‘Chapetes’ & ‘Scraps’: Raza Blasting Raza As Our Slavery Continues
Norteños & Sureños Fight While We Bury Our Future
Rest-In-Peace t-shirt companies, funeral homes, casket warehouses, coroner’s offices, prisons and many governments are making a ‘killing’ off of Raza blasting Raza.
Since the end of the Mexican-American War in 1848 we have been divided as the U.S. stole 1/3 of México’s land and we became either Pochos or Mojados all because of a border. Now we kill and die for the red and the blue. It is no coincidence that both colors appear in the U.S. flag, as it represents the place where we shed blood for barrios that we do not own.
Not only do we not know why we fight, but we don’t even know who our real heroes are. Hollywood has made it its sole purpose to give us fake heroes such as Scarface.™ Did you know that Scarface™ is played by an Italian, Al Pacino, pretending to be Cuban with a fake Spanish-accent ‘straight-clowning’ our language and our people? But we bought it. We buy it at every swap meet, flea market and now even all over America’s malls. We fell for their trap. We are not taught that we had heroes from the north and the south who united and ‘banged’ for the people. Pancho Villa was from the north and proud of it, while Emiliano Zapata was from the south. They met in México’s capital and when they united they posed a serious threat to the Mexican government because they were fighting to give land to the poor and not the rich.
Did you know that in California we are becoming the majority? But did you also know that in South Africa ‘Black’ Africans are the majority, but it is ‘White’ Africans that are in power? How did that happen? --‘Black’ Africans were taught to hate themselves and to kill each other. They call that system ‘apartheid.’ It is straight legal slavery.
Check this out: In California we have Raza from all over, but instead of uniting we split ourselves up into Norteños, Sureños, Mara Salvatrucha, Mexican Mafia, Nuestra Familia, Paisas, Latin Kings/Queens, Border Brothers/Sisters and so many more cliques.
In schools do they really teach us our history? Do you know much about Lolita Lebrón (Puerto Rico), Haydeé Santamaría (Cuba), Elvia Alvarado (Honduras), Lucy González-Parsons (Mexican-American), Valentina Ramírez (México), César Sandino (Nicaragua), or Farabundo Martí (El Salvador)? They don’t teach us about heroes and sheroes because these are some real OGs who ‘banged’ for freedom. Nowadays if they teach us anything about our history the answer to everything is ‘César Chávez.’ That’s all they want us to know. But some of our youth do not even know that ‘Chávez’ was from the North, a Norteño, who believed in ‘non-violence.’ So it makes no sense why Norteños would throw up the UFW red flag as their own and straight blast on Paisas or Sureños. Would Chávez do that? It’s like we are spitting on his grave.
But it’s hard out on the streets. Depending on what color you wear, what flag you claim, it may mean your life. But why do you think that is?
When a Mexican wearing blue kills a Chicano wearing red do you think that helps our people somehow? This ‘pleito’ (fight) dates back to 1848. To the U.S. government we are all ‘beaners’ and ‘wetbacks.’ They don’t care if you change your name from María to Mary or call yourself a ‘U.S.’ Citizen, you are still as Carlos Mencia states, “Nothing but U.B.S. (United Beaner Service) what can Brown do for you?” All we do is serve others, but when do we serve ourselves?
I know homies who claim Florencia in Los Angeles, La Villita in Chicago, and 38th Street in Oakland, but do we own any of these blocks? We die daily for these streets, but these streets could care less about us.
Raza, I’m not asking you to stop gang-banging. The choice is yours. But if you are going to ‘bang,’ why not ‘bang’ for freedom? Did you know that there have been many OGs who have been ‘gang-banging’ for freedom since day one?
We can take it 19th-century-old-school style with OGs like Tiburcio Vasquez, Gregorio Cortez and Joaquin Murrieta. The U.S. government called them bandits, we call them heroes. They had ‘clicas’ riding for freedom and to reclaim the land.
In the 20th century we had OGs like Valentina Ramírez who disguised herself as a man in order to be able to fight during the Mexican Revolution. Then there are Puerto Rican and Cuban OGs, like Lolita Lebron and Haydeé Santamaría, who in the 1950s ‘banged’ for freedom. Lolita stormed into the U.S. House of Representatives on July, 1954 and demanded that Puerto Rico be free. Haydeé was one of the real sheroes of the Cuban revolution back when Ché Guevara was still riding around like a rich kid in his motorcycle.
Then we had some ex-gangsters who started groups like the Young Lords in Chicago and New York, and the Brown Berets in East L.A. These sisters and brothers defended our people against the police and fought for us to have our own hospitals, schools, and our own spots like Chicano Park in San Diego.
