de la Raza. Ms
all de eso, este reconocimiento tambin
se da a alguien que no ha demostrado
integridad y compromiso con visin
del futuro, nos alegramos de ver que el
Congreso se diversificar al menos en
parte, pero si esta accin no promulga la
diversidad como un proceso ms que un
objetivo que slo ser otro movimiento
poltico para tratar de ocultar los verdaderos
problemas. Un pequeo paso se merece su
alabanza, pero un paso sin accin progresiva
es slo un paso.

Mia Love, por favor, no descartes su

herencia de Haiti y no tomes una postura en
contra de tus propias races afro-haitianas.
Hay una razn por la que la mayora
de la gente de color no votaron por ti.
Esperamos que utilices el privilegio blanco
del que te has beneficiado, pora crear una
mejor nacin, y tambien un mejor estado de
Utah.
El Pendeja/o del ao es un llamado
a la accin para nuestras comunidades de
color, si tenemos el poder de cambiar el
nivel local y nacional entonces porque no.
Esto depende complemante en que las
comunidades se unan para crear un cambio
social. Juntos Venceremos!

Congresswoman Mia Love fails to represent love & la raza

As the end of the year approaches, we take a look back at
all the events and people that were detrimental to the progress
of our communities. While the competition was stiff this time
around; we found a way to narrow it down to one candidate. We
explored options from different parts of the nation and even
the world, but ultimately the dubious honor of Pendeja del Ao
stays local to our state. This year we found that Representative
Ludmya Love a.k.a. Mia Love, caused us the most headaches and
in our opinion, does not live up to her last name.
During this years midterm elections, Mia Love was voted into
congress as the first, Black Republican woman of Haitan origins.
In this conservative state, that may seem like a step forward for
us, but in reality her story, her platform, her ideals and morals do
not align with the community she is supposed to represent.
Mia Love is a child of immigrants from Haiti, who fled war
and dictatorship. The Brooklyn born Representative-elect
for Utah Fourth Congressional district, moved to Newark
Connecticut and eventually adopted Utah as her home when
she met an LDS missionary and converted to Mormonism from
her Catholic upbringings. Love does not appear to be a typical
Republican at first, especially when she talks about race; she
claims that race is a not a factor in her political success, yet she
serves as a poster-child, tokenized by her own party. She gives
in to the idea that because she won the midterm election for her
district that Republicans are not the vile racist, sexist party that
are often portrayed. Historically we know that is not the case.
Strategic re-districting and boundary claiming on behalf of our
current representatives (Majority republican) does not mean
she represents the immigrant communities and communities of
color.
Mia Love is a strong disapprover of Obama and his

administration, she claims that he is dividing the nation with his

passing of the Affordable Care Act that grants access to health
insurance to millions of Americans, and his executive action on
Americas broken immigration system. Yet she has stated that
immigration reform should include securing the border and
not granting access to education to children of undocumented
immigrants. If she wants working class people to live without
access to healthcare and doesnt intend to keep families of
immigrants together, then perhaps she shouldnt claim to be for
family values. So though she may seem like a triumph for Utahs
conservative party, she is still a typical Republican: Repealing
Obamacare, ignoring womens rights, adopting a pro-life stance,
and a strong supporter of defending the second amendment.
Venceremos selects a recipient of the Pendejo/a of the year to
someone that does not represent the greater interest of La Raza.
Beyond that, this recognition is also given to someone who has
not shown integrity and commitment to forward-thinking, we are
glad to see that Congress will be diversified at least in part, but
if this action does not promulgate diversity as a process rather
than a goal it will only be another political move to try and hide
the real issues. A small step does deserve its praise, but a step
without progressive action is just a step.
Mia, please do not discard your Haitan Heritage and take a
stance against your own Afro-Haitian roots and still call it love. .
There is a reason that most people of color did not vote for you.
We hope that you use the white privilege that you have benefitted
from, for a better nation, and better state.
The Pendeja/o del ao is a call to action to our communities:
local and national transformation will depend on all communities
coming together to create social change. Juntos Venceremos!

Derechos despus de Ferguson

By Sheila Lazcano
Guerrillera

On Aug. 9, Ferguson, Missouri resident Michael Brown

was shot and killed by police officer Darren Wilson.
Brown was an 18-year-old Black male while officer Wilson
a 28-year-old white male. Browns tragic death sparked
national unrest about the unjust relationship between
people of color and police officers, specifically in regards
to increasing police brutality and misconduct. In the
weeks that followed, the grand jury decided not to indict
officer Wilson for Browns murder. Many questions arose
regarding truth, justice, and accountability still unanswered
for many.
At issue for many is whether Brown posed a legitimate
threat to Wilson or whether he had actually surrendered
before Wilson shot him. A common argument is that
if Brown intended to surrender, he did not do it right.
Medical reports infer that Brown was actually kneeling on
the ground and had his hands up when he was shot: Is this
not a sufficient stance of surrender?
If this posture is questionable, it is profoundly important
for Black and Brown communities to know how to act
in encounters with law enforcement. More so, these
communities need to have a clear understanding of their
rights. The following offers guidelines for encounters with
law enforcement, as well as information about ones rights.
When pulled over: When an officer turns their lights on
while theyre still driving, always pull over to the right of
the road. Be safe in doing so. Place the vehicle in park and
place your hands visibly on the steering wheel. Wait for the
officer to approach. If you feel unsafe, for example if it
is a dark and dangerous street or the weather condition is

Winter 2014

The police brutality that happened in Mexico sounds

a lot like many of the issues with law enforcement
that the United States has been dealing with over the
past few decades. The line between protecting the
peace and militarization has been violted by police
too often.
bad, call 911 and inform them that you are not attempting
to flee, but that you will pull over as soon as you feel safe.
Once stopped, the officer will ask for three things: drivers
license, vehicle registration, and proof of insurance. At
this time, you may search your car and belongings for those
documents. When the officer leaves with your information,
remain in the vehicle until the officer returns. Then simply
proceed with the officers instructions. However, this
interaction may not go smoothly. It is important to know
that the officer can ask to search the vehicle if the officer
has probable cause, this implies that the officer has
clear facts to suspect your involvement in criminal activity.
However, if you do not want to be searched, you must
remember to say, I do not consent to this search. If the
officer asks any questions you do not feel comfortable
answering, you have the right to refuse to answer. For
example, if you are asked about your immigration status by
any law enforcement officer, you have the right to refuse to
answer by saying, I refuse to answer.
Rights when arrested: The most well-known right when
arrested is the right to remain silent. You do not have to

speak or answer any questions. Do not resist arrest even

if you believe the arrest is unfair. Ask for a lawyer right
away and remain silent. Once the lawyer is appointed,
direct all questions and concerns to the lawyer. If you
are undocumented, let the lawyer know. However only
discuss your legal status with the lawyer, if anyone else has
questions about your legal status they can ask your lawyer.
Do not sign anything that is unclear or not fully explained.
The lawyer can help answer any questions you have. Also
remember, you have the right to one free local phone call.
Rights when taken into immigration custody: First,
you still have the right to a lawyer. Ask to be appointed
to one or ask for a list of lawyers that can help. Second,
remain silent. Anything you say can be used against you.
Third, do not sign anything before your lawyer can look at
the documents. This is how many individuals consent to
voluntarily leave the United States.
How to surrender: To surrender, lay on the ground
facing it with your hands behind your back. Holding this
posture is a national symbol for surrendering.
If you believe that any law enforcement officer has
violated your rights it is important to do the following: write
down everything you remember, try to include the date,
the officers name, location, time of day, the agency the
officer works for, and what happened in full detail. Then
file the complaint and contact civil liberties unions like the
American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) for help. In Utah,
you can reach them at aclu@acluutah.org, 801-521-9862, or
in person at 355 North 300 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84103.

By Abby Reyes
Guerrillera

As winter approaches Salt Lake City,

the sore joints in my knees remind me of
multiple hospitals and surgical rooms. I
am the first U.S.-born Latina in my family
and grew up in a low-income household.
I qualified for free school lunch and,
on varying occasions, Childrens Health
Insurance Plan (CHIP), food stamps,
now known as Supplementary Nutrition
Assistance Program (SNAP), and my
family visited food pantries as needed.
When I was nearly nine years old, a doctor
recommended that I have corrective knee
surgeriesa seemingly financial burden
on my family despite an optimism that
everything would be okay. My memories
of each surgery consists of lying on a hard
table, slightly comforting warm blankets,
soothing voices, smiling eyes behind surgical
masks, glaring lights, and a stuffed animal I
hugged tightly. My last sentiments each time
doctors manipulated my consciousness into
a deep, undisturbed sleep with anesthesia
was of a vulnerability in entrusting my life
and body to doctors I didnt know.
My parents were unable to afford my
surgeries because we were uninsured and
fell within qualification gaps for coverage.
For this reason, I was admitted to a special
hospital for children with similar economic
backgrounds. In addition, I underwent
additional procedures throughout my
adolescence as a result of complications
that had developed in my tissues after my
childhood surgeries. Invasive cuts, implants,
drugs, and prolonged healing periods as a
child and teen strongly affected the medical
decisions, questions, and communication
with health professionals I now have as an
adult. When I was older, I learned that my
multiple surgeries had been donated as an
act of charity according to the philosophy
of the hospitalmeaning my parents
were not held responsible for paying the
thousands of dollars my surgeries totaled.
I recently met with another uninsured U
of U student who more recently required
medical treatment for a life-threatening
illness. Too (a pseudonym) is a Latino
graduate student recently diagnosed with
cancer. After multiple doctor visits to
diagnose his difficulty breathing, Too was
diagnosed with cancer and had emergency
surgery the same day to remove one of his
tumors. As part of his care, he met with
a psychologist to assess his relationships
with teachers, family, friends, and anyone
else he interacted with. He explained they
were evaluating his mental health and
ability to pay back what he owed. When
asked how this questioning felt, Too
responded, Everything was happening so
quickly that I just wanted the treatment. I
didnt care how much it costs. Just get me
healthy and Ill work two or three jobs so
I can pay your money back. Toos care
required individual approval for multiple
tests, procedures, and medicines, including
the chemotherapy to kill the cancerous cells
in his body. Too explained that because
chemotherapy is so expensive, the approval
process is arduous due to firm guidelines
and many forms to submit.
Too was provided with vouchers by one
of the hospitals he visited to help pay for
the medical scans and images he underwent
prior to his diagnoses. Additionally, the
hospital had a financial assistance program
based on a sliding scale that takes into
account an individuals family size and
income to determine how much they
might be able to pay for healthcare. This
program helped Too cover surgical and
other costs with the exception of co-pays
which averaged to about $50 per medical
visit or procedure. During the process of
his chemotherapy, Too became employed
and was able to obtain health insurance that
helped him cover more of his increasing
health care costs.
Some of the unusual experiences of
Toos treatment included being asked
by medical staff doctors if he smoked

