Tales From Aztlantis

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Welcome to another Throwback Thursday! In this episode we take a look back at one of Kurly's favorites.

Acequias – A Forgotten History!

The Acequia is a communal irrigation ditch, and its continued use is a testament to the cultural resiliency of the New Mexican people. But where does this tradition come from? Sadly, most New Mexicans have a distorted understanding of Acequia history and credit its creation solely to Moors and Spaniards. In this episode we dig a little deeper, and explore the Mesoamerican contributions to the Acequias of Mexico and New Mexico! 

Your hosts:

Kurly Tlapoyawa is an archaeologist, ethnohistorian, and filmmaker. His research covers Mesoamerica, the American Southwest, and the historical connections between the two regions. He is the author of numerous books and has presented lectures at the University of New Mexico, Yale University, San Diego State University, and numerous others. He is currently a professor of Chicano Studies at the Colegio Chicano del Pueblo, a free online educational institution.
@kurlytlapoyawa

Ruben Arellano Tlakatekatl is a scholar, activist, and professor of history. His research explores Chicana/Chicano indigeneity, Mexican indigenist nationalism, and Coahuiltecan identity resurgence. Other areas of research include Aztlan (US Southwest), Anawak (Mesoamerica), and Native North America. He has presented and published widely on these topics and has taught courses at various institutions. He currently teaches history at Dallas College – Mountain View Campus.

Cited in this episode:

 Cover Art: Artist’s impression of part of the canal network linking chinampas around Tenochtitlan by  Alberto Beltrán, found at Mexicolore.co.uk.

Uppsala Map can be found at the World Digital Library https://www.wdl.org/en/item/503/

"Tlalok San Ysidro" Available for download here: raquelzrivera.hearnow.com
Used with permission by the artists:
Raquel Z. Rivera
Arnaldo Acosta
Fidel González 

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Book: The Four Disagreements: Letting Go of Magical Thinking (Amazon)

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In this special episode, Tlakatekatl shares an interview he conducted with Carlos Aceves Yolohuitzcalotl back in 2019. Carlos has devoted his life to advancing Chicano/Mexicano Indigeneity in the U.S./Mexico Borderlands and developing the “Xinachtli Project” which incorporates indigenous pedagogy in childhood education. They also talk about his path to “la tradicion” known as Mexikayotl, and his involvement in founding the first Chicana/o/x indigenous centric groups in Texas known as kalpullis. Enjoy!

Xinachtli Community Schools Project

Ruben Arellano Tlakatekatl is a scholar, activist, and professor of history. His research explores Chicana/Chicano indigeneity, Mexican indigenist nationalism, and Coahuiltecan identity resurgence. Other areas of research include Aztlan (US Southwest), Anawak (Mesoamerica), and Native North America. He has presented and published widely on these topics and has taught courses at various institutions. He currently teaches history at Dallas College – Mountain View Campus. 

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Find us: https://www.facebook.com/TalesFromAztlantis

Merch: https://chimalli.storenvy.com/

Book: The Four Disagreements: Letting Go of Magical Thinking (Amazon)

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In this dispatch, we take a look at Skepticamp New Mexico, and get an Olmec Update from Kurly!

Kurly Tlapoyawa is an archaeologist, ethnohistorian, and filmmaker. His research covers Mesoamerica, the American Southwest, and the historical connections between the two regions. He is the author of numerous books and has presented lectures at the University of New Mexico, Yale University, San Diego State University, and numerous others. 
@kurlytlapoyawa

Support the Show.

Find us: https://www.facebook.com/TalesFromAztlantis

Merch: https://chimalli.storenvy.com/

Book: The Four Disagreements: Letting Go of Magical Thinking (Amazon)

Send us a Text Message.

My name is Kurly Tlapoyawa, and I LOVE movies. I spent a good chunk of my childhood being snuck into the drive-in by my parents, where I took in double and triple features of cinematic greatness. And when movies became available on home video in the 1980s, all bets were off. It’s no exaggeration to say that my life was shaped by movies. In 2004 I opened Burning Paradise Video, where I offered a carefully curated selection of independent, foreign, underground, and cult films to the public. Welcome to Burning Paradise, my love letter to a bygone era.

In this episode, we take a look into the future with Class of 1984

"Andrew Norris (Perry King, Lipstick, Mandingo), an idealistic and naive music teacher, has moved into a new community with his pregnant wife, Diane (Merrie Lynn Ross, General Hospital), only to find his new job is an academic abyss. Appalled by the crime-infested school, Norris soon crosses paths with its teenage kingpin, the shrewd and sadistic Peter Stegman (Timothy Van Patten, Catacombs, Zone Troopers). With Norris setting his sights on reforming Stegman and the young punk declaring war on his teacher, the duo is on a collision course for a fateful showdown."

