Cover Story
Helping Make Tucson a Better Place
In refugee camps like the one 31-year-old Koor Garang came from, access to fresh, nutritious food is in limited supply. Standing in a Tucson backyard gleaning fruit from citrus trees the homeowner doesn’t want, Garang looks down at his hand, holding a one-pound grapefruit he just plucked from a donor’s tree. “People go to the…
Transgender Asylum Seeker in Immigration Detention Demands Release After Facing Sexual Abuse
Nicoll Hernández-Polanco is a Guatemalan transgender woman who is currently detained in an all-male Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Florence. In October 2014, she turned herself in to border agents and right away requested asylum after fleeing her native country following years of sexual and physical violence and harassment for being transgender. From a…
Catch Texas Justice, Gabriel Sullivan at Congress to Benefit Local Musicians
Local musicians Frederick Huang and Kyle Gutierrez were robbed of about $7,500 of equipment on the night of Dec. 15. Luckily, that’s not the end of the story: Texas Justice, Gabriel Sullivan, Billy Sedlmayr, and Shudder Kong will be playing at Club Congress on Friday night to help raise some money so they can recoup…
A Fine-Looking Mars Crater
NASA/JPL/University of Arizona Phil Plait at Slate’s Bad Astronomy blog highlights a recent photo captured by the UA’s HiRISE camera aboard the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter: On Earth, you don’t usually get craters this size; our atmosphere slows and stops smaller rocks from space. The air on Mars is less than 1 percent the thickness of…
City Council’s Review of Tucson Police Department’s Enforcement of SB 1070 Gets Pulled, May Happen in February
Last month, at the Tucson City Council’s last meeting of 2014, Council Members Regina Romero, Paul Cunningham and Karin Uhlich pressured looking into how Tucson Police Department has been enforcing SB 1070, and the council agreed to do that during a study session in January. The issue was listed in a draft for Jan. 21’s…
House Republicans Tie Homeland Security Funding To Undoing Obama Exec Action on Immigration
Speaker of the House John Boehner promised a showdown over President Barack Obama’s November executive action on immigration once a new Congress was sworn in. And today, just two weeks into the new congressional session, the showdown has come exactly where it was expected: In a battle over funding the Department of Homeland Security. Congress…
TUSD Should Wait for Court Ruling Before Making Changes to Its Ethnic Studies Programs
There’s a court case pending which could throw out HB 2281 (now A.R.S § 15-112), the law designed to make TUSD’s ethnic studies curricula—first Mexican American Studies (MAS), now the Culturally Relevant Curriculum (CRC)—illegal. Without the law, Superintendent of Public Instruction Diane Douglas loses the hold she has over the CRC or the way its carried…
Bill Walton Is Coming To the Rialto Theatre This Friday
Bill Walton, whose commentary during Wildcat basketball games has become the stuff of legends, is making an appearance at downtown’s Rialto Theatre this Friday, Jan. 16. Walton will sit down with former UA assistant basketball coach Jim Rosborough to talk about “music, basketball and life,” according to a Rialto bulletin announcing the fundraiser for the…
Tucson Museum of Art Posts a Call to Artists for Arizona Biennial 2015
Listen up, local artists. You have the opportunity to submit your work, no matter what medium you use, for consideration to be included in the upcoming Arizona Biennial 2015 exhibition. The exhibition will be on view from July 25 until Oct. 11, but submission must be made by Friday, March 13 at 4 p.m. Submitted…
Tucson High’s Chican@s Social Justice Club Wants Your Help
Members of the Tucson High Magnet School’s M.E.Ch.A., Movimiento Estudiantil Chican@ de Aztlán— a student organization that promotes higher education, culture, historical and political involvement of Chicanos—are trying to raise some money to head to Chicago in April for the 22nd annual national M.E.Ch.A. conference at DePaul University. The conference’s core is education and social…
Science on Screen: “The Unbelievers” at The Loft Tonight
Theoretical physicist Lawrence Krauss, who teaches at ASU, will be at the Loft Cinema tonight for a screening of The Unbelievers, a documentary about his travels with Richard Dawkins to promote science and reason. The movie screens at 7 p.m. as part of the Loft’s Science on Screen program. More info on the movie here.…
McSally Votes To Change How Congressional Budget Office Forecasts the Impact of Tax Cuts
