Medical Marijuana - School of Journalism

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1976 ~ 34 Years of Service ~ 2010
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Medical Marijuana
Shops Ready to Open
By Caitlin Harrington
Although medical marijuana will
probably not be available in
Arizona until summer 2011, the
wait has not deterred prospective
medical marijuana dispensary
owners from preparing to set up
shop. They are doing this in hopes
that they will be one of the 124
stores allowed to sell the drug in
Arizona.
Allan Sobol is one of thousands
who has already applied for a
license to dispense medical marijuana. Unlike some of the other
applicants, Sobol has already set
up shop.
As owner of Marijuana
Marketing Strategies LLC, he has
managed to find a way to keep his
head above water while patiently
awaiting a license from the state.
Then he can sell medical marijuana out of his store in Glendale,
Ariz.
Currently, Sobol and his partner
hold seminars for people looking
to open their own dispensary at the
same shop.
“Medical Marijuana Marketing
Strategies is a business me and my
partner set up,” Sobol said. “There
really is no other program out there
that does what we do.”
The program aims to teach
future shop owners the ins and outs
of owning a dispensary. He refers
to this program as, “expert help
with medical marijuana dispensary
start ups.”
The shop in waiting is adorned
with jars of fake pot and larger
than life black-and-white posters
displaying
marijuana-smoking
people with diseases, such as glaucoma and cancer. Currently, the
storefront houses a back room that
serves as a classroom for the hundreds of students attending training
sessions each week.
“What we do in these training
sessions is really prepare prospective owners and guide them on the
step-by-step process of opening a
dispensary,” Sobol said. “Now that
the initiative has passed, there are
so many people interested in opening their own shops but there’s no
real information out there anywhere on how to do it.”
The training seminar, entitled
“From Seeds to Success,” covers
every aspect of owning and operating a medical marijuana dispensary and helps future owners in the
application process and submission.
But getting licensed to own and
operate a dispensary is not as easy
‘Marijuana’ /See page 6
December 9 / 9 de diciembre 2010
Mexico Prepares for Christmas
Four Loko
Read the story online at
www.elindenews.com
Medical Marijuana
Watch the video online at
www.elindenews.com
photo By Kirsten Boele
In Puerto Peñasco, the city council building is decorated with a giant tree. A
nativity scene and a small petting zoo also added to the town’s Christmas spirit.
Holiday Stories, pages 4-5
No habrán más ventanillas de información de
Sun Tran; inminentes recortes de presupuestos
Escrito por Erin Badger
Traducido por Ana Cecilia
Barragán
En ninguno de los tres centros de
transporte
habrá
personal
disponible para vender boletos ni
dar información sobre las rutas a
los usuarios del Sun Tran, debido a
la reducción de presupuesto.
Posibles reducciones al presupuesto de Sun Tran pueden significar en un futuro el aumento de
precio en los boletos y la pérdida
de servicios para los usuarios.
Los tres centros de transporte –
Tohono Tadai Transit Center, Roy
Laos Transit Center y el Ronstadt
Transit Center – cerraron sus ventanillas el día primero de diciembre después del despido de 15
empleados no sindicalizados,
quienes proporcionaban información, de acuerdo a la Directora de
Mercadotecnia Michele Joseph.
“Desafortunadamente creemos
que habrá un periodo de ajuste
para los usuarios”, dijo Joseph.
“Entendemos que la gente ya se
había acostumbrado a cierto nivel
de comodidad en los centros de
transporte”.
Los usuarios del Sun Tran
podrán comprar los boletos por
internet, por correspondencia o en
alguno de los 41 puntos de venta
de la ciudad, sin embargo no todos
estos establecimientos venden
Foto
por
Kirsten Boele
Los puestos de informacion en los tres centros de tránsito de personal Sun Tran van a
cerrar el 1 de diciembre.
todos los tipos de boletos
disponibles. La línea telefónica de
servicio al cliente está abierta los
siete días de la semana para contestar preguntas de los clientes y
para ayudar a planear las rutas.
Hay mapas completos disponibles en cada uno de los tres
centros así como también la información actualizada de los horarios
de los autobuses. Habrá televisores
dentro de las ventanillas de información para mostrarles a los
online
extras
usuarios el horario de la próxima
llegada de los autobuses. El
horario de los autobuses y la lista
completa de los sitios que venden
los boletos están disponibles en
www.SunTran.com.
“Queremos que la gente entienda que no los vamos a dejar sin
ningún tipo de información”, dijo
Joseph.
A Sun Tran le han cancelado los
fondos estatales, se vieron afectados por la huelga del sindicato en
agosto y por la disminución de
ganancias. También le descontinuaron de manera significativa el
reembolso estatal de $600,000
dólares.
El ayuntamiento de Tucsón,
pidió que Sun Tran recuperara el
reembolso sin recortar los servicios que provee. Joseph comentó
que la única opción era el recorte
de personal.
Desde que los votantes rechazaron el aumento de los impuestos
bajo la proposición 400 en
noviembre, es “muy probable” que
se hagan más recortes en el presupuesto de Sun Tran, dijo Joseph.
El concejal Steve Kozachik
cree que el costo de los boletos
debe aumentar y espera que Sun
Tran reciba más recortes en su presupuesto. Kozachik comentó que
no sabe exactamente qué tipo de
recortes serán, ya sea en forma de
recorte de personal, cambios en el
costo de los boletos o en la reducción del número de rutas; esto
dependerá de la gerencia de Sun
Tran.
“Al estar al tanto de la cantidad
de la deuda, no me sorprenderá ver
que el resultado de la reducción de
dinero se refleje en el recorte de
servicios”, dijo Kozachik.
Joseph aclaró que si se llegaran
a presentar recortes, que no serán
‘Sun Tran’ /vea página 6
Website Assists
College Planning
By Amanda Johnson
The Arizona Board of Regents
launched a set of online tools to help
the state’s high school students plan
for college.
The
website,
www.AZ
Transfer.com, provides students
with information about state college
admissions requirements, how to
obtain college credit while in high
school and how to transfer from a
community college to a university.
Students can have a report tailored to them after answering a couple of questions about which school
they would like to attend and their
intended area of study.
The tools are intended to help
high school students plan for college and boost the number of high
school graduates going on to college.
According to the National
Center for Education Statistics,
about 45 percent of Arizona’s high
school seniors pursue a college
degree. This is the lowest rate
among the 50 states.
Current college students who are
interested in transferring to another
Arizona school can reference the
course equivalency guide to see
which course credits can transfer.
The website, funded by a grant
from the Lumina Foundation for
Education, also features resources
for faculty members and student
advisors at high schools and institutions of higher learning.
el inDePenDiente
Page / Página 2
December 9 / 9 de diciembre 2010
Waste From Proposed Mine Concerns Residents
By Leana Levine
Coughing, sneezing and wheezing
may be what’s in store for folks living
near the Santa Rita Mountains if
Rosemont Mine is built by the end of
2012.
Opponents of the mine are concerned about their health if the
Canadian-based Augusta Resource
Corp. constructs their projected one
mile wide and one-half mile deep
open-pit copper mine in the beauty of
Tucson.
Gayle Hartmann, president of
Help Us Save the Scenic Santa Ritas,
is concerned mostly about mine tailings -large piles of crushed rock that
are left over after copper has been
removed from - and the dust they can
create that could cause respiratory
problems for people living in the area.
Hartmann said that high winds
that blow dust from the tailings at the
Mission Mine, located 15 miles south
of Tucson, can cause serious health
concerns. The Rosemont Mine will
be located just below the eastside of
the ridge line in the Santa Ritas.
Save the Scenic Santa Ritas questions the value of destroying an entire
valley for some copper, Hartmann
said. She doesn’t believe the mine
will be built due to all the “noise” her
group has been making.
Currently, 13,243 mines in
California, Arizona, and Nevada are
considered “abandoned mines with
potential environmental hazard,”
wrote the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency in an assessment
of Region 9 state data.
Children and people with previous
pulmonary complications will be
affected by blowing dust from a mine
site most, said Dr. Jay Gandolfi, the
University of Arizona Superfund
Basic Research program director.
“Just dust can affect breathing;
metals can make it worse.”
While the UA Superfund has yet
to complete research on the
Rosemont mine, Gandolfi said that
winds will affect how hazardous the
dust from the mine could be.
According to the Superfund’s
data, contaminatants in mine tailings
found in the western U.S. and northern Mexico include arsenic, lead and
cadmium (a metal similar to zinc) and
are prone to “wind distribution” and
water corrosion.
The study found that the spread of
tailings by wind and water result in a
significant increase in metal toxicants
on humans and wildlife.
The tailings contain more small
particles than natural dust which
could aggravate existing lung conditions including asthma and force people to seek immediate medical attention.
