the Downfall rusade for Justice Various events allowed for leaders such as Rodolfo “Corky” Gonzales to organize and be part of the Chicano Movement during the 1960s: the United States elected its first Catholic president who was assassinated, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) launched an invasion on Cuba, and the United States steadily increased its military involvement in Vietnam.t The United States’ focus on these issues provided Gonzales the opportunity to form the Crusade for Justice in 1966. This organization helped the Chicano community defend its rights, as well as help define an identity for the Chicano youth. As the Crusade grew, the Chicano community became more aware of their rights, thus leading them to speak up. These actions gained the governments interest in the Crusade and Gonzales. Unfortunately, the achievements of the Crusade were overshadowed by the controversial media reports of the March 1973 bombing of the Crusade’s housing complex. This event affected the way Gonzales was able to run the Crusade as well as keep it afloat. The media and government portrayed the Crusade as being a militant group and publicized negative media, resulting in the organizations downfall Before Gonzalez was born, his father was part of Pancho Villa's army during the 1910 Mexican Revolution. After this revolution, Mexico continued to have many inequality issues. Early on Gonzalez learned about political leaders in Mexico and the United States, finishing high school by the age of 16, while at the same time working in the fields with his * Vigil, Ernesto B.. The Crusade for Justice: Chicano Militancy and the Government's War on Dissent. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1999. Page13-14. Page 1 of 16father.? Gonzales began working at a very young age, giving him the drive to get things done and create a better life for himself and his family. Gonzalez held several different roles in the community that later benefitted the Chicano community. He started out as a boxer and became the first Chicano to be placed in the Boxing Hall of Fame in 1988, These boxing skills would later be utilized to teach ‘members of the Crusade how to fight for their rights, Not liking where his boxing career was taking him, he decided to open Corky's Corner, a restaurant. He owned Corky's Corner during the early 1950s. In many instances Gonzales observed his customers being arrested. ‘This influenced him to start a bail bonds business. His bail bonds business lasted until the late 1950s. In 1977 Gonzalez was interviewed by La Cucaracha, a small local newspaper, where he talked about Corky’s Corner and his bail bonds business: [Corky's Corner] was a neighborhood bar, and I knew everyone. Someone would go to jal for disturbance, and I'd lend them money. | became sort of an advisor. In the bonding business, | went back to the same thing I saw in the streets; people being brutalized: kids with their scalps open... I decided to get out of the bonding business because it wasn't the kind of a business | wanted to make a living off of.* Experiences such as these sparked Gonzales’ interest in helping his community, He advised those who were arrested, educated them about their rights, and helped bail them. From the 1950s onward, Gonzales was involved in many organizations: a founding board member of the Latin American Educational Fund; president of the National Citizens Committee for Community Relations; part of the Colorado GI Form, Latin American Research and Service Agency, Jobs for Progress, Job Opportunity Center; and Anti- Poverty Program for the 2 Vigil, Ernesto B.. The Crusade for Justice: Chicano Militancy and the Government's War on Dissent. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1999, 8 La Cucaracha (Denver) September 1, 1977. Page 2 of 16Southwest. * His involvement in all these organizations show that Gonzales was interested in helping not only the Chicano community, but helping the community as a whole receive an education and find a steady source of income. Ashe became more involved in the community, he began to run for political positions and gained interest in the political aspects of fighting for justice through the system, rather than just being part of protests and marches organized by others. He did this by running against State Representative Elvin Caldwell in 1955, seeking election to the Denver City Council, and lost by 2,000 votes.5 Although the campaign was unsuccessful in 1955, in the 1960s Gonzales led the “Viva Kennedy!” campaign and succeeded due to the number of participants who voted in the election. ‘This led to Gonzales’ growing credibility in the community, especially the Chicano community, Gonzales’ activism would eventually lead to conflict with the Democratic Party, causing his departure from the party and the establishment.