Death on the Border

In the coming weeks a new in-depth story will be posted on Borderbeat about counting and miscounting of migrant deaths in the Tucson sector. After over a month of tackling the most difficult and complex story I've ever worked on, it is time for me to reflect.

The controversy is mainly between the criteria used to count migrant bodies by The U.S. Border Patrol and medical examiners offices. The Border Patrol, according to a report by the Government Accountability Office, undercounts migrant bodies and did so by 35% in 2004. And Pima County Medical Examiner office's data is the only count that is as accurate as possible according to a report by the Binational Migration Institute of the University of Arizona's Mexican American Studies & Research Center.



On the other side of the issue is the humanitarian side. Regardless of the policies the fact is that there are hundreds of people dying in the desert of this state every year and that number increases when including the rest of the border states. From 1990 to 2005 the Pima County Medical Examiner's office has processed 927 migrant deaths.

The fact is that no matter how the public policy changes, individuals from Mexico are still going to attempt to cross into this country and due to a change in policy in Texas and California, the majority of migrant crossers enter in the Tucson sector and are therefore dying in the Tucson sector.

Increasingly migrants are coming from farther south in Mexico where the climate is tropical and they have no concept of the harshness of the desert.

Some humanitarian aid groups like Humane Borders have taken steps to help the migrants by placing water stations throughout the Southern Arizona desert.


Photo courtesy of Humane Borders

At this point policy is cultivating a situation that contributes to injury and death. I understand our government has a responsibility to implement and enforce rules and regulations, but at the same time doesn't our government also have a responsibility to form policy that doesn't directly contribute to harm of other individuals?

I'm no politician so I would not dare propose a solution. I think it's safe to say there is no perfect solution. But there has to be a solution that lies in the middle. Perhaps the focus need not stay on our own country, but rather shift to the policy and state of Mexico itself, so migrants have less of a reason to "need" to cross.

The law and government need to be objective, I get that. But on a very basic level we are all humans and we all have emotions, desires and needs. Compassion for our fellow men, at some point takes control. So until there is policy in place that takes these issues into consideration, I don't see the problem as solved.

Mexican Mask Mayhem

While, this is not the technical title of the event, it would have been all to appropriate. With the wind and the cold subdued for a short period of time, Saturday afternoon was the perfect setting for the Arizona State Museum's "Culture Craft Saturday: Puppet Play."

Tables and booths scattered the lawn in front of UA's museum set up for puppet creation, mask making and a live tortilla cooking demonstration (my personal favorite).

The event was obviously geared toward a younger generation as children from a local elementary school flooded the craft tables. Puppet heads decorated with funky, fuzzy hair, painted faces and jazzy jeweled fabric were paraded around as masterpieces. School children set their creative talents to the test making Mexican inspired masks, while learning about the history and origin.



But the real "hot spot" of the event was Matilda Santa Cruz's tortilla tent. Originally from Sonora, Mexico, Matilda demonstrated what the art form her mother taught her. Made with flour, shortening salt and water Matilda expertly formed and cooked the delicious tortillas. This was as authentic as it gets.



Step One:
Pat down hands with flour

Step Two:
Flatten ball of dough into hands and start to slowly widdle the ball down.

Step Three:
Begin to flatten and stretch dough in your hands.

Step Four:
Fan out dough into wide circle about 14" across and lay on griddle surface.



The tortilla cooking device, called a Patsari, was made by Matilda's cousin out of an industrial metal trash can with door opening for firewood to heat the griddle above. A chimney like tube is fastened in the back and extends above the griddle about three or four feet to distribute the excess smoke. The entire top of the can is covered by a flat metal plate, that serves as the griddle. This is how Matilda and her family have always cooked homemade tortillas. The result was a thin, warm, fresh tortilla like I've never had before.



However, the focal point of the event was a puppet performance by
Tucson Puppetworks which was asked by the Arizona State Museum to perform a folklore piece. The detailed yet massive puppets stood almost 15 high and were fashioned to sit atop the shoulders of puppeteer, while the body of the puppet covered a puppeteer up to his or her knees.

With movable and semi-functional limbs, the uniqueness of the puppets itself was much more impressive than the quasi-impromptu performance. They were a sight to be seen when performing alongside the human narrator as they rose another five to six feet above the top of his head.

