Archive for January, 2009
East L.A. Might be on its Way to Becoming a City
10:40 am By Maegan La Mala · California|Cities|Los Angeles|Politics|society · 1 Comment
11 Jan 2009
Latino neighborhoods in the U.S. — New York’s El Barrio, San Francisco’s Mission District, and East Los Angeles – often seem to visitors like cities unto themselves because of their uniqueness, culture and community feel. “East Los” wants to turn that “feel” into something tangible by becoming an city independent from Los Angeles, and this week they have taken the first steps towards accomplishing this goal. Reports The Los Angeles Times:
…on Friday, the community took a major step toward gaining independence. County officials announced that backers had gathered enough signatures for the cityhood process to formally begin. Boosters hope residents will cast ballots on the question in 2010.First, a major study has to confirm what a much smaller, earlier study asserted: that the neighborhood of 140,000 can sustain itself economically as what would be L.A. County’s 10th-largest city.
On Friday, supporters who were gathered along Whittier Boulevard said they were confident of victory, even as they prepared to go door to door to raise $100,000 to pay for the study.
11,000 people signed the petition for East L.A.’s cityhood, getting the cause past its first big hurdle.
The last time cityhood for East L.A. was attempted was back in 1974. Supporters say it’s necessary that East Los become a city because it has no local governance (and therefore no government accountability) and its 127,000 residents live under the auspices of a county official which represents over 2 million constituents.
Via / L.A. Times and Cityhood for East L.A.
Image via ikkoskinen on Flickr
Rally Mañana for Imam Morales : Mentally Ill Man Tasered to his Death by NYPD
9:46 am By Maegan La Mala · Activism|Justice|New York City · Comments Off
11 Jan 2009
A few months ago, we wrote about, Iman Morales, a mentally ill man, was killed by NYPD officers on September 24th, 2008. Mr. Morales was tasered while standing on the ledge of a store front awning 10 feet high without an air bag to break his fall. The officers ignored his mother’s cries for an airbag, and made no attempts to catch Mr. Morales who fell to his death after being tasered.
“He was a good son. He didn’t deserve this. It shouldn’t happen to anyone else. All he needed was a little help, which the NYPD didn’t give him,” Olga Negron, mother of Iman Morales.
Now, pay no attention to editor behind the curtain!
What the hell, CNN? Why in the holy hell does the Israeli Government get a freaking *disclaimer* at the beginning of news segments? As if some how attempting to delegitimize an entire news segment?
The following is a disgusting story that exemplifies what happens when mental health issues are criminalized instead of treated.
A Texas death row inmate with a history of mental problems pulled out his only good eye and told authorities he ate it.
Andre Thomas, 25, was arrested for the fatal stabbings of his estranged wife, their young son and her 13-month-old daughter in March 2004. Their hearts also had been ripped out. He was convicted and condemned for the infant’s death.
While in the Grayson County Jail in Sherman, Thomas plucked out his right eye before his trial later in 2004. A judge subsequently ruled he was competent to stand trial.
I am an anti-violence advocate big time. I think that men MUST be held accountable for the violence they commit against their partners. But you can’t tell me that this dude wasn’t a dude that had some *serious* mental issues. Mental issues that did not just begin when he decided that pulling the hearts out of his family would be a good idea. But now that he’s killed three people and probably eaten both of his eyes–he’s going to get help!
Thomas was treated at East Texas Medical Center in Tyler. Then he was transferred and remains at the Jester Unit, a prison psychiatric facility near Richmond southwest of Houston.
“He will finally be able to receive the mental health care that we had wanted and begged for from day 1,” Bobbie Peterson-Cate, Thomas’ trial attorney, told the Sherman Herald Democrat. “He is insane and mentally ill. It is exactly the same reason he pulled out the last one.”
Is this the price people must pay to get a little help in this system? Three human lives and two eyeballs?
Or do you think it’s only the price we expect people of color to pay?
VL’s Maegan la Mala with make/shift Magazine in Brooklyn, NY Tomorrow Nite
12:45 pm By Maegan La Mala · Events|Magazines|New York City|VivirLatino · Comments Off
9 Jan 2009
Yours truly will be trekking into Brooklyn, NYC tomorrow nite, to lend her words and support to the amazing magazine make/shift.
EVENT: MAKE/SHIFT IN BROOKLYN
Saturday, January 10, 2009, 6:30 p.m.