These tiny particles can lodge
themselves into people’s lungs and
cause coughing and wheezing. The
smaller the particle the deeper it can
become lodged in the lung tissue.
Rosemont addresses these issues
in their Plan Project. “The project will
require engineering and physical control to manage dust.”
The company’s plans include:
• Construction of buttresses that
will break up air flow and reduce
wind exposure to the mine tailings.
• Sufficient moisture content in
the tailings.
• The tailings stacking method
will create an irregular shape to break
up air flow. The method will reduce
EL
inDePenDiente
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Managing Editor
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Juliana Vasquez
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Copy Editors
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Photo Editor
Call Karen Wilhelmsen
243-7449
Visit www.deq.pima.gov and
www.rosemontcopper.com
To sign an online petition
against Rosemont Copper
Mine, visit
www.scenicsantaritas.org
photo By Kirsten Boele
The Ajo copper mine closed after an employee strike and a bad copper market in 1985.
the number of trucks which will also
reduce the amount of dust.
• Grind sizing will be larger therefore reducing the likelihood of airborne dust.
Supervisor Ray Carroll and
County
Administrator
Chuck
Huckelberry have publicly opposed
the mine.
“We aren’t just making a lot of
noise,” Hartmann said of Save the
Scenic Santa Ritas. She is satisfied
with public officials opposing the
project.
On May 26, Carroll wrote to the
Arizona Daily Star regarding his concerns with the mine. “Trust me, the
Rosemont copper mine is anything
but good for Southern Arizona,” he
wrote in a published opinion piece.
Huckelberry issued a memo on
Aug. 19. His office had received
numerous calls regarding the air quality permit. Callers wanted the county
to approve the permit. In his memo,
he said that an investigation into the
phone calls found that the callers had
been contacted by Rosemont and
encouraged to call the Pima County
Board of Supervisors.
In response to Huckelberry's
memo, a representative for Rosemont
attended a board of supervisors meeting to declare that the board of supervisors was not involved in the air
quality permit process.
U.S. Congresswoman Gabrielle
Giffords also opposes the mine. In a
debate held before the mid-term elections, she cited water concerns as the
basis of her opposition.
The federal contractor SWCA
sent out the Environmental Impact
Statement the week of Nov. 17. The
U.S. Forest Service must review the
draft and receive reviews from Pima
County and other state and federal
agencies. They should release the
review by the end of 2010.
Day Care Available During Holiday Season
By Natalie Fulton
The weather is cooler, school is
almost out for the semester and
the kids are getting excited for
the holiday season. This time of
the year is an exciting one for students, but often a difficult one for
their working parents who either
have to take time off while their
child is home or find a day care.
There are many programs
around Tucson that provide fun
and education for children in a
safe place for them while parents
are at work.
These facilities are open all
year for after-school care and for
full-day services when school is
out of session. Full-time day care
is also available for infants and
preschoolers year-round.
Children do not need to be
year-round participants to take
part in programs offered over the
holidays.
Below is a list of locations that
provide full day care. All of these
facilities are willing to work with
families to establish a price that
fits their budget. Ask about
financial aid, payment plans and
their policy on DES.
Guarderías están abiertas todo el año
Adviser
Maggy Zanger
Spanish Editor
For more information about
the status of the rosemont
Copper Mine:
Photographers
Por Natalie Fulton
Traducido por Zandra García
El clima está más fresco, el semestre escolar está por terminar y los
niños están entusiasmados por la
temporada navideña. Esta época
del año es muy emocionante para
los estudiantes, pero a menudo difícil para los padres que trabajan y
que o bien tienen que tomar tiempo
libre mientras que sus hijos están
en casa o encontrar una guardería.
Hay muchos programas en
Tucsón que ofrecen diversión y
educación para los niños en un
lugar seguro mientras sus padres
siguen trabajando.
Estas instalaciones están abiertas todo el año y ofrecen servicios
después de la escuela y durante
todo el día cuando la escuela está
cerrada. La atención de tiempo
completo está también disponible
para bebés y niños en edad preescolar. No es necesario que los niños
Kirsten Boele
Morgan Galbraith
Caitlin Harrington
Nick Rob Letson
sean participantes de todo el año
para poder participar en los programas que se ofrecen durante los días
festivos.
A continuación se muestra una
lista de lugares que ofrecen cuidado
de día completo. Todas esas instalaciones están dispuestas a trabajar
con sus familias para establecer un
precio que se ajuste a su presupuesto. Pregunte sobre la ayuda
financiera, planes de pagos y las
normas de DES.
Kids Forever Quincie Douglas
1575 E. 36th St.
623-7789, DES Accepted
Jackie Tran
Designers
Natalie Fulton
Amanda Johnson
Mari Kelly
Krystal Clear Daycare
108 W. 27th St.
622-0608, DES Accepted
Ally Siegel
Translators
Copy Chief
Ana Cecilia Barragán
Zandra García
Sathya Honey Victoria
La Casita Day Care
1440 W. Ajo Way
807-1770, DES Accepted
Community Events Editor
Alexa Miller
News Room Manager
Robbie Abbit
Web Managers
Kirsten Boele
Adam Kirkman
Santa Cruz Catholic School
29 W. 22nd St.
624-2093, DES Accepted
Translation and Interpretation
Department
of Spanish and Portuguese
and Mexican American Studies
Foto por Caitlin harrington
Krystal Clear Day Care ofrece servicios cuando la escuela está cerrada.
Tutys South
251 W. 38th St.
620-9332, DES Accepted
el inDePenDiente
December 9 / 9 de diciembre 2010
Page / Página 3
‘Book Trailers’ Inspire Students to Read More
By Amanda Johnson
Both educators have witnessed a
spark in students that they have not
seen in years. Students began showing a huge interest in reading and
really grasped the assignment of creating a book trailer.
Students were more likely to read
the books they saw in the trailers
instead of the books they knew nothing about, Soza said.
Soza and MacDonald believe
the book trailers are more effective
than traditional book reports
because they require students to
grasp the themes and consider the
importance of reading.
MacDonald and Soza recognized the need for more books. The
library’s budget had taken hit, so
the two applied for the grant.
The Cinematic Book project
received the largest grant from the
program.
“We got bragging rights,” said
MacDonald.
MacDonald attributes them
winning to the fact that the project
is sustainable. The project is
designed to continue through the
years.
Sunnyside Unified School District is matching the grant and the
educators hope to purchase Amazon
Kindles, an e-reader device used to
download and view e-books.
MacDonald plans on having five
Kindles for each of her classes and a
student can check one out for two
weeks.
Both educators have already
Sunnyside High School was
awarded a $9,995 grant from the
Arizona Technology in Education
Association in partnership with
Qwest for the Cinematic Books
project last month.
The Cinematic Books project
requires students to create a video
trailer that would get others interested in reading a book. The book trailer, as the students and teachers see it,
takes the place of a basic book report.
The idea for the project began
when Barbara MacDonald, an
English teacher, brought her class to
the library for the yearly library presentation.
Ruth Soza, the school’s librarian,
incorporated book trailers that she
had seen online into her presentation.
Within a week after the students
had viewed the book trailers, there
was a waiting list to check out the
previewed books at the school’s
library.
“Book trailers are to books what
movies are to trailers,” MacDonald
said. “It gets students interested in
a book.”
MacDonald and Soza saw this as
an opportunity to get students more
interested in reading, and they decided to turn it into a class project.
MacDonald assigned the book
trailers in her freshmen and junior
English classes and students immediately went to the school library to
find a book.
noticed a number of positive
effects that this project has had on
their students.
“I’ve asked some of the kids how
many books they had read this time
last year and many of them will say
none,” MacDonald sad. “It’s a big
change from last year.”
Some students are realizing they
like books more once they give them
a chance.
Alex Martinez, a senior at
Sunnyside, chose J.D. Salinger’s The
Catcher in the Rye for his project.
Martinez did not want to read the
book at first, but started to enjoy it
the more he read.
“Once I started making my trailer,
I started to appreciate the book
more,” he said.
Other students chose their books
because they saw trailers for them.
Nicholas Verdugo, a junior at
Sunnyside, had seen the trailer for his
book in the initial meeting that his
class had in the library.
Verdugo has almost completed
his trailer and said that he enjoyed all
aspects of the process.
“It takes forever to place all the
pictures in, but I like putting it
together and seeing my work,” he
said.
Both Soza and MacDonald hope
to see the project incorporated into
other English classrooms at
Sunnyside. They also plan to continue working together.
“It’s a collaborative work from all
aspects,” MacDonald said.
photo By amanda Johnson
Sunnyside High School English teacher Barbara MacDonald shows an Amazon Kindle to
her student. The school plans to purchase Kindles with grant money.
dad fronteriza y aumentar el comercio y turismo en la ciudad.
