A fundraiser for Nicoll Hernández-Polanco—a Guatemalan transgender woman who's been in an all-male immigration detention center in Florence for about six months—kick started earlier this month to have some cash handy in case a judge sets a price to Nicoll's freedom in upcoming days.

Nicoll's bond hearing is now scheduled for April 22, according to Mariposas Sin Fronteras—a Tucson LGBT/immigrants rights advocacy group. Her attorneys, Heather Hamel and Vidula Patki, say her asylum hearing might take place that same day, but they are waiting for confirmation on everything that'll be happening this and next week related to Nicoll's case.

Advocates have been fighting for Nicoll's release, or least her transfer to an all-female detention facility, since the end of last year but Immigration Customs Enforcement has repeatedly refused. Nicoll has two previous deportations, which is the reason she had to wait six months to get a bond hearing.

Hamel and Patki hoped ICE would grant her humanitarian parole (since Nicoll is an asylum seeker), especially after Nicoll reported she had been sexually abused by another detainee. While in detention, the abuse has been constant—physical and emotional from both other detainees and detention center guards. The first month she was in detention, Nicoll was patted down at least six times a day by the male guards and she has had to shower with the other detainees. 

University of Arizona adjunct and non-tenure faculty will be part of the Fight for $15 rally happening Wednesday.

The international movement demands that the country's minimum wage be raised to $15 an hour. The movement started out with fast-food workers asking for better pay, but this year, childcare workers and adjunct professors are among the people joining the struggle.

About 200 cities around the U.S. and in 35 countries will host similar events in solidarity. 

The one in Tucson begins at 11 a.m. There is more information below from an email I received:

ASSEMBLE at the intersection of Speedway and Campbell (we are hoping to occupy all four corners).

MARCH west on the North Side of Speedway approximately one block to the McDonalds on that side of the street.

RALLY with speakers, striking Fast Food Workers, and perhaps a song or two. Following this rally, we will PROCEED another block to the underpass under Speedway leading to the University of Arizona Campus.  

REASSEMBLE on the UofA Mall, we will then MARCH West along the Mall to Old Main where another RALLY will take place at 12 p.m.. We will be joining Non Tenured Staff from both the UofA and Pima Community Colleges who are the low wage workers who teach a majority of classes at our educational institutions with unlivable wages and no benefits.

We will have signs and Banners. But please feel free to bring your own. 

As I wrote in an article earlier this year, an average working graduate student (not all adjunct and non-tenure faculty members are graduate students by the way) makes about $16,000, which is below the estimated cost of attendance ($20,900, according to the UA Graduate Professional Student Council), as well as the living wage for Pima County ($17,400 as calculated by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology).

The University of Arizona has released its plans to increase tuition for most students to balance the budget after severe funding cuts from the state. 

Next Monday, the Arizona Board of Regents will host a series of public comment events at the universities, but you can also send the regents an email at [email protected]; a letter to 2020 N. Central Ave., Suite 230, Phoenix, AZ 85004; or a fax to (602) 229-2555. Do it before April 30.

Here's a little breakdown on the UA tuition proposition, which would need to be approved by the Arizona Board of Regents:

- New undergrads who are Arizona residents will pay $446 more a year, a grand total of $11,403. For out-of-state students, attending the UA would cost $33,630, a hike of more than $3,000 a year.

Did our picks for Tucson's 100 Essential Dishes make you mad? Did you just discover Tucson's best thrift store? Do you want to make sure your Vet gets the recognition he or she deserves? Well, it's time. Best of Tucson time. 

We have (finally!) released the ballot for this year's Best of Tucson. We're running the voting like last year: You have until June 15 to nominate anyone for any category. Then, we'll tally up the votes and open up a second round of voting where the top three contenders can fight for your love. 

So, go vote! Tell your friends to vote. Go to that bar/sporting goods store/bike lane you've been thinking about and then come home and fill out the survey. 

You can save your ballot and come back to it if you need more time—we get it, it's tough to choose sometimes—just make sure it's all filled out by June 15.

Look, I know it was just Arizona Gives Day, but let's all give a little bit more on Sunday, April 12. Barrio Brewing is hosting the Tails and Ales fundraiser that day and everyone loves animals, right? Right.

The brew-centric fundraiser works in two ways. First, you can bring in your pooch and get it washed by the wheeled women of the Tucson Roller Derby. If you're currently dogless (I'm sorry), then you can also buy a locally-brewed beer at Barrio as a part of the fundraiser.

The proceeds of the dog wash station and ten percent of Barrio sales during the event will go to benefit both the Humane Society of Southern Arizona and Tucson Roller Derby. The fundraiser runs from 11 a.m. until 4 p.m. on Sunday at Barrio Brewing Co., located at 800 E. 16th St. 

Tails and Ales will also feature music from Shrimp Chaperone, commemorative pint glasses and gift basket raffles. 

Google defines the word bacchanal as "an occasion of wild and drunken revelry" (please don't look up what Webster's defines it as), and Borderlands' first ever Bacchanal promises to be just that. With two days of totally free music, art, comedy and, of course, beer (the beer isn't so free), the brand new community event will feature a range of entertainment options on Saturday, April 11 and Sunday, April 12. 

The event kicks off at Borderlands Brewing Co., located at 119 E. Toole Ave., on Saturday at noon where attendees can peruse works of art from a range of Tucson artists. Organizer Ryan Malco says the event is an opportunity for them to showcase pieces from locals who might rarely get the chance to be seen otherwise.

"This community has so many wonderful artists who don't get opportunity to show their work," Malco says. "Borderlands is very happy to offer Tucson's artists a place to be seen by the community."

Arizona Gives Day has arrived. It's a great time to contribute to our favorite nonprofits, even if it's just $5. What matters is the gesture and that, at least once a year, we are all on the same page with helping out.

