Category: Uncategorized

Dear Friends:

Ramsey’s health continues to improve slowly…

I was given the strength and knowledge to care
for my huband from Lovelia Perez, one of Ramsey’s best
friends (during the early 70s), and former Raza Unida Party
activist. Lovelia remained with me by telephone every
morning, noon, and night providing love, courage, compassion,
and the medical knowledge needed to help my husband survive
a very grave illness.

Lovelia Perez demonstrated the most unselfish act of placing
others before herself. Her beautiful heart and giving spirit
will never be forgotten. Lovelia (Mama Love) Perez, 66, of Austin, died
Sunday, Nov. 20, 2005, in Austin. She was born Nov. 20, 1939, in
McCulloch County, to Nemesio Perez, Sr. and Francisca (Aguirre) Perez.
She was a registered nurse and was Poly Spiritual. She attended SMU,
received a bachelor of science in nursing from the Texas Women’s
University in Denton and received a masters degree from South West
Texas State University in San Marcos. Survivors include her mother, Francisca Perez of San Angelo; a son,
Carlos Gonzales of Austin; a daughter, Driana Gonzales, also of Austin;
and two sisters, Estela Perez Santos and husband, Manuel, of San Angelo
and Berta Perez Linton, also of San Angelo. She was preceded in death
by her father; and two brothers, Nestor and Nemesio Perez, Jr. The
family requests memorials be made to The Christopher House in Care of
Hospice of Austin. Her obituary can be accessed online.

Lovelia Perez was an angel sent by God to teach us real love and
compassion, and to help save a man whose message she embraced and
shared with others. In a letter to Ramsey she wrote, "Some people want
to talk about La Raza, but I tell them they cannot discuss La Raza
without you. Whether they like it or not, you are our history — our
hero. Have you done research as to how manmy times people have used
your name on their books or their articles? We have won the war of the
tortilla. HEB makes tortillas better than some Mexicanos, and that
includes me. We have won the color war. It’s okay now to have a pink,
purple, or green house. We have made progress in the food and language
wars, but it’s the spiritual war that we are so behind in."

We dedicate the poem below to our dear friend, Lovelia Perez.

–Irma Muniz (Nov. 27, 2005)

———————————-

VOYAGE

I languish in this world of woe and tears.
Bleak is my exile, heavy are my shackles and chains
on this day of remembrance in the darkness
of this medieval dungeon.

I rest my eyes and soul.

I voyage to a far and distant land that was ours long ago.
Here I gaze into the colors that are not rare to me.
As I journey further with the spirits of this land,
I reach the clearing of the dark jungle;
I can envision the temples of Huitzilopotli and Quetzacoatl.

The day is August 13, 1521. There stood Cuauhtemoc,

he who is pure, who died in war for us,
he who lives close to the sixth sun — the valiant Mexika

(me-shee-ka) warrior.
What a magnificent sight it was, for he lives

in the house of the sun, a place of wealth and joy.

He, like a fine burnished turquoise, gave his heart.
It arrived at the place of the sun where it will germinate,
once again to blossom into the Rising of the Sixth Sun.
When I gazed into the eyes and heart of Cuauhtemoc
I could sense the consciousness of our Mexika birth-soul.

I perceived the pride and dignity of my native ancestors

within me — the sixth sun rose.

I walked with Cuauhtemoc up the temple steps that reached
the heavens.
I was in the shadow of our past, present and future of our
beloved Aztlan.
I witnessed the suffering, sorrow, pain, misery, hunger,

and sacrifices on that ancient historical day.

But as I voyaged further into what is above us, Topan,

and in the region of the dead, Mictlan,
the winds from the four directions of the universe sang a
sweet song to my heart and I rejoiced when I gazed into

the faces of our destined heroes in my dreams.
For you see, when I’m in the realm of my forefathers and

ancestors, I fear nothing and take pleasure in their

presence of this sixth sun.

It is this transformation and reformation of my indigenous

Mexika spirituality I long to know — an ancient history

concealed and denied for 500 years.
Yet within me does the rage of thousands build for the many

sorrows, hardships, and sacrifices my forefathers endured.

There is no rest for my soul (Mexicayotl) until the

manifestations of the rising of the sixth sun appears
among our people.

My Mexika brothers and sisters, all my world is caged

and confined yet my spiritual birth-soul runs free.

"Wait, Cuauhtemoc, for I am coming."

Ramsey Muniz/Tezcatlipoca

Solitary Confinement
August 13, 1999

———————————

"It is not true, it is not true
That we have come
To live here,
We came only to sleep
Only to dream…"

CANTARES MEXICANOS
1904, 17r.
Facsimile Ed. Mexico City: Antonio Penafiel

http://www.freeramsey.com

Dear Friends:

Ramsey’s doctor has stated several times that
he does not know how he is alive. He made these
comments after receiving reports of the procedures
and surgery that Ramsey underwent prior to being
transferred to the U.S. Medical Center in Springfield,
Missouri.

Ramsey is feeling better and he continues to
improve daily. He has gained approximately 2 pounds, and under the circumstances this is tremendous improvement. Based on reports recently received (and
letters of support) doctors at the U.S. Medical Center
for Federal Prisoners have decided to begin
administering antibiotics once again. They had been
reduced, but X-rays show some bacteria around his lungs.
This might explain Ramsey’s running out of breath while
walking.

This weekend I will be send thank you letters to
Senator John Cornyn and Congressman Solomon Ortiz for
their support during our desperate time of need for
medical attention.

Ramsey will probably remain at the U.S. Medical
Center for Federal Prisoners for the next 3-4 weeks,
as his serious condition has been acknowledged by
medical staff. This is good news because he will
receive better are while at the facility.