The puppets are called monigotes and are traditionally used in Mexican culture for story telling. The large heads and small bodies of Tucson Puppetworks' creations and are built onto backpack like devices that the puppeteers wear, so they are literally in the body of the puppet where they control the limbs.

"A New Spoon for Every Bite" is a common Mexican tale about a poor couple and their child and their wealthy neighbor who learns a lesson about material possessions and what's important in life.

Ride Along With Me

Altar Valley near the Mexico border has the highest number of
recorded found migrant bodies.

Everyone said it would give me the first hand experience I needed to write my story, and boy did it ever.

On Friday April, 6th for the second day in a row, I traveled near the Mexican border in Tucson, but this time the ride was in a government Border Patrol vehicle.

The agent was polite and considerate to me and my fellow borderbeat reporter, but his comments were not so neutral, which I guess is to be expected. A few guffaws at the mention of a certain Arizona Daily Star reporter's name, for example.

I've never been fond of the Arizona desert, but it is quite another thing to experience it when thinking about trying to survive in it. It was only April and already the hot wind was stinging and the sun was relentless.

I learned the most about the process of searching for, finding and arresting undocumented migrant border crossers. And though I try to remain as neutral as possible, it was refreshing to humanize a border patrol agent.

This is a fence made from railroad tracks
engineered by the Border Patrol to deter
smugglers from driving through the desert.

In general, it was an uncomfortable situation. Consider the attempt to remain an ominiscent observer, while sharing the experience of the border situation with an extremely opinionated individual and witnessing the apprehension of eight migrants all within five years of my age.

Forget the politics, the policies, and the major players, the day boiled down to a comparison of lives and birth given rights. The fact that I was born in a hospital merely 200 or so miles away from another girl, has made all the difference in the reason why on that day I was in the Altar Valley as a student reporter and she as a gutsy border crosser.


Two of the eight young migrant border
crossers apprehended by ATV Border Patrol agents.

There is no simple way to look at the border situation. But what Friday made me realize is we are all human; me, that hopeful young girl and border patrol agent. And as humans we all live according to what we think is right, whether that be simply trying to do their job, make a living or find a new life.

An answer is out there somewhere that maybe isn't the best for all sides, but at least is a way to find a compromise.

'Babelon Don't Make the Rules'

Photo courtesy of Paramount

***BLOGGERS NOTE***

The following blog contains plot spoiling information. If you have not yet seen it might be wise to pry yourself away from this blog.
Alexañdro Gonàlez Iñàrritu's Academy Award winning film "Babel" explores the nuances of boundaries; personal, political, physical, emotional and psychological. As the third film of his trilogy, including "Amores Perros" (2000) and "21 Grams" (2003) Iñàrritu's story interrelates four groups of people who are connected by one incident in three different places across the globe.

The film is intended to be thought provoking as it tests the human spirit and the power of authority. Juxtaposition elements though they are, these two themes are exploited most thoroughly in Iñàrritu's Mexican/American subplot.
Photo courtesy of Paramount

A day trip for a family wedding across the Tijuana border turns into a nightmare after the Mexican family caretaker of Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett’s children, Amelia (Adriana Barraza), is stopped while trying to re-enter the United States. In frustration and desperation Amelia’s nephew Santiago (Gael Garcìa Bernal) drives their car off into the desert.

It goes without saying that the border is a complex issue. The personal stories of migrants are always underplayed, but even less than that are the stories of those who are affected by a migrant’s failure to cross or failure to remain in the United States, as seen in the film. I kept asking myself, what happens to those left without any explanation or answers as to what happens to these individuals?

Photo courtesy of Paramount

In the case of a caretaker, I’m sure there are hundreds of thousands of them taking care of our children in this country everyday. Imagine a huge map of the United States, with a graphic of a child holding an adult’s hand to represent every single one of these situations. Now imagine those adults slowly disappearing one by one and the image of thousands of abandoned children across the United States.

There’s no telling what this country would be like if something like that happened, but I guarantee it would not be pretty. This is what the film "A Day Without a Mexican” shows.

At the core, the border issue is not a political issue, it is a practicality issue. Our economy was in demand in the early part of this decade and that demand was met by willing workers, who happened to come from a little farther south than us.

