Archive for October, 2006
Tierra de Pasiones Ends in Typical Novela Style
7:53 am By Jennifer Woodard Maderazo · TV · 4 Comments
25 Oct 2006
I confess. I watch Spanish language novelas with all their stereotypes and overacting. I hide my addiction by saying I’m taping the show for my mom, but really watching a novela is like having a secret love affair. It’s dirty, short-lived, and with a predictable ending. Last night,the finale of Telemundo’s Tierra de Pasiones, delivered on all fronts. If you didn’t get to watch the final episode don’t keep reading. There are spoilers ahead.Marcia, the slutty blonde gold-digger dies(or does she?) a fiery, bloody boat crash death and Valeria, played by the heavily siliconed Gabriela Spanic, ends up walking down the aisle in a red dress to marry Francisco, played by the very sexy Saul Lisazo. At the wedding Valeria’s gay son takes his lover’s hand, the most intimate two men are allowed to get on Spanish network television, and seems not to be bothered by the fact that he can’t get married because of his sexual orientation.
The one country with sustainable development: Cuba
5:23 pm By Jennifer Woodard Maderazo · Cuba| Environment · 1 Comment
24 Oct 2006
While the rest of the world is busy chingando the ecosystem, a report published by the World Wildlife Foundation claims that the only country in the world with “sustainable development” is Cuba:
WWF includes in its report a graph which shows two features: the human development index (established by the United Nations) and the so-called “ecological footprint” which shows the per person energy and resources comsued in each country.Surprisingly, only Cuba has passed in both arenas, which is enough to be designated a country that “meets the minimum sensitivity criteria”.
The study’s authors credit the high level of literacy, long life expectancy and low consumption of energy for this success.
The authors also claim that Latin America is the region that leads in sustainable development, and that is due in part to the fact that, according to them:
“…people are happier there and maybe that’s because there is a better balance between development and the environment.”
That doesn’t sound very scientific to me. And I can’t say that people in general are “happier” in Latin America. They worry about different things and let other things go maybe, but that generalization is a little bit far-fetched, I think. Though there are those who think otherwise.
Via / 20 Minutos
Image via BBC.co.uk
Countdown to the Latin Grammys : Album of the Year
1:49 pm By Jennifer Woodard Maderazo · Events| Music| New York City · Comments Off
24 Oct 2006
So I still don’t have a dress for the big day, the Latin Grammy Awards, but I do have a growing list of musicians I want to see and questions even. For example, have you ever wondered what’s the difference is between the catagories Record of the Year and Album of the Year? According to the official Grammy website Record of the year is awarded to the artist and to the producer(s), recording engineer(s) and/or mixer(s) if other than the artist and is for singles only but Album of the Year is awarded to artist(s), and to the album producer(s), recording engineer(s) / mixer(s) & mastering engineer(s) if other than the artist and is for an entire album. The nominees for Album of the Year are…..
Be pretty, be fit, have light skin…or else
12:21 pm By Jennifer Woodard Maderazo · GLBT| Labor| Women| mexico| race| society · 5 Comments
24 Oct 2006
As striking as it may be to anyone who hasn’t lived in Latin America, discrimination based on skin color, race, height, weight, gender and sexual orientation is the order of the day when it comes to looking for a job in some countries. In most Latin American countries (and in Spain) a photograph is required when submitting a resume for a job.
In Mexico, not only are employers looking at photos to make the typical judgement of “she’s probably going to have kids soon, no use to us” — which is bad enough — but they are also using carefully crafted job postings to make sure they weed out “undesirables”. The best part? “Diversity-friendly” American companies in Mexico are doing it too:
When Michigan-based automotive supplier Lear Corp. needed a secretary for its office in the central Mexican state of Guanajuato, it placed a classified ad seeking a “female … aged 20 to 28 … preferably single … with excellent presentation.”And to ensure that it got the right candidate, Lear asked applicants to include a recent photo with their resumes.
NYT Looks at Puerto Rico
10:49 am By Jennifer Woodard Maderazo · Newspapers| Puerto Rico · Comments Off
24 Oct 2006
An editorial in yesterday’s New York Times looks at the dire situation the colony/nation of Puerto Rico finds itself in and why. The article points to a study — “The Economy of Puerto Rico: Restoring Growth” — from the Center for the New Economy, a nonpartisan Puerto Rican research group, and the Brookings Institution. The study doesn’t point the finger for the island’s problem on the people of Puerto Rico but rather at the U.S. government and its’ policies.
Much of the blame can be put on Washington, which has been tone deaf to the island’s needs and has miscalculated where help was needed. Even a good idea, like the Section 936 program of tax incentives, was mismanaged. Before it was phased out last year, it had succeeded in bringing many pharmaceutical concerns to the island, but produced relatively few jobs and at so high a cost that a $40,000 position cost the government $70,000.
Is money wiring destroying families?