Uninsured students face

critical health issues
marijuana recreationally and after
responding, No, they asked a second time,
Are you sure? Too said he eventually
joked with the doctor, Just because Im
Mexican, doesnt mean I smoke weed, and
they laughed. One doctor also expressed
surprise that Too spoke English well.
Too articulated a concern that mirrors
my own regarding my medical history. He
wondered if medical professionals treated
him as if he were a leech in the medical
system, referring to the biased belief that
certain people are benefiting unnecessarily
from the help of others. I wondered this,
too, at times. Once I understood how my
surgeries were paid for, I fluctuated between
feelings of confidence, stress, energy,
and guilt, particularly since I can mostly
participate and enjoy my favorite activities
as a result of my medical care.
As I have come to study the complexities
of the U.S. healthcare system, I wonder why
others scrutinize people like Too and I for
undergoing expensive procedures we could
not afford. How can our bodies not be
worth the necessary care simply because we
fall within an intersection of public policies
and individual circumstance?
As of today, I have reconciled with the

health of my joints and am aware of the

high probability of future procedures based
on my medical history. I make sure to stay
abreast of federal and state regulations
regarding healthcare access and quality
with any political change in legislature or
leadership. Under the federal Affordable
Care Act, or Obamacare, I can be insured
under my mothers plan through her
employer until the age of 26 for my preexisting condition. This benefit is helpful
as I navigate my options for funding a
potential graduate program or paying off
student debt.
Medicaid and CHIP are public health
programs developed to provide insurance to
families, adults without children, pregnant
women, seniors, children, and people with
disabilities who otherwise may not be able
to access or afford other options available
in the market. To qualify for Medicaid,
ones income must be at or above 100% of
the federal poverty level and up to around
200% before being considered for other
options. For a single person this is an annual
income of about $11,670 to $23,340 and
this range increases for families of 2 or
more. Utah Health Policy Project estimates
45,000 Utahns are currently uninsured and

opinion
do not qualify for Medicaid because their
incomes fall below 100% of the federal
poverty level. Utah has not accepted federal
funds to expand Medicaid to cover this gap
and so Governor Gary Herbert proposed
an alternative plan being discussed among
policy makers, organizations, and the public
called Healthy Utah. This plan would
reportedly assist low-income Utahns who
do not qualify for Medicaid in paying for
health insurance in private markets. As
the details of this plan unravel and the
legislative session in 2015 nears, those
without health insurance and needing
assistance can, in the meantime, refer to
local organizations such as Take Care Utah
(www.takecareutah.org). This organization
assists families and individuals in navigating
their options for affordable health
insurance, free of charge.

Los estudiantes asegurados enfrentan

problemas de salud crticos
By Abby Reyes
Guerrillera

La inseguridad alimentaria ocurre

cuando ciertas poblaciones o individuos
se encuentran en situaciones econmicas
precarias que causan una frecuente
incerteza de como se alimentaran. Con la
creciente inseguridad alimentaria entre las
afroamericanos, latinos, y los desempleados
en los EEUU, las universidades se estan
enfrentando con la necesidad de tomar
acciones institucionales para apoyar a sus
estudiantes de clase obrera. En ltimos
aos, las dificultades financieras de los
estudiantes universitarios han presionado
a varias facultades a travs del pas--hasta
la Universidad de Utah-- para establecer
almacenes de alimentos gratuitos y
nutritivos.
De acuerdo al Departamento de
Agricultura de los Estados Unidos
(USDA), la inseguridad alimentaria es
una disponibilidad limitada o incierta
para adquirir alimentos nutricionalmente
adecuados e inocuos, o la capacidad
incierta para adquirir alimentos de manera
socialmente aceptable. El Programa de
Evaluacin Sentinel de Nutricin de Nios
(C-SNAP) describe, adems, la inseguridad
alimentaria como el acceso incierto o
limitado a la comida necesaria para que
todos los miembros del hogar puedan
llevar una vida activa y saludable, e indica
que se este fenmeno se produce en las
comunidades profundamente arraigadas
a la pobreza y limitadas en recursos
financieros. Como tal, Los nios latinos
y afroamericanos experimentan tasas
desproporcionadamente altas de pobreza,
en comparacin con los nios de otros
grupos raciales / tnicos, y su situacin
esta en riesgo de aumentar por deficiencias
del desarrollo.
Algunas universidades estadounidenses
con alta matrcula de estudiantes de primera
generacin, bajos ingresos, diversidad racial
hicieron una comparacion analitica entre la
inseguridad alimentaria entre sus estudiantes
y la comunidad local. La Universidad de
Hawai en Manoa (UHM) encontr que el
10,9% de los hogares encuestados estaban
en situacin de inseguridad alimentaria, y un
24% de los hogares estaban en alto riesgo
de inseguridad alimentaria. En contraste,
21% de los estudiantes de la universidad
mostraban estar con inseguridad alimentaria
y otro 24% se encontraban en riesgo de
experimentar la inseguridad alimentaria.

Muchos estudiantes de primera generacin y los

estudiantes de color que viven en la pobreza se
encuentran con tener que priorizar sus necesidades.
Muchos optan por alimentos ms baratos y ms
rpidos que no apoyan la buena salud. Otros tienen
que elegir entre la mercadera, una visita mdica,
el alquiler, o librosun dilema injusto que ningn
estudiante tendria que enfrentar.
Los estudiantes universitarios de color, son
ms probable de sufrir con la inseguridad
alimentaria, algo que ha demostrado
ser perjudicial para los resultados de
aprendizaje y salud positivo.
El ao pasado, el Centro de Bienestar
Estudiantil en la Universidad de Utah
administr una encuesta revelando que un
poco ms de la mitad de los estudiantes
fueron clasificados como alimentariamente
inseguros. En respuesta, cinco oficinas
de la Universidad de Utah se asociaron
para debatir la apertura de un almacn de
alimentos dentro de la facultad. Gracias los
esfuerzos ahora existe un espacio reservado
en el segundo piso del Campus Store o
la tienda estudiantil, que funciona como
despensa de alimentos.
Los estudiantes conocen al espacio
extraoficialmente como la librera del
campus donde podran comprar sus
manuales de curso-aqu es donde se aloja
el almacn inaugurado en octubre del 2014
y est disponible para los miembros de la
comunidad de la universidad que sufren
inseguridad alimentaria. Para conseguir
comida los estudiantes presentan un ID
de la universidad vlido, su Ucard, y
completan una corta solicitud confidencial.
Como gerente del almacn, cordino los
estudiantes y el personal de voluntarios
que hacen funcionar a este proyecto. La
mayora de la comida en la despensa es
donado por el Banco de Alimentos de Utah,
pero como noticias de nuestra presencia
se ha extendido, grupos de estudiantes
han organizado sus propios eventos para
coletar alimentos y apoyar a la despensa. El
almacn ha ayudado a ms de 50 estudiantes
de diferentes edades y programas. Algunos
de estos alumnos son los proveedores para
una familia. Algunos necesitan regresar
por ms comida durante todo el semestre.
Parte del proyecto incluye una fuente de

informacin que refiere a los estudiantes

a otras despensas locales alrededor de Salt
Lake y ciudades vecinas, algunas de las
cuales sirven comidas calientes.
Muchos se confunden al preguntarse
porque la inseguridad alimentaria debera
ser reconocida por un instituto como la
universidad. Hay demasiadas personas estan
bajo la impresion que como estudiantes
universitarios, nosotros ya tenemos
los recursos para poder pagar nuestras
necesidades bsicas--la renta, la comida, el
carro, etc. Y sin embargo, las instituciones
tambin esperan que los estudiantes vengan
preparados para sus cursos, significando que
tenemos que comprar los libros y manuales
caros y tiles escolares, adems de pagar
los costos altos de la colegiatura. Muchos
estudiantes de primera generacin y los
estudiantes de color que viven en la pobreza
se encuentran con tener que priorizar sus
necesidades. Muchos optan por alimentos
ms baratos y ms rpidos que no apoyan la
buena salud. Otros tienen que elegir entre
la mercadera, una visita mdica, el alquiler,
o librosun dilema injusto que ningn
estudiante tendria que enfrentar.
El almacn de la universidad tiene
como objetivo apoyar a los estudiantes
con el alivio de tener que tomar este tipo
de decisiones difciles, proporcionando
opciones de comida gratis y el ordial saludo
de un compaero. La Universidad de Utah
no est sola en abordar esta cuestin. Todas
las instituciones de educacin superior
pblicas en Utah tienen una despensa
similar: Utah State University (USU),
Utah Valley University (UVU), Dixie State
University (DSU), Salt Lake Community
College (SLCC) y la Universidad de Utah
(UofU).

Invierno 2014

Hiding behind the

American
shadow
feature
By Elizabeth Morales
Guerrillera

Throughout these past few years, there

has been an increasing demand for the
U.S. to grant citizenship to undocumented
individuals. . A growing community of
eligible Dreamers and supportive ally
communities have mobilized to demand
that Congress or the President establish
citizenship for undocumented individuals,
making many major headlines over
the past few years. Many undocumented
activists have developed a powerful voice
to defend themselves and to set an example
of civic engagement in their community.
But what happens when undocumented
individuals choose to hide their Latina/o
identities behind the American Shadows
in order to defend themselves from the
world around them. Here are two stories
from undocumented Mexican youth who
hide their Latinidad in order to shield
their undocumented status. Because of an
inability to claim all the rights of American
citizenship, they deny a racial/ ethnic
identity that is inextricably linked to their
citizenship status.
Chris is a 22 year old male who is a
college student that works in a restaurant.
He is able to to avoid being stereotyped as
a phentotypical Latino and has developed a
coping mechanism to distance himself from
his Mexican identity.

was born in Leon Mexico and moved

to the United States when I was about
3-4 years old, I dont know the exact age
because I have never really bothered asking
my family. I attended elementary in Utah
until I was in fourth grade and that is when
my family and I moved to Colorado for

family reasons. I guess that is where a lot

of things changed for me and I became
aware of my legal status at a young age
without even knowing it. Colorado wasnt
very diverse I was among the few Mexican
kids in my elementary.. Kids were so rude
and would tease the shit out of the Mexican
kids and would say stuff like Go back to
Mexico, you spike. Or This is America,
speak English wetback. I know I was
young and honestly had no idea what it
really meant to be undocumented until I
grew older but seeing how the kids were
getting treated made me scared and I didnt
want to be the kid getting teased so needless
to say I joined in and became a bully, I guess
it was almost a defense mechanism and a
way to cover up what I was. I thought if I
joined in then no one would ever think I
was. I soon started to white wash myself
and try to be as white as I could, dressing
in white name brand clothing, listen to the
music my white friends were listening to,
and just try to avoid being Mexican overall,
so that no one would ever find out I was
undocumented. My family and I moved
back to Utah after a couple of years but
my judgments and attitude didnt change.
I still stayed a bully and the reason why I
think was to protect myself from being
found out, even though I wasnt in that
environment anymore. All throughout Jr.
High, High School, and even now in college
I do not relate very well with my culture, I
do not Latin dance, Spanish comes hard,
I dont have any Hispanic friends. And
because I do not look Hispanic I usually
just say I am white when people arent
sure of what my race is. Its sucks having
to fill out my Deferral Action and HB144
documents and being constantly reminded
that I am undocumented and that a big part
of society does not label me as a citizen, but
yet America is all I know.. It sucks.. I know

that my actions are wrong and that I should

embrace who I am, but who I am now is all
I know. I like being different and not labeled
in a certain way. I feel that if I keep this
attitude up I will never be discovered and it
has been working so far.
Law professor Margaret Montoya
explained that many Latinas/os often carry
the burden of having to play two roles-one conforming to dominant society and
the other knowing and expressing their
Latino culture. Latinos who decide not to
show their culture often use racelessness
a coping mechanism that de-emphasizes
and characteristics that signal they are not
dominant group members. For Reynaldo
this has been his reason for not wanting to
identify as Mexican/American and just as
American.

or many students the limitations

on being undocumented come
into play after graduating high school. The
reality hit Steven a 18 year old boy trying to
enter college after not being able to apply
for FAFSA. The hard truth hit him after
understanding what the real restrictions
were here in the U.S. for an undocumented
student.
I always knew I was undocumented, I
knew both my parents were undocumented
but I didnt understand what that really
meant and what my limitations were. It
wasnt until I was in high school when I told
my mom about wanting to apply for a job
and her telling me I wasnt able to because
I was undocumented. I remember at that
point being furious for who I was and
ashamed for being illegal.
I had never hit the norm of a Mexican.
I was always the odd ball out in my family.
I was very much the skater, long haired,
tattoo loving guy that was told to be the
troubled child growing up. I dont think I

necessarily tried to be white that was just

the identity that fit me best. Even with both
my parents being Mexican I dont celebrate
or feel pride for being Mexican. My culture
and legal status has only brought me
discrimination here in America and I dont
see the need to celebrate that.
I do not plan on teaching my kids Spanish
or having them too involved with their
Latin roots, I do not want them to feel the
way I felt when growing up. I want to be the
parent that is able to talk in English to them
and have them not feel embarrassed in
parent teacher conferences because I dont
speak English. I dont want to put my kids
through hard times, and to do that I feel
that I have to cut my ties with the culture
that I never even wanted to be involved in.
I just feel like the last step to making this
happen is for me being granted citizenship.
It wasnt until the moment that my
mom told me about not only not being
able to apply to any job but also not being
granted FAFSA, Loans, restricted on
scholarships, and many other small things
that I became scared of people seeing me
as different, I am embarrassed to say that
I am undocumented or that I even have
to take extra steps to be eligible for small
things that normal citizens dont ever have
to worry about. I dont know what I would
do if I were ever to be deported. Mexico is
not my home, I dont know that country. I
am American despite my legal status. I am
American.
Its important to remember that there isnt
just one way to hold the Latino identity,
and there are particular challenges to
being a Latino in U.S. society that holds
both negative ideas about Latinos and has
policies that directly affect their identity.

