Edgar Gonzalez,Staff Reporter
Patricio Tlacaelel Trujillo y Fuentes, a student and artist who attends CNM, is scheduled to host the one man performance of the epic poem “Yo Soy Joaquin,” by Rodolfo Gonzales about some hard truths that the Latino culture must face today and the way he feels they should be as a race from March 31 through April 3 and April 7 through April 10 at the National Hispanic Cultural Center, he said.
Tickets will cost fifteen dollars for students and eighteen dollars for adults except on Thursdays when tickets cost ten dollars, he said.
This is a one man show and there is a child actress who will appear as a protestor for a small amount of time, aside from her there are many staff that help with the show with lights, costumes, etc., he said.
It is very hard to carry a one man show and keep the audience engaged in the performance, he said.
‘This show will include many types of artistic expression such as poems, dance, and music, which I will be doing in both Spanish and in English,” he said.
The show is all about raising awareness and sharing this poem since many people do not know about it, he said.
It gives the history of the Chicano, from the Aztecs to today, he said.
“One sad truth is that Mexicans and Chicanos normally do not get along, so I would like to see that change since we are all the same people,” he said.
The other part of this poem is talking about slavery, and how people are taught that slavery had ended in America when Abraham Lincoln stepped into power even though that is not true because it just changed form, he said.
Today, slave owners come with economic power over the Hispanic population who is forced to work for companies that do not even meet human necessities, he said.
People who work for organizations like Walmart, McDonald’s, Arbys, etc. do not make a living wage so this forces them to work even more for the bare necessities, he said.
What this poem does is it reminds us that the struggle to be equal is not over and that it is very much alive today, he said.
Migrant Farm workers get it the worst with inhumane working conditions that no person should ever go through, he said.
Most Migrant Farm Workers have to work from sun rise to sun set for a fraction of what they should be getting paid, while they get sprayed with pesticides, have no decent place to go to the bathroom, and have no breaks or water in order to replenish themselves jut to put food on their families tables, he said.
There was actually a big move to boycott Wendy’s since they are using tomatoes picked by migrant workers who have very bad health problems thanks to the chemicals and are exposed to inhumane working conditions, he said.
“I am currently trying to include some footage of the horrific working conditions that many migrant workers are exposed to every day,” he said.
There is also small children working on these fields while they are subjected to the injustice of inhumane working conditions as well as child labor and being mocked by their bosses who come with ice cream, beverages, and do activities such as swimming meanwhile the workers cannot get a five minute break to go in the shade, he said.
The poem reminds people of the injustice and the inhumanity that immigrants are placed through daily, he said.
The Hispanic Cultural Center is actually called the National Hispanic Cultural Center because its mission is to represent who we are as a Latino people all over the country,
“Everyone who is working with us are representing the show not only at a local level but at a national level as well which gives the local artists some exposure,” he said.
The future plans for the show is to take it on tour all over the country and spread awareness, he said.
“I would like to thank the Hispanic Cultural Center because they are creating careers at the national level,” he said.
When someone wants to do a show it is very expensive running into the thousands and very minimal personal expenditures have been made thanks to the Hispanic Cultural Center, because they have covered everything in an effort to pay for publicity, location, and staff pay, he said.
