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APRIL 2026

We're closing out April with a new exhibit & a MACRI Talk

History never sleeps!

Explore MACRI’s new traveling exhibit, You Have the Right: Mexican Americans and Due Process of the Law.

This exhibit explores three court cases involving Mexican Americans and Mexican-perceived individuals that have been significant to the interpretation of the Fifth, Sixth, and Fourteenth Amendments and shaped the interpretation of due process of the law in the United States: Miranda v. Arizona (1966), United States v. Brignoni-Ponce (1975), and Chavez v. Martinez (2003).

These cases, whose plaintiffs were Mexican American and Latino individuals, affect all Americans today. Miranda v. Arizona (1966) secured what we now call our “Miranda rights;” United States v. Brignoni-Ponce (1975) prohibited law enforcement from stopping and questioning someone solely on the basis of their appearance; and Chavez v. Martinez (2003) marked a rollback in protections from coercive questioning from authorities.

The three moments featured in this exhibit remind us that the interpretation of constitutional amendments is constantly debated in courts at all levels of government, and can result in expansions and contractions of civil rights. The legal struggle for civil rights is continuous, and rarely a linear progression.

The exhibit will be on view through Tuesday, June 30, 2026. The MACRI Visitor Center gallery is open Monday through Friday, 10 AM—NOON and 1 – 4 PM, or by appointment.

RSVP!

This Wednesday!

Join us on Wednesday for a virtual MACRI Talk featuring historian and memoirist, Dr. Lydia Otero, who will present on María Navarrete Cordova’s and her family’s history at Casa Cordova, telling the stories that are missing from the historic site’s narrative.

📅 Wednesday, April 29, 2026
🕕 6:00 - 7:00 PM Central Time
💻 Virtual - streaming live on our Facebook & YouTube channels
🔗 RSVP below for event links and updates

What's it about?

La Casa Cordova, known as Tucson, Arizona’s oldest building, was formerly the home of María Navarrete Cordova (1895–1975). In 1972, gentrification and urban renewal pushed Cordova out of her home. She and her family fought the removal in court, but lost the case. The historic building was preserved as a museum. The stories told there, however, did not represent María and her family’s history in the property, and their struggle to keep it.

The story of Casa Cordova raises questions about the role and practice of historic preservation in the face of the displacement of historic communities of color.

Join us to learn the full story!

More Info & RSVP

SAVE THE DATE!

A 5 de Mayo MACRI Talk

Join us at the Bazan Library on Tuesday, May 5th, to learn about the legendary Tejano, General Ignacio Zaragoza, and El Cinco de Mayo. Presented in partnership with the San Antonio Public Library!

RSVP via SAPL