The Sandinista Revolution celebrated its 30-year anniversary on July 19, 2009. Despite being three thousand miles away the Sandinista revolution found solidarity in the streets of San Francisco’s Mission District during the late ‘70s. The success of the revolution, led by the Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN), came from grassroots organizing and resistance in which many lost their lives. These photos are from El Tecolote’s photo archives.

Demonstration at "Plaza Sandino" located at the 24th and Mission BART station.

Pro-Sandinista march in the Mission.

(Left to Right) Angela Davis, Casimiro Sotelo, Roberto Vargas and Rev. Cecil Williams at FSLN press conference.

MY WORLD INCOMPLETE/ TO COMPLETE MY WORLD

A poem by Roberto Vargas

I
The years were piling up behind me/ in my tracks
circling from Nicaragua to San Francisco
(y regreso) from tears to struggle to home again.
In 1965 I Revisited Nicaragua
guided by my Nica neighbor on Bernal Heights
Berman Zuniga /pilot/leather salesman
former Guardia Nacional/Air Force Cadet
who formed part of an attempted air assault/coup against Somoza
was betrayed then flew his small plane to refuge en Cuba.
Berman became my mentor/introduced me to combatientes urbanos from the FSLN.
En Managua I rediscovered mi papa Silvestre/ myself/ poetry.
10 years later Berman and I delivered our GACETA SANDINISTA newspapers
in bookstores/tiendas on 24th St./ in Los Angeles/ in his old Mercedes
hot off our press.

II
In 68 Che was resurrected in 3 continents
in the coffee rich hills of Matagalpa, Nicaragua/ 1968
birthplace of Carlos Fonseca Amador, as Sandino/ patriarca of the FSLN
30 years before him
Che's Bolivian crucifixion engendered the politico-cachorros
of Sandino’s diáspora en el mero barrio de La Mision/ de Dolores/ de Post-Partum
where we fought for human rights, voting and union rights/ women’s’, gay,
and national liberation struggles with one hand on the Bible and the other on my gun
organizing poetry and prayer of resistance at St Peter’s Church
where I met Casimiro Sotelo in 74
after he handed me a WANTED poster of Somoza
“Dead or Alive.”
Casimiro’s brother Casimiro was a founder of The FSLN
Killed in combate in a Managua barrio against Somoza’s tanques.
I embraced Casimiro with Bernal Heights behind us
posing as momotombo LIGHT in that San Francisco Autumn
La Gaceta Sandinista bore its first leaves/first soldados.

III
I met Walter Ferretti at the Hyatt Regency joven cocinero
with his poet soul and pure of smile of a comandante.
That later was flashed in 1978 Time magazine foto,
Comandante Chombo combat coordinator of the Asalto al Palacio Nacional.
I met Raul Venerio pumping gas at 21st & South Van Ness
Mismo barrio de San Francisco.
With the skill of a pilot and the passion of Picasso
Raul became first editor of La Gaceta Sandinista/ arcquitecto del CyberPuente
Guided by compadre Gato/first jefe at the Centro Cultural d La Mision.
Alejandro, loyal keeper of the Pocho Che Press/ Gaceta Sandinista/ keeper of the fire
where we created word webs to other barrios where Nicas lived worked struggled.
Gato taught the technical trucos of how to lay out the fonts/ lead articles/distribution
Gato transforming/ became companero Ulises en el Frente Sur
Comandante Venerio and Berman teaching us how to fly over Pacific Coastal beaches
in mock raids over simulated somocista targets in 1974 Pacifica rent-a-plane
Dripping of the confidence radiated by moral authority/ of innocence/
umoved by the size of the risk posed by a Ronald Reagan military recon’s ability to detect
4 Sandinista Mouse-That Roared rebeldes in frenetic flight to a July 1979 rendezvous.

IV
Then came Anuar/ Palestino-Nica/ student at UC Berkeley /on motorcycle
Nimble quickfooted still in his teens balancing academia with his martial arts
demonstrating love and courage between grenades
with the humility of his heroism el Flaco Armando
followed by mi cunado Ray Solis, Campion Nacional Black Belt Karate-Do
who led us in Wing-Chung ritual/commitment
as we watched the faint steam of CHI rise from his shoulders
fingers upstretched to the sky in appeal/ reverence/ meditation
in our village within a village mi pueblo adoptado
the BART station on 24th and Mission morphed to Sandino Plaza
1/2 a block away in ‘77 Poeta padre/Ernesto Cardenal
Exorcizes with word alchemy/los somosauros from the
MissionCentro Cultural/ Yin-Yan temple/
baptizes children/parents/ Mi hijo Ariel
Liberation theology of the heart/of chololandia en praxis
engendered Comandantes Chombo Ferretti/Raul/Venerio/Tono/Anuar
poeta combatiente Gato Murguia/ConsulGenerales/Casimiro/Berman
Companeros that lived and died for/ and still live and fight for/ paz justicia y libertad.

V
Chombo trained the grupo de asalto comprised of young indios from Monimbo/Masaya
Ray’s Win Chung training/messages/ tense- relax- at will
KATAs thick as incense in Chombo’s prepping for combate
August 22 1978: Commandates. Cero/ Dora Maria/ Chombo, y los 30 monimbosenos
began to rewind the historical clock/ times up
liberated Somoza’s National Palace/La Chanchera Congreso/ Commandate Raul in support.
Days later Anuar- Roberto- y Tono Gringo took their longest walk
 into our sacred mountains with Pomares/ with Joaquin Cuadra/ el Zorro
To contribute our share of bullets and sacrifice
Memories surfacing of childhood joys/sorrows of nuestro barrio/
Nina, Diana, Magaly/our loved ones training with us around Bernal Heights
El Gato Ulises trained and deployed cholomandos from Fresno into and
beyond the 19th of July for a Patria Libre O Morir
for Nicaragua from any Rincon of this planeta/Americana
from Homeboy Heroics to/homeland security/ to historical memory.

VI
Today we remain unmoved this side of the 19th of JULY
jaded by the size of the 9/11 mandate to muzzle and maim/ dissent
by the US 4th fleet subtle seabound message to Daniel, Evo, to Chavez from Cheney
carved on Roose-Bush’s’s big stick policy/ no lap top carrots from Plan Colombia
policies that engender new men new women, no fear no pain just armed love.
Engendered Bolivian Indigenous liberation 40 years after Che’s crucified there/
ignited my first poems/ novitiate prologue to my newfound identity
still resisting TODAY!! In the barrios of the Bronx/ San Antos/ La Mision
defending our familias EN NUESTRA AMERICA.
El pan nuestro de cada dia/ our very water / in Venezuela Nicaragua
with the gift of survival ingrained by los abuelos /en Bolivia Ecuador
gift of love for our selves/our pueblos en Brazil Chile en Asia Africa.
40 years later in Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria still so much loyalty to bogus principles
false premises false promises patriotic index down 40 years
as global mortgage melt-down tips the iceberg for impending food phenomenas/famine
oil-drilling in forbidden territories/ Gallon of heating oil costs nearly 8 bucks in Alaska
The global economy is in Las Vegas, Wall Street rolls the dice!

VII
40 years came & went/ time to cover the walls again with our colors of anger and pain
art of survival, murals of militant love options/ of Miranda, Mike Rios
TIME TO cover the streets with transparent voices/ real commitment
show the way on this 40th anniversary of ARTE DEL PUEBLO
en San Francisco
UNIDOS in love and struggle VENCEREMOS
PATRIA LIBRE Y VIVIR.