July 4th has always hurt me. I could have a long line of Mexican Americans who couldn’t vote, couldn’t buy homes in certain places and had hide from the KKK and Texas Rangers. Then I remember Uncle Ciprian. He suffered a concussion at Iwo Jima. And then:
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Complicated or angry about our position in the US, we still always paused on the 4th of July. Here is Ciprian Contreras with his family in the 1970s 
Here’s the song written by my cousin, Cruz Contreras, about his grandfather Ciprian Contreras. My cousin is the lead singer for the Appalachian rock band, The Black Lillies. The song is about Ciprian’s experience at Iwo Jima
Here’s Jose Feliciano’s interpretation of the National Anthem at game 5 of the 1968 World Series. The country was divided. The Puerto Rican singer was booed for it then but it remains my favorite today
Here’s the 1945 @HoustonChron story about Ciprian Contreras getting injured twice at Iwo Jima. His mom and dad got the notice and didn’t know his status yet. He’d survive and come home.
Today, Ciprian's niece and my sister, Leslie Contreras Schwartz, is the Houston Poet Laureate houstonpublicmedia.org/articles/arts-…
Here’s Ciprian in a Zoot Suit before joining to the Marines
And here’s Ciprian and his brother Carlos (my grandfather) walking the streets of Houston
This is 7-year-old Jacqueline Jaquez singing the National Anthem before Game 7 of the World Series in 1991. She was the granddaughter of migrant workers. Listen to her scraping the pan. She brought my mom to tears. I still remember
I should also add this about Ciprian: he came back and was not well. He had bouts of anger and frequently got into fights at bars. My grandfather would have to go "rescue" him. My grandfather returned with black eyes and busted lips. Ciprian had what we call today PTSD and CTE.
Ciprian's son Fred Contreras would also join the Marines. So would his grandson Michael Sutton
“Yes, I relax, maybe throw some meat on the grill and take my family to a New Mexico desert mesa to watch fireworks among coyotes and rabbits.” (Tonight in Rio Rancho, NM) #July4th2020
“The fireworks go off, and I remain wounded. I look up and try to see something. It’s blurry. But it’s there.” #July4th2020 END
