Voces de Casa Maria

Thanks to Neto Portillo

< 1 min readby Brian Flagg, Thanks to Neto Portillo from the Arizona Daily Star for his column in the Sunday paper (3-16-2014) describing the amazing and miraculous and dedicated life story of our own Cesar Aguirre! Thanks also to Neto and Linda for asking guests at their upcoming party, to write checks to Casa Maria instead of bringing gifts. If you missed the story of Cesar Aguirre, go to: http://azstarnet.com/news/local/neto-s-tucson-school-tie-helps-shape-new-life-for/article_100726de-4a4e-5029-bfc4-e41ce63efc8a.html

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March 4, 2014

2 min readby Brian Flagg, Tonight the Tucson City Council will vote on whether to adopt Cesar Chavez’s birthday as the 11th official paid holiday for city employees. We at Casa Maria wrote a letter of support. Cesar Chavez is our hero. I even met him once. But how can City Council members vote to institute a holiday for Cesar Chavez, the beloved labor leader and founder of the United Farm Workers Union, and at the same time, in the same budget cycle, vote to balance their budget on the backs of poor bus riders? Voting to economically oppress poor people, while

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ANITA TIMPANI: STILL WORKING ON THE REVOLUTION!

< 1 min readWhen Anita Timpani lived in Tucson and volunteered at Casa Maria she was really helpful because she actually used her Masters degree in theology from Gonzaga University to inspire us and help us think about what it means to be Catholic. She got married, is going to have a baby and now lives in North Carolina. She continues to inspire by sending us this article on why it’s so great to be a Catholic! Thanks Anita! It’s titled “12 Awesome, Radical Catholic Ideas,” by Nathan Schneider from “The Daily Beast” Click on the link: http://news.yahoo.com/12-awesome-radical-catholic-ideas-104500750–politics.html?soc_src=copy

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Yo’ Daily Star, What’s your beef with H.T. and TUSD?

3 min readby Cesar Aguirre As I looked at today’s headlines I could not help but feel somewhat discouraged and deflated, which was the total opposite of how I felt last night. Yesterday I spent my day at the Strategic Planning Session, an all-day discussion to begin the planning of the future of TUSD. Afterwards I felt full of hope and optimism because for the first time I felt that the broader Tucson Community was finally being asked to be part of the rebuilding of the district. This morning’s headline on the front page of the Arizona Daily Star read, “Ground is

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The families that Casa Maria serves can’t afford a private Catholic education!

< 1 min readby Jimmy Ojeda, At Casa Maria we have been working with parents, teachers, students and community members in support of a quality education for all our children. We have played a significant role in keeping the schools in our barrio open. There is nothing more important than quality public education in regards to liberation of barrio families mired in poverty. Dr. Andrea Romero, Ph.D., Associate Professor Academic Program of Family Studies and Human Development Mexican American Studies & Research Center has worked extensively in our barrio in recent years. She has played an integral role in the struggle for quality

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The Tucson community is HOT For Transit Justice!

3 min readby Brian Flagg, You don’t believe me? You should have been at last night’s (Wed. 2/19) City Council Meeting! More than 200 people showed up to say to the Council: DON’T RAISE BUS FARES – DON’T BALANCE YOUR BUDGET ON THE BACKS OF TUCSON BUSRIDERS LIVING IN POVERTY! This event was sponsored by the Tucson Bus Riders Union and a good time was had by all. One hundred more bus riders signed up for the Union. They received an official laminated TBRU membership card with their pictures in addition to bright yellow TBRU t-shirts (thanks to Dwight Metzger and The

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FAMILY, FRIENDS AND SUPPORTERS OF CASA MARIA AND THE TUCSON BUS RIDERS UNION PLEASE JOIN US ON WED. FEB. 19TH AT 4PM AT CITY HALL TO SAY NO TO FARE INCREASES!

< 1 min readCome to city council to say NO TO FARE INCREASES! The city should not balance the city’s budget on the backs of the Bus Riders in this, the 6th poorest city in the United States. Come Join the Tucson Bus Riders Union on Feb. 19th and get your official membership card and a Tucson Bus Riders Union T-shirt. There will be mouth-watering food and raffles for free monthly bus passes. Also, please check out Brian’s Op-ed in the Arizona Daily Star on the subject to be better informed (http://azstarnet.com/news/opinion/brian-flagg-tucson-has-a-moral-imperative-not-to-raise/article_821ed785-8e70-5a71-8fe8-d484f718a827.html).

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BEING ON TV WAS FUN, NOW LETS GET REAL ABOUT PUBLIC EDUCATION

2 min readby Cesar Aguirre Yesterday I was on AZ Illustrated talking about poverty. This is a very deep issue to discuss in an eleven minute interview. We weren’t even able to scratch the surface. The bus riders’ issues are very important to me and I was able to talk a little about how fare increases would afflict those who depend on Sun Tran for their daily transportation needs, many of whom live in poverty, but what I am really passionate about is public education. After a Bus Riders Union meeting last night I grabbed the paper and found a very interesting

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CESAR AGUIRRE ON TV

4 min readWatch conscious rap artist Cesar Aguirre, single father of two and the pride of Casa Maria, on AZ Illustrated on channel 6 Wednesday night, February 5th at 6:30. He’s going to talk about poverty along with former mayor Tom Volgy. This is his story. by Cesar Aguirre As a child growing up on Tucson’s south side I never realized how poverty would affect my future and life as an adult. I was very lucky to live in a two parent household. Many of the kids in my neighborhood were being raised by single parents or grandparents. I can remember overhearing

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Fighting for Justice, Liberty, & Peace in Barrio Libre