Human Rights Advocate, Chicano Activist, Rodolfo “Corky” Gonzales, Ill

March 27, 2005

Human Rights Advocate and Chicano Activist, Rodolfo “Corky” Gonzales,
Taken Ill

Denver, CO. Internationally renowned human rights advocate and Chicano
activist, Rodolfo "Corky" Gonzales was admitted to Denver's Saint Anthony
Central Hospital on Tuesday evening, March 25, 2005. Mr. Gonzales was
diagnosed with coronary and renal distress, but doctors have agreed to
discontinue any further medical treatment of those conditions. On
Thursday, March 24, 2005, Mr. Gonzales was released to the loving care of
his family, and he is resting comfortably at home.

Mr. Gonzales gained widespread popularity as an amateur and professional
prizefighter in the 1940's and 1950's. With the growth of the civil rights
movement in the 1960's and 70's, Gonzales chaired the Denver-based Crusade
for Justice, a human and civil rights organization that achieved
political, social and economic rights for Mexican-Americans locally and
nationally. Gonzales' work is often compared in stature and importance to
that of such notables as Martin Luther King, Cesar Chavez and Malcolm X.
Gonzales led a delegation on the famous "Poor Peoples' March" to
Washington, D.C., and he consistently advanced the rights of indigenous
peoples throughout the Americas.

One of Mr. Gonzales' most enduring legacies has been Escuela Tlatelolco
Centro de Estudios, founded in 1970. Named after the illustrious community
of scholars among the Aztecs, the Plaza of Tlatelolco in Mexico City was
also the scene of a brutal Mexican government massacre of students in
1968. Escuela Tlatelolco continues in the tradition of its indigenous
predecessors by serving Latino/Indigenous students (grades pre-K through
12) from the metropolitan Denver region. Escuela Tlatelolco extends the
vision of "Corky" Gonzales by ensuring that Latino/Indigenous youth are
fully educated and empowered to continue their human development through
their university and post-graduate studies.

Messages of support for Mr. Gonzales may be sent to Escuela Tlatelolco
(et [at] escuelatlatelolco.org). Updated information on Mr. Gonzales'
condition may also be found on the website (http://www.escuelatlatelolco.org).
The entire Gonzales family would like to thank the thousands of
well-wishers who have contacted them, and they wish peace, justice and
happiness to all friends and supporters of Corky.