• Craig Baker

I get that TPD felt like they needed to be prepared for anything last night—there is, admittedly, a bit of a history in Tucson of post-game shenanigans when it comes to Wildcat Basketball during the month of March. I even understand that there were some minor uprisings on University Boulevard and at the south end of 4th Ave after Arizona’s heartbreaking overtime loss to Wisconsin—thankfully, no one was seriously hurt and no damage was reported. What I don’t quite understand is why, once the threat seemed to have passed, did TPD continue to not only lock down the public street, but also to push back against fans and citizens that obviously presented no harm.

While walking home toward the UA campus from our viewing post at Sky Bar, our small party of four hit what could only be described as a wall of riot police stretched across the whole of the street like a bulletproof black curtain. Anxious to document the situation for the Weekly (that is my job, as it were), I naturally began taking photographs of our newly-trained riot squad with my iPhone. There was some Facebook photo-posing by at least one bystander, but certainly no hint of aggression nor threat thereof. But the police, nonetheless—apparently still on hyper-alert after the rush that immediately followed the game—still seemed anxious for one last opportunity to put their new riot training to work. The street was clear, though officers pushed forward still and even began muscling people on the sidewalks. To simply be in the area of University and Euclid after the game apparently became a crime once the boys (and girls) in blue—or rather, black—had their adrenaline pumping.

When the line of cops started moving, I switched to video. Though you cannot see it in the clip, my wife—who was following police orders to disperse—took several sharp, painful shoves in the back from a baton as police re-cleared the already-clear street. I continued filming as the police approached, walking backwards in pace with them as best as I could manage while continuing to film and, before I knew it, my hands were being cuffed behind my back and I was led up the road to a waiting paddy wagon. I never saw the face of my arresting officer before he/she transferred me to another officer (the one that led me to the van). At no point was I read my rights nor was I told why I was being arrested, though about ninety minutes later I was issued a citation by yet another officer for “unruly gathering”. They were then nice enough to remind me how lucky I was not to be spending the night in County.

The other arrestees with whom I shared the space in the back of a police van for a long, uncomfortable hour-or-so (it’s hard to check the time with your hands secured behind your back) were an eclectic bunch ranging from a shirtless law student covered front and back with bean bag welts, a University freshman who claimed to be walking to Chipotle to buy a burrito after the game when he was apprehended, and a spiritually aggressive campus evangelist who never gave a reason for his detention except that he was apparently destined to convert the other eight people in the van to Christianity (editor's note: This evangelist would be Dean Saxton, otherwise known as the "You Deserve Rape" guy).

I’m not saying that TPD should not have riot police at the ready on big UA game nights. That just seems like common sense. But when it comes down to it, though the New York Daily News reported that Tucson Police Sergeant Pete Dugan claims that only those advancing on officers were arrested, there is at least one video (namely, this one) that proves you didn’t need to do any “advancing” whatsoever to be viewed as a threat by a super-charged, riot-ready police squad.

Though the plastic zip-tie cuffs left blisters on my left wrist and my sense of security as a journalist and citizen was left in doubt, the entire ordeal was still only slightly more difficult to handle than watching the tragic end to the UA season just a few moments before.

Waiting through a commercial? Watch this to shake some tension, and to see, if you already didn't know, that stripped of the sexual histrionics and general provocations manipulated by its author and her crew, "Wrecking Ball," is one hell of a song.

Go girls!

And Bear Down Cats!

Friday night was the Tucson premier of the new César Chávez film at the Harkin Theater, sponsored by the Arizona César E. Chávez Holiday Coalition. It was a great turnout, a nearly full house in one of Harkin's larger theaters, with a few empty seats in the front rows.

It's a good film, well worth seeing. For someone like me who is Hispanic-history-challenged and is trying to fill in the gaps, it provided a factual and emotional sense of the beginnings of the United Farm Workers, some of which I knew, some of which was new to me. And in a country which gives Martin Luther King his due, a film like this is long overdue. It helps give Chávez the recognition he deserves, alongside King, for his successful fight to bring greater economic and social justice in our country. Long after the film has left the theaters, I hope it will become a regular part of history classes in schools around the country.

On last night's AZ Illustrated Politics: Republican Christine Jones talked about why she is running for governor this year and then National Republican Congressional Committee spokesman Daniel Scarpinato and Democratic strategist Rodd McLeod gave us a preview of this year's congressional races.

Thursday night's thrilling Arizona basketball win over San Diego State prompted hundreds of UA students and fans to pour out onto University Blvd. after the game to collectively celebrate.

It was a relatively tame gathering, despite how local Twitter, TV people — the same TV people whose cameras and bright lights drew the crowd hungrily towards them — and Tucson and university police were on hand and in riot gear. But that was more of a precaution than anything else.