Your host:
Kurly Tlapoyawa is a professional archaeologist, podcaster, author, filmmaker, and former stuntman. His IMDB can be viewed here.

Purchase the Stink of Flesh on Blue Ray
Purchase the book "Direct Your Own Damn Movie"
Watch "Guardians of The Purple Kingdom"

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Book: The Four Disagreements: Letting Go of Magical Thinking (Amazon)

Send us a Text Message.

For this edition of Throwback Thursday, we step back in time to revisit a great interview with Juan Tejeda, an icon of the Chicano Movement, and Publisher of Aztlan Libre Press.

Aztlan Libre Press with Juan Tejeda

In this episode we are joined by Juan Tejeda, co-owner and publisher of Aztlan Libre Press. Aztlan Libre Press is an independent publishing company based out of Yanawana/San Antonio, Texas that is dedicated to the publication, promotion and free expression of XicanX literature and art. Established in 2009 by Juan Tejeda and Anisa Onofre, Aztlan Libre Press has published a dozen books and a line of XicanX Art Notecards. 

Purchase their books at https://squareup.com/store/aztlanlibrepress/. 

Juan Tejeda retired in 2016 as a professor of Mexican American Studies and Music from Palo Alto College in San Antonio, Texas. A musician, writer, arts administrator and Xicano activist, from 1976 to 1985 he was the jefe segundo of Xinachtli, the first traditional Mexica-Azteca Conchero dance group in Texas; and from 1980 to 1998 he was the Xicano Music Program Director at the Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center in San Antonio. He is the button accordionist and vocalist with the Conjunto Aztlan, and along with his wife, Anisa Onofre, is the co-owner and publisher of Aztlan Libre Press.

Your hosts:

Kurly Tlapoyawa is an archaeologist, ethnohistorian, and filmmaker. His research covers Mesoamerica, the American Southwest, and the historical connections between the two regions. He is the author of numerous books and has presented lectures at the University of New Mexico, Yale University, San Diego State University, and numerous others.
@kurlytlapoyawa

Ruben Arellano Tlakatekatl is a scholar, activist, and professor of history. His research explores Chicana/Chicano indigeneity, Mexican indigenist nationalism, and Coahuiltecan identity resurgence. Other areas of research include Aztlan (US Southwest), Anawak (Mesoamerica), and Native North America. He has presented and published widely on these topics and has taught courses at various institutions. He currently teaches history at Dallas College – Mountain View Campus. 

Support the Show.

Find us: https://www.facebook.com/TalesFromAztlantis

Merch: https://chimalli.storenvy.com/

Book: The Four Disagreements: Letting Go of Magical Thinking (Amazon)

Send us a Text Message.

Dr. Herrán Ávila is a historian of the Cold War in Latin America, with an emphasis on conservative, anticommunist, and extreme right movements. After researching the comparative history of anticommunism in Mexico, Argentina, and Colombia, his current book project seeks to unveil the national and Latin American dimensions of right wing activism in Cold War Mexico. The book project examines the history and Cold War transformations of right wing dissidence to the Mexican postrevolutionary state, and situates Mexico as a crucial hub for transnational anticommunist activism, shedding light on the various ways in which Mexican anticommunists forged links with Latin American, European, and East Asian fellow travelers. Dr. Herrán Ávila’s publications in both English and Spanish reflect a range of related research interests, such as right wing youth; neofascism in Latin America; the history of political crime in the Americas; and the intersections between banditry and insurgency. He has also been a recipient of various scholarships and grants from Fulbright, Mexico’s National Council for Science and Technology, the New School for Social Research, and the Hoover Institution, and a contributor to the Mexican dailies Reforma and El Norte.

Your hosts:

Kurly Tlapoyawa is an archaeologist, ethnohistorian, and filmmaker. His research covers Mesoamerica, the American Southwest, and the historical connections between the two regions. He is the author of numerous books and has presented lectures at the University of New Mexico, Yale University, San Diego State University, and numerous others. 
@kurlytlapoyawa

Ruben Arellano Tlakatekatl is a scholar, activist, and professor of history. His research explores Chicana/Chicano indigeneity, Mexican indigenist nationalism, and Coahuiltecan identity resurgence. Other areas of research include Aztlan (US Southwest), Anawak (Mesoamerica), and Native North America. He has presented and published widely on these topics and has taught courses at various institutions. He currently teaches history at Dallas College – Mountain View Campus. 

Support the Show.

Find us: https://www.facebook.com/TalesFromAztlantis

Merch: https://chimalli.storenvy.com/

Book: The Four Disagreements: Letting Go of Magical Thinking (Amazon)