3:25 pm By Jennifer Woodard Maderazo · Family| Labor| Latin America| Money| children · 2 Comments
23 Oct 2006
Is Western Union-ing some money back to your familia in Mexico destroying the family structure in Latin America? That’s what some experts are saying. While the economies of Latin American countries are bolstered by the remittances made from the U.S. by immigrants to their families (some sources say 20 billion dollars per year in Mexico alone), this practice is also having very negative effects, reports The Miami Herald’s Andres Oppenheimer:
…at the meeting of mayors in Miami last week, United Nations and Colombian national police consultant Hugo Acero Velasquez said not everything about the remittances is positive: The massive migration of Latin American men is leaving behind fatherless children, who often grow up raised by grandparents who tend to be too permissive.As a result, millions of children are growing up on the streets. In countries with high youth unemployment rates, they often end up doing criminal jobs for drug-trafficking or other organized-crime gangs, other experts said. According to the latest World Health Organization figures, Latin America is the most violent region in the world after Africa. It has an annual average of 19 violent killings per 100,000 inhabitants, more than twice the world average.
The search for the new Menudo begins on MTV
1:57 pm By Jennifer Woodard Maderazo · Celebrities| Entertainment| Music| Puerto Rico| TV · 4 Comments
23 Oct 2006
Last year, CBS launched a search for a new member of popular rock band INXS via reality show. R&B group TLC did it too. Now, the search for the new Menudo is on, and it’s all going to unfold on MTV.
Unlike the bubble-gum pop of Menudos past, the new five-person group will have a Latin-infused R&B sound. Johnny Wright, who has managed acts from New Kids on the Block to ‘N Sync and Justin Timberlake, will manage the new Menudo.
Why can’t we have stayed with the Menudo of old? Why do we need a new Menudo?
I’m not sure if this means that the new Menudo will no longer be Puerto Rican, since the contest seems to be open to any male between the ages of 15 and 19. What is clear is that Epic records is banking on the success of this venture, and has already signed the still non-existent group to a recording contract. They even have their own MySpace page, which tells us that the auditions began last Saturday in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
You can follow the search for the new Menudo on — where else — Menudo.com.
Via / Billboard
Countdown to the Latin Grammys : Record of the Year
12:36 pm By Jennifer Woodard Maderazo · Music · Comments Off
23 Oct 2006
The search for the perfect Latin Grammy dress begins today (first stop Bloomingdales). For inspiration I could look to two of the nominees for Record of the Year. Not surprisingly Shakira and her La Tortura, which happens to be my daughter’s favorite song, is nominated. Her female competition is Mexicana accordion toting Julieta Venegas with Me Voy. The males up for the award include Ricardo Arjona with Acompáñame A Estar Solo,Fonseca’s Te Mando Flores, and Sergio Mendes Featuring The Black Eyed Peas with Mas Que Nada.
Accent Marks : The Difference Between a Year and an Ass
9:14 am By Jennifer Woodard Maderazo · Bilingualism| Newspapers| language · 3 Comments
23 Oct 2006
I read an article off of Yahoo! mail this morning with great interest because it’s an issue I face everyday as a Latina writer writing about Latino experiences. To accent or not to accent, that is the question and according to the article I’m not the only one asking.
Newspapers have long maintained that technological problems and editorial confusion make it too difficult to add accents, officially known as diacritical marks. For Colon, now a faculty member at The Poynter Institute of journalism in St. Petersburg, Fla., it’s a question of accuracy, one of the basic tenets of journalism.The absence of accents can change the pronunciation and the meaning of a word.
The name Pena, without the tilde over the “n,” means shame. The Spanish word for year without that squiggle becomes anus.
Latin Grammy Attendees Announced – VivirLatino Included
7:42 am By Jennifer Woodard Maderazo · Events| Music| New York City| VivirLatino · 5 Comments
21 Oct 2006
It’s all over the media already that Lucero and Victor Manuelle will be hosting the Latin Grammy Awards on November 2nd in Madison Square Garden in my hometown, NYC. Everyone also already knows that Shakira, Calle 13 and Julieta Venegas will be there and that Ricky Martin will be honored with a special award. But do you know who else is going to be there? VivirLatino represented by yours truely, la Mala. That’s right people. VivirLatino has a press pass and we’re not afraid to use it to cover the event exclusively just for you. In the days before the big night, VL will be bringing you special coverage of the nominees. Now I just need a designer to dress me for the evening…..any takers?
Via / Grammy.com
Hola!
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- Pedro Julio Serrano on the Murder of Lopez Mercado
- Bay Area Community Members to Hold Vigil and Release Statement about Murders in Maryland and Puerto Rico
- Transgender Day of Remembrance and Latin@s
- Dear Troll(s):
- Puerto Rican, Latino Clergy, Theology Professors, Community Members To Condemn Brutal Hate Killing of Gay Puerto Rican Man
- Vigils for Justice y en Memoria de Jorge Steven Lopez Mercado
- Russell Athletic rehires fired union organizers
- When Things Go Wrong…Terribly Wrong.
- Official VivirLatino Statement on Lou Dobbs Leaving CNN
- Sexual Violence Against Women in Immigrant Detention