But, apparently, one person decided he couldn't just cheer and scream to show his support for the Cats.

While most people were "celebrating responsibly," as TPD put it in a news release, 25-year-old Andrew Gallardo was arrested for disorderly conduct after allegedly throwing a beer bottle "in the direction of responding officers."

According to UA's online student directory, Gallardo is an undergraduate in the Eller College of Management. Because of this, the release says his arrest has also been forwarded to the Dean of Students.

TPD went through training exercises earlier this month to prepare for an anticipated deep run by the UA basketball team in the NCAA tournament. The response to last night's celebration was just the tip of the iceberg, as no one wants a repeat of the 2001 craziness that saw Fourth Avenue turn into a war zone, rubber bullets and all.

KUAT - Cooper Center from J David Betts on Vimeo.

It's Camp Cooper's 50th birthday and the environmental education center on the edge of the Tucson Mountains is celebrating on Sunday, March 30. The 50th anniversary will kick-off with a food truck round-up from 5 to 9 p.m. at 5403 W. Trails End Road. There will be demonstrations, live music and stargazing with the National Optical Astronomy Observatories (NOAO) as part of the Globe at Night citizen-science campaign.

Those who grew up in Tucson and attended TUSD schools can recall spending over-night at the center, and consequently so do many parents as well. It a special place and deserves a wonderful celebration. Happy Birthday, Camp Cooper. You're loved.

From UANews:

Managed through a groundbreaking partnership between the University of Arizona’s College of Education and Tucson Unified School District, the center, known as "Camp Cooper," has become a Tucson tradition — a place where children from kindergarten through eighth grade visit for overnight stays and learn about the Sonoran Desert.

...

"Our history is made up of the experiences that children have enjoyed at Cooper over the years," said Colin Waite, who directs the Cooper Center, which is housed in the UA College of Education. "We want to celebrate the role Cooper plays in sharing the wonders of the natural world and in molding the environmental leaders of tomorrow."

...

"I can still remember sitting around the campfire with my friends, sleeping in the cabins and especially exploring the desert," said Leiba Schuneman, who experienced Camp Cooper as a student at Lineweaver Elementary School.

"Spending time in nature is an important part of my life, from hiking and camping in college to sharing the desert and mountains with my two sons today," said Schuneman, who chairs the mathematics department University High School.

Environmental learning programs at the Cooper Center are ongoing during the school year. Through the partnership TUSD maintains ownershop of the center and is responsibible for its facilites, while UA employees coordiante programming and manage the daily functions of the site.

The center's staff affirm that the center's value within the classroom and beyond cannot be underestimated.

"As someone who's done environmental education in Tucson for the past eight years, I've discovered there's no substitute for getting kids out into the desert," said Moses Thompson, a Manzo Elementary teacher and counselor.

"The sense of scale and assault on your senses can't be mimicked," Thompson said. "Cooper Center taps into the desert’s potential not only through its unparalleled location but through the quality programs it delivers."

We cordially invite you to watch the Elite 8 games with us on our giant projection screen on Saturday. We will open up at 2:30 pm for Dayton/Florida and get crazy for the Cats game starting at 5:49. BTFD!

Before Steven Michael Quezada played DEA agent Steven Gomez in the multi-Emmy Award-winning Breaking Bad phenomenon, he was a touring comedian, playwright and advocate for education reform.

Quezada is a product of the rapidly growing New Mexico film scene. "I pursued acting when I was 16, but I started in community theatre," Quezada said. The Eastern New Mexico University alumni started writing his own comedy plays and was encouraged to try stand up comedy. It wasn't long before Quezada started touring with latino comedy legends like George Lopez and Paul Rodriguez.

The five-time New Mexico Hispano Entertainers Association comedian of the year has worked with various Albuquerque youth intervention and academic groups like Youth Development Inc. "I have been doing gang intervention programs since the 80s. I'm trying to get educators to look at alternative teaching methods," Quezada said. "I have three kids and they all learn differently."

Quezada helped curate a youth theater program that encouraged at-risk students to learn all aspects of the art form and improve academically.

"They learn how to manage budgets, writing, research, set design, math and business," Quezada said.

You might have already read the Colin Boyd's Cesar Chavez film review, and you should stop what you're doing and read it now if you haven't. Boyd says the bio pic just scratches the surface of one of the most influential peaceful protesters and minds of our time. Luckily, there's text and documentaries that can fill in what the movie left out. AP posted a link of silent historic footage of Chavez and the United Farm Workers, and I'm glad Rotten Tomatoes can't rate these clips.