® Gonzales was a political figure who once worked for Mayor Currigan as leader of the War on Poverty. In the long run, Gonzales realized that he would rather empower his community than feel like part of a government that only made promises and never followed through.” Gonzales was not particularly happy about his dismissal from the Party. He then organized a meeting at the Denver Civic Center where he said to the people, “This meeting is only the spark of a crusade for justice which we are going to carry into every city in Colorado,” and he did so.? “Vigil, Ernesto B.. The Crusade for justice: Chicano Militancy and the Government's War on Dissent. Madison University of Wisconsin Press, 1999, Page 8. 5 Ibid, Page 8-9, * Gonzales, Rudolph “Corky”. “Address to Coalition.” Denver, April 23, 1966. Page 1,3 ” Vigil, Ernesto B.. The Crusade for Justice: Chicano Militancy and the Government's War on Dissent. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1999. Page24-26. ® Robert Kistler, “1,200 Cheer Gonzales at ‘Vote Revolt’ Rally" Denver Post, April 30, 1966, Page 3 of 16An issue that impacted the Chicano community in Denver was police brutality. The 1950s was the beginning of more intense surveillance of the Chicano community. This was a time where more Chicanos were moving to the cities, thus becoming the minority group that received the brunt of the brutality. One of the biggest controversies of the police department was the practice of “checkout”. “Checkout” was a process where an officer could hold someone in custody for indefinite periods of time while the police officer “checked out” the suspect's records. What made the situation worse for those being held in custody was that they did not know about their Fifth Amendment rights. During 1955 the Rocky Mountain News followed and published a series of articles on the “checkout” system the police department was practicing. The main source for these articles was from Omar E. Garwood, a Denver attorney who was once a municipal judge. By 1960 the police department was in newspaper headings for not only police brutality, but for their involvement in robberies. The police department's reputation and credibility became more damaged with these kinds of actions. Denver was not the only city facing issues with the justice system. In Los Angeles, California, lan F. Haney Lopez, a Professor of Law at the University of California, focused on the Chicano movement by analyzing important cases. Two of these cases were the McCleskey v. Kemp and the East L.A. Thirteen. Lépez focused on these cases and created the argument that the Mexican- American identity is a distinct racial group. He also created the idea of “common sense racism”, or racism that fits the status quo of Whites. L6pez also focuses on the changing court procedures that later made court rulings more transparent. Lopez explains how the negative connotations of the Mexican-American developed. He tells, °Gavin, Tom. "Liberty and Law- Series." Rocky Mountain News, Denver, 30 Aug, 1955- Sep. 3, 1955. Page 30. ‘This series consisted of six newspaper articles. The last one published on Sep. 3, 1955. pap Page 4 of 16us how in L.A. the Mexican- American community suffered racial discrimination by whites Whites had a racial ideology where they saw Mexican’s as “mutts" thus creating a social norm that they are inferior to those of lighter complexion.2° Stereotypes that Mexican- Americans faced in L.A. (as well as in other parts of the nation) are those of an inferior race, dirty, lazy, cowards, and criminals.!! These ideas surfaced around the 1800s and shaped the way Mexicans would be perceived in more contemporary times. “Common sense racism” is very important when we deal with the racism the Chicano community faced, because it modified what the meaning of racism was. There are three major parts that make up common sense racism according to Lépez: itis constant, it ensures that good intentions do not guarantee against racist conduct, and it conceptualizes racism suggesting that racism is highly inflexible.*? Lopez points out the three major aspects are essential for common sense racism. In the ruling of McCleskey v. Kemp, taking place in Georgia, blacks who killed whites were usually criminally charged to the death penalty 22 times more often than blacks who killed blacks." In this case, McClesky who was black, was accused of murder against a white police officer. McCleskey argued that there was clear understanding of racial differences, but still McCleskey faced the death penalty. This showed that this kind of ruling was simply what was widely known, with no need for an explanation or detail on how the ruling was made." Lopez may have used this case to show how the justice system tries to cover its biases by creating punishment levels, such as black on white crimes facing harsher punishments than black on black crime. "© Lopez, lan. Racism on trial: the Chicano fight for justice. Cambridge, Mass.: Belknap, 2004, Page 59. "Ibid, Ibid, Page 128-129 1 Ibid, Page 242 Ibid, Page 110. Page 5 of 16‘The way a lawyer defended a client evolved with the ideas of Oscar Acosta when he defended the L.A. Thirteen. Los Angeles Mexican- American students began to organize and demand better education and more teachers of color. Not only did students organize, but residents and parents were also involved in the organizing for educational reform in the 1950s.'5 Some of the young radical groups were the United Mexican- American Students and the Young Citizens for Community Action. A strategy used by these student, organizations was to organize mass walk outs. The walk outs not only consisted of public high schools but also of elementary and middle schools.