Escondido detrs de la sombra americana

Por Elizabeth Morales
Guerrillera

A lo largo de estos ltimos aos, en los EE.UU. se ha

visto una creciente demanda para concederle un proceso de
ciudadana a los indocumentados. Los titulares principales
han observado como los Dreamers junto con sus alianzas se
han movilizado para exigir que el Congreso o el Presidente
establezcan una reforma migratoria justa e integral. Muchos
activistas indocumentados han desarrollado una poderosa
voz para defenderse y ser un ejemplo de accin cvica
en su comunidad.
Pero que sucede cuando los individuos indocumentados
deciden ocultar sus identidades detrs de las sombras con el
fin de defenderse del mundo que los rodea? Aqu hay dos
historias de jvenes mexicanos que ocultan su latinidad con
el fin de proteger a su condicin como indocumentados.
Debido a la imposibilidad de reclamar todos los derechos
de la ciudadana estadounidense, niegan alguna identidad
racial/tnica que est indisolublemente ligada a su estatus
migratorio.
Chris, de 22 aos que es un estudiante universitario
que trabaja en un restaurante. Fenotpicamente, el es
capaz de evitar ser visto como un latino y ha desarrollado
un mecanismo de supervivencia para distanciarse de su
identidad mexicana.
Nac en Len,Mxico e immigr a los Estados Unidos
cuando tena unos 3-4 aos de edad, no s la edad exacta
porque nunca he molestado en preguntarle a mi familia.
Asist a la primaria en Utah hasta que estaba en cuarto
grado cuando mi familia y yo nos mudamos a Colorado.
Supongo que es donde una gran parte de mi cambio
interno ocurri y comenc a darme cuenta de mi situacin
legal. Colorado no era muy diverso, yo estaba entre los
pocos nios mexicanos en mi escuela. Los nios eran muy
groseros y se burlaban de los nios mexicanos diciendo
cosas como Vuelvete a Mxico o Esto es Amrica,
habla Ingls, mojado. S que era joven y honestamente no
tena idea de lo que significaba ser indocumentado hasta
que fui creciendo, pero ver cmo los nios estaban siendo
tratados me aterrorizo y no queria ser objeto de burlas.
As que cambi, y me convert en un bully. Supongo que
era casi como un mecanismo de defensa para esconderme
de mi realidad. Pens que si me una a los americanos
entonces nadie

Winter 2014

iba a pensar que yo era indocumentado. Pronto empec

a agringarme y tratar de ser lo ms americano posible,
me vesta con las marcas que compraban ellos, escuchaba
la msica de ellos, y en general trataba de evitar todo lo
mexicano para que nadie sospechara de mi. Despus de un
tiempo mi familia decidi volver a Utah, pero mis hbitos
no haban cambiado. Segua siendo el bully a pesar de que
ya no estaba en el mismo ambiente hostil. A lo largo de
la escuela y an ahora no me relaciono muy bien con mi
cultura-- no puedo bailar, el espaol se me hace dificil, y
no tengo amigos hispanos. Y porque no parezco latino,
normalmente digo que soy blanco cuando las personas no
saben identificarme. Me molesta llenar mis documentos
la Accin Diferida y la HB144 porque recuerdo que soy
indocumentado y que una gran parte de la sociedad no
me ve como un ciudadano, aunque vivir en los EEUU es
lo nico que conozco. Odio vivir asi. S que mis acciones
estn equivocados y que debera aceptar ms a mi cultura,
pero ya soy como soy y se me hace difcil cambiar. Me gusta
ser diferente y que no me categorizen. Creo que si continuo
con esta actitud jams sere descubierto y la verdad es que
hasta ahora me ha funcionado.
Un profesora hizo una investigacin acadmica para
averiguar porque los latinos sienten la presin de tomar
una doble identidad. El explica que normalmente en la
comunidad latina uno tiene que americanizarse para poder
sobrevivir y navegar la cultura estadounidense o uno
se aferra a su identidad cultural con fuerte lealtad para
mantener un sentido de comunidad y ser ms consciente.
Los latinos que deciden no mostrar su cultura intentan de
evitar las caractersticas que los podran identificar como
miembros de un grupo subordinado, anhelando un estatus
sin raza/etnia. Para una persona como Chris esto ha sido su
razn para no querer identificarse como mexicano.

Muchos estudiantes sin papeles conocen las severas
limitaciones de su estatus legal al graduarse de la
preparatoria. La realidad le dio como un golpe a Steven,
un joven de 18 aos intentando ingresar a la universidad,
cuando no pudo solicitar la FAFSA (becas concedidas por
el gobierno federal). Esto le dio a conocer las restricciones
que tendra que superar como un estudiante indocumentado
matriculado en los Estados Unidos.
Siempre supe que era indocumentado, saba que mis
padres eran indocumentados pero yo no entenda lo que

realmente quera decir eso y cuales serian mis limitaciones.

No fue hasta que estuve en la escuela preparatoria cuando
le dije a mi mam sobre el deseo de buscar trabajo,
respondiendome que sera una imposibilidad debido a mi
estatus migratorio. Recuerdo lo furioso que me senta en ese
momento por la vergenza que me daba ser ilegal.

Jams en mi vida me sent como un mexicano normal.
Siempre fui el bicho raro de mi familia. Yo era un patinador,
el chico de pelo largo que le encantaban los tatuajes,
siempre me decan que era el nio problemtico. No creo
que intente ser blanco, simplemente era la identidad que
me quedaba mejor. Incluso teniendo padres mexicanos, no
celebro ni siento orgullo de mis races. Mi cultura y estatus
legal slo me han trado discriminacin aqu en Estados
Unidos y no veo la necesidad de celebrar eso.
No pienso ensearles espaol a mis hijos ni involucrarlos
tanto con sus races latinas. Es que no quiero que sientan
lo que yo sent cuando estaba creciendo. Quiero ser el padre
que es capaz de hablar en Ingls con ellos y sus maestros,
evitar que se sientan avergonzados en las conferencias de
padres. No quiero poner a mis hijos tengan que atravesar
dificultades en sus vidas, y para hacer eso siento que tengo
que cortar mis lazos con la cultura a lo que yo ni siquiera
deseaba pertenecer. Para mi el recibir la ciudadana sera el
ltimo paso en completar este proceso.
No fue sino hasta el momento en que mi madre me cont
no slo que no podria aplicar a cualquier tipo de trabajo,
sino tambin la descalificacin de FAFSA, prstamos,
becas, y muchas otras cosas pequeas pero importantes que
increment el miedo de la gente me viera como diferente.
Me da verguenza decir que estoy indocumentado o que
tengo que tomar medidas adicionales para tener el derecho
a las cosas pequeas que a los ciudadanos normales no les
hace falta. No s lo que hara si alguna vez fuera deportado.
Mxico no es mi hogar, yo no conozco a ese pas. Soy
Americano a pesar de mi situacin legal. Soy Americano.
De estas narraciones es importante reconocer que no
hay slo una manera de mantener la identidad latina, esta
identidad viene con retos. Aqu en este pas se ejercen ideas
negativas sobre los latinos y existen polticas que afectan
cmo uno se relaciona con identidad y sus orgenes.

Perra gringa: The struggle to be Colombian & American

By Juliana Castro
Guerrillera

I had not seen my niece in four years.

She was a wearing a low-cut red t-shirt,
exposing the mole between her breasts. She
also wore black jeans, black biker boots and
oversized alternative black headphones; she
had bathed in arrogance that day. Her hair
was dark and short, level with her shoulders;
one side longer than the other, and the ends
dyed blonde. She was wearing dark glasses. I
couldnt recognize what she had become.
Cami! I yelled, and hugged her.
My dad put her luggage in the trunk.
I hardly remember her saying anything at
all on our way home. She was listening to
Resortea rap-metal Mexican band. I guess
she was tired. Being on a plane for nine
hours does that.
When we got home, I gave her a tour. I
waited to show her my roomour room
until the end. I forgot how to say bed in
Spanish, and she looked at me like I had just
committed a crime.
Sos una perra gringa.
What did you call me? I said
Youre such an American bitch.
Why are you being like this? I asked
her.
Youre different, she said in
disappointment, youre forgetting how to
speak Spanish, Juli. Do you even know how
to be Colombian anymore?
She had changed too, not only physically
but also mentally. She wasnt that 11-yearold girl I had left sobbing and begging me
to take her with me; I wasnt that 15-yearold girl full of expectations, and dreams,
and terror. But I never thought we would
become strangers.
I said goodnight and went to my room to
study. I could hear her talking to my older
brother about music and literature in the
other room. She emphasized how much she
dislikes Paulo Coelhos The Alchemist, one of
my favorite books. I wondered if this was a
joke. I imagined the relief I would feel after
punching her in the face. Not only had she

questioned my individuality and identity,

criticized the things I liked, and invaded my
personal space, but I thought she was also
taking my brother away from me. I couldnt
stomach this. They used to hate each other,
but now they seemed like best friends.
I needed help. I messaged my friend,
Maria. She responded: You used to be just
like that.
Marias comments struck a nerve: Was
I really like that? I went for a run and tried
to understand why my niece was being such
a brat. She hated the Americanized version
of me; she didnt see me as her fun auntie
anymore; She saw me as a relative who
had forgotten her roots, someone who had
forgotten Spanish and this, for my niecea
lover of languagewas betrayal.
Four years ago, I was disgusted when I
heard Latinos speak Spanish incorrectly and
the fact that I spoke better Spanish made
me feel superioreven proud. I thought
I was better because I knew how to speak
Spanish properly and because I had gone
to a private school back home. I
loved the idea of the American
Dream and although I
understood that achieving
it is very difficult and nearly
impossible for some people;
I despised the people who
werent taking advantage
of it. There were so many
benefits that people who
lived here took for granted
including their freedom.
The freedom to go for
a run and not be afraid
that someone is going
to jump you and steal
your iPod. Although
it happens here, it
doesnt happen as
often.
A car honked at
me. I had crossed
a street without
looking. I started to