Earlier today, The Range mentioned that the Congressional Budget Office had estimated that a GOP proposal to change the definition of full-time work for the purposes of the Affordable Care Act would expand the deficit by more than $50 billion over the next decade. These sorts of calculations have evidently made GOP lawmakers unhappy with…
This Swedish Kids’ Song About Genitalia is Both Important and my Favorite Thing
So, this is a Swedish kids’ song set up to teach the kiddos the basics of genitalia. And I love it. “Here comes the penis at full pace,” and “the vagina is cool, you better believe it, even on an old lady. It just sits there so elegantly” are the only verified translated lines I’ve…
Win Free Tickets to Tyler Farr at Rialto Theatre
If you’re looking to get a little bit country this Sunday, you’re in luck. Tyler Farr is bringing his Nashville twang to the Rialto Theatre on Jan. 18 and we have a pair of tickets to give away gratis. We know what you’re thinking right now, “Oh god—what do I have to do to get…
Go Meet the Design Teams That Could Be Bringing Jan. 8 Shooting Memorial to Life
The four design teams selected as finalists to create a permanent memorial commemorating the Jan. 8, 2011, shooting victims, families and the community’s response to the tragedy are in town today, and they want to hear from you. They’re not here to present their design ideas, but to talk to us and get inspired. That…
McSally Votes To Change Obamacare, Help Biz, Expand the Deficit
In her first week in office, Southern Arizona Congresswoman McSally voted with her GOP colleagues to advance a number of measures, including HR30, which would change the definition of a fulltime worker for the purposes of the Affordable Care Act from 30 hours a week to 40 hours a week. That legislation puts two of…
Local Breweries Rally for Support for New Bill with a Petition
The Arizona Craft Brewers Guild and local breweries like Dragoon have been soliciting Facebook followers and fans to sign a petition for the Arizona Beer Bill. The bill is looking to increase the current production limit placed on brewers so Arizona beer makers can try to compete with other breweries nationally. Here’s what the petition…
The State: Student Achievement, Self Esteem Are Irrelevant
The arguments over Arizona’s anti-Mexican American Studies law in the 9th Circuit Court pretty much boil down to this: Are increased student achievement and self esteem important tasks of our public schools? The jaw-dropping answer from the state attorney was a simple “No.” One of the judges hearing the case cited a recent study concluding…
Pima Representatives are in Chicago for Accreditation Hearing
Well, the day is officially here: Pima Community College chancellor Lee Lambert, a few Pima administrators, and a member of the governing board are representing the college at an Institutional Actions Council Hearing Committee of the Higher Learning Commission. The hearing will decide the college’s accreditation status, which has been on probation for the last…
UPDATE: TUSD Students, Legal Team Kick Ass in 9th Circuit Hearing Challenging Law Banning Mexican American Studies
As reported earlier, Tucson Unified School District students Maya Arce, Korina Lopez and Nicolas Dominguez, as well as their attorneys, were down at the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco today making a case against A.R.S § 15-112, the law that pretty much made the Mexican American studies program illegal. One of the minds…
Details, Details: Gov. Ducey Delivers His State of the State Speech, but Policy Details Remain Sketchy
In his State of the State address, Gov. Doug Ducey promised a new approach to government: “These next few weeks, we could all use the fresh outlook of newcomers, not trapped in the old ways of thinking about state spending, taxes, public education and the role of government in general. In government, just as in…
Tough Luck Club to Host Fundraiser for Injured Scott & Co. Bartender
The brand new bar in Reilly Craft Pizza’s basement has been open less than two weeks, but is already creating a buzz around town. With a four page craft cocktail menu filled with inventive drinks, the bar has been packed most nights since it’s opened. However, the team at Tough Luck Club is hoping for…
Gilbert Church’s Freedom of Religion Case Went to the U.S. Supreme Court Today
Today the U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments in a First Amendment case involving a small Gilbert church and the town’s sign regulations. These rules say directional signs can be no larger than 6 square feet, and they must be removed in the next 14 hours. By contrast, signs for political candidates can be up to…
Street Taco Is Open in Downtown Tucson, Making Chipotle Obsolete