Here are my suggestions (not in any particular order) but Arizona Gives website has a bunch more, and, of course, many of you already have your own.

KXCI — Beloved KXCI, not even my own mother reads my emotions as well as you do. It makes me squeal with happiness that you are the only radio station here that pays attention to amazing artists from around the world, including music I grew up listening to in Latin America. When I drive home after a crazy day and Manu Chao or Ana Tijoux start coming out of my speakers, I lose my shit. Thank you.

Friends of Pima Animal Care Center — I adopted my 4-year-old dog Donna from here about eight months ago.  PACC is in desperate need of more room and other care improvements. 

The All Souls Procession/Many Mouths One Stomach — Need I say anything? All Souls is Tucson. Thousands of us come together in this ritual that pulls influence from El Día de Muertos and other world traditions paying homage to the living and dead. There's a lot going on, and Moctober Fest alone isn't enough to put it all together. Also, any donation you make will be matched!

Tucson Interfaith HIV/AIDS Network INC — Better known as TIHAN, this organization has been around since 1994 with the sole goal to provide people living with HIV/AIDS with faith-based (and all other types) of support, including meals, support groups, health and body wellness help.

Youth On Their Own — Youth On Their Own helps out homeless and at-risk youth graduate high school and stay off the streets. A lot of these kids have no support from their families, and YOTO steps in to try and fill that void as much as possible. 

Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona — Rather than buying extra food that will probably go to waste in your household, use the money to help feed families in our region. This doesn't fix poverty, but at least it brings temporary relief.

The Primavera Foundation — Primavera is doing what it cans to help Tucson's homeless. Something I've been repeating every week: we don't have enough resources and the ones we do have need improvement. 

Come on, you have all day!

Are you into standup comedy, Bob's Burgers, or joy? Because Eugene Mirman—the voice of Gene on Bob's Burgers—is bringing his act to Old Tucson. The tickets are free, you just have to let them know which of Mirman's two April 10 shows you'd like to attend.  

Mirman's bio: 

Eugene Mirman is the voice of "Gene" on FOX's Emmy-Award winning animated series Bob's Burgers. As a child he inspired millions, but I'd rather not say how (fine - he was the doctor who operated on Ronald Reagan after he was shot.) Just a few days ago, several employees at his local Staples recognized him as comedian/mobster Yvgeny Mirminsky from Adult Swim's Delocated. He also played Eugene, the landlord, on Flight of the Conchords, Dr. Eugene Mirman on Aqua Teen Hunger Force and Eugene, the Russian foreign exchange student, on Home Movies. He does not insist on his characters having some version of his real name, but is comfortable with it. Oh yeah, On Archer he voiced Cecil Tunt, whose name isn't rooted in Eugene, but was drawn to look like him. Mr. Mirman has recorded two comedy specials for Comedy Central and released around four albums. At the age of four his family immigrated from Russia and escaped communism (an ideology you foolishly romanticize). He grew up in Lexington, MA and in 1983 was blamed by classmates for shooting down Korean Airlines flight 007 (which he did not do). Eugene was named Best New York City Comedian by the Village Voice and one of the 10 best comedians of the last decade by Paste Magazine. He has released three comedy albums (the last two on Sub Pop records) and an incredibly funny parody-ish self-help book, The Will to Whatevs. Named by Rolling Stone as a "Hot Twitterer," Eugene also keeps his over 350k followers entertained daily.

It's time to get those creative juices flowing because the fourth annual Park Place Chalk Art Festival is poised to beautify the sidewalks of the mall, located off of Broadway Boulevard.

Amateur and aspiring artists and dabblers in the craft can take up a stick of chalk and start making something colorful and bright on the brick walkways in the designated community participation areas. For kids 3 to 13 years of age, a children's area will allow them to create their own works of art.

If chalk art is more of a spectator sport for you, no worries—over a dozen professional artists will be on site making intricate large scale, but temporary pieces for the event. Participating muralists this year include Matt Cotton, Wesley Fawcett Creigh, Carolyn Watson Dubisch, Ignacio Garcia and more. You can find those murals in the South and North outdoor walkways, as well as indoors at the Sears wing.

The event is also seeking volunteers for the festival, which takes place on Saturday, March 28 from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. and Sunday, March 29 from 11 a.m. until 3 p.m. If you're interested in helping out or looking for more information on the event in general, visit SAACA's website. Admission to the event is free.

Earlier this month, I wrote about Nicoll Hernández-Polanco, a transgender woman from Guatemala who has been held in an all-male immigration detention center since October. 

While in custody, she says she has experienced physical, emotional and sexual abuse, as brutal as she did in her native country, and later in Mexico. Despite protests, letters, and most-recently a National Week of Action, Immigration and Customs Enforcement refuses to release her, and has not agreed to at least transfer her to an an all-female facility.

In the past, ICE told Nicoll they could transfer her to a detention center in Santa Ana, California—allegedly, it's more "equipped" to housing trans women like Nicoll—but she refused. Abuse still occurs there, according to the Transgender Law Center, and Nicoll would have to part ways with the several Tucson and Phoenix LGBT/immigration rights advocacy groups that have helped her with her case. 

Many members of these have become her family. She hasn't had contact with her relatives in years.

Nicoll supporters, including Tucson's Mariposas Sin Fronteras, want everyone to know that you can still call-in and/or email ICE to demand for her release. (The contacts are on the poster up there.)

It's been nearly six months since Nicoll turned herself in at the Sonora-Arizona border pleading for asylum over the violent abuse for being transgender that she's endured since a little girl.

She hoped the U.S. could be a safe haven. Instead, she's been thrown into a detention center in Florence, where the assaults continue.