Bersin dijo que “la mejor forma
de asegurar la frontera es por
medio de la construcción de una
fuerte infraestructura, junto con la
dedicación de los agentes, junto
con la tecnología y la implementación de la ley en todos aquellos que violen la ley”.
Enhancements to Border Fence
to Improve Security, Travel
By Robbie Abbit
image
Courtesy oF/imagen Cortesía de
u.s. Customs
and
Border proteCtion
$41 milliones para asegurar la frontera
Por Robbie Abbit
Traducido por Ana Cecilia Barragán
Cinco de los proyectos de construcción del gobierno federal
están programados para iniciar en
los próximos seis meses en
Nogales, Ariz., para mejorar la
seguridad en la frontera y aumentar el comercio.
Con un costo total de $41 millones estos planes incluyen asegurar los túneles del drenaje, la
construcción de aproximadamente siete millas de nuevas carreteras, el remplazo del cerco
fronterizo de acero y las mejoras
en los senderos peatonales en el
centro.
Los proyectos serán parte del
progreso hacía la seguridad fronteriza, de acuerdo a U.S. Customs
and Border Protection (CPB), una
de las ramas del Department of
Homeland Security.
Las rejillas del alcantarillado
de Nogales se actualizarán para
evitar el derrame de las tuberías
de drenaje, la perforación en las
líneas de aguas residuales y la
construcción de túneles para el
contrabando.
“Las mejores en las rejillas y
el alcantarillado de Nogales así
como los túneles, servirán el
propósito de mejorar el tratamiento de las aguas residuales y no el
del contrabando”, dijo el comisionado de CBP Alan Bersin.
Bersin anunció los cinco
proyectos de infraestructura durante la junta comunitaria en el
ayuntamiento de la ciudad de
Nogales en noviembre.
Él declaró que el programa
había sido diseñado años atrás y
que no es una respuesta directa a
la SB1070.
Cerca de tres millas del cerco
fronterizo que pasa por el centro
de Nogales se remplazará con un
cerco de bolardos –postes de
acero—de 18 pies de altura.
“El cerco de bolardos permitirá poder ver claramente desde
un lado de la frontera al otro por
medio de los postes de acero rellenos de concreto”, dijo el oficial
mayor de la CBP Marco López.
En 1990 se construyó el actual
cerco fronterizo de acero que es
fácil de cortar y esconderse detrás
de él ya que la patrulla fronteriza
no puede ver lo que hay al otro
lado. El cerco se construyó con
materiales que se usaron como
amortiguadores para el aterrizaje
de helicópteros en Vietnam.
Justo al oeste del centro de
Nogales una nueva carretera fronteriza de 608 millas se construirá
para ampliarles el espacio a los
agentes de la patrulla fronteriza.
La CBP también está planeando reestructurar el histórico cruce
fronterizo de Morley para mejorar
el flujo peatonal para aquellos que
van de compras y cruzan caminando. Se espera que disminuya
el tiempo de espera para aquellos
que cruzan la frontera.
El puerto de entrada de Dennis
DeConcini, otro cruce peatonal,
también será renovado y estará
terminado a principios del 2011.
En un futuro se añadirán líneas
peatonales que permitirán la
entrada rápida de aquellos que
viajan y que estén previamente
aprobados o clasificados como
“bajo riesgo” y que entren por la
garita de Morley y DeConcini,
dijo Guadalupe Ramírez, directora del puerto de entrada de
Nogales.
López dijo que se ha programado la finalización de estos
proyectos para septiembre del
2011.
Los funcionarios de Nogales y
la CBP colaborarán en estos
proyectos para mejorar la seguri-
Five federal construction projects are set to begin over the next
six months in Nogales, Ariz., to
improve border security and
increase commerce.
At a total cost of $41 million,
plans include securing drainage
tunnels, building approximately
seven miles of new roads,
replacing the “landing-mat” border fence and improvement of
pedestrian walkways downtown.
The projects will serve as
proof of progress toward securing the border, according to the
U.S. Customs and Border
Protection (CBP), a division of
the Department of Homeland
Security.
Grates within the Nogales
sewer system will be upgraded
to prevent leaking sewer pipes,
punctured sewage lines and tunnels formed by smugglers.
“Improving the grates and
drainage system of Nogales’
sewer tunnels will serve the purposes of waste treatment and not
of smuggling,” CBP Commissioner Alan Bersin said.
Bersin announced the five
infrastructure projects during a
community meeting at Nogales
City Hall in November.
He says the projects have
been drafted for years and are
not a direct response to SB 1070.
Close to three miles of border
fence that runs through downtown Nogales will be replaced
by bollard fencing at a height of
18 feet.
“Bollard fencing will allow
for transparency from one side to
the other, through concrete-filled
steel tubes,” said CBP Chief of
Staff Marco Lopez.
Constructed in the 1990s, the
current “landing-mat fence” is
easy to cut through and hide
behind since Border Patrol
agents cannot see anything on
the other side. The fence was
constructed of materials used as
helicopter landing pads in
Vietnam.
Just west of downtown
Nogales, 6.8 miles of border
roads will be built to expand
access for Border Patrol agents.
CBP also plans to reconfigure
the historic Morley border crossing to improve pedestrian flows
for tourists. Wait times are
expected to diminish for border
crossers.
The Dennis DeConcini Port
of Entry, another pedestrian
walkway, will also be renovated
and completed by early 2011.
Pedestrian lanes will be
added in the future to allow preapproved and low-risk travelers
to quickly enter Arizona at the
Morley and DeConcini crossings, said Guadalupe Ramirez,
director of the Nogales port of
entry.
The projects are scheduled
for completion by September
2011, Lopez said.
Nogales city officials and
CBP will work together on the
projects to improve border security and increase city commerce
and tourism.
“Building a strong infrastructure, together with the dedication
of agents, together with the technology, together with the delivery of consequences to those
who violate our laws, is the best
way for us to secure this border,”
Bersin said.
el inDePenDiente
Page / Página 4
December 9 / 9 de diciembre 2010
Share Holiday Cheer Through Food and Gift Giving
By Morgan Galbraith
Traducido por Zandra García
The 2010 holiday season is here and so are difficult economic challenges. However,
organizations like the Salvation Army and the Community Food Bank are providing
gifts and food, adding cheer to families facing tough times. The following organizations
are offering food and gift assistance for qualifying families.
La temporada de fiestas está aquí y también los difíciles retos económicos. Sin
embargo, organizaciones como el Salvation Army y el Community Food Bank
están ofreciendo regalos y comida, dándoles alegría a las familias que enfrentan
momentos difíciles. Las siguientes organizaciones ofrecen asistencia alimentaria y regalos para las familias que cumplen los requisitos.
miracle in el Barrio: NOVA Home Loans will be hosting their 8th annual Miracle
in El Barrio. The event is from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., Dec. 22, at Peter Piper Pizza,
3717 S. 12th Ave. Santa will be there to give gifts to children. Partnering businesses will be handing out candy, food, drinks and school supplies.
miracle in el Barrio: NOVA Home Loans será el anfitrión de la 8ª
entrega anual Miracle in El Barrio (Milagro en el barrio). El evento es
de las 9 a.m. a las 2 p.m., el 22 de diciembre, en Peter Piper Pizza,
ubicado en 3717 S. 12th Ave. Santa estará ahí para dar regalos a los
niños. Las empresas asociadas estarán entregando dulces, comida,
bebidas y útiles escolares.
miracle of 31st street: Will be celebrating their 40th year bringing Christmas
cheer to children and families of Tucson. The event will take place on Dec.
24, from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., at Tucson Electric Park, 500 E. Ajo Way.
Christmas street Banquet: The Gospel Rescue Mission will be putting on their 18th annual street dinner. The Christmas dinner will be
from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Dec. 23, at 326 W. 28th St. Children with
an adult will receive a gift. Visit www.grmtucson.com for more information.
miracle of 31st street: Celebrará sus 40 años llevando alegría navideña
a los niños y las familias de Tucsón. El evento se llevará a cabo el día
24 de diciembre, de las 8 a.m. a las 2 p.m., en el Tucson Electric
Park, ubicado en 500 E. Ajo Way.
toys for tots: The U.S. Marine Corps Reserve will be collecting
new, unwrapped toys during December for the holiday season.
To fill out a toy request form, visit www.tucsonaz.toysfortots.org.
Banquete de navidad en la calle: El Gospel Rescue Mission celebrará su comida anual de la calle 18. La comida de Navidad será el
día 23 de diciembre, de las 11 a.m. a las 2 p.m., ubicado en 326 W.
28th St. Los niños que vayan acompañados por un adulto recibirán
un regalo. Para más información visita www.grmtucson.com.
