Archive for December 9th, 2008
Stealing from the rich and giving to the poor
2:28 pm By Jennifer Woodard Maderazo · media justice · Comments Off
9 Dec 2008
…GIVING TO THE POOR from ABOVE on Vimeo.
Above is a video of artist Above’s recent work in Portugal. Here’s how he explains it:
“These new stencil works are universally understood and free from language barriers that often get lost in translation. When I was in Lisbon, Portugal 3 months ago I would walk by this homeless lady who was begging for money everyday. I found it sadly ironic that just 6 feet away there was an ATM machine where people were literally lining up to withdraw money. With an obvious visual clash of “Rich” and “Poor” being in such a close proximity evoked me to make this stencil “Stealing from the rich, and giving to the poor.”
Above says in that spirit he is selling prints of piece and donating all the proceeds to homeless shelters. Via Wooster.
Which side are you on?
9 Dec 2008A great remake, and a necessary song this morning in light of the recent horrible news.
For a Growing Number of Latinos It’s Not Spanish Only
1:29 pm By Maegan La Mala · Immigration|language · 2 Comments
9 Dec 2008
One of the ways that nativists in the U.S. spread fear about immigration and Latinos is buy talking up the point of the loss of English and other so-called cultural markers that allegedly make the country what it is. More and more however, this myth is being countered demonstrating that the anti-immigrant movement has less to do with “national pride” and more to do with racism.
More Spanish speakers are speaking English very well despite a steady influx of immigrants this decade — a sign that they are blending in at least linguistically, according to a USA TODAY analysis of Census data released Tuesday.
The drop in the percentage who struggle with English is most noticeable in some of the largest counties and cities that have attracted immigrants for decades.
So once we speak “your language”, we’ll be more acceptable right? We’ll fit in more and won’t seem so “other”, verdad? Latinos, like myself, who have always spoken English know that this goes way beyond language.
Via / Hispanic Tips and USA Today
A Very VivirLatino Navidad
9 Dec 2008As much as I hate so many holidays, I can’t help but get excited about Christmas. I am working on a longer post about my personal navidad memories and traditions rooted in Ricanness but also in my parents’ sense of upward mobility and assimilation. Pero first welcome to the official kick off of the holiday season here at VL.
What do you celebrate around this time of year, if anything?
P.S. : Check after the jump for info about Jose Feliciano’s tour including the only “Latino” holiday song that gringos know and insist on singing if you’re the token Latino at the holiday party.
And the Hate Keeps on Coming : Hate Crime Against Latinos in Brooklyn
9:29 am By Maegan La Mala · crime|GLBT|Immigration|Justice|New York City|race · 10 Comments
9 Dec 2008
It becomes emotionally exhausting having to write about hate crimes against Latinos, having to read and rehash the disgusting details, and being reminded in very tangible ways of how far people will go to hurt someone who could easily be someone I care about. And here we go again.
On early Sunday morning Jose Sucuzhanay from Ecuador and his hermano Romel Sucuzhanay, were walking arm in arm in Bushwick, Brooklyn, just a block away from home, when a carload of men pulled up nearby. A man who got out of the car yelled anti-gay and anti-Latino epithets at the brothers, then broke a bottle over the 31-year-old man’s head.
His brother ran, and at least three other men who were in the car set upon the 31-year-old, beating him with a baseball bat and kicking him. The beating stopped when the brother returned, holding his cellphone, and told the attackers he had just called the police, the official said.
Jose is now on life support at Elmhurst Hospital in Queens and it looks like the family has had to make the heartbreaking choice of not letting Jose suffer anymore.
Today the latest album of legendary Cubana Omara Portuondo is released and it is aptly titled Gracias. The album is a thank you for Portuondo’s 60 year career as a musical artist. Drawing influences and including collaborations from Africa, Uruguay, and Brazil, Gracias is a work of collective inspiration.
The title track from the album, “Gracias”, which was composed especially with Omara in mind, begins with a clear taste of Brazil, one of the Cuban singer’s favourite music styles and a manifest influence in Uruguayan singer-songwriter Jorge Drexler’s productions. Omara is an admirer of the singer-songwriter’s work and has long wanted to sing one of his tunes. Omara’s ability to transform an apparent farewell message into a call of hope re- emerges in “Lo que me queda por vivir”. However, despite the song’s title – the life I have left – one only needs to listen to the first line of the song: “the life I have left will be spent smiling”, to realise that there is no place for sadness in this tune.
Guest artists on the cd included Chucho Valdés, Brazilian maestro Chico Buarque and African artist Richard Bona, as well as previous collaborators pianist Roberto Fonseca, guitarist Swami Jr, and percussionist Andrés Coayo.
Hola!
VivirLatino is a daily publication published by Mamita Mala Media, dedicated to featuring all the latest politics, culture, entertainment of interest to the diverse Latin@ diaspora.
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