3. THE ARIZONA REVIVAL
Leaders in Arizona revived these ancestral practices during the anti-criminalization and anti-police violence movements across Phoenix, Mesa, Glendale, Tucson, and all of Arizona.
They used Comités del Barrio to teach:
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community defense
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political education
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cultural recovery
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long-term organizing
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direct action
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self-determination
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love and responsibility for our people
They understood a core truth:
If the barrio is not organized,
no one is coming to save it.
Semillas Arizona continues that lineage — shaped by our own generation’s struggle.
4. WHY WE USE COMITÉS DEL BARRIO TODAY
Our communities face:
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criminalization
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deportation
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gentrification
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fear campaigns
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political manipulation
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disinformation
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police violence
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structural poverty
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ecological harm
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generational trauma
This requires a strategy rooted in ancestral memory, not just modern tactics.
Comités del Barrio rebuilds:
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political consciousness
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community discipline
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sustainable organization
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cultural grounding
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collective resistance capacity
So our people understand:
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how power works
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how to protect ourselves
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how not to burn out
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how to resist manipulation
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how to recognize propaganda
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how to act politically without being co-opted
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how to build long-term resistance
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how to become our own leadership
Only the barrios transform the barrios.
SOLO EL PUEBLO SALVA EL PUEBLO
5. COMITÉS DEL BARRIO AS POLITICAL EDUCATION CENTERS
Inside a Comité del Barrio, our people learn:
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how to organize
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how to defend their block
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how to build territorial power
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how to identify manipulation
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how to read propaganda and fear campaigns
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how to analyze policies and power structures
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why voting is part of survival not liberation
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why loyalty is to the people, not parties
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their own history of resistance in Arizona
Comités del Barrio form a community that cannot be broken or fooled —
not by the right,
not by the center,
not by parties,
not by fear-based campaigns.
6. COMITÉS DEL BARRIO CREATE SELF-SUSTAINING BARRIOS
The goal is not to have communities dependent on:
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organizations
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politicians
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foundations
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parties
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attorneys
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or outside figures
The goal is a community capable of:
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organizing
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defending itself
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educating itself
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mobilizing
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protecting one another
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and leading itself
With or without institutions.
With or without permission.
With or without resources from the state.
This is autonomy.
This is sovereignty.
This is survival.
COMITÉS DEL BARRIO
Ancestral Strategy for Conscious, Organized, and Self-Determined Neighborhoods
“The Heartbeat of Community Defense.”
OVERVIEW
Comités del Barrio are not new.
They are not a trend.
They are not a modern invention.
They are the return of something ancestral —
something our people practiced long before borders,
long before police institutions,
long before the United States decided who “deserves” to exist.
Comités del Barrio are how our communities protected, educated, governed, and cared for each other for centuries.
Semillas Arizona continues this lineage.
A Comité is:
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a home of collective protection
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a circle of political education
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a network of trust
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a cultural memory space
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a team ready to respond as one
This is the way our ancestors organized.
This is the way our barrios rise again.
1. ANCESTRAL ROOTS — Before “Democracy,” There Was Community
Long before Western democracy, our peoples lived inside systems of:
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Collective care
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Family-based governance
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Ceremonial decision-making
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Shared responsibility
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Reciprocity as a way of life
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Community survival
Helping migrants, widows, displaced families, and the vulnerable was never a “political topic”—
it was a moral obligation.
A sacred one.
Harming people, animals, or the land wasn’t a policy debate —
it was understood as a rupture of life.
This ancient understanding is the root of Comités del Barrio.
2. CALLI, HUECALLI, AND HUEHUÉCALLI — Our Original System of Governance
Our ancestors organized life through:
Calli
The family-house — the core unit of care and memory.
Huecalli
A network of several families.
Huehuécalli
The structure of a whole barrio.
This was a real political system:
Families → Networks → Barrios → People’s Decisions.
Decision-making came from:
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dialogue
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collective responsibility
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community discipline
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spiritual connection
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relationship with the land
This is the heart of Comités del Barrio today.
7. COMITÉS DEL BARRIO + SEMILLAS ARIZONA
When Semillas Arizona supports the formation of Comités del Barrio, we build:
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a conscious community
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a neighborhood immune to manipulation
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a disciplined base of survival
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a pipeline of leaders from the barrio itself
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a long-term cultural and political framework
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a collective memory
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a 10, 20, 40-year organizing infrastructure
This ensures that no racist movement,
no disinformation campaign,
no opportunist politician,
no fear-based propaganda
can push our people to vote, act, or speak against their own interests.
8. THE CORE ETHIC
We take care of each other.
We organize each other.
We defend each other.
SOLO EL PUEBLO SALVA EL PUEBLO
The barrio is the school, the council, and the future.
START A COMITÉ IN YOUR BARRIO
Semillas Arizona can help you:
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form your Comité
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train your group
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set up communication systems
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learn community defense basics
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practice roleplays
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build mutual support structures
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connect to the broader Semillas network
📞 Contact Us
480-459-1627
📩 Email Us
📍 Attend the Semillas General Assembly (Every Friday)
This is where new Comités begin.
We will walk with you.
Your barrio is ready.
Let’s build it together.