#6 The students ultimately reached agreements with school boards, but it was not simple. After the walk outs there was an increase in police and sheriff's patrolling schools and arresting protesters.” The police then began to target a few and arrested them, Thirteen individuals came to be arrested as police targets, their case came to be known as Bast L.A. Thirteen. The case was handled by Acosta who brought up the issue of the violation of the Equal Protection clause ofthe 14% Amendment.#® Acosta used this argument to prove that there was discrimination among the judges who chose the all-white grand jury members. Acosta was able to interview each Superior Court judge to determine if they were prejudice against Mexican- Americans.!9 Acosta was able to attain an acquittal in the East L.A. Thirteen, ‘The Chicano community has gone through many difficult issues. As you have seen the main one being identity, and the need for great leaders to help identify who the Chicano 5 Lopez, lan. Racism on trial: the Chicano fight for justice. Cambridge, Mass.: Belknap, 2004, Page 17. © Ibid, Page 19. ¥ Ibid, Page 22. *8 id, Page 31. 9 id, Page 32. Page 6 of 16was. Corky Gonzales w: one of these Chicano leaders. He is widely known for founding the Crusade for Justice. This was an organization known for its involvement with improvi ig the living conditions, and the future of the Chicano community. Individuals have their own ideas and definitions of equality. This causes different reactions from the community and from specific groups; especially when a group of people feel a loss of identity. During the 1960s-1980s there were many social movements occurring in the United States. Social movements fought for civil rights, political rights, social freedom, and equality. The ideas of equality spread and eventually reached Colorado. The lower part of Colorado used to be part of northern Mexico, thus it has and continues to have a large population of people with Mexican descent. Some saw the inspiration and relevant success of the Civil Rights Movement in the south, and saw the possibility of change and improvement for their own population. The Mexican- American activists, who were mostly students, used the term Chicano to identify themselves. The word Chicano helped create a positive identity; as one who “seek{s] to create a new and fresh identity for their culture rather than to subsume [to] it blandly under the guise of any mainstream culture.”?° This later came to be known as the Chicano Movement of the 1960s. In Colorado like across the nation, the Movement affected both those fighting for equality, and those trying to stop the changes the Chicano leaders and the members of the Movement wanted. Even with opposition from within the community and from the outside, changes were achieved by Colorado activists that bettered the lives of the Chicano community throughout Colorado. "Are Chicanos the same as Mexicans?.” The Azteca/Mexica Web Page. http://www.mexica.net/chicano php (accessed May 12, 2011) Page 7 of 16Another important aspect of the Chicano movement was the impact the Black Civil Rights Movement had on the Chicano community. The Black Civil Rights Movement was a model for future organizations and movements since it provided a structure to follow. More so, the Black Civil Rights Movement allowed for alliances to form between the Chicano and the Black leaders. For example, Gonzales met with Martin Luther King Jr. on March 14, 1968 at a meeting organized by King and his organization the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC). King asked for support of SCLC and their “poor people's march” on Washington, and the Crusade for Justice was shown to be a member of this committee of supporters?! Gonzales’ attendance to King’s meeting as a Crusade member raised a flag for the FBI. Gonzales not only worked with one race, but worked with others as well. This is important as some judged Gonzales as being discriminatory against other ethnicities during the time he was Chief on the War on Poverty. One of Gonzalez’ strategies on the War on Poverty was to create the National Youth Crops. Gonzales was accused of ing the Chicano youth applications above other races.” Many Chicanos were against the Vietnam War. Gonzales was one of the first in the Chicano community to oppose the war. His speech, not only questioned the war, but also raised questions on how the Crusade would help fight and solve these issues. In the speech below we see how Gonzales criticizes US. society as being oppressive and one that divides its people by race, class, and nationality: ‘Would it not be more noble to portray our great country as a humanitarian nation with honest intentions of aiding and advising the weak rather than to be recognized as a military power and hostile enforcer of our political aims? What the American people should recognize and evaluate it that political doctrine is not the issue in Vietnam, Itis not the real issue here at home. The real issue is economics... [Wall Street] the great powerful 21 Denver FBI SAC to Hoover, NSR. April 26, 1968, Rudolph Gonzales, Internal Security Field Office File 100. 