At this point, there is nothing that is going to drastically change the current situation in this country and there is no use in trying to upset that balance. So why not focus the effort on trying to find a solution that works for both sides? Yes, take measures to monitor the border so as not to exacerbate the situation, but that is not the only issue that deserves attending to.

I would be out of line to propose my own solution, but I think I would not be remiss to say that thinking egocentrically never gets anyone anywhere.

Mexico: A Real Big Mess

I've been going to Puerto Penasco, Sonora since I was ten years old. My family yearly May/June vacations have been the only family vacations my family has taken my entire life. They have become our solace. For my 12 year-old-sister "Mexico," as we call it, is like a second home to her. So, in all those years we have witnessed quite a lot of change in the town, in the economy, in the other visitors and in the attitudes of the locals.

Most recently, The Arizona Daily Star published an article on Feb 11, 2007 titled "'Tucson's Beach' is booming." And boy is it ever. Las Conchas, the private home community which once a single row of homes on the beach, is now two rows deep with high-rise condos under construction on the third row.

On the other side of town, Sandy Beach, five-star resorts are popping up like wild flowers and grandiose condos are decorated like a Paradise Valley estates. Not your typical picture of Mexico, but with its four hour convenient drive from both Phoenix and Tucson, lack of rules and significantly lower prices, Rocky Point is becoming a vacation haven for both college age students and families alike.

Anyway, the whole point is, Rocky Point has changed, big time and for long time vacationers, and I’m sure the locals, it hasn’t changed for the best.

But for all it’s worth if you take comfort in the less crowded areas and only venture into the town when you need to buy fresh fish or that must have token hand painted shot glass, a Rocky Point vacation can still be a perfect weekend getaway. Because it’s on the Gulf of California the water is much warmer than the Pacific, dolphins and breathtaking sunsets make regular appearances, it’s always a few degrees cooler than the desert mother land of Arizona. Not to mention the local food is cheap and fantastic as well as the alcohol.

I wish Rocky Point had stayed my secret hideaway, low-budget, relaxing vacation spot forever, but I guess it’s inevitable that the big wig developers would capitalize on it and so would everyone else. Hence the four hour traffic back up I encountered on Sunday throughout Sonoyta, the border town you cross through in Mexico. Granted the majority of the traffic at 11:30 a.m. on was due Spring Breakers trying to get back to campus before their Monday morning classes, but another part of the traffic back up had to do with the Mexicans stopping every car trying to collect money for their poor and disabled.

What is normally a four-hour trip, became an eight-hour trip and it leaves me wondering what the policies are for the Mexican police when enforcing traffic issues. Obviously policies are either undefined or not followed, but either way something is going to have to change if the increasing flow to and from Rocky Point is going to continue.

To see more of my vacation, check this out:

Sierra Vista Artist in Spotlight

Photo courtesy of www.restevensart.com

Roderick E. Stevens has lived for 30 years in Sierra Vista, Arizona. His realistic acrylic paintings stood out to me among the hundreds of booths at the Scottsdale Arts Festival after I read the sign "These are not PHOTOGRAPHS they are paintings." But it wasn't just me who was intrigued, I ran into Alice Cooper getting information from Roderick on one of his paintings.

The brilliantly colored paintings are, to put it simply, amazingly realistic. Reflections and lighting are the highlights of the paintings, the parts that make the viewer confuse photograph with painting. But perhaps the most impressive aspect of Roderick's work is that he has only been at it with intention for the past two years.

By trade Roderick is cinematographer for Indie films and music videos, but when he found himself in need of more of a spiritual connection he found his way back to painting, which he dabbled in as a child. Surprisingly, he considers his work his own private art school. Each painting is a challenge, each new technique is almost like a game to him. As with his paintings of fruit, where he nails the glare and listening liquid texture to perfection, they were proposed to him by a fellow artist and he greeted the challenge with complete enthusiasm.

Photo courtesy of restevensart.com

He has been touring for the past year and a half across the southwest, but has made his way to Texas and Florida where he said his paintings sell the best.

Although he was born and raised in Illinois he moved to Sierra Vista as a child and chose to stay there once he began raising his family, even though most of his cinematography work is in Los Angeles. Surprisingly, living so close the border he said neither his work nor his life are much influenced by his surroundings although he has experienced a few migrant border crosser incidences.