When you first walk into the brand new Street Taco and Beer Co. off of Congress Street north of Church, you can’t ignore the similarity between the new locally-owned joint and the national chain Chipotle. After all, the light reclaimed wood and metal look is ever-present in both restaurants. While the big guys pretty much invented…
Pima Spokesman Leaving for Job with McSally Team
As Pima Community College is starting to have some success turning its image around, its lead PR guy is stepping down. C.J. Karamargin came to the college in 2011, working at Pima for three and half challenging years. When he joined the college, Pima was still facing some criticism from how it handled warning signs from…
A New Bill Would Create a “Citizen Test” Graduation Requirement
Thursday, the Senate Education Committee is scheduled to look at SB1029, a bill that would require a civics test for high school graduation. And not just any civics test. The same test that’s given to people who want to become U.S. citizens. The good news is, it’s not a completely terrible idea. The bad news…
9th Circuit Hears Arguments in TUSD Students’ Suit Challenging Law That Outlawed Mexican American Studies
Tucson Unified School District students Maya Arce, Korina Lopez and Nicolas Dominguez are in the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals today to tell the judge why A.R.S § 15-112 is a violation of the First Amendment, the right to equal protection and simply too damn vague to stipulate what is right and what is wrong…
Be Ready for the Old Mexican American Studies Battles to Resume
I know some people who support the ethnic studies programs at TUSD are cautiously optimistic about Education Superindent Diane Douglas’ statements concerning the current Culturally Relevant Curriculum. I know Superintendent H.T. Sanchez has expressed hope he can work things out with Douglas. Me, I’m far from optimistic. The one promising thing Douglas said is that…
Doc Hudson Guitars Is Moving, Selling Discounted Gear This Weekend
If you’re looking to snag a deal on a new guitar, parts, or cases, Doc Hudson Guitars is moving locations soon, but before they do, they’re trying to offload as much inventory as possible. Here’s what Doc Hudson said about the move and sale via Facebook: Due to a number of factors, we are moving…
Sneak Peek: “Zona Politics” Previews Legislative Session
Zona Politics Eps.13 from Zona Politics with Jim Nintzel on Vimeo. On this week’s episode of Zona Politics with Jim Nintzel: State Rep. Bruce Wheeler and state Sen. Steve Farley stop by the set to talk about the upcoming legislative session. They talk about the budget shortfall (with Farley sharing a rumor that he’s heard…
Dillinger Days Has a Speakeasy This Year So Get Your Tickets Now
January is rushing by already so before you know it, it’ll be time for Dillinger Days. On Jan. 23 and 24, the outlaw celebration will commence at Hotel Congress, bringing reenactments, live music, and a heavy dose of history to downtown Tucson. However, the event’s kick-off function will be a 1930s-inspired speakeasy party at the…
Mayor Rothschild and TUSD Want You to Go Back to School
Tucson Unified School District and City of Tucson representatives, among them Mayor Jonathan Rothschild and TUSD Superintendent H.T. Sanchez, went door-to-door this morning to visit more than 300 kids, who have dropped out of school, hoping to persuade them to go back to school. The two, alongside 46 pairs of volunteers, were out on the…
King Tuff Masked Serious Chops with Fun at Flycatcher Last Night
You know when you go to a show and all of the planets seem to align. The band is having fun, the sound is dialed in, and the crowd actually cares. That shouldn’t be as much of a rarity as it is, but, hey, as long as it still happens sometimes, I’m happy. Anyways, last…
Supt. Diane Douglas: TUSD Needs to Implement the Curriculum Already Developed
Diane Douglas, Arizona’s new Superintendent of Public Instruction, met with Tucson Unified School District Superintendent H.T. Sanchez on Wednesday to talk about the future of the district in light of the notice of noncompliance the district received late last week. Douglas says she supports the Department of Education’s finding that the TUSD is currently in violation of…
Mark Klett at Etherton Gallery
Mark Klett Etherton Gallery’s latest show is Then + Now, a collection of photography by Mark Klett. The show continues through March 21, with an opening reception from 7 to 10 p.m. this Saturday, Jan. 10. More details here. Here’s the word on the show, via Etherton Gallery: Etherton Gallery is pleased to announce a…
Will Federal Judge Permanently Block No Licenses to DREAMers Policy?