run faster and faster. It was strange in this

moment to remember such intense feelings
that had become so foreign to me.
She was I. I realized that not long ago, I
wouldve acted the exact same way. I came
to a sharp stop, dropped to the ground, laid
on the grass, and stared at the sky.
She was acting exactly like I was four
years ago. I knew I had changed, but I
hadnt realized how much. We were the
microcosm of immigration; living proof
of the ongoing struggle between Latinos in
the US and Latinos in our native countries.
I dont really know when I started to
changemaybe it was when my AP English
teacher asked me how the Colombian
National Anthem goes, and all I could recall
was The Star-Spangled Banner. Perhaps
I started to change the first time I had a
dream in English, or the first time I spoke
to an American, or when my friend, Maria,
stopped reminding me that I wasnt in
Colombia anymore. Or it could have been
when I started communicating in English
with my brothers, or when I told
my mother that I was going
to live on campus. I dont
think that I have ever said
anything more hurtful to
her. It was as if I had
stabbed her, and she
was bleeding out.
I just dont
understand why you
would want to go, She
said in between sobs.
My dad was equally
devastated.
He remained
silent, as he
usually does
when hes
mad, until my
mom started
crying, then hed
yell: Largate!,
largate! (Beat
it!, beat it!) My

de plana
brother interfered, saying my parents were
unfairly pressuring meI had to decide for
myself.
I forgot an important aspect of my
parents life: culture. Latinas/os dont leave
home until they marry; if we do, then we
become pieces of mierda; and branded as los
hijos desagradecidos que se fueron de la casa. I was
living in one of Sandra Cisneross vignettes
in The House on Mango Street.
When I told them that I wasnt going to
live on campus anymore, they were relieved.
I didnt say it was because I didnt want
them to suffer and I wanted to be obedient.
I told them the truth: I could no longer live
on campus because it is very expensive.
I was a very different person four years
ago, and truthfully; Im okay with my niece
calling me gringa all the time, because I
am. I am American and Colombian, and
I love both cultures, as they have taught
me different things that offer a great
future. When I thought about the person
I was, I remember hating the fact that I
was becoming less Colombian and more
American. I didnt want to fit in. I wanted to
keep my Colombianness. But, now Im okay
with singing the Star Spangled-Banner and
saluting the American flag, because I have
learned to love this country and what it has
to offer. Im a misunderstood hybrid who
has two cultures to love and enjoy.
Im Colombo-American. Im a daughter,
a sister and a friend, Im a student, and a
hard worker, Im a dancer, and a runner, a
lover of life and a firm believer that we can
change.

Dos mundos: La realidad de ser Colombiana y Americana

Por Juliana Castro
Guerrillera

No haba visto a mi sobrina en cuatro aos. Tena

puesta una camiseta roja escotada; lo nico que poda ver
era el lunar entre sus pechos. Tambin llevaba unos jeans
negros, botas de motorista negras y audfonos alternativos
negros de gran tamao; se haba baado en arrogancia ese
da. Tena el pelo oscuro y corto, hasta los hombros; un
lado ms largo que el otro, y los extremos teido de rubio.
Llevaba gafas oscuras. No poda reconocer en lo que se
haba convertido.
Cami! Grit, y la abrac.
Cuando llegamos a casa le di un recorrido por el lugar.
Esper para mostrarle mi habitacin-nuestra habitacin,
hasta el final. Se me olvid cmo decir cama en espaol, y
me mir como si me hubiera cometido un crimen.
Sos una perra gringa.
Cmo me dijiste?, respond.
Sos una perra gringa.
Por qu eres as? Le pregunt.
Eres diferente, dijo decepcionada te ests olvidando
cmo hablar espaol, Juli. Todava sabes cmo ser
Colombiana?
Ella tambin haba cambiado, no slo fsicamente, sino
mentalmente tambin. Ya no era esa nia de once aos que
haba dejado en el aeropuerto de mi ciudad natal llorando y
rogndome que la llevara conmigo, y yo no era esa nia de
quince aos llena de expectativas y sueos, y terror, pero
nunca pens nos convertiramos en extraas.
Dije buenas noches y me fui a mi habitacin para
terminar de estudiar. Poda orla hablar con mi hermano
mayor sobre msica y literatura en la otra habitacin. Hizo
hincapi en lo mucho que le desagradaba El Alquimista
de Paulo Coelho, uno de mis libros favoritos. Me pregunt
si era una broma. Me imaginaba el alivio que sentira
despus de golpearla en la cara. No slo haba cuestionado
mi individualidad e identidad, criticado las cosas que me
gustaban, e invadido mi espacio personal, sino que ella
tambin estaba tomando mi hermano lejos de m. No poda
soportar esto. Ellos solan odiarse, pero ahora parecan que
fueran mejores amigos.
Necesitaba ayuda. Le envi un mensaje a mi amiga,
Mara. Ella respondi:
T eras as.
Al da siguiente me qued pensando en sus comentarios
y lo que Mara me haba dicho. Realmente era as? Fui a
correr. Pens en el comentario de Mara. Trat de analizarlo;
No poda entender por qu mi sobrina estaba siendo una

Yo era una persona muy diferente de hace

cuatro aos, y la verdad es que ya no me molesta
cuando mi sobrina me llama gringa todo el tiempo,
porque lo soy. Soy Americana y Colombiano, y
me encantan ambas culturas, las dos me han
enseado cosas diferentes que me ofrecern un
gran futuro. Soy una hbrida incomprendida que
tiene dos culturas para amar y disfrutar.

mocosa. Ella odiaba la versin americanizada de m; no me

vea como su ta divertida, me vea como un pariente que
haba olvidado sus races, alguien que se le haba olvidado el
espaol, y eso para mi sobrina, una amante de la lengua, era
traicin.
Hace cuatro aos, yo estaba disgustada cuando
escuchaba Latinos hablar Espaol incorrectamente y el
hecho de que yo hablaba mejor espaol me haca sentir
superior - incluso orgullosa. Pensaba que era mejor que
ellos porque saba cmo hablar espaol correctamente
y porque me haba ido a una escuela privada en mi pas
natal. Me encantaba la idea del sueo Americano y aunque
entenda que es difcil de lograrlo e incluso casi imposible
para algunas personas; despreciaba las personas que no
estaban tomando ventaja de ello. Haba muchos beneficios
que las personas que vivan aqu daban por sentado,
incluyendo su libertad. La libertad de ir a correr y no tener
miedo de que alguien te va a atracar y robar tu iPod. A pesar
de que pasa aqu, no sucede con tanta frecuencia.
Un coche toc la bocina. Haba cruzado una calle sin
mirar. Empec a correr ms rpido y ms rpido. Era
extrao en este momento recordar esos sentimientos
intensos que se haban vuelto tan extraos para m.
Ella era yo. Me di cuenta de que no hace mucho hubiera
actuado de la misma manera como ella lo hizo. Pare de
correr bruscamente, me tire al suelo, me acost en la hierba,
y mire el cielo.
Ella estaba actuando exactamente como yo lo hice hace
cuatro aos. Yo saba que haba cambiado, pero no me
haba dado cuenta de cunto. ramos el microcosmo de la
inmigracin; prueba de la continua lucha entre los Latinos
en los EE.UU. y los Latinos que viven en nuestros pases
nativos. Realmente no s cuando empec a cambiartal

vez fue cuando mi profesor de Ingls me pregunt cmo

era el Himno Nacional de Colombia, y lo nico que poda
pensar era en el Star-Spangled Banner (El himno de los
Estados Unidos). Tal vez empec a cambiar la primera vez
que tuve un sueo en ingls, o la primera vez que habl
con un americano, o cuando Mara dej de recordarme que
yo ya no estaba en Colombia. O podra haber sido cuando
empec a comunicarme en ingls con mis hermanos, o
cuando le dije a mi madre que quera vivir en campus.
No creo que he hecho ni dicho nada ms doloroso
y decepcionante para ella. Era como si yo la hubiera
apualado, y estaba sangrando.
Se me estaba olvido un aspecto muy importante de la
vida de mis padres: la cultura. Los latinos no abandonan
el nido hasta que se casan; si lo hacemos, entonces nos
convertimos en pedazos de mierda; y la sociedad siempre
nos ver como los hijos desagradecidos que se fueron de
la casa. Estaba viviendo en una de las vietas de Sandra
Cisneros en el libro con el que conectare eternamente: La
Casa en Mango Street.
Mi pap se quedaba en silencio, como suele hacer
cuando l est enojado, hasta que mi mam se pona a
llorar, entonces l gritaba: Largate!, largate! entonces
mi hermano interfera diciendo que estaban poniendo
demasiada presin sobre m, y que yo tena que decidir por
m mismo. Cuando les dije que ya no iba a vivir en campus;
no les dije que era porque no quera que sufrieran y que yo
quera ser obediente. Les dije la verdad: No poda ir ms
porque vivir en campus es muy caro.
Yo era una persona muy diferente de hace cuatro aos,
y la verdad es que ya no me molesta cuando mi sobrina me
llama gringa todo el tiempo, porque lo soy. Soy Americana
y Colombiano, y me encantan ambas culturas, las dos me
han enseado cosas diferentes que me ofrecern un gran
futuro. Cuando pensaba en la persona que era, recuerdo
odiar el hecho de que me estaba convirtiendo en menos de
colombiana y ms Americana, y no quera encajar. Quera
mantener mi Colombianidad. Pero, ahora puedo decir que
estoy bien con cantar el Star-Spangled Bannery saludar
a la bandera de Estados Unidos, porque he aprendido a
amar a este pas y lo que tiene que ofrecer. Soy una hbrida
incomprendida que tiene dos culturas para amar y disfrutar.
Soy Colombo-Americana. Soy una hija, una hermana y
una amiga, soy una estudiante y una gran trabajadora, soy
una bailarina, y una corredora, una amante de la vida y una
firme creyente de que podemos cambiar.

Invierno 2014

8culture
By Edgar Estrada
Guerrillero

As an annual event Mestizo

Institute of Culture and Arts
(MICA), Truth Cypher, and
Mestizo Arts and Activism
College Collective (MAACC) came
together on Oct. 27, to celebrate
the Halloween festivities known
as dia de los muertos. Mestizo
Coffee house opened the doors
to the public for a Spoken Word
shop and presentation by Michael
Reyes, a Chicano poet, emcee,
actor, playwright, artist, and
community organizer specializing
in working with youth. Reyes
has been performing for over 12
years as a progressive and radical
writer focusing on issues within
communities of color.
Jarred Martinez, Truth
Cypher member and Co-Founder,
helped to coordinate the event
and wanted to invite Reyes
because he had seen him perform
previously. I knew his style and
the important political, social
justice themes of his poetry would
go along well with the type of

Michael Reyes performs

for Dia de los Muertos

environment and ideas that

our Truth Cypher collective
and other people in our
circles believe in.
Martinez said that
Reyes anchored the goals
of the evening, which were
to build community, to
continue building a space where
folks of color and youth can be
creative, learning, and having
our experiences be heard and
validated, bringing people together
that might not normally come out,
and getting them talking about real
and important things going on in
the world and their own live, but
then also being able to have fun
too.
Reyes started off the night
with a Spoken Word Workshop
that revolved around his latest
short film The Smiling Flower.
He asked the crowd to create a
piece of art representing who they
are that would be displayed on an
altar dedicated to them.
These are stamps of
resistance, Spoken words of truth,
The colors that paint songs of
freedom.With irrepressible words
in mind, Reyes later took the stage
at Mestizo Coffee House and
opened with a freestyle sculpted
by random words yelled out by
the public. Anger and aggravation
filled his voice as he compiled

Por favor participa en

una encuesta de parte de
Venceremos.
Incluido en el peridico es una tarjeta
para tus respuestas.
Mandanos tus respuestas a travs del
correo (postal pagado).