As a child his house was broken into twice by migrants. Once while filming a sunrise for one of his films, and group of heads began bobbing into his frame. Other than that, he lives and paints in Sierra Vista relatively unaffected by his surroundings as his subjects are varied but reflect nothing of the southwest.

Glass bottles so realistic you feel as if you can virtually see through them to the background, a shiny black Harley-Davidson motorcycle covered in chrome you can almost see your reflection in and a row of polished yellow, brown and baby blue guitars are just a few of Roderick's remarkable pieces.

Photo courtesy of restevensart.com

He calls it Contemporary Fine Art Photorealism, I call it genius.

For more of Roderick's work go to www.restevensart.com or find him at the Fourth Avenue Street Fair March 23-25.

Check out my footage from other events at the Scottsdale Arts Festival.

Ballet Hispanico

Photo courtesy of Ayano Hisa

To listen to an audio version of my blog click here:

In Ballet Hispanico's third trip to Tucson, they opened the evening's two hour, three act performance at The University of Arizona's Centennial Hall with an ensemble Latin infused modern dance piece. Surprising as it was for me, I enjoyed the modern dance twist, complete with innovative formations and interpretations. A very close friend of mine is a modern dance choreography major at Arizona State University, so I have been attending modern dance performances for four years now. But sitting through a professional dance performance by myself, when I'm not what you would call a dance enthusiast, was an entirely new venture for me.
Judging from the lack of intermission babel about the performance, I gathered that my fellow dance patrons shared my feelings that I was less than blown away by the show. That is of course except for the lady behind me who proceeded to

The Virgin, Saints, and Angels

Unidentified workshop, Cuzco, Peru, The Child Mary Spinning
Courtesy of Tucson Museum of Art

Tucson, Arizona may not be on the radar for fine art exhibits but the Tucson Museum of Art's latest exhibit The Virgin, Saints, and Angels: South American Paintings 1600-1825 from the Thoma Collection should not go without recognition.

The exhibit features 55 oil paintings from the Viceroyalty of Peru portraying religious depictions for the purpose of catholic conversion. During this time, imperialistic countries like Spain would send Viceroyalties to countries, like Peru, they had conquered to rule for them. This collection is set of paintings sent over for the purpose of reminding those who had been conquered who they were being ruled by across the sea.

Many of the paintings, most from Quitor, Peru, have unknown painters or workshop artists, due to the fact that the Italian and Spanish painters who went to South America influenced the native artists; mestizos, Creoles, Europeans or indigenous peoples, who adopted their painting styles.

The Virgin, Saints and Angels comes to Tucson from the Center for Visual Arts at Stanford University and the family Thoma collection. A husband and wife bought the first two small oval shaped paintings from a gallery in Chicago, which began their exhaustive search to locate other paintings like them.

Perhaps one of the most remarkable and memorable aspects of this expansive collection are the frames of the paintings themselves. So ornate and intricate the frames range from gold carved spirals to double layered line textured black frames. They are masterpieces in and of themselves. In fact, as I strolled through the winding gallery, the most frequent comments I overheard were about the painting's frames.

The paintings all had an overall similar look with muted yet brilliant colorization combined with extreme background darkness. Burgundy, deep blues, forest greens, browns and gold run throughout each and every piece. I was amazed at how shiny some of the paintings were. Most all had elements of gold weaved into the canvas that stood out as if they were gold stars and crowns themselves. I don't understand it, but the golds were just so gold.

"The Last Judgment" stood out the most as it was the largest in the collection, about nine feet by five feet. The painting depicts the passage between heaven and hell. At the top of the painting the colors are subdued and ethereal with Jesus in the center. Rows of clouds hold apostles on either side watching over the entire scene. Naked lines of people trail into heaven's entry way. At the same time the colors transition at the bottom to dark foreboding blacks and reds. Another row of naked people are forced by black winged demons into the mouth of a black hairy monster with fiery eyes and nose (as best I can describe). Overall the paintings has depth and perspective but not the traditional style of perspective.

Another painting that most blatantly depicts the influence of South America is titled Noah's Ark. It is oil on canvas by an unidentified artist, which is a rare depiction of the Old Testament. The smaller painting employs bright colors and and trails of animals and men and women walking up to Noah's Ark. The South American influence can be seen with the inclusion of an armadillo, a turkey and an indigenous family.