The question of whether a preliminary injunction from last month allowing Arizona DREAMers to issue licenses should become permanent or not is in the hands of a federal judge at the moment. Yesterday, U.S. District Judge David Campbell, whose Dec. 18 ruling immediately allowed for as many as 22,000 young immigrants under Obama’s DACA program…
McSally Remembers Jan. 8 on House Floor
U.S. Representative Martha McSally spoke on the House floor to mark the Jan. 8 four-year anniversary that killed six people and wounded 13 others. Her press office released the following statement: “Four years ago, our community was shaken to its core by an act of senseless violence that took the lives of six of our…
While We Were Freaking Out About the Huppenthal-TUSD Stuff, Adelita Grijalva Won a Third Term as TUSD Board President
The TUSD board voted 3-2 Tuesday to give Adelita Grijalva a third term as the board’s president and to make Kristel Foster the board’s clerk for the 2015 calendar year. “The consistency in leadership has been key to the success we’ve had so far,” Foster told me via phone today. “Our team is working well…
Gabby Giffords and Mark Kelly: “We Came Together and Mourned … and Eventually, We Began To Recover”
Gabby Giffords and Mark Kelly offer their thoughts on the fourth anniversary of Tucson’s mass shooting: Four years ago today, at a Safeway in Tucson, Arizona, we lost six members of our community to a senseless act of gun violence. Thirteen others were injured that day. They were friends and neighbors, colleagues and a young…
Agustin Kitchen and The Coronet Team Up On a Wine Dinner— and We Have the Menu
Treat yourself to a fancy pants dinner over at Agustin Kitchen when the culinary creative minds behind Agustin and The Coronet join forces for one special wine-paired dinner. The four-course meal will take place on Wednesday, Jan. 14 at 6 p.m. You can reserve your spot for $65 plus tax and gratuity by calling 398-5382. Here’s…
The Skinny
Budget Hole Arizona’s finances are a hot mess The Arizona Legislature has a long list of topics that lawmakers are likely to tackle when they get back to work next week. You can expect Republicans to make another run at expanding credits for private and religious schools while undermining funding for the public schools. The…
Musically Civil
Born 20 years ago, after its members met at a labor rally, Ozomatli has always been a band equally rooted in message and music. In Tucson—one of the first cities to embrace the multi-genre, multi-racial Los Angeles group—Ozomatli performs regularly and had already lent its music to the local Mexican-American student effort to save their…
Danehy
In the past 100 or so years, exactly three people have orchestrated acts of war that resulted in the deaths of American people on American soil—Osama bin-Laden, Imperial Japanese Army General Hideki Tojo, and Pancho Villa. Tojo was hanged for war crimes and bin-Laden got a bullet in the forehead. Villa was memorialized with a…
Nine Questions
Tucson artist Gene Hall moved to Tucson from Northern California in 1978 and attended Sabino High School. He hooked into the local music scene when he worked at Zip’s Records in the 1980s. Hall attended the UA where he received a BFA in Studio Art and MS in Entomology, and although he’s managed museum collections…
Harmony Hop
South Rail gets its harmony-filled, rootsy Americana sound from the blending of the vocal and songwriting talents of Jay Byrd and Lara Supan. Having met when they both answered a Craigslist ad to join another band entirely, Byrd and Supan, along with drummer Ben Potok, realized they had to set out in their own direction.…
Cheesy Does It
The transition from food truck to brick and mortar restaurant can be challenging for a concept. After all, the kitsch that does well to make a catchy selling point for a truck often comes off as, well, cheesy in restaurant form. That’s why, in some ways, Cheesy Rider’s move to the Foothills Mall food court…
New MMJ Era
This new year marks the beginning of a new era in Arizona’s medical marijuana community. Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) became a qualifying condition for the state’s Medical Marijuana program as of Jan. 1 after more than two years of legal battles between the Arizona Department of Health Services and the Cannabis Nurses Association (CNA) led…
Noshing Around
ON THE MENU IS ON THE MOVE On the Menu Live a weekly radio show centered on food and cocktails that is hosted by Matt Russell of Russell Communications and food writer for Inside Tucson Business, is changing frequencies on the dial. (Full disclosure: I am a guest host on from time to time). Beginning…
Ask a Mexican
Dear Mexican: I’m in college and I’m taking a class called Latina Pop Culture. I thought it would be educational and informative about the rich Latino/a culture, and I was eager to learn. But the moment I entered the class, it was evident that I, as a white girl, would have to be on the…
This Week in Craft Beer
Early January: The time of year when gym attendance explodes, organic food sales jump, and bar crowds shrink … for a few weeks. A sequence that unfolds every year, New Year’s resolutions come and go faster than the delicate hop oils in a dry-hopped IPA due to one main reason: They’re rarely any fun. That’s…
Nine on the Line