Colecta de alimentos en beneficio del Community Food Bank: Cox
Communications y 92.9 The Mountain se han asociado para organizar
una colecta de alimentos en beneficio del Community Food Bank. Los
artículos no perecederos estarán disponibles en las ubicaciones del banco de
comida después de la recolecta de alimentos el día 17 de noviembre. El banco de alimentos funciona en los lugares indicados en el cuadro de abajo. Llame para obtener
información acerca de horas y servicios.
Marana Community Food Bank
682-3001
11734 W. Grier Road, Marana, Ariz.
toy shop: The Salvation Army will host their annual “Toy
Shop” Dec. 17 - 23. To apply to receive toy assistance, call
792-1629.
Food Bank Food drive: Cox Communications and 92.9 The Mountain
have partnered to host a food drive benefiting the Community Food Bank.
Non-perishable items will be available at food bank locations after the food drive on
Nov.17. The food bank operates at the locations listed in the box below. Call for
hours and services available.
Amado Community Food Bank
398-2942
28720 S. Nogales Highway, Amado, Ariz.
Black Friday Boosts Holiday Shopping
By Rossana Sándigo
It takes a certain amount of courage
to conquer Black Friday, a special
breed of shopper. The day after
Thanksgiving, these shoppers marched into the early dawn, ready for
the frontlines and the biggest bargains of the year.
“Lines were beyond ridiculous,”
said Ofelia Flores, a University of
Arizona student. She was part of the
pack of dedicated shoppers at local
malls.
“We were at the mall around 4
a.m. on Friday…our family likes to
go shopping on Black Friday with a
game plan of the stores we are going
to and the items we are getting,” said
Jasmin Quintana, another UA student.
Shoppers spent a reported $10.69
billion on Black Friday, a little more
than last year, as indicated in opening sales data from ShopperTrak
RCT Corp. The Chicago-based organization provides shopper-traffic
management and data analysis for
retailers across the globe. Retail
sales increased a slim 0.3 percent
from the previous year.
UA student Danielle Hauptman
lucked out Friday morning while
shopping at Target. She marched into
Target with a sole mission: to purchase a 40” TV. But when she
reached the electronics center, they
were all taken.
Seconds later, “a man walked up
and simply placed the TV in my
cart,” said Hauptman. “I got one, I
got one!” Hauptman cheered. Mission accomplished.
Black Friday marks the beginning of holiday shopping for many,
and it often helps stores break into
profitability for the full year. Stores
utilize Black Friday to measure customers’ eagerness to spend during
the holiday season, which is critical
for many businesses.
“I found things that were relatively inexpensive as far as clothing,
accessories and inexpensive flat
screen TV’s and I noticed many people bought one,” Flores said.
Stores attracted customers with
Green Valley/Sahuarita Community Food Bank
625-5252
250 E. Continental Road, Green Valley, Ariz.
Program Listing for
Unemployed Tucsonans
By Maggie Giuffrida
Although the economy seems to be gradually improving, the
unemployment rate in Arizona stands at 10 percent this holiday
season, according to the latest report by the Department of
Commerce. The following Tucson agencies offer support and
training for the unemployed:
Catholic Social Service—Project Ayuda
140 W. Speedway Blvd. #130
Tucson, AZ 85705
623-0344 Ext 1052 or 1053
Eligibility: Low-income adults ages 55 and older.
Provides on-the-job training and employment placement for lowincome people ages 55 and older. Includes counseling and supportive services.
Pima County One Stop—Employment Center
300 E. 26th St.
Tucson, AZ 85713
838-3300
Eligibility: Homeless and unemployed men, women, veterans and
youth.
Offers assistance in basic needs first and then participants enroll
in a two-week employability skills training program.
Primavera Works
photo By morgan galBraith
Customers shop in Tucson during Black Friday to take advantage of price cuts and deals.
discounts and coupons. Mailers with
coupons were sent to residents in the
areas neighboring the Foothills
Mall, said Mary Wallace, marketing
coordinator of Foothills Mall.
Tucson retail centers are relying
on Mexican shoppers more than ever
this holiday season.
“We advertised down in Mexico
and also currently have a holiday
coupon booklet that is down in
Mexico that they bring with them to
shop,” Wallace said.
Some people do not have to leave
their home to shop, much less their
country. This year, the average
amount spent shopping online rose
approximately 16 percent, according
to web marketing analyst Coremetrics. Online shopping orders
increased to an average of $190.80
compared to last year’s $170.19.
“This year I noticed that many of
the Black Friday deals were immediately available online,” Flores said.
“Maybe next year I will opt for shopping in the comfort of my home.”
Although there was only a slight
increase in retail sales from the previous year it doesn’t mean Black
Friday weekend wasn’t a good start
to the holiday season.
“Ultimately this is a positive sign
for retailers, as November monthly
performance will be strong and December should still receive a strong
boost from procrastinating shoppers
in the week leading up to Christmas,” said Bill Martin, founder of
ShopperTrak.
151 W. 40th St.
South Tucson, AZ 85713
882-5383
Eligibility: Homeless or low-income, motivated adult workers
Offers employment assistance to unemployed or underemployed
adults. Temporary work for daily, weekly, long-term, temp-to-hire
and crew work available. Program also includes individual job
counseling and referrals for basic needs.
Tucson Urban League—Employment and Training
2305 S. Park Ave.
Tucson, AZ 85713
791-9522
Eligibility: Adults ages 18 and older.
Offers vocational training, career counseling, GED preparation, onthe-job training, job development, job placement services,
Summer Youth Employment Program and ISTEP (In School
Training and Employment) and UYEP (Urban Youth Employment
Program).
For a complete listing of resources in both English and
Spanish, visit www.elindenews.com.
December 9 / 9 de diciembre 2010
el inDePenDiente
Page / Página 5
Tucson Looks Forward to Annual Winterhaven
By Alexa Miller
photo By JaCKie tran
One of over 250 homes at Winterhaven in central Tucson shown decked out for the neighborhood’s 61st Festival of Lights.
Servicios para los
desempleados
Por Maggie Giuffrida
Traducido por Sathya Honey
Aunque la economía parece estar mejorando gradualmente, las estadísticas sobre desempleo en Arizona siguen a un nivel sin precedentes, de
acuerdo al reporte más reciente del estado. Las siguientes agencias en
Tucsón ofrecen apoyo y entrenamiento para personas que están desempleadas, subempleadas o en transición en la fuerza laboral.
Catholic Social Service—Project Ayuda
140 W. Speedway Blvd. #130
Tucsón, AZ 85705
623-0344 Ext 1052 or 1053
Elegibilidad: adultos de bajos recursos de 55 años de eda o
mayores.
Ofrece capacitación en el trabajo y servicio de colocación para
personas de bajos recursos de 55 años de edad o mayores.
Incluye servicios de terapia y apoyo.
Pima County One Stop-Jackson Employment Center
300 E. 26th St.
Tucsón, AZ 85713
838-3300
Elegibilidad: hombres, mujeres, veteranos y jóvenes sin hogar y
desempleados.
Ofrece asistencia para encontrar empleo y capacitación de
empleo para los sin hogar y desempleados. Primero cada
persona recibe asistencia con alojamiento y otras necesidades
básicas y después se le inscribe en un programa de dos semanas de capacitación para desarrollar habilidades empleables.
Primavera Works
151 W. 40th St.
South Tucson, AZ 85713
882-5383
Elegibilidad: personas sin hogar o de bajos ingresos, trabajadores adultos motivados.
Ofrece asistencia para adultos desempleados o subempleados.
Hay trabajo temporal diario, semanal, a largo plazo, de
empleado temporal a permanente y en cuadrilla. El programa
también incluye asesoramiento en materia de empleo y referencias para necesidades básicas como comida, ropa, alojamiento y salud.
Tucson Urban League—Employment and Training
2305 S. Park Ave.
Tucsón, AZ 85713
791-9522
Elegibilidad: adultos de 18 años de edad o mayores.
Ofrece orientación y entrenamiento vocacional, preparación
para el GED, capacitación en el trabajo, desarrollo en el trabajo, servicios de colocación, Summer Youth Employment
Program e ISTEP (In School Training and Employment) y UYEP
(Urban Youth Employment Program).
Para más información, visite www.elindenews.com
rides and trolley rides. For the
Arizona natives who still think it’s
too cold, there will be hot chocolate for sale.
The festivities attract between
100,000 and 200,000 people,
according to Karen Miller, secre-
tary treasurer of the Winterhaven
board. “We get people from all
Tucson neighborhoods, even from
out of state and out of country. It’s
one big melting pot of people.”