9290. ® Tomasson, Dan. “Poverty Chief's Acts Under Scruitny,” Rocky Mountain News, April 21, 1966. Page 8 of 16‘y Stas oF, tation, calmly an boys, onfiat sed ang quia, Been dolare that do noe Show the reg tala eve paren Bl for rape ae weaker nation ™POrtANE bec, © United 5 ang 3 Denver Fj rato Change 1a Nene sccyy Summary January 2 Oph sr onzales Rt Slice Fite 190 2 "FBT *" PRY rhe Vault Aupyyfalsely charging them with crimes they did not commit, and at times, the charges were exaggerated.25 ‘The FBI kept track of the Crusade by following Gonzales’ actions, and those he intermingled with. This interest would later affect the Crusade. The FBI had always followed conferences Gonzales organized. A very special conference that interested the FBI was one organized by the National Chicano Youth Liberation Conference and Gonzales, The conference they organized was scheduled to take place on August 25, 1967, but was later postponed to occur in 1969. COINTELPRO had yet to be assigned to investigate, but on August 25, 1967 the FBI ordered for COINTELPRO to take action and control the Crusade as they were now confirmed and targeted as a militant group in the United States.2 The Crusade for Justice Headquarters was first located in a small office space located on 1265 Cherokee Street. By 1968 the headquarters were able to upgrade to a much larger space on 1567 Downing Street. Gonzales was the founder of the Crusade, and his role within the organization was very important. He did this by holding events at the Crusades headquarters, organizing walk outs and marches, and through. The new space on Downing Street housed the Crusade, as well as providing a place where the youth could hang out in a safe environment without having to deal with police harassment, The Crusade promoted unity, thus when they held events like Friday- night youth dances, it became a regular local event and newspapers started promoting their idea of unity too. There was EI Gallo, a small local newspaper, who published an article titled “Attention Chicanos” that read, "Hey you! Chicano, Mexican- American, Spanish American, Hispano, whatever you call yourself. % Shakur, Assata. Assata: An Autobiography. Westport, Conn. L, Hill, 1987, 2 FBI, Letterhead Memorandum (LHM) to Director J. Edgar Hoover, April 24, 1968, Bufile 105- 176910, Not Recorded 4/24/68. Page 10 of 16Stop and look around you! Stop fighting each other. We need unity and our people. The power structure is our real enemy!” The involvement of the youth was not as strong as. Gonzales would have liked it to be, but positive publications on the Crusade eventually increased the number of youth engaged. This increase led to conferences and school walkouts. One of the schools that had Chicano students walking out due to the lack of a quality in their education, and the racism experienced by teachers toward students was ‘West High School. One of the Crusade’s goals was the teaching of the Mexican- American history, thus a more equal education would be received by the youth. This in turn unified students, as well as helped define their identity. The Crusade did this by organizing a summer youth program called “freedom school” in the early 1970s. This program would later lead to the creation of Escuela Tlateloco.’8 Jeanine Perez was one of the students who attended the summer program. She attended West High School, and after gaininga different perspective of Mexican- American history she questioned or corrected her teachers. One of her teachers could care less, and even ridiculed her by pronouncing her last name incorrectly. She asked for the Crusades involvement and in doing so there was newspaper coverage regarding inequalities, and the discontent of West High School students. EI Gallo published Perez's story titling it “Racist High School Teacher Must Go”. Other headlines read in relation to West High school and other schools: "West Disturbance 2” Valdez, Andres. Attention Chicanos. £1 Gallo, January 1969, Page 1 2 Vigil, Ernesto B.. The Crusade for Justice: Chicano Militancy and the Government's War on Dissent. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1999, Page 81- 82. 