Virchis is a professor emeritus at Southwestern College Department of Theater Arts and producing artistic director of Teatro Máscara Mágica. He lives in Chula Vista.

The cultural arts have always played a significant role in social justice movements, and the 1960s Chicano social justice movement was no exception.

Music, murals, poetry, the fine arts, and the performing arts have long been beautiful instruments of the Chicano community’s culture.

Think of musician and songwriter Chunky Sánchez, who used his melodic voice and captivating guitar to sing the stories of our community’s struggles and successes.

The documentary “Singing Our Way to Freedom,” by filmmaker Paul Espinosa, brilliantly captures Chunky’s passion for storytelling. At the time, Chunky was a member of the Rondalla Amerindia de Aztlán, which became the favorite musical group of civil rights leader Cesar Chavez.