The Tucson Museum of Art is located at 140 N. Main Ave.
520-624-2333

The Virgin, Saints and Angels: South American Paintings 1600-1825 from the Thoma Collection runs through April 29.

www.tucsonmuseumofart.org

Pan's Labrynith or Oscar's Pathway

Photo Courtesy of Picturehouse

"Pan's Labyrinth" or “El Laberinto del Fauno” is an exquisite film of the fantasical tale the mind of a young girl weaves when her mother brings her to the home of a fascist leader in Spain in 1944. Written, directed and produced by Guillermo del Toro of Mexico, “Pan's Labyrinth” won its first critical acclaim at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival and is now nominated for six Academy Awards including Best Original Screenplay, Best Cinematography, Best Original Score, Best Foreign Language Film, Best Make Up and Best Art Direction.

Born in Jalisco, Mexico, Guillermo's film making offers a breath of fresh air into the American cinematic world that has been lacking in ingenuity, depth and lasting conviction in the past years. “Pan's Labyrinth” bridges two unlikely worlds; fantasy and war drama seamlessly, so the audience follows willingly and enthusiastically. It's like if the love child of "Lord of the Rings" and "Harry Potter" had their own love child with the love child of "Motorcycle Diaries" and "Saving Private Ryan."

The storytelling is imaginative, the lighting is exquisite, but most of all the cinematography is breathtaking; fresh and mesmerizing. Chock full with universal symbolism and themes, "Pan's Labyrinth" pushes the envelope of what to expect out of a film. The best way to understand is to see it for yourself.

Photo Courtesy of Picturehouse

With the American film industry run by a monopoly of like minded, aged and gendered cowards, box office sales were down by six percent in 2005 according to Nielson Entertainment/NRG reports, American movie goers have been under whelmed with their box office selections.

But not only does this film and others like it offer something enticing to audiences, it offers something equally as enticing to film industry execs; a bankable new genre of film makers, producers and actors.

The earliest Latino actors were seen on film playing characters outside their own race like Italians. Audiences began seeing representations of Latinos in film in the mid 1900s where males, when seen on screen at all, were depicted as the "tragic mulatto" or a down trodden, low intelligence and income sidekick, and women were portrayed as sultry, fiery, sex driven objects. Latinos were behind the camera in even less instances than in front.

Needless to say the film industry has come a long way, but it would be wise for them to come an even longer way. Perhaps this year's Oscars will be an incarnation of 2001 where African Americans dominated as major category winners with Halle Berry winning Best Actress for Monster's Ball and Denzel Washington winning Best Actor for Training Day.

With Latino's nominated in categories such as Best Actress (Penelope Cruz-"Volver"), Best Supporting Actress (Adriana Barraza-"Babel") and "Babel" nominated for Best Picture and Best Director, the Academy has set the stage for another "sweep" type year. Whatever the connotation of this situation means to you, it represents well due recognition on the part of the Academy.

The truth will be told Sunday February 25.

Trailer:
http://imdb.com/title/tt0457430/trailers

Review:
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/pans_labyrinth/

Film Site:

http://www.panslabyrinth.com/

Playing the Border

Photo Courtesy of Jennifer Funk-Weyent

As I scoured the internet looking for a border art related activity I could attend this weekend while I was in Phoenix, I stumbled across the SonicAnta project website. It took me a while to figure out exactly what Tucsonan Glenn Weyent's sound project entailed, but it didn't take me long to realize that the artist I was reading about, was actually my former journalism Features Writing professor. If I never believed how small of a world Tucson was, I definitely believed it now.

According to his website www.sonicanta.com, Mr. Weyent began his project in one form or another about twenty years ago. As best as I can describe it SonicAnta is a music undertaking in which Mr. Weyent plays the metal border wall separating Nogales, Mexico and the United States using modified chopsticks and a cello bow. Literally. He set up a stethoscope type microphone to capture the vibration sounds of the wall, in addition to playing the metal wires of the fence with his bow. The result, an electronic, guitar feedback, alien sounding compilation of audible vibrations and wavelengths that defies comparison. A soundtrack for Mars, if you will. But like Mr. Weyent says, "the instrument IS the message" so maybe the alien description is not so far off; eerie but effective.