Fort Green , Brooklyn — RSVP to info@makeshiftmag.com for address
Coeditors/copublishers Jessica Hoffmann and Daria Yudacufski are heading east for a house party hosted by marvelous make/shift supporters Mariana Ruiz Firmat and Chad Jones. Join us for an evening of readings, food, and good company at a party to build community and benefit make/shift. Readings by Jen Benka, Blackamazon, Mariana Ruiz Firmat, Maegan “la Mala” Ortiz, and Masha Tupitsyn. Suggested donation of $5+ at the door. No one will be turned away for lack of funds, and those who donate $20 or more will receive a subscription to make/shift.
I can’t say enough wonderful things about the whole make/shift crew and the amazing work they all do. So if you can come, represent, and support.
The Last Hurrah for Immigrant Hating Adminstration
10:30 am By Maegan La Mala · Immigration|Politics · Comments Off
9 Jan 2009
Attorney General Michael Mukasey left us, especially immigrants, a parting gift, so that they don’t start this new year and new presidential administration with any false ideas of where their place is: deported.
In a decision issued Wednesday, January 7, the Attorney General declared that henceforth, immigrants, asylum seekers, and all others in removal (deportation) proceedings do not have any right under statute or the Constitution to representation by a lawyer before they can be ordered deported. The Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) and most federal courts have for decades operated under the premise that immigrants DO have such rights. The Attorney General has reversed many years of precedent and operation by simply declaring it so.
According to the Attorney General, because there is no legal or constitutional right to a lawyer, immigrants do not have the right to legal counsel and thus no right to complain or request a new hearing when their lawyer is incompetent or fraudulent. The Attorney General does attempt to ameliorate the harsh impact of his revolutionary action by allowing reopening of cases in certain highly extreme circumstances, but his declaration will wipe out the rights of all but a handful of people with one stroke of his pen.
Responses to the Oscar Grant Shooting
8:21 am By Maegan La Mala · Activism|California · Comments Off
9 Jan 2009
Reactions to the shooting death of unarmed Oscar Grant by BART police Officer Johannes Mehserle have ranged from sad “not again”, to anger in the streets of Oakland.
Mayor Ron Dellums stood before a fuming crowd on the steps of City Hall on Wednesday night trying to restore calm after angry protesters rampaged through the streets of downtown Oakland creating a surreal near-riot that lasted several hours. ‘Number one let s deal with each other with respect ‘ Dellums told the crowd over a bullhorn.
Benicio Del Toro on Colbert Report
2:00 pm By Maegan La Mala · Celebrities|Movies|TV · Comments Off
8 Jan 2009After watching this clip of Benicio Del Toro, I am understanding his sex appeal a little more. Colbert and Del Toro discuss Che, beard stroking, iconography and the making of a Communist hero.
Via / The Latin Americanist
When I read this post over at WOC Phd, my heart sank. It details the story of a black lesbian mother who was gang raped by four assailants. At least two of those assailants are suspected to be Latino. Even worse, the assailants specifically stated that they were raping the woman because she was a lesbian.
The only thing I could think about when reading about this was how the white gay community insisted post-Prop 8 on making the loss about them. That is, blacks were conservative socially and voted against the Proposition even though white gays voted for Obama. And in the tit for tat business of politics, the blacks just fucked over the gays. But because white gays found it easier to wield the “you should understand what it’s like to not have civil rights!” against the black community, it was soon lost in the fray (among other things) that Latinos *also* voted against the proposition.
I want to say that Latinos would never do something like this. But I know better. I, like so many women before me, left home as soon as it was possible because I couldn’t stand the stifling sexism of my community. Even more to the point, I couldn’t stand the sexism that was steeped in queer hatred. Men weren’t ridiculed, ostracized, or violated because they were queer (although they certainly weren’t embraced either).
Obama’s latest speech on the economy
8 Jan 2009I did not vote for Obama for very specific reasons. I prefer to give my vote to 3 party candidates, for one thing. And for another thing, I think he’s too much of a moderate. But every once in a while, he does certain things that catch my ear. This speech was one of them:
Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy
One of the better parts:
This crisis did not happen solely by some accident of history or normal turn of the business cycle, and we won’t get out of it by simply waiting for a better day to come, or relying on the worn-out dogmas of the past. We arrived at this point due to an era of profound irresponsibility that stretched from corporate boardrooms to the halls of power in Washington, DC. For years, too many Wall Street executives made imprudent and dangerous decisions, seeking profits with too little regard for risk, too little regulatory scrutiny, and too little accountability. Banks made loans without concern for whether borrowers could repay them, and some borrowers took advantage of cheap credit to take on debt they couldn’t afford. Politicians spent taxpayer money without wisdom or discipline, and too often focused on scoring political points instead of the problems they were sent here to solve. The result has been a devastating loss of trust and confidence in our economy, our financial markets, and our government.
The full text to it can be found here.
Hola!
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