t above a good street fight. Denver police beat him bloody during a 1960's confrontation, and political rivals later shot him and bombed his home. But he emerged from the early struggles of Denver's Hispanic movement - El Movimiento - to become one of Colorado's most important political figures. During his ten years as a state representative and, later, as a key ally of Denver mayor Federico Peña, Castro personified the Hispanic community's newfound political power. The Life and Times of Richard Castro traces Castro's path from the streets of west Denver to the chambers of the state capitol. It also traces a community's coming of age - an event that transformed politics and society in Colorado and throughout the West. Published by the Colorado Historical Society