Spectators are asked to give
monetary or food donations to the
Tucsón espera el Winterhaven anual
idad estilo sureste”, “El cachorro
elegido” y “El hidrante mejor vestido”. El cartero del vecindario vota
por
el buzón mejor vestido para el
Puede que no tengamos una blanca
navidad, pero la falta de nieve en premio “La elección de cartero”.
Tucsón permite una tradición que El gran premio es el “C.B
los tucsonenses valoran—El Richard”, por el cual los residentes
votan.
Winterhaven Festival of Lights.
Los visitantes suelen pasear por
Desde 1949, los residentes del
vecindario Winterhaven, ubicado el barrio para ver las luces, pero
en Fort Lowell Rd., y Tucson también encontrarán paseos en carBlvd., han estado decorando sus ruajes y paseos en carretilla. Para
casas con miles de luces los nativos de Arizona que todavía
parpadeantes. Exhibiciones de piensan que hace demasiado frío,
Navidad y Hanukkah iluminan la habrá venta de chocolate caliente.
Las festividades atraen entre
zona para este festival anual. No
hay buzón, coche, hidrante o puer- 100,000 y 200,00 personas, según
Karen Miller, secretaria tesorera de
ta delantera que no sea adornado.
Todo comenzó con un hombre la junta de Winterhaven. Nos llega
llamado CB Richards, fundador de gente de los vecindarios de Tucsón,
la Winterhaven Water & Devel- incluso de fuera del estado y fuera
opment Company. Después de visi- del país. Es un gran crisol de pertar una exhibición similar en sonas.
Se les pide a los espectadores
Beverly Hills, California, le compró al vecindario su primer conjun- donaciones monetarias o comida
to de luces. También compró Pinos enlatada para el Community Food
Aleppo de un vivero local y los Bank. El año pasado más de
plantó en toda la zona. Estos $23,000 y 33,000 libras de comida
árboles sirven como lienzos para fue donado.
Este año, el trineo de Santa
las luces de hoy.
Hay alrededor de 270 casas en chocó contra un tope en la calle
el vecindario Winterhaven y au- cuando la ciudad de Tucsón cortó
nque no es un requisito, más de la los fondos de los que depende
mitad decora para el festival. El Winterhaven.
“Se necesitan unos $90,000 para
festival también funciona como un
concurso amistoso de la vecindad. echar a andar el festival”, dijo
Todo tipo de premios son entrega- Miller. “Afortunadamente hemos
dos, de “Eco-Amistoso” a “Nav- recaudado suficientes fondos a
través de donaciones públicas y
Prince Road
privadas
para
tener el festival
este año, pero
Winterhaven boundaries
tenemos la esperanza de superar
esta cantidad para
donar
al
Community Food
Bank y ahorrar
para el próximo
año”.
Solamente un
año la comunidad
Main entrance
ha
decidió
to Winterhaven
quedarse
a
obscuras—
durante la crisis de
energía de 1970.
Por Alexa Miller
Traducido por Zandra García
Country Club Road
the best-dressed mailbox for the
“Mailman’s Pick” award. The
grand prize, the “C.B. Richards”
award, voted on by the residents.
Visitors usually stroll through
the neighborhood to view the
lights but you will also find hay-
Tucson Blvd.
We might not have a white
Christmas, but Tucson’s lack of
snow allows for a holiday tradition
that Tucsonans treasure—the
Winterhaven Festival of Lights.
Since 1949, the residents of the
Winterhaven neighborhood, located at Fort Lowell Road and Tucson
Blvd., have been decorating their
homes with thousands of twinkling
lights. Christmas and Hanukah displays light up the neighborhood for
this annual festival. There isn’t a
mailbox, car, fire hydrant or front
door that isn’t bedecked.
It all started with a man named
C.B. Richards, the founder of
Winterhaven
Water
&
Development Company. After visiting a similar display in Beverly
Hills, Calif., he bought the neighborhood its first set of lights. He
also purchased Aleppo Pines from
a local nursery and planted them
throughout the area. These trees
serve as canvasses for lights today.
About 270 homes are in the
Winterhaven neighborhood and
although it is not a requirement,
more than half decorate for the festival. The festival also doubles as a
friendly neighborhood competition. All sorts of awards are given,
from “Going Green” to “Southwest Christmas” to “Pup’s Pick,”
the best-dressed fire hydrant. The
neighborhood mail carrier chooses
Community Food Bank. Last year
over $23,000 and 33,000 pounds
of food were donated.
This year, Santa’s sleigh hit a
bump in the road when the city of
Tucson
cut
the
funding
Winterhaven depends on.
“It takes about $90,000 to put
on the festival,” Miller said.
“Fortunately, we’ve raised enough
funds through public and private
donations to put the festival on this
year, but we’re hoping to exceed
this to donate to the Community
Food Bank and save for next year.”
Only one year did the community decide to stay dark—during
the 1970 energy crisis.
“You can’t shove the genie back
in the bottle,” Miller said. “If we
were to say we’re not having it,
people would still come. And honestly, it would put their safety at
risk because there wouldn’t be any
police or barricades. We had to
find a way to make to make this
wonderful festival happen.”
Tucsonans look forward to
Winterhaven. It’s a time to spend
with friends and family.
“My family goes every year. I
can’t imagine a holiday season
without it,” said Tiffany Hawkins,
who was born and raised in
Tucson. “It really spreads joy.”
The Winterhaven Festival of
Lights will take place nightly from
Dec. 11 through 26 from 5:30 p.m.
to 10 p.m.
Fort Lowell Road
Foto
por
JaCKie tran
Una escena del nacimiento en el barrio de
Winterhaven.
“Ya no nos podemos retirar”,
dijo Miller. “Si decidiéramos que
no tendremos el festival, la gente
vendría de todas formas. Y, honestamente, pondría en riesgo su
seguridad debido a que no habría
ningún policía ni barricadas. Tendríamos que encontrar una manera
de hacer que ocurriera ese maravilloso festival”.
Los tucsonenses esperan el festival de Winterhaven. Es tiempo
para pasar con amigos y familia.
“Mi familia va todos los años.
No me puedo imaginar la temporada de fiestas sin ello”, dijo Tiffany
Hawkins, quien nació y creció en
Tucsón.
El festival de luces de Winterhaven se llevará a cabo todas las
noches del 11 de diciembre al 26 de
las 5:30 p.m., a las 10 p.m.
Para más información,
visite
www.winterhavenfestival.org
el inDePenDiente
Page / Página 6
December 9 / 9 de diciembre 2010
Medical Marijuana; Setting Up Shop Near You Cierran de
‘Marijuana’ Continued from page 1
as attending training sessions and
filling out an application.
Getting a prescription may be
even more difficult. For a patient,
this means seeing a primary care
physician who will determine if
the patient is indeed a candidate
for medical marijuana.
The Department of Health will
have the final say in licensing of
the dispensaries and distribution
of medical marijuana cards that
will allow the patients to buy up
to two and-a-half ounces of marijuana every two weeks.
“Two and-a-half ounces may
seem like a lot, but you gotta
think about these patients who
can’t smoke because they have
lung cancer or asthma,” Sobol
said. “So instead, these people can
cook with it, which requires a lot
more of the product.”
In addition to the training seminars for future shop owners,
Sobol plans to have a mandatory
class for customers before they
can purchase the marijuana.
“The class we will be requiring
our customers to attend is not
something that is government
required,” he said. “We want our
customers to know all they need
to about using medical marijuana.”
“Just because someone has a
medical marijuana card, doesn’t
mean they can be out operating a
car completely stoned,” Sobol
said.
According to Tucson Police
Captain, Michael Gillooly, spotting a driver under the influence
photo
By
Caitlin harrington
Owner of Marijuana Marketing Strategies, Allan Sobol, watches over the phone that constantly rings.
of marijuana is only slightly harder than identifying a driver under
the influence of alcohol.
“We have been pulling over
and arresting people under the
influence of marijuana and other
narcotics for ten years now, so we
know what we’re doing,” Gillooly
said. “We have trained our officers to identify certain signs and
to administer tests that will tell
them if the driver is under the
influence of marijuana.”
Operating a car while using
medical marijuana is only one of
the problems that may arise. The
reselling of the medical marijuana
and increase in crime has already
been seen in Colorado and California, where medical marijuana
is available
“TPD does not have a position
on the validity of medical marijuana,” Gillooly said. “What we
are concerned about though is the
quality of life in the areas that
these shops will be located.”
“What we have seen in
California and Colorado are clusters of medical marijuana shops
all located in the same area.”
According to Gillooly, these
“clusters” equal more burglaries,
the reselling of the drug and overall lower quality of life in the
neighborhoods they are in.
Arizona is going to keep clusters from forming once shops
begin to get licensed by limiting
the number of shops allowed in
the state and restricting areas
where shops can be located. For
example, how far from one another they must be, as well as how far
the shops must be from schools,
churches, etc.