Michael Press and Michael “Mike” EleFante Michael Press and Michael “Mike” EleFante took over ownership of Mama Louisa’s, 2041 S. Craycroft Road, last August. Press made his bones in New York City, as well as Four Seasons hotels, most recently at the Ritz Carlton Dove Mountain. While at the Ritz, he launched the award-winning Cayton’s…
Thou Shall Abide
Maybe you don’t stay up late at night thinking about how to reconcile your Jeff Bridges wild-boy love with the characters he plays in “Crazy Heart,” and “The Big Labowski,” or maybe you think spending that time in earnest, is well, let’s not go there. Instead, our big recommend of the week is Jeff Bridges…
Catalyst Café Love
We don’t try to hide our love at Weekly World Central for the good people at the Pima County Library, and why should you when you have access to such great programs like the Catalyst Café. It’s a new year, so why not check out their new program for nonprofits and small businesses on social…
Listen to Your Heart
I’m not sure what kind of heart John Huppenthal has, but he must have something under that political suit. He has a family and even though he forgets his childhood days in Tucson, you’d think there must be a bit of Old Pueblo there somewhere. But maybe not. This is racist Arizona after all, and…
iBorder: Drones and Designs
Next time you question what cool events bring our UA community and the muggles of Tucson together, look to the wonderful people at the Confluencenter for Creative Inquiry. Their Show and Tell series at Playground Bar and Lounge, 278 E. Congress St. should be a regular part of your calendar. On Wednesday, Jan. 14, from…
Beyond Sad
Looking back at the Jan. 8, 2011 shooting, most people will still say, “Everyone remembers exactly where they were on that day at that time.” I definitely do. I know where I was, what I was doing, who told me what had happened and what I did the rest of the day. Tucson was paralyzed.…
Movement and Loving Your Body
Talk about getting ready to be more authentic, Tucson artists Gina Cestaro and Laura Milkins are ready to help us make that happen through their Spiral Journal School of Movement. Founded last year, the local performance artists will teach My Body, My Self, an authentic movement class to help us practice love and compassion for…
BEYOND Events
BEYOND was created to help the community recover from the events of the shooting on Jan. 8, 2011. The BEYOND events take place on Saturday, Jan. 10, in every corner of the city. Get out there, Tucson. BEYOND Main Event – Together We Move! Armory Park and the Children’s Museum, 200 S. Sixth Ave. Noon…
Tucson Stages
New Year. New theater. New play. Sounds about right for the Tucson theater scene. A plethora of productions will be “curtains up” in the next couple of weeks after the traditional holiday lull. Coming up this weekend is a production of the winner of the Tucson Alliance of Dramatic Artists’ annual playwriting contest. In addition,…
Police Dispatch
Catnapper Foothills Area Dec. 14, 1:20 p.m. An angry man stole his ex-girlfriend’s cat out of spite regarding their breakup, according to a Pima County Sheriff’s Department report. Sheriff’s deputies visited the residence of a young woman whose ex-boyfriend had been harassing her and had now allegedly stolen her cat. The reportee showed officers a…
Hometown Return Artifact
Opera singer Korby Myrick and her husband, composer Richard Hereld, are making a musical splash this weekend on a visit to her old hometown. The two of them will have a role, separately and together–as singer (Myrick) or as pianist or composer (Hereld)–on no fewer than four out of the six dances in “An Artist’s…
Equality Healthcare Month old Living Out Loud
Amy D’Arpino’s child was assigned the sex male at birth. But at a very young age, the now 13-year-old expressed to her mom that she identified as female. It was time for D’Arpino to begin searching for resources that would facilitate her child’s transition. But after all the research she ended up doing, she’d wound…
Not Mom’s Lebowski
If you are like me, and you abstain from weed because some people really shouldn’t do drugs, you might need two or three viewings to totally get the vibe and plot of “Inherent Vice.” If, however, you smoke daily and watch the movie mildly high, you might follow everything in one shot. I’ve watched director…
Echoes and Ripples
I can still hear my son’s voice if I reflect for a moment. “Daddio”or “Father” was a common greeting. We’re just short of four years since the shootings in which Gabe and five others were killed. I might have another 30 years or so of life. Will I still remember his voice near the end…
Cinema Showdown
SPORTS BALL ON THE BIG SCREEN I’m not going to pretend I know anything about football because I’d probably just look silly trying. This is a film column after all. However, if you are one of those people who want to show your Wildcat pride, you can watch UA go up against Oregon on The…
Media Watch
Classy Rob Lowe does not have KVOA Satellite provider DirecTV has embarked on an ad campaign featuring two versions of actor Rob Lowe. There’s classy, stylish Rob Lowe—he’s the one with DirecTV—and awkward, social misfit, loser Rob Lowe. He’s the one with cable. Loser Rob Lowe is also the one who might have access to…
Selma Remember
The timing for “Selma” is both perfect and dreadful. On one hand, this is a film that adds context to recent events in New York City and Ferguson at a time when it sorely needed. On the other, being released a year after “12 Years a Slave” probably indicates an Oscar loss no matter how…