Photo Courtesy of Jennifer Funk-Weyent
By definition Sonic means of or pertaining to sound and Anta is a sanskrit meaning border or end of known territory, according to the website. Mr. Weyent considers himself a “sound sculptor,” trying to capture the feel of the border in a way that no other type of artist has tried before. As an advantageous undertaking the SonicAnta project feels and sounds distant. Upon first listen or even second and third listen, the mind has a difficult time deciphering what it's being exposed to. But distance is a symbolic description considering what the border represents to populations on both sides. We, Mexicans and Americans, are so close in that we are only separated by a wall, and yet worlds upon worlds away in terms of culture, ideals, opportunities and acceptance.

It makes me wonder... what is a wall? I'll keep going with my definition repetition this time. According to www.dictionary.com (honestly one of my favorite websites) wall means an immaterial or intangible barrier, obstruction or any various permanent upright constructions having a length much greater than the thickness. If these simplistic definitions decide what we consider a wall to mean, than why have we built this "wall" up, so to speak? America is not the most accepting of countries and based on our history our track record backs up that assertion pretty accurately (ie: Civil Rights movement, the American Indians, and the Japanese internment camps).

However, definitions are subjective. So why not change the way we think and view "the wall?" John Watters thought of it as "just another brick in the wall" after all. In any case, I think this is what Mr. Weyent is getting at with his project. This is another attempt at figuring out what the border means and what it should become. We have quite a debate on our hands, but perhaps taking abstract glances at these defined and potential meanings of the border can break through some of the roundabout bureaucratic discussions that seem to be getting nowhere.

Mr. Weyent lives in Tucson, is a freelance journalist and an adjunct journalism professor at The University of Arizona. He can be contacted at glenn@sonicanta.com or checking out the website www.sonicanta.com.

Some important links:

SonicAnta’s feature on NPR’s “All Things Considered”

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5482919

Article in the Phoenix New Times

http://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/2006-11-09/music/avant-garde-the-border/

SonicAnta’s MP3s:

America Waits

http://www.sonicanta.com/audio/GLENN_WEYANT-AMERICA_WAITS.mp3

Clear Light

http://www.sonicanta.com/audio/GLENN_WEYANT-CLEAR_LIGHT.mp3

Passage

http://www.sonicanta.com/audio/GLENN_WEYANT-PASSAGE.mp3

A Barrio Boutique

Nestled in a remote area just south of the UA campus is a street coined The Lost Barrio that is bursting with raw art and underground creativity. After living in Tucson for three years, I was surprised to learn about this unique and valuable area of Tucson while working on a story last year. Located on Park Avenue just south of Broadway Boulevard is a short block lined with one of a kind shops on both sides of the street, including an Asian inspired furniture and home store, a vintage home decorating warehouse, a Mexican cafe and a Hispanic home furnishing showroom, Rústica.

With every nook and cranny filled with trinkets, dishes, Catholic relics, lighting fixtures and furniture, entering Rústica is like walking right into a street shop in Southern Mexico. President Guberto Platt, who manages the shop is originally from Sonora, Mexico but came to Tucson some years ago to attend the university. He said most of the pieces in the twenty-year-old store are hand picked from Southern Mexico, but some of the shop’s over flowing merchandise comes from Peru.

Even the entryway walls are covered with brass plated mirrors, brightly colored hanging crosses and paintings. Walk up a few steps and the sight is overwhelming. Dark wood, authentic tables are covered with stacks of hand painted, intricately designed plates, bowls and cups. Armoires are filled to the brim with Oaxacan wood animal figurines, Virgin Mary paintings, and various colors of glass spheres.

Most of Rústica’s customers are looking for one of a kind, themed pieces to decorate their home. Seasoned decorators and amateurs alike flock to the Lost Barrio and Rústica in particular to search for way to bring a piece of Mexico into their homes. The authentic pieces are not going to be found in your local Roomstore showroom or even Cost Plus, and are reasonably priced considering how valuable they can be for a homeowner looking for just the right thing.

Only in a place like Tucson could you find a showroom that brings Mexico to us without the inconvenience or expense of travel and shipping. Every inch of the store from the walls to the ceiling to the furniture houses trinkets to treasure. It will take some effort but the work is well worth the pay off if you really want your place to stand out.

