A cherry lipstick red 1974 Chevrolet glided down 24st street in “la mision” as it’s called by La Raza and so many other working class communities throughout the centuries who built this beautiful barrio after the missionaries stole it from the Ohlone Nation. As the Chevy rolled past each block, Its shining gold rimmed tires seemed to fly above the newest invaders, the hipsters and tech workers, tipping over their 4 dollar coffees and vegan donuts as they walked along the street like they had always been here, displacing rooted communities with every step, profiling young brown and black residents like Alex Nieto with every gaze. When the Chevy stopped in front of the Brava theatre where the new movie Lowrider Lawyers - putting a city on trial, about the community taking back the courts for justice for Alex Nieto, a young Xicano man emerged. he was wearing a red 49ers jacket and a snap-back cap. He moved slowly toward the front door of the theatre and then disappeared into the atmosphere.
The Brava theatre was filled with amor for Alex on Sunday, Jan 3rd. Alex Nieto, a life-long Mission resident and scholarship student’s humble spirit danced on the backs of the theatre chairs and throughout the audience. His quiet revolutionary love surrounded the sold-out crowd of attendees. His sweet soul who had never done anything but be a good sun to his parents, a good friend to his homies a good worker at his job and in his community and a good student to his studies was there in the theatre with us. And he was full of love.
“Alex Nieto, you made the world better...When you visited there was always laughter...,” Margarita Bac Sierra, Ben Bac Sierra’s 12 year old daughter opened the beautiful event with a poem of love to the “Tio” (uncle) who she had known all her life before he was killed by police for being brown as he peacefully ate his burrito on Bernal Hill before he had to report to his job as a security guard. Her poem was part of a power-FUL opening program that included hip Hop skolaz Equipto and Dregs 1 and the beautiful, undying love and scholarship of Ben Bac Sierra, poet, organizer, teacher, writer and director of this new film.
“How did you know he was a gang member?,” Questioned the lowrider lawyers in the peoples trial that unfolded on screen to a man called Mr. Wolf hilariously played by community organizer Al Osorio who told the man who eventually called the po’LICE on that fateful Friday night of March 21, 2014, that Alex had a gun instead of a taser
“Because he was wearing a red jacket,” Mr Wolf confusedly answered
“How do you know that a red jacket and cap means he is a gang member?” the lowrider lawyer continued to probe.
“Because i have seen them on TV’ Mr Wolf concluded looking blankly
This brutal testimony by the three new mission "residents" including a man who wasn't in agreement that the police should have been called were from the depositions by the new residents of the mission who were taking their dogs up to the Bernal Hill with no concept of who lived in this barrio for years before they ever arrived. Holding racist, classist stereotypes of young men of color which sadly so many middle class white people do hold, proving that like we at POOR Magazine and so many other conscious people said when we first found out about Alex’s murder, Alex was not only killed by police who shot over 49 bullets at this innocent man but he was killed by the benevolent violence ofgentrification.
But thats why this movie is such a powerful and urgent example of what we at POOR Magazine call poverty scholarship, La gente/ The people taking back the kkkorts, the institutions of so-called justice, power and oppression that constantly support the testing, arresting and incarcerating of every poor and person of color they get was seized by the people . Taken back by the impacted peoples, those of us who like Edwin Lindo said, a conscious life-long San Franciscan who is running for District 9 in San Francisco, are counted on to fail by the systems in place.
Written and directed by Benjamin Bac Sierra and filmed and edited by Peter Menchini with music by Dr Loco (Jose Cueller) and Favi Estrella, and lowrider lawyers played by community leaders, Frisco residents, mission homegirls and homeboys and the amazing Ben Bac Sierra.
“Community media, social media, these film showings and the rallies are all so important to keep the truth coming out, said Adante Pointer, conscious lawyer who is representing Alex Nieto’s family in the upcoming trial beginning March 1st at the post-film community panel which also included Roberto Hernandez, Edwin Lindo and Thea Mathews, “because the mainstream media will come out with their usual narrative which will be an attack on Alex’s character and we need to counter that with the truth.” Pointer concluded.
Ben saved the best for last, closing this magical day of spirit and art with Alex Nieto singing La mananitas ( Happy Birthday) carrying us out of the theatre with his amor.
The movie is a must see, deep and real and dense with life and musica and truth, too short like my fellow POOR magazine staff writer Leroy Moore who went with me said. And like the rhythm from the Aztec danzantes huetlhuetl (drum) from the opening scene in the courtroom which penetrated the settler colonial laws that protect the modern day settler class, with spirit, truth and consciousness, Lowrider lawyers is not only an act of artistic liberation but of our collective liberation as peoples, as youth, as community in unity,
Ben is asking all conscious community to join the family at the upcoming court trial which will begin on March 1, 2016. For more information go on-line to facebook- justice for Alex Nieto killed by SFPD