Sobol, who became interested
in this business of medical marijuana for the money, said that the
training sessions are aimed at just
that goal, to make money. But the
actual selling of the product is to
help people who really need it.
“I don’t condone the smoking
of marijuana for personal use
whatsoever and I never have,”
Sobol said. “But you see the way
it helps people who are legitimately sick, even though some
people say it’s a placebo affect. It
makes them feel better and it
makes these people who are dying
more comfortable. I’m not
ashamed of what I do, I’m proud
to help people.”
información
‘Sun Tran’ continua de página 1
de manera inmediata. Es probable que el próximo año se presenten reducciones de presupuesto de un 15 por ciento de
los servicios de Sun Tran, pero
todavía no se ha tomado una
decisión oficial, dijo Joseph.
Michael Graham, el portavoz
del Department of Transportation
de Tucsón, dijo que el alcalde y el
ayuntamiento tomarán la decisión
final en caso de que se hagan
recortes o se aumente el costo de
los boletos del transporte público.
Antes que el alcalde o el City
Council tomen una decisión,
cualquier recorte de servicios y
cambios en el costo de boletos
están sujetos a una audiencia
pública.
Kozachik dijo que a principios
del próximo año habrá audiencias
públicas para que los contribuyentes puedan hacer valer sus
voces en cuanto a cualquier cambio dentro en el presupuesto de
Sun Tran.
Sun Tran Customer
Service Line:
792-9222
Horario de servicio:
Entre semana de 6 a.m a 9 p.m
Fin de semana 8 a.m a 7 p.m
Para encontrar una lista de los
sitios en donde se pueden
comprar los boletos de autobuses visite
www.suntran.com
Sun Tran Budget Cuts Could Mean Last South Tucson Bar
Bus Fare Increases and Layoffs Closed, No Liquor License
By Lisa Rich
By Erin Badger
Sun Tran riders can’t buy bus
passes or obtain route information
from staff at its three transit centers anymore, due to budgetary
shortfalls. Further cuts to Sun
Tran’s budget may mean higher
fares and a loss of services for
riders in the future.
The three centers – Tohono
Tadai Transit Center, Roy Laos
Transit Center and the Ronstadt
Transit Center – closed their
staffed information booths Dec. 1,
following the layoffs of 15 nonunion employees, according to
Sun Tran’s Director of Marketing
Michele Joseph.
“Unfortunately we do think
there is going to be a period of
adjustment for our riders,” Joseph
said. “We understand people have
developed a real comfort level at
the transit centers.”
Sun Tran riders can purchase
bus passes online, by mail or at 41
different city and retail outlets,
although not every outlet sells
every type of pass available. Sun
Tran’s customer service line is
open seven days a week to answer
customer questions and assist in
trip planning.
System-wide maps are posted
at all three centers, as well as
updated bus arrival times. TV
monitors will remain inside the
information booths to show riders
when the next bus arrives. Bus
schedules and full listings of outlets that sell bus passes are also
available at www.suntran.com.
“We want people to understand
they’re not going to be stranded
there without any information at
all,” Joseph said.
Sun Tran has lost state fund-
photo
By
Kirsten Boele
The staffed information booths at Sun Tran’s three transit centers closed Dec. 1.
ing, suffered a union strike in
August and passenger revenues
have declined. Most significantly,
Sun Tran lost a $600,000 federal
rebate this year. The City of
Tucson requested Sun Tran make
up for the loss of the rebate without cutting services. Staff layoffs
were the only option, Joseph said.
Since voters rejected Pro position 400’s sales tax increase
in November, more cuts to Sun
Tran’s budget are “very possible,”
Joseph said.
Council Member Steve Kozachik believes that fares need to
be increased and expects Sun
Tran to take more budgetary cuts.
Exactly how those cuts will be
absorbed – be it in the form of
layoffs, fare changes or route
reductions – is up to Sun Tran’s
management, Kozachik said.
“Knowing the size of the
budget hole we face though, I
would be surprised if some cuts to
services would not be the result of
reductions in money,” Kozachik
said.
Joseph said if cuts do happen,
they won’t be in the immediate
future. A 15 percent service reduction in Sun Tran’s budget next
year is a possibility, but no official decisions have been made
yet, Joseph said.
Michael Graham, spokesperson for Tucson’s Department of
Transportation, said the mayor
and city council will be making
the final decision if there will be
cuts or fare increases for public
transit.
Any service cuts or fare
changes are subject to public
hearing before the mayor and City
Council can make any decisions.
Kozachik said that there will
be public hearings early next year
for taxpayers to voice their concerns about any budgetary changes to Sun Tran.
Antonio’s Bar sits on a corner of
South Fourth Avenue, empty since
its closure in late August. South
Tucson’s last bar was forced to close
because it owed the city money for
utilities and taxes it could not afford
to pay.
While Antonio’s was the last
remaining bar in South Tucson, it
did not use to be this way. Prior to
the 1980s, South Tucson was home
to upwards of 50 bars. A brutal murder in 1979 caused the attitude
towards these establishments to
shift, according to City Manager
Enrique Serena.
“Today, we’re a different place
and a different time,” he said. “We
have another very significant historical juncture that’s very recent in
fact and that’s our neighborhood
preservation ordinance. This ordinance gives us a lot more legal muscle with which to hold property
owners accountable for whom they
rent to.”
At the Nov. 15 city council meeting, original bar owner Antonio
Riojas asked the council for the
bar’s license to be renewed. The
council voted 5-0 to send a negative
recommendation to the Arizona
Department of Liquor Licenses and
Control for the renewal.
While the closure has dismayed
some people, like Riojas, the South
Tucson Police Department and the
City of South Tucson have greeted
the closure happily.
“The last of the bars that we
have, Antonio’s Bar, quite frankly
from a police prospective, represents a significant problem for our
police department, our city, the
neighborhoods around that location,” Serena said. “Typically there’s
just a lot of excessive drinking and
criminal behavior and it kind of
flows over into the neighborhood
because so many of the folks that
seem to go there are pedestrian.”
The city is currently trying to
gather enough data to prove that
since its doors closed, the neighborhoods surrounding Antonio’s Bar
have seen a decrease in crime. Even
without the statistical analysis however, the community believes that
there has been a noticeable difference.
“It’s better for our community
that there’s no longer any liquor or
any bars in our neighborhood,” said
Gloria Hamelitz, the John Valenzuela Youth Center Director. “We
seem to have a large problem with
people that are abusing alcohol, and
one less place means one less place
for people to go and do that and it
helps reduce crime the bar was causing.”
Serena agreed that the change
was noticeable.
“So much of the feedback that
we’ve gotten comes from the community themselves, expressing their
appreciation for how well things are
going now,” Serena said. “They’re
not seeing that late night, early
morning circulation of drunken
behavior and litter along the streets
by people that are leaving [the bar].”
South Tucson Patrol Officer
Marc Brown explained the strains
the bar used to put on the department.
“When you have Antonio’s up
and running, calling for a disturbance, it’s pulling our resources so
thin, and it’s draining us and it’s
taxing us so we don’t have enough
time or man power just to be
proactive, to be visible within the
community, on just normal patrol,” Brown said.
December 9 / 9 de diciembre 2010
el inDePenDiente
Page / Página 7
Number of Homeless LGBT Youths on Rise in Arizona
By Erin Badger
Vyola Jacques, 19, hasn’t had a place
to call home since she was a child.
Like so many other gay, lesbian,
bisexual and transgendered youth,
Jacques was driven away from her
parents’ house after coming out to
her family.
“I don’t like to go there; I’m
harassed for who I am,” Jacques said.
Since age 10, Jacques has been in
and out of group homes, juvenile
detention and treatment centers. She
started living on the streets and
“couch hopping” in her early teens.
She is not alone. There are
between 1.6 and 2.8 million homeless youth in the U.S., and a disproportionate number of these are
LGBT young people. Approximately
five to 10 percent of the entire U.S.
youth population is LGBT, while 20
to 40 percent of the homeless youth
population is LGBT, according to the
Center for American Progress.
When Jacques revealed she was a
lesbian at age 11 to her Catholic family, her mother dismissed it as a phase.
Her father never accepted her as a lesbian, and still verbally degrades her
for being gay, Jacques said.
Nearly 56 percent of homosexual
youth became homeless because of
family problems directly associated
with their sexuality, according to a
2005 report conducted by the Tucson
Planning Council for the Homeless.
Jacques started getting into trouble from a young age -- skipping
school, using drugs, getting into
fights and running away to escape
the turmoil at home. She has been on
and off probation since age 10 and
dropped out of school for the first
time in the fifth grade.
photo By Caitlin harrington
Vyola Jacques,19, volunteers to help LGBT teens and was once homeless as a young teen.
