Bio William Weeks has written over 50 articles/stories for Medium.com. He has worked as a professional actor (SAG/AFTRA-Equity), a teacher, and for ABC TV. His family has long been involved with civil rights (father, Paul Weeks, staff writer for LA TIMES was described as one of the ten most important writers of the Civil Rights movement by NEWSWEEK)—(sister Barbara registered first-time voters in Mississippi after 3 workers were killed by the KKK).
William has been best of friends with Miguel Garcia since 1976 until Garcia's death on Dec. 8, 2025. Mr. Garcia worked with Mr. Weeks on Barrio Barristers for four years. Through the years they have done many family outings together, (skiing Mammoth Mountain together, attending funeral services for Miguel's parents and son, Michael, attending William's parents' services, Miguel's daughter, Adeliz's wedding in Mexico, Willaim's wedding in Ramona, and taking ten children ages 5 to 12 on two sailboats to Catalina Island where they "discovered" buried treasure). Adeliz Garcia, Miguel's daughter, has said over 1000 people have reached out to her through social media and elsewhere to extend their sympathy—often with stories of how Miguel had touched their lives—sometimes working pro bono for them. Los Angeles Councilman Gil Cedillo described Miguel as his "personal hero."
While researching Barrio Barristers, Garcia and Weeks spent many hours together interviewing Carlos Montes, (co-founder of the Brown Berets, whom Miguel once represented), Art Flores (mero chingón editor of Con Safos), Camilo Cruz and Paloma Martinez-Cruz, (children of Richard Cruz, Miguel's best friend and fellow activist lawyer whom Mario T. Garcia wrote about in his Chicano Liberation Theology), Neal Herring, (who worked for Ben Margolis and with Oscar Acosta on several cases), and Stan Levy, (who resigned from working with the DA's office when they conspired to destroy complaints against police). Separately, Mr. Weeks interviewed Cesar Noriega, (a client of Miguel who was shot by police, who spent 3 nights sleeping on Mr. Weeks' couch to do interviews, and has become a life-long friend), over 7 hours of interviews with Rosalio Muñoz, (head organizer of the 1970 Moratorium march—the largest demonstration against the Vietnam War and police brutality up to that time by mostly Chicanos), and many others. He read multiple books, from Ando Sangrando, Occupied America, Aztlan: A Chronology of Mexican American Literature, various works by Mario T. Garcia, Dr. Armando Morales, Barbara Rhine, Natalia Molina, Jusús Trevino, Luis Rodriguez, Oscar Acosta (one dedicated to Miguel), Maxine Junge, Manuel Gonzales, Ian Lopez, Maceo Montoya, Jacques Levy, John Dunne, Rudolfo Anaya, and many others. He traveled to the UC Santa Barbara library five times (staying up to five days at a time) researching Richard Cruz and Oscar Acosta, UCLA's library, the oral history of Miguel Garcia, and did many other interviews with a host of other Chicano activists, such as David Zuniga, Marco Palma, Carlos Muñoz and others. Although Mr. Weeks spent much time with Mr. Garcia just as friends since 1976, they spent hundreds of hours together the last several years pouring over Miguel's papers, including the 104 declarations from the Murgia case, and his many corrections and additions to Barrio Barristers (the title Miguel chose) as the book emerged.
There have been many accurate histories written about Chicano history, but the sad fact is that many people simply don't read them. Mr. Weeks intended to write an entertaining historical novel that would capture the realities that still face us today, convey the raw courage of the early activist Chicano lawyers, while introducing many to a history to which they have never been exposed.