Today, in any barrio you go to we don’t own our own streets. We aren’t the ones going to college because we hate schools. “It’s hella boring,” we say. It’s boring on purpose. This government wants us to drop out so that we can commit small crimes and end up in jail. Did you know that they have built 23 new prisons in California and only 1 new university (UC Merced) in the last 20+ years?! Why do you think that is? Under the 13th Amendment of the Constitution this country can still have ‘slaves’ once someone is a prisoner. So it makes sense to build many prisons for Raza in California. We are the new slaves!
Now that we know, I don’t think any of us would want to be a slave for the U.S. But if you do, go ahead and shoot, stab, and kill your people. If you want to be a slave go ahead and sell that rock and commit the crimes you need to commit. There are plenty of prisons waiting for you, and that’s ‘por vida’ (for life).
If they don’t get us one way, they try and get us another. In most barrios there are hundreds of spots where we can get liquor; bars, carnicerías, stores, restaurants, and gas stations because the plan is to make sure that poor people are always ‘on’ something. If poor people are high or buzzed they are more likely to commit crimes and then become U.S. slaves. Did you know that ‘poppin’ pills is all part of the plan to get us addicted to something?
Wake up Raza! That red or blue rag, that’s Made in Taiwan,™ is not what we are about. Our roots don’t begin with the colors of the U.S. flag. Our roots go back to Incas, Mayas and Aztecas.
What would happen if you start ‘banging’ for freedom? What would happen if you didn’t steal from your people, but from the rich to give to the poor? What would happen if red or blue weren’t your enemies, but your enemies were those who ride in red and blue vehicles that seek to make us slaves? What would happen if we ‘got’ educated and stood up for ourselves? What would happen if we stopped turning on ourselves, and to ourselves. That’s what ‘I’m down to ride for!’ See you on the avenues as we reclaim the streets!
césar a. cruz (teolol)
2006
. . .
Raza History Through Film
Facilitator-Mr. César A. Cruz
‘Chapetes’ & ‘Scraps’: Raza Blasting Raza As Our Slavery Continues
Norteños & Sureños Fight While We Bury Our Future
‘Commentary Analysis’
Name _____________________________________
1. What companies make millions of dollars (a killing) when Raza kills Raza?
2. When did Raza start to get divided? Why?
3. How much of México’s land was stolen by the
5. What is one hero that Hollywood tries to give to Raza?
6. Why do you think that so-called hero is so popular?
7. What Norteño and Sureño united during the Mexican Revolution?
8. What is apartheid?
9. What groups have we split ourselves up into?
10. Who is Lolita Lebrón?
11. What did Lolita Lebrón do?
12. Why is Lolita Lebron important?
13. What did César Chávez believe and what colors did he use to represent the union?
14. Why do teachers change student’s names in elementary school from Francisco to Frankie?
15. Name some OGs from the 19th century that fought for freedom?
16. What did the Young Lords and the Brown Berets do?
17. Do clicas or gangs today do that? Why or why not?
18. Are clicas or gangs today ‘really down’ for gangbanging for freedom? Why or why not?
19. Why do they make schools sometimes ‘hella boring?’
20. Should you drop-out? Who would be happy if you drop-out?
21. How many prisons have they built in California in the last 20+ years?
22. Is there still slavery in the U.S.? How? What amendment in the U.S. Constitution makes that legal?
23. Why are there so many places to get liquor in the barrio?
24. How do you feel about that?
25. Why is it so easy for the youth to ‘pop pills?’
26. If you were in a gang what kind of gang would you like to be in? 27. How can gangs change? What can they do to start ‘reppin’ the block’ in a real way?
28. What ‘knowledge’ would you teach Raza so can stop hating themselves? For example what would you tell a Norteño that hates Sureños?_
29. Does banging for freedom have to involve violence? (Think of César Chávez)
30. How will you bang for freedom? (Think about what you want to do with your life)
Getting Our History Back Project
_____ Haydeé Santamaría _____ Elvia Alvarado _____ Joaquin Murrieta
_____ Lucy González-Parsons _____ Valentina Ramírez _____ César Sandino
_____ Farabundo Martí _____ Tiburcio Vasquez _____Gregorio Cortez
_____ Young Lords Party _____ Brown Berets
Choose one of these heroes/sheroes. Now ‘get your history’ back!
Name of your hero/shero
Where are they from
Why my hero/shero is important
Here’s a ‘dope’ story about my hero/shero
I want to be like my hero/shero because