Las primeras 100 respuestas

sern puestas en un sorteo para
una targeta de Walmart con
$100 de valor.
Cuatro participantes Ganaranan!

Winter 2014

a masterpiece, spilling lines of

memory as he ran down the
streets of Chicago. Reyes followed
with multiple spoke word pieces
including Man With No Name.
I touch pen to paper, let
my voice be heard in search of
the true word of God, got me
wonderin about the situation that
we in when will it all end they tell
me the end is near but what is it
that I should fear.
Reyes also screened a spoken
word film speaking on what his
altar for Dia de los Muertos
would hold. Working with
Sacramento Knoxx, he created
the short film titled, The Smiling
Flower: A Poem Dedicated to
Dia de los Muertos. The film
highlighted personal views of
what an altar erected in each
producerss irespective honor
might consist of. It also touched
on issues in history and culture.
With the visual imagery of sugar
skulls, candles, and books, Reyes
questions the legitimacy of
social justice and global politics
explaining that hed lay a book at
his altar, not only because I like
to read, but for those who never

had the chance to learn how.

Reyes has gained the attention
of media such as HBO and PBS
broadcast centers, leading to
features of his work on television.
Reyes has performed at over
1500 institutions in attempt to
coalesce creative expression and
critical thoughts to educate while
simultaneously allow others
to manifest their alternative
ideologies and social criticisms.
To me, I would hope as
a Latino that with love,
compassion, justice, with
those things in mind we
transform
our

of being in Salt Lake City to

record a scene for an upcoming
short film that is in the works.
Audio clips, poems, photos,
videos, upcoming events and more
of
his work and art are
available on
his website
reyespoetry.
com.

society,
not reproduce the same things
that create Trayvon Martin, Mike
Brown, Alisha Mcbride, Oscar
Grant, and constantly see these
images of young people of
color, said Reyes.
Reyes also took advantage
Michael Reyes performing his first piece of the night at Mestizo Coffee House.
Photo By Manuel Bernal Adame.

Los poemas controversiales de Reyes

Michael Reyes graba una esena para una pelicula corta. Foto tomada por Manuel Bernal Adame.

Por Edgar Estrada

Guerrillero

Como un evento anual, el intstituto: Mestizo de

Cultura y las Artes (MICA), y los mestizos de Arte
y Activismo (MAACC) se reunieron en noviembre,
para celebrar las festividades de Halloween conocidos
prara el Dia de los Muertos. el Mestizo Caf le
abri las puertas al pblico para una presentacin
de Michael Reyes, un poeta chicano, maestro de
ceremonias, actor, dramaturgo, artista y organizador
de la comunidad especializado en el trabajo
con jvenes. Reyes ha estado escribiendo sobre
cuestiones dentro de las comunidades de color por
mas de 12 aos.
Reyes comenz la noche con un taller llamado
Palabras de Inspiracin que giraba en torno a su
ltimo cortometraje La Flor Sonriendo. l le
dijo a la multitud que crearan una obra de arte que
representa lo que representaran lo que eran en un
altar que seria dedicado a ellos.
Como un encargado del taller use las siguientes
palabras para describir mi personalidad: Mi altar
mostro gente, amigos, recuerdos grabados con la
imagen de felicidad, y con la cultura que corre por
mis venas alimentadas por el pozole de mi madre.
Con palabras irreprimibles en mente, Reyes
subi al escenario en Mestizo Coffee House y abri
su boca para azar grits hacia el pblico. La ira y
el agravamiento llenava su voz cuando dio su obra
maestra, derramando lneas memorizadas mientras
corra por las calles de Chicago. Reyes sigui su
presentasion con un poema,hombre sin nombre.
Toco la pluma al papel, y dejo que mi voz se
escuche en busca de la palabra de Dios, me pregunto
cuando terminar todo esto porque me dicen que el
final est cerca, pero a qu aes lo que le debo temer?

Reyes tambin proyect un poema de palabra

hablada sobre lo que su altar para Dia de los Muertos
tenia. Como Trabaja con Knoxx de Sacramento, cre
el cortometraje titulado La sonrisa de la flor. Un
poema dedicado al Dia de los Muertos La pelcula
pone las opiniones personales de lo que un altar tiene
que tener. Esto lo hico en honor de los productores
Tambin se refiri a los problemas de la historia y
la cultura. Con las imagines visuales de calaveras de
azcar, velas y libros, Reyes cuestiona la legitimidad
de la justicia social y la poltica global explicando
porque l haba puesto un libro en su altar, no slo
porque me gusta leer, pero por aquellos que nunca
tuvieron la oportunidad de aprender .
Reyes ha ganado la atencin de varios medios de
comunicacin, tales como los centros de transmisin
HBO y PBS, lo que le ha dado exito en su trabajo en
la televisin. Reyes ha presentado en ms de 1,500
instituciones con el intento de fusionar la expresin
creativa y los pensamientos crticos para educar a
los de este mismo tiempo que permiten que otros
manifiesten sus ideologas alternativas y crticas
sociales. Para m, como Latino, espero que con el
amor, la compasin, y la justicia, con esas cosas en
mente podemos transformar nuestra sociedad. No
quiero que se reproduscan las mismas cosas que
sucedieron en los casos de Trayvon Martin, Mike
Brown, Alisha Mcbride, Oscar Grant, y tener que
constantemente ver estas imgenes de jvenes de
colordijo Reyes.
Reyes tambin tom ventaja de estar en Salt Lake
City para grabar una escena para una pelcula corta.
Esta pelicula pronto saldra.
Clips de audio, poemas, fotos, videos, eventos
y ms de su trabajo y el arte estn disponibles en su
pgina web reyespoetry.com.

The untold stories of migrant farm workers

Evangelina Garcia recogiendo ceresas en un campo en Colorado. Foto por Veronica Garcia.

By Laura Gonzalez
Guerrillera

Conservative media news discourses unsympathetically

depict migrant field workers as freeloading individuals who
take American jobs and do not contribute to our society.
Left undiscused are the motives that brought many of the
individuals that toil as farmworkers to the U.S. and the
sacrifices they make crossing la frontera. Also neglected are
the back breaking labor and intolerable conditions endured
working in fields to pick the produce we consume daily.
Even if they are having trouble putting food on the table
themselves, farmworkers labor long hours to make sure we
have produce in our homes.
The plight of farmworkers is a subject very dear to me
because my father and other family members worked as
farmworkers both in Mexico and in the U.S.
My father, Manuel Gonzalez, started working in los
campos in Mexico at 17 years old. He started cultivating
alfalfa in his home town of Jerez, Zacatecas to help out
with bills and food because he was the only one of his
siblings left at home with his parents. His father Antonio
Gonzalez, worked in campos de maiz but because of his
advanced age, he could no longer keep up the pace or
endure the physical strain of picking corn, so my father
began working in the fields instead. He worked the fields
from 8 am to 5 pm, Monday through Friday for about four
years, earning a daily wage of 50 pesosa little less than
five dollars per day.
Migrant field workers are often the breadwinners for
their families. Jose Valdomero Garcia or Valdo had a
similar upbringing. He was left without a father to take care
of his mom and two sisters and became the breadwinner
for his family at the young age of 18. Like Gonzalez, Garcia
began working in los campos in Mexico. He worked in campos
de maiz on a rancho in Michoacan, Mexico. His pay was a bit
different because it was based on how much work was done
and how much maiz he could sell. On a good day, he might
be paid 30 pesos, or about 2 dollars. He worked this job for
14 years before coming to the U.S.
One of the main things that affected wages was
North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). This
agreement made it easier for Mexico to import goods,
but was disastrous for workers when it was implemented.
A report by Public Citizen found that the price paid
to Mexican maiz farmers dropped by 66 percent after
NAFTA, leading many to abandon farm work. Without a
livable wage to support a family, it is understandable why
Mexican immigrant workers risk their lives to come to
this country. Gonzalez and Garcia, and many others with
stories like theirs, had no choice but to feed themselves
and their families. Survival was worth the risk to become
undocumented migrant field workers.
Gonzalez got help getting into the fields in el norte by
his two brothers who had already been living and working
in California for some time. His brothers also helped find
the coyote who helped my father cross the border. When
Gonzalez arrived, he worked in the lemon fields in the
Ventura area which is in southern California.
Garcia came to Colorado in 1981 and worked in the
cherry fields. He worked 8 to 10 hours a day, Monday
through Saturday, at $3.35 an hour He roomed with friends
from Michoacan in homes provided by their boss in the
fields.
They worked as seasonal field workers, which meant
that they would stay here during the season of their crop
and go back home to Mexico when the season was over.
For Garcia, his season was May through November. When
he would go back home to his wife and family, Garcia
would still work in the campos in between seasons. He
worked this way for about four years until he achieved
amnesty and was able to work year round in the fields.
After Garcia received his residency, he brought his wife
Evangelina to Colorado with him and they both worked
picking, cherries, peaches, and apples for another eight years
until they moved to Utah.
Back in California, Gonzalez worked eight hour days
between 7am to 4pm Monday through Friday. In the lemon
field, he helped fumigate and pick the plants. He was paid
an hourly wage of $4.50 an hour. To people who are used
to being paid at least $7.25, the current minimum wage,
these are extremely low poverty wages. But for Gonzalez,

$4.50 is about the same amount of money he made per

day back in Mexico, and he was just grateful that he could
provide eight times as much per day for his family than
he used to back home. On weekends he also worked in
landscaping.
Aca se ayuda uno mejor, Gonzalez said when asked
about this time in his life. Mire que ocupaba mas dinero, yo y mi
familia, ocupabamos un hogar.
Gonzalez worked in the fields for about three years. He
describes his experience as comfortable. After three years,
Gonzalez and many other workers were laid off and he
went on to work in production that eventually moved him
to Utah.
Gonzalez and Garcia were fortunate and were not
subjected to pesticide poisoning. Farmworkerjustice.org
reports that the exact number of workers injured each
year by pesticides is unknown, because there is no national
surveillance system for acute pesticide illness reporting and
no surveillance system for tracking chronic illness related to
pesticide exposure.
Other stories we dont hear about often when it comes
to farm workers is the stories of the women in the fields.
My Tia Elena, sister to my abuela, was one of these women.
My tia was born Elena Delgado Frausto in Irapuato,
Guanajuato in Mexico and died in 2010 in Oxnard,
California. From the age of nine years old she worked in
los campos with my abuela. Children are often used in fields
to reach smaller places where adults cannot when it comes
to picking crops. She married at 15 and took a break from
working to start having children with her husband. After
a very dangerous fall out with her husband, she moved to
Oxnard, California with her children. This is when she went
back to the fields, this time working some of the toughest
fields known to farm workers, the fields of chile.
Working with chile can be very hard on the body.
Unlike fruit such as lemons and cherries, chile grows from
the ground, leaving workers to spend long hours bent over

picking chile
in the hot
sun. Delgado
worked in these
type of fields
for about 40
years, and she
was good at it
too. She ended
up with severe
back problems
and stopped
working in the fields after her children became adults. Many
of her coworkers remember her being one of the fastest,
hard-working people in the fields. She often picked more in
a day than all of the men in her campo.
Delgado was not only hardworking, but also selfless.
As a mother to 11 boys, she rented out rooms in her small,
crowded Oxnard home and space in her garage to seasonal
campesinos for about $50 a week. She fed them twice daily,
while also working in the fields herself. She boarded 20
workers in her home at a time and managed to raise her
children and keep her job, all at the same time.
Garcia, Gonzalez, and Elena all eventually achieved
citizenship in the 1980s, when amnesty was awarded to
field workers, a huge reward for all their fieldwork. Without
this option for farmworkers now, is this back-breaking work
still worth it?
The answer for many families is yes. The economic
situation in Mexico is still damaged as a result of NAFTA,
and has worsened due to the narcotraficantes, leaving its
people to seek refuge and build a better life. Instead of
looking down on field workers, shaming them for their
undocumented status, and accusing them of stealing
American jobs, we need to inform ourselves, listen to their
stories, and welcome them. They are the hardworking spine
that keeps affordable food on our tables.

