2 min readpor Mari Fuentes Mari Fuentes es es una chica pura mexicana . Es originalmente de Arizpe, Sonora. Ella vive en Barrio Libre con su esposo y 3 hijos y es parte del equipo de Casa Maria.   La visita del Papa a Mexico fue buena por que hablo de casi todos los problemas de mi país. Hablo de la violencia, el narcotraficante, la falta de empleo que hace que las personas abandonen el país por la pobreza y la falta de oportunidad para los jóvenes. El papa les dijo a los jóvenes que no miren el narcotraficante como una forma

5 min read  by Brian Flagg “In a final prayer, the Pope urged Mexicanos to make their country into a land of opportunity where there will be no need to emigrate in order to dream, no need to be exploited in order to work, no need to make the poverty and despair of many the opportunism of a few, a land that will not have to mourn men and women, young people, and children who are destroyed at the hands of the dealers of death.” Agreed, it’s an ugly moment in Mexico’s history and the country has been submerged in blood and

2 min read  To the naked eye, this place looks pretty functional and effective. Lots of gente are served daily (500 bag lunches and as many as 200 family food bags). The corporal works of mercy part of Casa Maria is operative. The other part of a Catholic Worker life is to practice daily the spiritual works of mercy, which is where doing justice comes in. Maybe we can say that we have been creative and unique, even a little bit effective in our living out the Catholic Worker tradition here in Tucson since 1981. I’ve been here since ’83 But today,

2 min readThis letter to the editor appeared in the Tucson Weekly the last week of January. Read the article here: http://www.tucsonweekly.com/tucson/letter-to-the-editor/Content?oid=6024651 The brother says it all! May we all be inspired and steadfast in struggle so this does not happen in South Tucson… ______________________________ Esta carta del editor aparece en el Tucson Weekly la última semana de Enero. Puedes leer el artículo aquí: http://www.tucsonweekly.com/tucson/letter-to-the-editor/Content?oid=6024651 El hermano lo dice todo! Necesitamos estar inspirados y firmes en la lucha así esto no pasara en el sur de Tucson… QUIEN PAGA POR LOS CAMBIOS EN EL DOWNTOWN? Estoy preocupada por la vergonzosa acción hecha por

3 min readby Brian Flagg Padre Juan Elias is a most profound and soulful guy. For weeks now at our parish Santa Cruz Catholic, he has been using the Gospel readings to awaken us to the fact that we need to more deeply encounter Jesus and that very soon, Lent would be upon us. He has been emphatic that this is a great opportunity for us to figure out, in the context of who we are as Catholics, as disciples of Jesus, what our mission in life is! I find myself seriously challenged, both personally and professionally. The Holy Father is another

< 1 min readCITY COUNCIL MEETING Tuesday, February 9, 2016 3 p.m. City Hall The issue: Will the City renew the contract of their notorious union-busting bus management company? The Mayor invited the lawyer from that company, Transdev, to come from Phoenix to present at this meeting. Councilwomen Romero and Uhlich insisted that Farhad, commander in chief of RTA/PAG, be present to present some alternatives. Educate yourself. Attend if possible in your yellow shirt. MONTHLY MEETING Wednesday, February 10, 2016 5:30 p.m. Armory Park Senior Center 220 S. 5th Ave.

4 min readby Cesar Aguirre Yesterday a group of parents from south side TUSD schools met with Petra Falcon of Promesa Arizona and Robert Moses of Project Algebra. We started off with a simple exercise to help parents better understand algebra. The curriculum presented made it easy for parents of all levels of education to really understand and grasp the language of math. After the exercise we had lunch while we got to know Robert Moses better. It was truly an honor to sit by someone with so much knowledge and first-hand experience in the civil rights movement of the 60’s and

3 min readby Brian Flagg A paid sick leave ordinance for companies with more than ten employees is being considered by the Tucson City Council. This has been done in more than twenty other cities. It is being pushed by labor unions, especially the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) and other grassroots Tucsonans. It was introduced in December by Councilwoman Regina Romero. I was there. She skillfully and passionately defended the measure against all kinds of lame objections from her colleagues. This seemed to fuel opposition from right wing, anti-worker entities such as the Chamber of Commerce and the HiSpanic Chamber of