Discover the story of WWI soldier and civil rights activist José de la Luz Sáenz with a virtual picture book reading of Soldier for Equalityand a conversation with the author, Duncan Tonatiuh.

José de la Luz Sáenz (Luz) was a proud soldier and civil rights activist. Despite facing discrimination in the United States because of his Mexican heritage, he joined the U.S. Army in World War I and used his incredible talent for learning languages as a member of the Intelligence Office in Europe. Upon returning home to Texas, Luz joined with other Mexican American veterans to create the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), which today is the largest and oldest Latinx civil rights organization.

Discover Luz’s story on Wednesday, October 4th at 4:00pm CST with a virtual picture book reading of Soldier for Equality: José de la Luz Sáenz and the Great War and a conversation with the author, Duncan Tonatiuh.

Duncan Tonatiuh (toh-nah-tee-YOU) is an award-winning author-illustrator. He is both Mexican and American. He grew up in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico and graduated from Parsons School of Design and Eugene Lang College in New York City. His artwork is inspired by Pre-Columbian art, particularly that of the Mixtec codices. His aim is to create images and stories that honor the past, but that are relevant to people, especially children, nowadays.