cultura

Las historias ocultas de los trabajadores agricultores migrantes

Por Laura Gonzalez
Guerrillera

Los discursos a los trabajadores

de campos migrantes como individuos
que toman los empleos de los Estados
Unidos y que no contribuyen a nuestra
sociedad. Lo que no se discute son
los motivos que llevaron a muchos
de los individuos que laboran como
trabajadores agrcultores a los EE.UU. y
los sacrificios que hacen cuando cruzan
la frontera. Tambin la parte peor son las
condiciones intolerables que soportan
al estar trabajando en los campos para
recoger los productos que consumimos
diariamente. Incluso muchos tienen
problemas para poner comida en sus
mesas, los trabajadores del campo de
trabajo cumplen con largas horas para
que nosotros si tengamos los productos
en nuestros hogares.
Mi padre, Manuel Gonzlez,
comenz a trabajar en los campos
en Mxico a los 17 aos de edad. l
comenz a cultivar alfalfa en su ciudad
natal de Jerez, Zacatecas para ayudar a
sus padres. Su padre Antonio Gonzlez,
trabaj en campos de maiz, pero debido
a su avanzada edad, ya no poda soportar
la tensin fsica de recoger el maz, por
lo que mi padre comenz a trabajar en
los campos, en su lugar. l trabajaba en
el campo de las 8 a.m. hasta las 5 p.m.,
de lunes a viernes durante unos cuatro
aos, ganando un salario diario de 50
pesos, un poco menos de cinco dlares
por da.
Los trabajadores de campo suelen
ser el sostn de sus familias. Jos
Valdomero Garca o Valdo tenan
una educacin similar. l se qued sin
un padre para cuidar de su madre y dos
hermanas y se convirti en el sostn de
su familia a la edad de 18. Al igual que
Gonzlez, Garca comenz a trabajar
en los campos en Mxico. l trabaj
en campos de maiz en un rancho en
Michoacn, Mxico. Su sueldo era un
poco diferente, ya que se basa en la
cantidad de trabajo que se hizo y cunto
maz que podra vender. En un buen
da, podra ser pagado 30 pesos, unos 2
dlares. Trabaj este trabajo durante 14
aos antes de venir a los EE.UU.
Una de las cosas principales que
afectaron a los salarios fue Acuerdo
Libre Comercio de Norteamrica
(TLCAN). Este acuerdo hizo ms fcil
para Mxico para importar bienes, pero

fue desastroso para los trabajadores

cuando se puso en prctica. Un informe
de Public Citizen encontr que el precio
pagado a los agricultores mexicanos
maiz se redujo en un 66 por ciento
despus del TLCAN, lo que lleva a
muchos a abandonar el trabajo agrcola.
Sin un salario digno para mantener a
una familia, es comprensible por qu
los trabajadores inmigrantes mexicanos
arriesgan sus vidas para venir a este pas.
Gonzlez y Garca, y muchos otros con
historias como la suya, no tenan ms
remedio que alimentarse y alimentar a
sus familias. La supervivencia fue la pena
el riesgo de convertirse en trabajadores
de campo migrantes indocumentados.
Gonzlez recibi ayuda de entrar
en los campos en el norte de sus dos
hermanos que ya haban estado viviendo
y trabajando en California desde hace
algn tiempo. Sus hermanos tambin
ayudaron a encontrar el coyote que
ayud a mi padre cruzar la frontera.
Cuando Gonzlez lleg, trabaj en los
campos de limoneros, en la zona de
Ventura, que es en el sur de California.
Garca lleg a Colorado en 1981
y trabaj en los campos de cerezos.
Trabaj 8 a 10 horas al da, de lunes a
sbado, a $ 3.35 por hora l comparti
habitacin con amigos de Michoacn en
viviendas proporcionadas por su jefe en
el campo.
Trabajaron como trabajadores de
campo de temporada, lo que significaba
que iban a permanecer aqu durante la
temporada de la cosecha y volver a casa
a Mxico cuando la temporada haba
terminado. Para Garca, la temporada
fue de mayo a noviembre. Cuando
iba a volver a casa con su esposa y su
familia, Garca an funcionara en el
campos entre temporadas. Trabaj esta
manera durante unos cuatro aos hasta
que consigui la amnista y fue capaz
de trabajar durante todo el ao en los
campos.
Despus de Garca recibi
su residencia, se trajo a su esposa
Evangelina a Colorado con l y ambos se
trabaj recogiendo, cerezas, duraznos y
manzanas por otros ocho aos hasta que
se mudaron a Utah.
De vuelta en California, Gonzlez
trabaj ocho horas diarias entre 07 a.m.4 p.m. de lunes a viernes. En el campo
de limn, l ayud a fumigar y recoger
las plantas. Se le pag un salario de $

Elena Delgado, en sus primeros aos en California. Foto

cortesa de Rocio Delgado.

4.50 por hora. Para las personas que

estn acostumbradas a ser pagado por lo
menos $ 7.25, el salario mnimo actual,
estos son los salarios extremadamente
bajos de pobreza. Pero para Gonzlez,
4,50 dlares es aproximadamente la
misma cantidad de dinero que hizo por
da de regreso en Mxico, y l estaba
agradecido de que l podra proporcionar
ocho veces ms por da para su familia
de lo que sola volver a casa. Los fines de
semana tambin trabaj en la jardinera.
Aca se ayuda uno mejor, Gonzlez
dijo cuando se le pregunt acerca de
esta vez en su vida. Mire Que ocupaba
mas dinero, yo y mi familia, ocupabamos
hogar de la ONU.
Gonzlez trabaj en los campos
durante unos tres aos. l describe
su experiencia sea lo ms confortable.
Despus de tres aos, Gonzlez y otros
muchos trabajadores fueron despedidos
y se fue a trabajar en la produccin
quecon el tiempo le llev a Utah.
Gonzlez trabaj en los campos durante
aproximadamente tres aos. l describe
su experiencia como lo ms confortable.
Despus de tres aos, Gonzlez y otros
muchos trabajadores fueron despedidos y
se fue a trabajar en la produccin que con el
tiempo lo dirigi hacia Utah.
Gonzlez y Garca fueron afortunados
y no fueron sometidos a la intoxicacin
por plaguicidas. Farmworkerjustice.
org informa que el nmero exacto de
trabajadores heridos cada ao por los
pesticidas no se conoce, porque no existe
un sistema nacional de vigilancia de la
notificacin de enfermedades agudas por
plaguicidas y ningn sistema de vigilancia
para el seguimiento de las enfermedades
crnicas relacionadas con la exposicin a los
pesticidas.
Continua en la pagina 11

10

features

Testimonio: Surviving a sexual assault

Sobrevivi un ataque sexual

By Anonymous/Por Anonimo
Guerrillera

One in three women are raped or sexually

assaulted in Utah. Although Ive heard
this statistic many times, I was lucky to be
one of the women without that traumatic
experience. I believed that if I were
threatened with it happening to me, I would
do everything in my power to prevent
iteven diethan have someone take
advantage of my body. I never imagined not
being able to protect myself or prevent it.
As a petite Latina woman, I am very
cautious of the dangerous world around
me. I am alert when I had to travel on my
own. I never go out partying, and when I do
drink, it is with people I trust in the safety
of my own home. I thought I would be safe
living by these rules, but I was wrong.
After almost three years of dating and a
year of apartment hunting, my boyfriend
and I moved into our own an apartment of
our own. To celebrate our independence
and milestone in our relationship, we threw
a small party. Since we are both underage,
my boyfriends older uncle provided us with
alcohol for the night. We played cards and
had drinks at a small get together.
As the night progressed, the alcohol
turned into a drinking contest, with my
boyfriends uncle slowly egging us on to
drink. I resolved to outdrink my boyfriend,
so his uncle and I took shot after shot,
until we drank almost two full bottles of
liquor. The last thing I fully remember was
taking a shot, then the next five minutes are
like a broken movie reel of half blackness
and blurry images: I threw up and passed
out. I am locked in the bathroom with
my boyfriends uncle whos undressing
me. I fall over in the shower. I feel him
touching me. I feel dread when I realized
I cant stop what is happening to me. My
brother bangs on the bathroom door, and
then pulls me out of the shower, telling
me that I was going to be okay and that he
had done everything he could to protect
me. Five minutesthats all it took for my
boyfriends uncle to sexually assault me.
In those five minutes, my brother stepped
out of our apartment to show his friend
out. In those five minutes, my boyfriend
ran to the other bathroom to vomit. In
those five minutes, his uncle saw the perfect
opportunity and took me, half passed out
and stumbling, into the bathroom, locked
the door, and sexually assaulted me. I
thought I would be safe. My brother was
there. My boyfriend was there. His uncle
whom I have known as long as Ive been
dating my boyfriendwas there. I always
though I would be safe in the comfort of
my own home.
Now, I am a statistic. I am the 1 in 3
women who are sexually assaulted. As a
woman of color, this predicament is even
worse. Women of color are raped at a much
higher rate than white women and often
face the blame for being raped. Historically,
women of color have been highly
sexualized. Women of color have been
portrayed as sexually available and often
are seen as bending to the sexual whims of
white men. Unfortunately, this is tied to the
long history of colonization. When white
men would colonize a new area, mass rapes
of the indigenous population of women
would occur. The consequences of this
history can still be felt today. Black women
are portrayed as wild and animalistic; Asian
women as submissive; and Latinas, as spicy,
curvaceous, and sexy. These all contribute
to the sexualization of women of color,
and it also contributes to the rates of rape
of women of color. Sadly, 19% of black
women, 24% of mixed race women, and
34% of American Indian/Alaskan Native
women will be raped in their lifetimes,
compared with 18% of white women. The
statistics for Asian American and Latina

Winter 2014

women are unclear, due to the shame and

fear associated with rape/sexual assault. I
know I did not want to report mine, and I
almost didnt.
We live in a pervasive rape culture. It
affects every corner of a womans life, from
how she dresses in the morning to how
many sexual partners she could have in her
lifetime. Women are constantly trying to
protect themselves from something they
cannot: a historical legacy that teaches men
to feel entitled to a womans body. For
women of color, its a history of white men
raping women of color and degrading them
into sexual objects.
As I reflected on why this happened
to me, I questioned what was I wearing.
I regretted getting drunk. I wondered if
he exoticized me because I was woman
of color. Then I got angry and upset. I
shouldnt have to think about these things.
He should have known that my body was
mine and not his to take. He should have
known that although I am a Latina, I was
not sexually available to him. He should
have known that even though I was drunk, I
did not consent. He shouldve known that I
was a human being, not a piece of meat. He
should have left me alone.
I cant remember everything that
happened that night. Its a blessing and a
curse. I dont know if he fully raped me. I
might not ever know. My mind replays it

like a damaged video tape, some images are

clear, some black. However, I remember
enough to scar me for the rest of my life.
Ill always remember the feeling of his
unwanted naked body against mine. Ill
always remember the screams I wanted to
let out, but couldnt. Ill always remember
the helplessness I felt when I realized the
door was locked and I couldnt get out. I
remember his face, him looking at me as a
piece of meat, and it will haunt me forever.
My story is not unique. Between 65-85%
of rapes that happen, the victims know the
perpetrators, just as I knew mine. If we do
not change the way women are seen, there
will continue to be stories like mine. Until
we teach our men that womens bodies
arent sexual objects for their taking, and
that women of color are not exotic sexual
creatures available for sex whenever men
want, these statistics will remain the same,
or get worse. This is imperative, and I
cannot express the urgency in which it
needs to be changed.
As for me, I am a survivor. With my
familys help, I reported this crime to the
police. An investigation is under way, and I
dont know what the outcome will be. I can
only pray that things will get better for me,
and maybe one day, I will be able to walk
down the street with confidence again. I
have sought psychiatric help, and so far, I
am okay. I was placed on an antidepressant,

and it helps me through my panic attacks

that I get when I have a flashback of what
happened to me. For those of you who
have gone through the same thing, know
that it is not your fault. We live in a society
that allows it to happen and blames the
woman for something out of her control.
You did nothing wrong. If you remained
silent about it, I urge you to speak out. They
took advantage of you, and they deserve to
be punished for it. Seek out psychiatric or
medical help. It will only benefit you, and
maybe help you get through your rough
days when the only thing you feel like doing
is crying, like it did for me. We did nothing
wrong, and we are not alone.