I must share, though not in detail, that my
husband had a very unique near death experience after
arriving at Springfield. What I will share are the
words that he spoke when I first saw him in
Springfield. He was most emotional from the experience
experienced while awake when he said, "Me levanto Dios."
While he is weak and regaining his strength, Ramsey is
spiritually stronger. His experiences have given him this
renewed strength.

I had a mentor throughout the ordeal that I suffered
for over three weeks. She is an old friend of Ramsey’s
and a former nurse. I would not have survived the
trauma of keeping Ramsey alive without Lovelia Perez,
who I love dearly. Ironically enough, Lovelia now faces
a sudden serious and painful medical condition, and
I ask that everyone pray for her healing. She is such
a special loving person who needs prayers at the
present time. I ask this of all our close friends.

In the future I will be send new writings
from Ramsey. In the meantime, please ask that God
grant him and his friend, Lovelia restored health.

Thank you for all of your prayers and support.

Sincerely,
Irma Muniz
Oct. 20, 2005

Ruling Abandons Low-wealth Districts and Upholds Glaring Inequities in the System

PRESS RELEASE

(AUSTIN, TEXAS) More than 16 years after declaring the school finance
system unconstitutional in Edgewood I, the Supreme Court of Texas
refused to remedy persistent inequalities in the present school funding
system. As a result, millions of school children in property-poor school districts
across the state face the prospect of even greater inequities in a new system that will not contain a property
tax cap.

MALDEF represented the Edgewood Districts∗, a group of 22
property-poor school districts, many of which filed the original
landmark school finance suit in 1984. With a trial record consisting of 655
findings of fact and 24 conclusions of law based on over 7,000 exhibits and testimony from dozens of
witnesses, the Supreme Court refused to address the issues and, instead, deferred to the Legislature’s
discretion. Although the Supreme Court found that the State violated the Texas Constitution by forcing
districts to tax at the maximum rate, the Court failed to address the gross inequities in the system. “MALDEF is very disappointed with the Supreme Court’s ruling,”
said MALDEF President and General Counsel Ann Marie Tallman. “This case
is not about money but rather about lost educational opportunities for
the 2 million-plus students attending
schools in property-poor districts. Unfortunately, the
Court’s decision ill-serves the interests of those children and the future of all Texas residents.”

David Hinojosa, MALDEF Staff Attorney and lead counsel in the
case, added: “Fifty years after Brown v. Board, our undisputed evidence
at trial showed that the quality of education for certain Texas
children still suffers as a direct result of which side of the tracks
they live on. Despite the glaring disparities between the haves and
havenots, the Court refused to confront the issues head on.

He continued: “The saving grace for our districts was that the Supreme Court did not state that the
recapture system needed to be eliminated. With that in mind, there is every reason for the Legislature to
address the inequities in the system when creating its new school finance plan.”

"While the Supreme Court ruled that the financing system is constitutionally efficient, no one should
believe we have a quality school system that can support the economic future of Texas. MALDEF looks
forward to working with the Legislature to provide a funding system that is fair and equitable for all Texas
children," commented Luis Figueroa, MALDEF Legislative Staff Attorney.

A national nonprofit organization found in 1968, MALDEF promotes and
protects the rights of Latinos through advocacy, community education
and outreach, leadership development, higher education scholarships and
when necessary, through the legal system.

∗ The Edgewood District consist of the following Independent School Districts: Edgewood, Brownsville,
Edcouch-Elsa, Harlandale, Harlingen, Jim Hogg County, Kenedy, Laredo, La Feria, La Vega, Los Fresnos,
Monte Alto, Pharr-San Juan-Alamo, Raymondville, Roma, San Benito, San Elizario, Socorro, Sharyland,
South San Antonio, United, and Ysleta.

Note: received via email at noon Nov. 22, corrected version received about 2pm.

Austin, Texas (Dec. 16, 2005) The Austin City Council yesterday
approved unanimously a resolution opposing the activities of the
Minutemen and other similar groups. The resolution cites concern over
untrained civilians taking immigration law into their own hands,
activities which may encourage discrimination and racial profiling.

The resolution directs the City Manager to report any vigilante activities to the City Council. The resolution was an initiative of the American Friends Service
Committee (AFSC) and the Coalition for Justice and Dignity in Austin, a
diverse coalition of immigrant and advocacy organizations. Fifty-eight
allied civic, faith and labor organizations were signatories to this
effort.

"We are pleased that Council recognized the dangers of vigilante groups
posturing as nothing more than neighborhood watch groups, and took
proactive action to diffuse any potentially violent situation," said
Yvonne Montejano of the AFSC.

The Minuteman Project and other vigilante groups say they are
protecting this country’s borders. Human rights organizations point out
that vigilante groups frequently use fear, intimidation and violent
tactics in their efforts to "secure" borders.

"These groups are providing simplistic answers to our nation’s
social, economic and political difficulties and many politicians are
jumping on the Minuteman bandwagon to distract the public from major
budget and employment problems," said Montejano.

Yesterday, U.S. House Judiciary Committee Chairman James Sensenbrenner
(R-WI) introduced anti-immigrant legislation that would make the entire
undocumented population, including 1.6 million children, felons by
their unlawful presence in this country. The House Judiciary Committee
is also considering the construction of a fence in parts of California,
Arizona, New Mexico and Texas to stop the flow of migrants.

The AFSC strongly opposes these anti-immigrant measures and instead
calls for an examination of the roots cause of migration, which it
maintains are primarily due to free trade and globalization policies.

——-

The American Friends Service Committee is a Quaker organization
that includes people of various faiths who are committed to social
justice, peace and humanitarian service. Its work is based on the
belief in the worth of every person and faith in the power of love to
overcome violence and injustice.


Note: press release received via email, Dec. 16, 2005–gm