An exuberant and unique evocation of both the vibrant culture of the diverse, but primarily Latina/o, Mission District of San Francisco, California, and the forces of gentrification that continuously threaten the neighborhood. The book is anchored by the poem of the same name by Alejandro Murguía, San Francisco’s first Latino Poet Laureate from 2013-2017 and American Boo Award. Vintage black and white silver gelatin and resin-coated photographs from the neighborhood taken in the 1970s and ’80s, and digitally printed color photographs from the recent Google bus invasion era of the early 21st Century, by award-winning San Francisco investigative photo-journalist Lou Dematteis, are collaged together by Marshall Weber. The text of the poem was typewritten on the photographs, stenciled, or applied as stapled on captions reminiscent of 20th Century newspaper photo-layout and wire-photo transmissions.

This ‘Dream Team’ collaboration is the first time Dematteis, Murguía, and Weber have worked together. All have deep roots in San Francisco, and Dematteis and Murguía live there and have lived there most of their adult lives there. Dematteis and Murguía had worked together before, Dematteis had co-produced “The Other Barrio”, a 2015 neo-noir adaptation of a Murguia short story, and was a Director/Producer on “Keeper of the Fire” a poetic biography about Murguía.

Weber did the book design and fabrication. The book is a double-sided accordion fold book that measures nine feet and 3 inches long when completely unfolded.