2 Ibid. Page 11 of 16‘Symbol of Errors”®®, “Law Officers Lauded in West Boycott”3", “West High School Troubles Cost City $25,000"22, and “Form East to Manual to West." At this point everything Gonzales, the Crusade, and all other organizations Gonzales was involved with, would lead to the bombing of the Crusades headquarters, The Crusade worked close with the American Indian Movement (AIM). The Crusade and AIM happened to work and keep in touch because of the young members of these organizations were friends. AIM members would hang out, as well as hold events at the Crusades headquarters. ken Treaties In late 1972 AIM organized the Trail of Broken Treaties. The Trail of Br protested the oppression of native people and the conditions in which they lived. The protest consisted of occupying the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA). AIM reached an agreement with the PBI, However, why would negotiating an agreement be an option for the government if ll they ever want is to crush movements and organizations like AIM? ‘The answer is simple, the 1972 elections. The BIA occupation occurred before the 1972 presidential election, and Nixon did not want a scandal, Instead an agreement was reached and Nixon’s Department of Justice ordered the FBI to investigate AIM, Neither AIM nor the Crusade knew these investigations were occurring, and the FBI entered the Crusades name as well as some of its members into the AIM FBI files as threats because they were gun- running3+ Soon after, all those who participated were invited to the South Dakota Pine Ridge Reservation to help support the Lakota in their protest against their reservations © “West Distubance ‘Symbole of Errors” Denver Post, March 21, 1969, “Law Officers Lauded in West Boycott,” March 25, 1969, 8 Rounds, Michael, "West High Troubles Cost ity $25,000," Rocky Mountain News, March 26, 1969. 25 “From East to Manual to West," Denver Post, March 21, 1968. % Vigil, Ernesto B., The Crusade for Justice: Chicano Militancy and the Government's War on Dissent, Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1999. Page 202, Page 12 of 16government of Richard “Dick” Wilson; the Lakota occupied the hamlet of Wounded Knee in protest of Wilson.°5 The Crusade kept track of these events through the media. They kept track of what the media was reporting about the Lakota and FBI involvements. Other activists who were also following the protest went down to the reservation to help. The Crusade helped by sending cash and supplies with activists who were traveling to the reservation.3¢ On March 16, 1973, the Crusade was celebrating the birthday of one of their tenants The Crusade owned an apartment complex that was located directly south of the Crusades headquarters. As the night continued and guests arrived and left, many noticed that police cars were stationed around the area. The guests also noticed the continued patrolling of the apartment complex. As the police patrolled, they arrested a man with the last name of Mascarefas. Luis “Junior” Martinez and Mario Manuel Vasquez were hanging out outside of the party when they noticed the police arrest Mascarefias. Martinez decided to investigate why Mascarefias was arrested. As he walked up to the patrol car, Patrolman Steve Snyder told him it was for jaywalking, and that he would arrest Martinez and any others for the same offense. # Vasquez didn't like that Martinez was outside talking with the police about a total stranger, so he also walked out to hear what Patrolman Snyder was saying, Mascarefias took the conversation between the officer and the other two boys as a means to make a run for it. As Mascarefias ran, Vasquez headed back to the party to warn everyone that the police were coming since he had heard Snyder's partner call for back up. Backup was called at 12:44am, making it now March 17. The shooting started, and Snyder's + Vigil, Ernesto B.. The Crusade for Justice: Chicano Militancy and the Government's War on Dissent. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1999,, Page 202-203. 38 Ibid, Page 206. 5 Ibid, Page 210, Page 13 of 16partner was shot at twice. Due to the darkness it was unclear to see who was shooting at whom. As the shooting continued to fire towards the apartment complex, Martinez was killed. The continued shooting resulted in an explosion. An explosion, the Crusade said, that was caused by the police firing an explosive device into the building, Unfortunately, in the afternoon of March 17 the police stated that the building was so blown up that it was a safety hazard. Thus, a wrecking company was called to demolish part of the apartment's roof and interior, leaving no signs of what could have caused the explosion. ** ‘The police stated that they found “regular arsenal!” in the apartment complex in the Rocky Mountain News, 2° The weapons they found consisted ofa stolen military M-16.