March 31 is the birthday of Cesario Estrada Chavez, the Chicano labor union organizer who gained fame in the 1960's and 70's for his achievements in the farm fields of California and the five-year-long grape boycott. After service in the U.S. Navy, Cesar, with Dolores Huerta and other activists, created the United Farm Workers, the UFW, the first viable agricultural worker union in the country. The UFW is eclipsed now, but it did have a strong impact on worker rights in the U

I embrace the perpetual life link to the multitude of experiences, ordeals, occurrences, escapades, adventures, as well as the delightful, amusing, entertaining, pleasant and satisfying episodes that span my past life and that have impacted my present views that in turn continue to build my near future. Our entire life is filled with so many happy, sad, and fulfilling activities. Some we try to accentuate while others we attempt to squelch and yet, they all emerge at unexpect

It's time to accept that we are hopelessly multicultural. Too many powerful streams are flowing into the American ocean, each one bringing its own flavors into the cosmic mix. In spite of hostility to multiculturalism and the fear that accompanies it, we must be honest and admit that we enjoy drinking heady draughts out of those rivers. They are surefire cures for the boredom of sameness. A strong drink is coming up: Los Días de los Muertos, The Days of The Dead, November 1-8

Hispanic Heritage Month, Sept.15-Oct. 15, is upon us. Hispanic, Latino, Chicano, Mexican Heritage month is one of many ethnic months. Some people object to Hispanic Heritage Month because they fear Mexicans and other Latinos. That's what happens when there is a constant propaganda barrage about the "crisis at the border," when border guards push mothers and babies back into the water, balloon obstacles float in the water and chains and razor wire lace el Rio Grande, the Big R

Recently, I was asked how I decided what to write and how I approach the subject. I had never given this much thought but it appears I write about what is happening where I am. During the height of the Chicano Movement, I wrote and presented my poetry at rallies, meetings, and evening sessions with other poets. In the 1980s I worked on a Ph.D. and wrote three thirty-page term papers every three months to fulfill the requirements for my doctorate. Before I retired as a tenured