“I was rebellious…I was different, an outcast,” Jacques said. “They
[kids at school] called me names like
‘ugly,’ and ‘dyke.’”
She later attempted suicide while
being held in a juvenile detention center.
“I couldn’t be gay, I couldn’t be
myself for shit,” Jacques said. “I was
15 and couldn’t take it any more.”
Nearly 62 percent of homeless
LGBT youth attempt suicide, as
opposed to 29 percent of heterosexual homeless youth, according to the
Center for American Progress.
Kevin Jackson is the Homeless
Youth Project (HYP) coordinator for
Wingspan in Tucson. The program
provides free basic needs assistance
to youth under 23, such as meals, bus
passes, hygiene products, clothing
and referrals to LGBT-friendly
providers like Open Inn and Our
Family Services. HYP offers a safe
haven for LGBT youth called the
Eon Youth Center, 430 E. 7th St.
“We’re seeing more LGBT young
people on the streets than we have in
the past,” Jackson said. This increase
could be because LGBT youth are
more informed about where to find
services, are more visible in the community or because LGBT youth
homelessness is increasing, he said.
Open Inn is an Arizona non-profit
organization that offers services to
homeless and runaway youth, including living arrangements and developing life skills for their clients to
become self-sufficient. The number of
client referrals to Open Inn’s services
increased 32 percent from fiscal year
2009 to 2010, said Kenneth McKinley,
Independent Living Services program
director for Open Inn.
Jackson said that the economy is
one of many factors that contribute to
LGBT homelessness.
“With one or more parents losing
jobs, domestic violence in the home,
rejection during the coming out
process, you have a combination that
pushes youth out or youth being
thrown out of their homes,” he said.
Other LGBT youth, like 18-yearold “Jack” (who chose to remain
anonymous), are on the verge of
becoming homeless due to serious
financial strains at home.
Homeless LGBT youth are also
more susceptible to alcoholism, drug
abuse, sexual assault, prostitution and
drug trafficking than their heterosexual counterparts, according to the
Center for American Progress.
Jackson said that many LGBT
homeless youth turn to “survival
sex” – exchanging sex for a place to
stay, transportation or other basic
needs. “Those sorts of behaviors they
all too often turn to because their
lives are unbearable,” Jackson said.
“When your choice is to trade sexual
intimacy for a place that is reasonably safe, rather than being in the
street, camping out in the desert, in
ditches…the risks for exploitation
are exponentially higher.”
Today, Vyola Jacques is an
activist for LGBT youth. She is a
mainstay at Eon Youth Center and is
also involved with Puertas Abiertas,
a Wingspan social group for LGBT
Latinos. She also shares her story on
YouTube for “It Gets Better Tucson,”
a project aimed to inspire hope for
LGBT young people to survive their
teen years.
Jacques earned her G.E.D. while
in juvie and has since taken some college classes.
She now has a job and lives in her
own apartment provided by Open
Inn’s
independent
housing
program.“I’m doing my own things
and I’m focused on myself,” Jacques
said. “I don’t let my family discourage
me or bring down my motivation.”
1960s Chicano Paper Border Fence Takes Toll on Wildlife
Brought Back to Life
By Jackie Tran
By Juliana Vasquez
Students from the University of
Arizona’s Department of Mexican
American and Raza Studies presented a revamped issue of the
’60s Chicano newspaper, El Coraje
to the original creators at a conference on Dec. 2.
The conference, “Combating
Hate¸ Censorship and Forbidden
Curricula,” promoted Chicano culture and took place Dec. 2 to the 4
with a variety of panel discussions,
a run to A-Mountain, and the
unveiling and presentation of the
2010 issue of El Coraje.
The Spanish word, “coraje,”
means “courage” or “anger,”
which both might define the attitude of the founders when the first
issues of El Coraje were published
in Tucson during the Chicano
movement in 1969 and 1970.
The original newspaper was
used as a tool to help the Chicano
community understand what the
issues were within the community.
Delivered door-to-door, it helped
the Chicano community stand up
and fight to change school systems, including the struggle to
implement ethnic studies. El
Coraje petitioned administrations
to offer Chicano studies and hire
Chicano professors in their
schools.
The current newspaper focuses
on issues in immigration and education, and includes the commemoration of the 40th anniversary of
the death of Ruben Salazar, a
Mexican-American journalist and
former Los Angeles Times reporter
who was killed by police during a
Vietnam War protest.
Roberto Cintli Rodriguez, a UA
professor, oversaw the Coraje
project and served as the advisor
this semster.
“We are living through some
historic times here in Arizona,”
said Karina Salazar, editor of the
2010 issue. “Everywhere we go,
we are followed with the thought
that as students, we want our
voices heard and taken into
account.”
Salazar said this is why Coraje
originally began—to make sure all
voices are heard. That is the reason
behind their efforts to publish it
again.
As the “Elders” of the original
Coraje were presented with the
current issue, they spoke about
how they now want to be able to
follow the younger generation’s
lead.
“My heart glows with pride
with the knowledge that we’ve
won the fights for Chicano rights
every time,” said Salomon
Baldenegro, an original Coraje
staffer. “No matter how hard it is¸
we will win!”
Baldenegro is now retired from
teaching Chicano history for the
UA Mexican American Studies
and Research Center.
Today, Coraje is formatted as a
magazine, with photography and
poetry, but also contains journalistic articles and research reports.
The original Coraje staffers are
excited to see the younger generation acting on today’s issues like
SB1070 and HB 221.
“I want to be right behind you
on that street corner with you guys
leading the movement,” said
Cecilia Cruz, an original staff
member of Coraje. “Seeing what
you guys are doing makes my
heart soar.”
Endangered animals have it bad on
both sides of the border.
Construction of the border
fence for security reasons has
caused a widespread environmental impact and now money has
been allocated to address the most
serious problems.
The extent of damage to the
animal habitats is extreme enough
to warrant $6.8 million from the
federal government for eight
Southwestern conservation projects, six of which are in Arizona.
“The projects we are announcing today are, in effect, part of a
down payment on mitigating the
impact on wildlife and its habitat
from the on-going effort to secure
our southern border,” said Rhea
Suh, assistant secretary for policy,
management and budget at the
Department of the Interior.
“It [the border] has increased
vehicular traffic, both border patrol
and public,” Matt Clark, a representative for Defenders of Wildlife in
Tucson said. Smuggler vehicle chases and other illegal activities have
caused severe damage to the land.
Some of the wildlife affected
includes ocelots, bats, jaguars,
desert tortoise and several endangered fish in the San Bernardino
Valley in Arizona, Clark said. The
border fence has augmented flooding issues and prevents many wild
animals from crossing in their natural habitat. Even winged animals,
such as the pygmy owls at Buenos
Aires National Wildlife Refuge,
are low-flying animals so the wall
is a barrier to their movement.
Direct human activity is not the
only cause of damage to the surrounding environment at the U.S.Mexico border line.
“When there’s no vegetation to
soak up the water it runs off the dirt
photo By JaCKie tran
The ocelot’s habitat was damaged with
construction of the border fence.
and into the washes and in many
instances, cuts down more rapidly
than it would otherwise,” Clark
said. Heavy storms create the most
evident erosion damage, which creates an incision. The erosion is carried down in the form of sediment.
“The debris is blocked by the
wall and creates a dam effect so the
water is diverted around the water
crossings and erodes the scourings
adjacent to the washing,” Clark
said. The gates that can be lifted
during storm events might be in
the works by Homeland Security,
he added.
The Organ Pipe National
Monument has suffered major flood
damage from the wall. In Nogales,
the same storm created a flood
where the fence was blocked with
debris and caused a back up on the
Mexican side, Clark said. The solid
concrete wall at the port of entry
was about five feet tall and created
a dam-like effect, causing about $8
million worth of property damage.
The $2.1 million Sasabe
Biological Opinion is four-year
program for jaguar management.
It will allow the communities and
government to survey, monitor and
report on the jaguars.
The Organ Pipe Cactus National
Monument Biological Opinion has
been allotted $980,000. Some of
the funds will help replant around
200 columnar cacti that were
moved and stored when the border
fence was built, Lee Baiza, the
monument’s superintendent said.
Some of the funds will manage
roads and repair land by the fence
near Lukeville, Ariz., which was
damaged by construction.
The San Bernardino National
Wildlife Refuge in Arizona will
use $657,000 for restoration. An
additional $441,000 will be used to
study four federally protected Rio
Yaqui fish species and four sensitive fish species there.
The Coronado National Memorial
Agave Restoration program in
Arizona will use $274,873 to plant
agaves to make up for the ones
destroyed during border construction.
“The border wall is a discontinuous barrier, but there are tens of
continuous miles of wall that are
impermeable to most terrestrial
wildlife,” Clark said.
