Whether it's harassed jornaleros in Orange, undocumented immigrants under attack in Costa Mesa or Anaheim's brown barrios in need, Coyotl Tezcatlipoca has been in the thick of things ever since his days fronting the legendary Chicano punk band Cuauhtémoc. The co-founder of Colectivo Tonantzin may seem “impulsive” to those who only know him for calling then-Costa Mesa Mayor Allan Mansoor “a fucking racist pig” during a City Council meeting before being roughly thrown out by police, an incident that cost the city hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees and made Coyotl a hero of the county's Left. Well-versed in his rights, Tezcatlipoca is actually quite disciplined when put to the test, as was the case when helping out the community of Anna Drive in Anaheim last summer, only to be briefly detained by officers backed by an excessive number of patrol cars. Engaging with residents in a genuine, honest and caring manner, he gained their confianza (trust) and acts according to what they communicate as their most immediate, pressing needs, rather than pushing some political agenda imposed from above.
