3/22/2018 0 Comments Tuesday, March 20, 2018We started our Tuesday early at 6:30 in order to meet our first community partner of the day. In contrast to Monday’s meeting with Senator Flake’s office, we crossed the aisle and visited Democratic Representative Kyrsten Sinema’s office in the 9th congressional district of Arizona. Although she began as a Green Party activist, Sinema has had to choose her positions carefully as a Democrat in an solid red state. Sinema’s Deputy Chief of Staff, Michelle Davidson, was relatively honest about the political necessities of being a democratic representative in Arizona. Since senator Flake is stepping down, a senate seat is up for grabs in Arizona, and Sinema realizes that a more moderate tone is essential to having any chance in the senate race. That being said, Davidson made it clear that Sinema was solidly behind a “clean DREAM Act” in Congress. As it stands, the administration is demanding funding for a wall/increased border security in exchange for a two year extension for DACA. Davidson explained that increased border security is the only leverage for Democrats in an immigration deal. Meanwhile, Democrats still want to accomplish a full DREAM act, and a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants. A fragile, two-year extension according to Davidson, is simply not enough. After leaving representative Sinema’s office, we met up with street artist Francisco “ENUF” Garcia at Tres Leches Café. After finishing some refreshing drinks, we followed Garcia on a tour to see some street art around the area. Francisco Garcia is a current ASU student who is part of the street artist community in Phoenix. Through his art, Garcia expresses the culture and history of Chicanos, Indigenous peoples, and others. Garcia explained to us how studying ancient Mayan hieroglyphs and the art of Hopi Native Americans has influenced his own art. Garcia also draws influences from activists and major figures from Mexican and Native American history like Frida Kahlo and Red Cloud. By using art, Garcia expresses the struggles of modern day immigrants and members of the latino community by connecting their experiences to the struggles of the past. Our final stop of the day was at CALA, or Celebración Artística de las Américas. CALA is an organization associated with ASU that celebrates and shares the art of the local community as well as the Americas as a whole. We met with Casandra Hernández, the executive director of CALA. She explained to us the work of her organization as well as the political connections and implications of art in the Phoenix community. One of the most interesting impacts of CALA’s work was how it was trying to provide a cultural education to the kids in Arizona. Because a majority of youth in Phoenix are of latino descent, it only makes sense for them to learn about the history of their culture, a history that is not provided in the public education system. AuthorJJ Kim
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