Una de cada tres mujeres son violadas o

agredidas sexualmente en Utah. Aunque
he odo esta estadstica muchas veces, yo
tuve la suerte de ser una de las mujeres que
no han tenido esa experiencia traumtica.
Yo crea que si yo me encontraria en
esa situasion, yo hara todo lo posible
para evitarlo, incluso hasta morir. Nunca
imagin no poder protegerme o prevenirlo.
Soy una mujer latina pequena de
estatura asi que siempre estoy alerta de mi
alrededor. Siempre he estado alerta cuando
viajo por mi cuenta. Nunca salgo a las
fiestas, y cuando lo hago y tomo, es con la
gente en que confo.
Despus de casi tres aos de noviazgo
y un ao de vivir con mi novio nos
mudamos a nuestro propio apartamento
de los nuestros. Para celebrar nuestra
independencia y un nuestra relacin,
hicimos una fiesta. Como somos menores
de edad, el to mayor de mi novio
nos compro el alcohol para la noche.
Estabamos jugado cartas y tenamos
bebidas en una pequea reunin.
A medida que avanzaba la noche, el
alcohol se convirti en un concurso de
beber, con el to de mi novio. Alfin pude
tomar mas que mi novio, por lo que su
to y yo tomamos un tiro tras otro, hasta
que nos bebimos casi dos botellas llenas
de licor. La ltima cosa que recuerdo
plenamente es que estaba tomando una
foto. Los siguientes cinco minutos son
como un rollo de pelcula rota y las
imgenes son borrosas: vomit y me
desmay. Me encerr en el bao con el to
de mi novio que me empeso a desvestir.
Me cai en la ducha y siento que me toca.
Siento pavor cuando me di cuenta de
que no puedo parar lo que esta pasando.
Mi hermano golpea la puerta del bao, y
luego me saca de la ducha, me deca que
yo iba a estar bien. Cinco minutos, eso es
todo el tiempo que tomo para que el to de
mi novio me asaltara sexualmente.
En esos cinco minutos, mi hermano
sali de nuestro apartamento con su
amigo. En esos cinco minutos, mi novio
corri hacia el otro bao a vomitar.
En esos cinco minutos, su to vio la
oportunidad perfecta y me llev, medio
desmayado y tropezando, en el bao, cerr
la puerta, y me agredi sexualmente. Pens
que iba a estar a salvo. Mi hermano estaba
all. Mi novio estaba all, y su to que he
conocido por mucho tiempo. Siempre
pens que estara segura en mi casa.
Ahora, soy una estadstica. Soy 1 de 3
mujeres que sufren abusos sexuales. Como
una mujer de color, esta situacin es an

peor. Las mujeres de color son violadas

a un ritmo mucho mayor que las mujeres
blancas y enfrentan a la culpa de haber
sido violadas. Histricamente, las mujeres
de color han sido altamente sexualizadas.
Desafortunadamente, esto est ligado a la
larga historia de la colonizacin. Cuando
los hombres blancos colonizaban una
nueva rea, ocurriran muchas violaciones
de la poblacin indgena contra las
mujeres. Las consecuencias de esta historia
an se pueden sentir. Las mujeres negras
son retratadas como salvajes y animales;
Las mujeres asiticas como sumisas; y
las latinas, como picantes, y sexys. Todos
ellos contribuyen a la sexualizacin de las
mujeres de color, y tambin contribuyen
a las tasas de violacin de las mujeres de
color. Lamentablemente, el 19% de las
mujeres negras, el 24% de las mujeres de
raza mixta, y el 34% de los indios / Alaska
americanas y nativas sern violadas en
sus vidas, en comparacin con el 18% de
las mujeres blancas. Las estadsticas para
las mujeres latinas y asiticas estn claras,
debido a la vergenza y el miedo asociado
a la violacin/asalto sexual. Yo s que no
quera reportar mi asalto y casi no lo hice.
Vivimos en una cultura de violacin
generalizada. Nos afecta en todos los
rincones. Especialmente a una mujer, de
la forma en que se viste en la maana a la
cantidad de parejas sexuales que pudiera
tener en su vida. Las mujeres estn
constantemente tratando de protegerse
de algo que los hombres no pueden: un
legado histrico que ensea a los hombres
a sentirse con derecho a un cuerpo de
mujer. Para las mujeres de color, es una
historia de hombres blancos violando a las
mujeres de color y degradadandolascomo
si fueran solamente objetos sexuales.
Al reflexionar sobre por qu esto me
pas a m, me pregunt qu si ya estaba
puesto en mi destino por ser mujer. Me
arrepent de emborracharme. Me pregunt
si l me exotizado porque yo era mujer de
color. Entonces me enoj mucho. Yo no
debera tener que estar pensando en esas
cosas solo por ser mujer Latina.
El debera haber sabido que mi cuerpo
era mo y no suyo para tomar. Debera
haber sabido que aunque soy una Latina,
yo no estaba sexualmente disponible para
l. Debera haber sabido que a pesar de
que estaba enborracho, no hay escusa para
lo que hico. Debera haber sabido que yo
era un ser humano, no un pedazo de carne.
Debera haberme dejado sola.
No puedo recordar todo lo que pas
esa noche. Es una bendicin y una

maldicin. No s si l
me viol
totalmente. Yo nunca no podro saber por
lo emborachada que estaba. Mi mente
reproduce lo que pasocomo una cinta de
vdeo daado, algunas imgenes son claras,
algas negras. Sin embargo, recuerdo lo
suficiente como para tener cicatrices por
el resto de mi vida. Siempre recordar la
sensacin de su cuerpo desnudo contra
el mo. Siempre voy a recordar los gritos
que quera que me dejara salir, pero no
pude. Siempre recordar la impotencia que
sent cuando me di cuenta de que la puerta
estaba cerrada con llave y no poda salir.
Recuerdo su cara, l me miraba como un
pedazo de carne, como si tenia hambre.
Mi historia no es nica. Entre 6585% de las violaciones que ocurren,
las vctimas conocen a los agresores al
igual que yo saba quien fue el mo. Si no
cambiamos la forma en que las mujeres
son vistas, seguirn habieno historias
como la ma. Hasta que le ensenrmos a
nuestros hombres que los cuerpos de las
mujeres no son objetos sexuales que estn
adquiriendo, y que las mujeres de color no
son criaturas sexuales exticss disponibles
para el sexo siempre que los hombres
quieren, estas estadsticas seguirn
siendo los mismos, o empeorar. Esto es
imprescindible, y no puedo expresar la
urgencia en la que hay que cambiar.
En cuanto a m, soy una superviviente.
Con la ayuda de mi familia, le inform este
crimen a la polica. Una investigacin est
en marcha, y no s cul ser el resultado.
Yo slo puedo rezar para que las cosas
mejoren para m, y tal vez un da, voy a
ser capaz de caminar por la calle con la
confianza de nuevo. He buscado ayuda
psiquitrica, y hasta ahora, estoy bien.
Me pusieron en un antidepresivo, y me
ayuda a travs de mis ataques de pnico
que tengo cuado tengo recuerdos de lo
que me paso. Para aquellos de ustedes
que han pasado por lo mismo, s que no
es su culpa. Vivimos en una sociedad que
permite que esto suceda y que culpa a
la mujer. Las violaciones estan afuera de
nuestro control porque no escojemos
ser violadas. Ustedes no hicieron nada
malo. Si usted ha permanecid en
silencio al respecto, le insto que hable.
Se aprovecharon de ti, y ellos merecen
ser castigados por ello. Busque ayuda
psiquitrica o mdica. Slo le beneficiar, y
tal vez le ayudara a conseguir paz a travs
de sus das difciles cuando lo nico que te
apetece es estr llorando, al igual que me
paso a mi. No hicimos nada malo, y hay
que recordar que que no estamos solas.

Estudiantes de la U se sienten
inseguros en su alementacion
Por Abby Reyes
Guerrillera

La inseguridad alimentaria es cada vez mayor entre los

de bajos ingresos en los EE.UU. y es tambin un problema
que los colegios y universidades tienen que enfrentar. En los
ltimos aos, las despensas de alimentos se han establecido
en las instituciones de educacin superior, incluyendo la
Universidad de Utah. Porque las demandas financieras
de los estudiantes universitarios limitan su capacidad de
comprarse comida.
Segn el Departamento de Agricultura de Estados
Unidos (USDA), la inseguridad alimentaria es una
disponibilidad limitada o incierta de alimentos adecuados
o que hay capacidad limitada para adquirir alimentos
aceptables sin que la gente te jusge. Los Nios del
Programa de la Evaluacin Sentinel (C- SNAP) describen la
inseguridad alimentaria como el acceso incierto o limitado
de los hogares a alimentos suficientes para todos los
miembros del hogar, e indica que hay mas comunidades
que estn profundamente arraigadas en la pobreza y
limitadas en recursos financieros. Los nios latinos negros y
experimentan tienen mas casos de pobreza, a comparacin
con los nios de otros grupos raciales, y tinen un riesgo
aumentado a tener deficiencias de desarrollo.
Unas universidades estadounidenses con alta matrcula
de primera generacin, o racialmentes diversas comparan la
inseguridad alimentaria a nivel nacional y en sus estudiantes.
La Universidad de Hawai en Manoa (UHM) encontr que
en 2006, el 10.9% de los hogares estadounidenses estaban
en situacin de inseguridad alimentaria, y un 24% estaban
en alto riesgo de inseguridad alimentaria. Los estudiantes
universitarios de color, entonces sufren mas con la
inseguridad alimentaria.
El ao pasado, la universidad del centro de Utah (el
Bienestar Estudiantil) administr una encuesta que revela
que un poco ms de la mitad de los estudiantes fueron
clasificados como inseguros de su alimentasion. Cinco
Universidades de las oficinas Utah se asociaron para debatir