“That causes extensive wildlife
fragmentation,” he added, “severing wildlife corridors that extend
across wildlife boundaries. It
cumulatively has permanently converted many hundreds of acres of
wildlife habitat.”
By Alexa Miller
Traducido por Sathya Honey
?
Page / Página 8
Dec. 3 – 22
el inDePenDiente
December 9 / 9 de diciembre 2010
qué Pasa?
Nacimiento at the Tucson Museum of Art
The Reid Park Zoo will be
adorned in thousands of sparkling
lights this winter. Come see light
displays, animal-themed sculptures, falling snow and Santa! Zoo
Lights runs 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday
through Sunday, Dec. 3 –18 and
Monday through Wednesday, Dec.
20 – 22. Cost is $5 for adults, $4
for members and $3 for children
ages two to 14. Through Dec. 12,
receive $2 off admission with each
new, unwrapped toy for Toys for
Tots. Located at 1100 S. Randolph
Way. For more information, visit
www.tucsonzoo.org.
Dec. 10 – 12
Del 11 al 26 de diciembre
Fourth Ave. Street Fair
Winterhaven
Browse more than 400 arts, crafts
and food booths at Southern
Arizona’s largest festival, the
Fourth Avenue Fall Street Fair.
Also see musicians and performers
on two stages. Located on Fourth
Ave. between University Blvd. and
9th St. Friday, Dec. 10 through
Sunday, Dec. 12. 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
For more information, visit
www.fourthavenue.org.
Ver página 5.
15 de diciembre
Sons of Orpheus
El decimotercero Annual Holiday
Benefit Concert de Sons of
Orpheus será en apoyo del
Community Food Bank y de los
estudiantes de primaria de las
Arizona State Schools for the Deaf
and Blind (ASDB). Localizado en
el Berger Center for the
Performing Arts, Campus de
ASDB, 1200 W. Speedway Blvd.
Entrada gratuita para los que
traigan un artículo de comida
imperecedera o una donación
monetaria deducible de impuestos.
Dec. 11
Legend of the
Poinsettia
Bring your children to the
Southwest Branch Library to listen
to the Mexican Christmas legend
of the Poinsettia. They are invited
to make a poinsettia ornament and
enjoy Mexican holiday treats such
as bizcochos and hot chocolate.
From 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Located at
6855 S. Mark Road. Space is limited, call 594-5270 to sign up.
Del 16 al 19 de diciembre
A Tucson Pastorela
Dec. 11
The Sam Lena-South Tucson Branch
Library and Tucson Oasis are looking for volunteers who are interested
in motivating children to be successful at reading and writing. Ten hours
of training are provided from the
OASIS Reading Help Program. The
volunteer will be paired with one
student to tutor during this yearround program in which students
meet for one hour per week. For
more information, contact Managing
Librarian, Leanne Yoder at leanne.
[email protected] or 594-5267. Or
contact OASIS Reading Help
Program coordinator at Carlinda
Dirks at [email protected] or
322-5627.
Dec. 11 – 26
Winterhaven
See page 5.
Dec. 15
Sons of Orpheus
The Sons of Orpheus 13th Annual
Holiday Benefit Concert will support the Community Food Bank
and the Arizona State Schools for
the Deaf and Blind (ASDB) elementary students. Located at the
Berger Center for the Performing
Arts, ASDB Campus, 1200 W.
Speedway Blvd. Admission is free
with a non-perishable food item or
a tax-deductable monetary donation. For more information, visit
www.sonsoforpheus.org.
Voluntarios de OASIS
El Sam Lena – South Tucson
Branch Library y Tucson Oasis
buscan voluntarios interesados en
motivar a los niños para que tengan éxito en la lectura y la escritura. Diez horas de entrenamiento se
proporcionan por OASIS Reading
Help Program. El voluntario será
emparejado con un estudiante
durante un año entero, y se
reunirán durante una hora por semana. Para obtener más información
contacte a Leanne Yoder,
Managing Librarian al
leanne.yoder@pima. gov o al 5945267 o contacte a OASIS Reading
Help Program coordinator Carlinda
Dirks en [email protected]
o al 322-5627.
Zoo Lights
OASIS Volunteers
11 de diciembre
Photo by Nick Rob Letson
Maria Luisa Tena prepares and arranges the Nacimiento in memory of her mother at La Casa Cordoba.
Dec. 16 – 19
Dec. 18
Del 10 al 12 de diciembre.
A Tucson Pastorela
Downtown Parade of
Lights
Fourth Ave. Street Fair
Borderlands Theater presents the
15th Annual “A Tucson Pastorela.”
This play depicts Tucson’s unique
take on the nativity story. Follow
the shepherds, dog and sheep as
they journey to witness the birth of
Jesus. Accompanied by Christmas
carols in Spanish and English.
Located at the Leo Rich Theater at
the Tucson Convention Center,
260 S. Stone Ave. General admission is $19.75, $17.75 for seniors
and $10.75 for students. Dates and
times vary. For more information,
visit www.borderlandstheater.org.
Dec. 16 – 19
Mercado Holiday
Bazaar
Stop by Tucson’s first public market, Mercado San Agustin for their
Holiday Bazaar. Peruse artisan
foods, kids clothing and toys, jewelry and much more. See the lifesized gingerbread house and Santa
himself! From 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Admission is free. Located at 100
S. Avenida del Convento. For
more information, call 461-1110.
Marvel at lighted vehicles and
floats, Santa and musical groups at
the 16th Annual Downtown
Parade of Lights. Free and open to
the public. Parade begins at 6:30
p.m. at 17th St. and Stone Ave.
For more information and to view
the parade route, visit www.downtowntucson.org.
Del 3 al 22 de diciembre
Luces en el zoológico
Este invierno el Reid Park Zoo
estará adornado con miles de luces
brillantes. ¡Venga a admirar las
exposiciones de luces, las esculturas
con temas de animales, la nieve y a
Santa! Las luces están en exposición de 6 a 8 p.m. del jueves 3 de
diciembre al domingo 18 y del
lunes 20 al miércoles 22. Los boletos cuestan $5 para adultos, $4 para
los miembros y $3 para niños de
dos a catorce años de edad. Hasta el
12 de diciembre habrá un descuento
de $2 por cada juguete nuevo y sin
desenvolver para Toys for Tots.
Localizado en 1100 S. Randolph
Way. Para obtener más información
visite www.tucsonzoo.org.
Ojée más de 4oo puestos de artes,
manualidades y comida en el festival más grande del sur de Arizona,
el Fourth Avenue Fall Street Fair.
También podrá ver músicos y
artistas en dos escenarios.
Localizado en Fourth Ave. entre
University Blvd. y 9th St. del
viernes 9 de diciembre al domingo
12 de 10 a.m. a 6 p.m. Para obtener más información visite
www.fourthavenue.org.
11 de diciembre
La Leyenda de la flor
de Nochebuena
Traiga a sus hijos a la Southwest
Branch Library a escuchar la
leyenda navideña de la flor de
Nochebuena. Se les anima a los
niños a hacer un adorno de flor de
Nochebuena y a disfrutar de antojitos navideños, de las 11 a.m. a la
1 p.m. ubicado como bizcochos y
chocolate caliente en 6855 S.
Mark Road. El espacio es limitado, llame al 594-5270 para
inscribirse.
Borderlands Theater presenta su
decimoquinta “A Tucson
Pastorela”. Esta obra de teatro representa la versión única
Tucsonense del nacimiento
navideño. Acompañe a los pastores, el perro y los borregos en su
viaje para presenciar el nacimiento
de Jesús. Incluye villancicos en
español y en inglés. Los boletos de
admisión general cuestan $19.75,
$17.75 para personas de la tercera
edad y $10.75 para estudiantes.
Las fechas y horarios varían. Para
obtener más información visite
www.borderlandstheater.org.
Del 16 al 19 de diciembre
Mercado Holiday Bazaar
Asómese al primer mercado público de Tucsón, el Mercado San
Agustín, para ver su Bazaar
Navideño. Examine los alimentos
artesanales, ropa y juguetes de
niños, joyería y más. Vea la casa
de pan de jengibre de tamaño natural y ¡hasta al mismísimo Santa!
De 11 a.m. a 7 p.m. Entrada libre.
Localizado en 100 S. Avenida del
Convento. Para obtener más información llame al 461-1110.
18 de diciembre
Desfile del centro de
la luces
Maravíllese ante los vehículos y
carrozas decoradas, vea a Santa y
los grupos musicales en el decimosexto Downtown Parade of
Lights anual. El evento es gratuito
y abierto a todo público. El desfile
empieza a las 6:30 p.m. en 17th
St. y Stone Ave. Para obtener más
información y para ver la ruta que
seguirá el desfile, visite
www.downtowntucson.org.