Rustica is located at 200 South Park Avenue
520-623-4435

The LA Times wrote an article about the Lost Barrio Disrict April 9, 2006. You can find it on their website latimes.com

Borderlands Theater

The Borderlands Theater is uniquely Tucson. In its 21st year, the non-profit organization is fast becoming a theater company known for its education and production of theater involving the diversity of southwest influences. After an eight page spread in American Theater Magazine, which, for those non-theater enthusiasts is like the Rolling Stone for music snobs or The Economist for business men, The Borderlands Theater is on the map for progressive theater companies across the country. Although their focus is mostly on Chicano related issues, they also have crossover coverage of the LGBT community and are considered an activist theater. Their body of work for this season includes "A Visitor's Guide to Arivaca," which examines the lives of those whose situation interacts with the border, "Gaytino!" a musical comedy of a man's journey in the 60s and 70s from Hollywood, to New York and back including Chicano history and the gay experience and "A Tucson Pastorela," the story of the birth of baby Jesus written by one of the theater's own employees. Their upcoming production running April 5th through the 22nd is "Hippie Mexicana" a world premiere comedy of a family who finds an unexpected archaeological site in their family's old home. However, their next performance will be a staged reading where actors will read potential plays for The Borderlands Theater in front of a live audience with minimal stage movement and sets.

The Borderlands Theater represents something that is needed in the southwest region and especially in Tucson. Even in an artist driven community like Tucson, The Borderlands Theater stands out for its unique portrayals of Hispanic culture, people and issues. It is important to have an artistic outlet for Latinos as well as have a venue devoted to socially challenging works.

But perhaps one of the most notable aspects of The Borderland Theater's work is not their commendable theatrical performances or their innovative choices of work, but rather their education outreach program. The purpose is to serve the community and youth in providing them with special performances, audience talkbacks as well as a partnership with The University of Arizona College of Humanities to provide students with well researched study guides. The Borderlands Theater is doing everything right to serve a Hispanic dominate community in Tucson.

The Borderlands Theater office is located at
Centro Cultural
de las Americanas
40 W. Broadway Blvd.
Tucson, AZ 85701

Box Office Phone: (520) 882-7406

Fax: (520) 884-4264

Check out http://www.borderlandstheater.org/ for more information

Picture Perfect Polarization

It seems to me there is no resolution in sight for our border issues. I find the more I read, the less I understand and the more I search for answers, the more complicated the issues become. I don't see these issues as black and white as the sides have seemed to divide themselves. There is more to these issues than aligning with the philosophies of the Minutemen or tree hugging liberals. And so I felt at a loss. In an attempt to spark my interest in writing about this topic , I decided to turn to the arts for inspiration.

A good artist friend of mine, whose opinion on anything artistically related I value strongly, told me about a photography exhibit at the Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art called The Border Film Project/El proyecto fronterizofotografico. The exhibit was created by three men in an attempt to show the disparity among the two perspectives on the border issues; those of the Minutemen and the migrants. They gave disposable cameras to various groups of Minutemen and migrants and instructions on how to mail the cameras back to the creators. The results? A compilation of over 2,000 truly realistic portrayal of the ongoings at the Arizona/Mexico border that is like nothing I have seen.

The exhibit is set in a room of dark gray painted walls, which is in stark contrast to the walls of exhibit itself of a matte white. Snap shot size photographs, with a few larger versions, scatter the walls of the enclosure, in the style of a family photo album. This is almost essentially what the exhibit is, except the different points of view become so glaringly obvious even without the use of captions or titles. The center of the exhibit is a walled off space that runs a short film about the project, showing the creators explaining in both English and Spanish, what they were asking of the camera holders.

What is so mesmerizing about the photos are their honesty. Some of the photographs are of remarkably high quality and it would be difficult to say whether or not they were professionally taken. They are varied, ranging from photographs of a pair of grotesquely blistered feet, a man jumping a border wall, joyous group snapshots, and portraits of the camping life of the Minutemen. The simplicity of the exhibit and the photographs themselves tell an objective story like nothing else you'll get from the media or professional artists. There is no agenda, it is just simple, visual documentation that may not shed any light on issues up for debate, but offer an honest portrayal of real stories.

The exhibit is located at SMOCA at

7374 East Second Street

Scottsdale , AZ 85251

Phone: 480-994-ARTS

Email: smoca@sccarts.org

Web: www.smoca.org

The exhibit runs through Sunday January, 28.

For an interview on KJZZ, NPR News Station, go to http://kjzz.org/news/arizona/archives/200609/borderfilm