Algunos podran estar sorprendidos

al aprender que la alimentasion es un
problema en las escuelas. Los estudiantes
tienen que comprar libros caros.Muchos
estudiantes de color viven con pocos
recursos y aveces no comen por tal de
comprar materiales para sus estudios. Esto
es algo que ningun estudiante deberia de
hacer. La alimentacion es muy importante
para todos.
la apertura de una despensa de alimentos en el campus y
un espacio ahora se ha reservado en el segundo piso del
campus para esta despensa con comida.
Yo soy una gerente para la alimentacin en la
Universidad de Utah, y coordino a los estudiantes y a varios
voluntarios que ayudan a que los estudiantes puedan escojer
los alimentos que mas necesesitan. La mayora de la comida
en la despensa es donada por el Banco de Alimentos de
Utah, como palabra de la presencia de la despensa se ha
extendido entre la Universidad, ahora muchos grupos
de estudiantes han organizado sus propias colectas de
alimentos para apoyar la despensa. La despensa ha asistido
a cerca de 60 estudinates de todos niveles educativos.
Algunos de estos estudiantes son los proveedores de una
familia. Algunos estudiantes necesitan regresar por ms
comida durante todo el semestre. Adems de proporcionar
artculos no discriminamos, Nosotros tambien referimios a

11

de plana

los estudiantes
a otras
despensas
locales
alrededor
de Salt Lake
y ciudades
vecinas,
algunos lugares hasta les sirven comidas calinetita.
Algunos podran sorprenderse al saber que la inseguridad
alimentaria es un problema que debe pararse en el
mbiente acadmico. Otros podran tener espectativas
que como estudiantes universitarios se les espera que sean
capazes de pagar y acceder a una necesidad bsica, como
tiendas de comestibles en el contexto de la obtencin de
un ttulo. Sin embargo, las instituciones esperan que los
estudiantes vengan preparados para sus cursos de lo que
puede significar la compra de libros de texto muy caros o
tiles escolares, adems tenemos que pagar los costos de
matrcula y gastos de mantencin. Muchos quespecialmente
los estudiantes de color que viven por debajo del umbral de
pobreza, se encuentran con la necesidad de dar prioridad
a sus necesidades. Esto podra significar que tienen que
recurrir a opciones ms baratas y ms rpidas de alimentos
que no apoyan la buena salud o de elegir entre alimentos,
una visita mdica o medicina, alquiler, o libros de texto de
ninguna de las cuales el estudiante debe tener para vivir.
Apacienta T tiene como objetivo de apoyar a los estudiantes
en el alivio de la tensin de tener que hacer este tipo de
decisiones difciles. Por eso la Universidad y muchos otros
grupos proporcionan opciones de comida gratis donde los
estudiantes pueden obtener comida y un feliz saludo de un
compaero.
La Universidad de Utah no est solo en abordar esta cuestin.
Todas las instituciones de educacin superior pblicas de Utah
tienen una despensa de alimentos: la Universidad del Estado de
Utah, Utah Valley University, Universidad del Estado de Dixie,
Salt Lake Community College y la Universidad de Utah.

U of U addresses college students & food insecurity

By Abby Reyes
Guerrillera

The increasing food insecurity among

low-income, unemployed Black, and
Latina/o populations in the U.S. is also
now an issue colleges and universities have
to face. In the last few years, food pantries
have been established at higher education
institutions across the nationincluding at
the University of Utah to address the fact
that financial demands on college students
limit their ability to purchase sufficient and
nutritious food.
According to the U.S. Department of
Agriculture (USDA), food insecurity is
a limited or uncertain availability of
nutritionally adequate and safe foods or
limited or uncertain ability to acquire
acceptable foods in socially acceptable
ways. The Childrens Sentinel Nutrition
Assessment Program (C-SNAP) further
describes food insecurity as a households
uncertain or limited access to enough food
for all household members to lead an active
and healthy life, and indicates that it occurs
in communities that are deeply rooted in
poverty and constrained financial resources.
As such, Black and Latino children
experience disproportionately higher rates
of poverty compared with children of
other racial/ethnic groups, and are at
an increased risk for developmental
impairments.
A few U.S. universities with high
enrollments of first-generation, lowincome, and/or racially diverse students

compared food insecurity nationally and

their campus students and staff. The
University of Hawaii at Mnoa (UHM)
found that in 2006, 10.9% of all U.S.
households surveyed were food-insecure,
and an additional 24% of households were
at high risk for food insecurity. In contrast,
21% of UHM students sampled were food
insecure and another 24% were at risk
for experiencing food insecurity. College
students of color, then are likely to suffer
with food insecurity, which has been proven
to be detrimental to positive learning and
health outcomes.
Last year, the University of Utahs Center
for Student Wellness administered a survey
revealing just over half of students sampled
were categorized as food insecure. In
response, five University of Utah offices
partnered to discuss launching a food
pantry on-campus and a space has now
been reserved on the second floor of the
Campus Store for this pantry named Feed
U.
Students might recognize the space
unofficially as the campus bookstore where
they might purchase their textbooksthis
is where Feed U is housed. Feed U opened
in October 2014 and is available for campus
community members experiencing food
insecurity to pick up food. Students present
a valid Ucard, and to complete a short and
confidential one-time application.
As the intern manager for Feed U, I
coordinate the student and staff volunteers
that make the pantry function. Most of

Continua desde pagina 9 ___________

Otras historias que no se escuchan a menudo es que los
trabajadores agricultores tambin involucran las historias de las
mujeres en los campos. Mi Ta Elena, la hermana de mi abuela,
era una de esas mujeres. Mi tia naci Elena Delgado Frausto en
Irapuato, Guanajuato, en Mxico y muri en 2010 en Oxnard,
California. Desde la edad de nueve aos de edad, trabaj en los
campos con mi abuela. Los nios a menudo se utilizan en los
campos para llegar a lugares ms pequeos donde los adultos
no pueden alcansar cuando se trata de trabajar en la cosecha.
Se cas a los 15 y tom un descanso del trabajo para empezar
a tener hijos con su marido. Despus de un muy peligroso
caer con su marido, ella se traslad a Oxnard, California con
sus hijos. Esto es cuando ella regres a los campos, esta vez
trabajando algunos de los campos ms duros conocidos por los
trabajadores agrcolas, los campos de Chile.
Trabajando con chile puede ser muy difcil para el cuerpo.

the food in the

pantry is donated
by the Utah
Food Bank, but
as word of the
pantrys presence
has spread,
student groups
have organized
their own food
drives to support
the pantry.
The pantry has
assisted nearly 60
undergraduate,
graduate, and
international students. Some of these
students are providers for a family. Some
students need to return for more food
throughout the semester. In addition to
providing non-perishable items, FeedU also
can refer students to other local pantries
around Salt Lake and neighboring cities,
some of which serve warm meals.
Some might be surprised to learn that
food insecurity is a problem that should be
addressed in academia. Others might hold
assumptions that as college students, we
are expected to be able to afford and access
a basic necessity such as groceries in the
context of obtaining a degree. However,
institutions expect students to come
prepared to their courses which may mean
purchasing expensive textbooks or school
supplies in addition to paying tuition costs
and living expenses. Many first-generation

A diferencia de frutas como limones y cerezas, el chile

crece desde el suelo, dejando a los trabajadores a pasar por
permanecer sentado en recoger chile en el sol caliente. Delgado
trabaj en este tipo de campos durante unos 40 aos, y ella
era bueno en eso tambin. Ella termin con graves problemas
de espalda y dej de trabajar en el campo despus de que sus
hijos se convirtieron en adultos. Muchos de sus compaeros de
trabajo recuerdan su ser uno de los ms rpidos, las personas
que trabajan duro en los campos. A menudo se tom ms en
un da que todos los hombres en su campo.
Delgado no slo era muy trabajadora, pero tambin
desinteresada. Como madre de 11 nios, que alquilaba
habitaciones en su pequea casa y tambin el espacio en su
garaje a campesinos de temporada por alrededor de $ 50 a la
semana. Ella les daba de comer dos veces al da, mientras que
tambin trabaja en los campos a por s misma. Ella subi a 20
trabajadores en su casa a la vez y se las arregl para criar a sus

and students of color living below the

poverty line, find themselves needing to
prioritize their needs. This might mean
resorting to cheaper and quicker food
options that do not support good health
or choosing between groceries, a medical
visit or medicine, rent, or textbooksnone
of which a student should have to live
without. Feed U aims to support students
in alleviating the stress of having to
make these types of difficult decisions by
providing free food options and a friendly
greeting from a peer.
The University of Utah is not alone in
addressing this issue. All of Utahs public
higher education institutions have a food
pantry: Utah State University, Utah Valley
University, Dixie State University, Salt Lake
Community College, and the University of
Utah.

hijos y mantener su trabajo, todo al mismo tiempo.

Garca, Gonzlez y Elena finalmente lograron obtener
la ciudadana en la dcada de 1980, cuando se concedi la
amnista a los trabajadores de campo, una gran recompensa por
todo el trabajo de campo que hicieron. Sin esta opcin para los
trabajadores agrcultores ahora, no se si este trabajo agotador
todava vale la pena. La respuesta para muchas familias es que
s vale la pena. La situacin econmica en Mxico todava est
daada como resultado del TLCAN, y se ha agravado debido
a los narcotraficantes dejando a su gente a buscando refugio
para construir una vida mejor. En lugar de mirar hacia abajo
hacia los trabajadores de campo, avergozandonos de ellos por
su condicin de indocumentados, y acusndolos de robarse
los empleos en Estados Unidos, tenemos que informarnos,
escuchar sus historias y darles la bienvenida. Son la columna
vertebral trabajadora que mantiene la comida en nuestras
mesas.

POEMAS DE TU MUNDO
Phenomenal Woman
By Helen Gwen
West High School
We dress up and make-up to impress on a daily basis
With mascara and tear stains on our faces we still smile
The brownness of our skin and the thickness in our hips
You cant resist, to the point where we are brutalized, used and abused
Our fight in this world is the development of our victory
We will not be reduced to nothingness becasue without us, you wouldnt
be something
To my beautiful Black Women, youre more than that man standing or
sitting next to you
Youre better than that man
That constantly brings you donw to the dirt
And he doesnt understand the hurt that you feel
But youve got to get on your feet bceause thats the only way to heal
To my beautiful Black Women
Youre better than that man that treats you like some old pair of shoes
Labeling you his side-chick and disregarding you like old news
Prick up your pride and realize, you deserve so much better than him
To my beutiful Black Women, My sisters
Stop dragginb each others name in the dirt
Stop lifting your skirts for money because youre ignorant of your worth
Stop taking anything less than what you deserve
Because if you havent hearn this from Maya Angelou or Anybody Else
You are a PHENOMENAL WOMAN, Desirable in every way
Capable of great things
Dont let nobody step on you like a door-mat
Your body is a templel and you should adore that
Youre gifted with a brain, so use it to sustain the glory you bestow
And to the naive men in this world
Remember when you use to suck on our flesh to obtain nourishment
Remember when we used to starve so you could be fed
And remember when we laid our lives down so that you would survive
Stop placing us in categories we dont belong
We always want the best for you so STOP wishing the worst for us
Were all brothers and sisters
In a disastrous world like this, we must stick together
If were constantly bringing each other down, no ones gonna rise up
So wise up and listen, I noticed something missing
Whether it be LOVE, TRUST, or LOYALTY
We all gotta STEP-UP and fix it
I take pride in my woman-hood
I love the curves in my hips
The fullness of my lips
The stars in my eyes
And the curls in my hair

MOCTEZUMA

By Esperanza Pineda Vazquez

Drawing by Esperanza Pieda Vasquez/Dibujo por Esperanza Pieda Vasquez

I will NOT be walked on like a door mat

I will NOT be treated second-handedly
I deserve better than that
I will NOT be taken for granted
Ive given too much to accept that
And I will accept NOTHING LESS than what I deserve
To my Beautiful Black sisters
Let this be your new anthem
Forgive the mistakes in the past but dont forget them
Learn from them
Regardless of the bruises in your mind, body, and heart
Hold your head to the sky
And if anybody asks you why?
You tell them, Im a PHENOMENAL WOMAN

EAGLE KNIGHT
A comic strip by Rodolfo Mendoza