La Indita Restaurant

 Help save La Indita of the Historic 4th Avenue ❤️

Help us preserve the food of our Elders, and keep legacy alive so that we may pass it on to our children. With a deep belief that natural food is the key to a healthy life and should be accessible to all, Maria Garcia opened La Indita Restaurant downtown Tucson in 1983. Combining her ancestral Tarascan recipes from Michoacan and those she learned on the Tohono O’Odham Reservation, the restaurant was a success. A couple years later the restaurant relocated in 1985 to the historic 4th Ave where it has been family owned and operated to this day. Just as the bright and traditional indigenous artwork covering on the walls of La Indita are a testament to Maria’s love of her heritage, so are the numerous articles highlighted not only the success of the restaurant but Maria’s strong activism. La Indita Restaurant has become a community resource for progressives, not only in Tucson, but internationally. Hosting countless community events and fundraisers, Maria‘s passion to provide for others in need continues by support of the restaurant.

 When you walk through our old wooden door, the food you smell is a gift from our Grandmothers to you. For almost four decades, we have been honored to share the soul of Tucson Cuisine on the Historic 4th Avenue Strip.

 In August, we found out that our neighbors will be expanding. In two months, we are being pushed out of our building by this expansion. Due to the pandemic, we have not been able to save funds to move to a new building, and our legacy is at great risk from being destroyed. We want our children, and their children to be able to give the gift of true Tucson Elders cuisine.  Our food and restaurant is the food of this land’s Elders-Tohono O’odham and Mexican. It has lasted through tough times before, and we humbly ask that you help save it for the future generations to come.

 How funds will be used:

Our funds will initially be used to be able to secure a new location and move our restaurant to this new location. As a family run restaurant, most employees are family and or close friends, who have sacrificed much of their own time, energy and money to get us through this last year. Again, this is our Parents/Grandparents restaurant. We will use part of the funds to ensure that our family can exist while we quickly move La Indita and rebuild at a new location, opening up as quickly as possible.

 We hope to one day own our building, so that we can continue serving our community into the future with safety and security 

While the restaurant was being established, Maria’s work towards social Justice never ceased. In the early 1990’s her husband Joseph Garcia was elected Governor of the Tohono O’Odham People of Sonora, Mexico a tittle that still holds to this day although he is retired governor. With the aid of Maria by his side the two played a vital role in empowering indigenous population in Sonora and bringing the 8 tribes of Sonora together forming the “consejo traditional” Traditional Counsel fighting for recognition and justice. This group went on to directly pressure the state of Sonora for Economic equity for First Nations by means of direct action, street protest, and grassroots organizing. Their efforts eventually led to the creation of a fund council specifically designated for Sonora tribes, still operation to this day.

 At La Indita, we would like to honor the many groups that have been able to have space and community at our table.. We thank you for your love, energy, compassion, and appetite. We would like to highlight and give gratitude to the following organizations:

 Beyond Borders

UofA Mexican American studies

SAAF

Unidos

Border Studies

Global Justice Center

Florence Project

Arizona Borders Protection

No Human Being is Ilegal

Doctors beyond borders

The border patrol victims network

LGBTQ community

Flowers & Bullets

Food Bank

All Native American Groups

Mexican Americans Raza Studies

SOAW

Arizona Food Bank

And so many more......