* In addition, they found more than 30 high-powered rifles, shotguns, hand-guns, including 44 caliber magnums, and hundreds of rounds of ammunition The publications of the multiple kinds of weapons found, and suggestions of bombs in the building suggested that the Crusade was a militant and dangerous organization ‘There were so many people involved during the shooting that it caused confusion as to the number of people who were involved. Not only that, but there was confusion and contradictions that later came up after the fact. For example, 36 people were initially reported arrested, but the number was much higher.*? Inaccurate reports resulted in the Crusade saying that the police was lying; a claim that the Crusade tended to make.** 8 Vigil, Ernesto B., The Crusade for Justice: Chicano Milicancy and the Government's War on Dissent. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1999. Page 209-213. 2 Moya, Frank, “Chicano- Police Gunfight, Bombing Kill 1, Injure 18". Rocky Mountain News, March 18, 1973. ‘40 "Martinez’ Revolver ‘Stonlen,”, Denver Post, March 18, 1973. ‘4 "Snipers Fight Cops in Denver”. Santa Fe New Mexican, March 18, 1973. ‘2 Gessing, Harry and John Ashton, "I Killed, 19 Hurt, 36 Held in Denver Gunfight, Blast: 12 Policeman, 7 Others in Injury List,” Denver Post, March 17, 1973, © Moya, Frank. "Police Blamed by Chicanos for Shootout on Sunday". Rocky Mountain News, March 19, 1973, Page 14 of 16After this horrid event, all the other achievements and involvement of the Crusade would be overshadowed by the March 17, 1973 bombing. It began by slowly affecting the number of students that attended the Crusade’s Escuela Tlateloco. Today Escuela continues to produce intelligent students, but not the numbers it once did. ‘The bombing negatively affected the Crusades funding, They were forced to use the Crusade's property, as well as that of Crusade members to post bond for those who were arrested in the aftermath of the bombing, Grants they received from the Catholic Church's Campaign for Human Development** stopped. Income they received from their tenants decreased after the bombing since many began to move out. These economic issues not only affected the Crusade but its members too. Members who were once important leaders in the Crusade started to disappear or were arrested. John Haro, the vice chairperson of the Crusade, was convicted in both the state and federal level, which resulted in him going to prison. Joseph Cordova Jr. was an informant for the government. Cordova infiltrated the Crusade, and later reported that Haro supplied him with grenades. Cordova had to follow Haro’s request, and in doing so, he ‘was supposed to use these grenades to bomb an Arab store to gain the trust of Haro to fully infiltrate the Crusade. Other members of the Crusade that were negatively affected by the bombing were Van and Steve Lucero. They were brothers, and they were investigated by the FBI in 1977 because they were connected to the 1974 Fuerzas Armadas de Liberacion Nacional (FALN). ‘bout USCCB.” United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. http://www.usecb.org/about/index cfm (accessed April 30, 2012). They “promote the greater good which the Church offers humankind, especially through forms and programs of the apostolate fittingly adapted to the circunstances of time and place". This short excerpt comes from their web page. ‘© Parmenter, Cindy. "Grenade Plans Disclosed," Denver Post, December 5, 1975. Page 15 of 16FALN was a Puerto Rican independence group that exploded several bombs in New York City.*® The FBI was trying to find connections between FALN and the Crusade, and succeeded by claiming that Alberto Mares, another Crusade member, used bombs that supposedly the FALN used too. Those were not the only connections the FBI was making ‘They began involving people who were not associated with the Crusade but who simply knew a member. ‘The Crusade for Justice was an organization that wanted better education, less police brutality, and equal rights for the Chicano community. They helped establish the Escuela Tlateloco through their summer programs; they fought against police brutality by blaming the police for the bombing of March 17. They fought against police brutality by the kind of actions they would take, For example, the many times Gonzales and the Crusade worked to bail out arrested members, and through education and their influence, they were able to help people become more aware of their rights and their government. After the March 17 shooting and bombing the Crusade started to lose its credibility. The media's misinterpretations of events led to the Crusade being hurt publicly. Negative connotations started to develop due to its militancy. The Crusade was turning into an unsafe organization, even though it continued to help the community while trying to stay afloat. All of these overshadowing events affected those associated with the Crusade and those who were not. In the end all of these issues increased the decreasing number of members in the Crusade. “6 Vigil, Ernesto B.. The Crusade for Justice: Chicana Militancy and the Government's War on Dissent. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1999. 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