2011 February | VivirLatino

Archive for February, 2011

And We’ve Moved!

7:02 am By Maegan La Mala · VivirLatino · Comments Off

16 Feb 2011

Apologies to those who came online looking for your daily dose of VivirLatino only to get a funky error message. Many of you know that we were fundraising to be able to migrate the site from one server to another after way too many problems ranging from downtime to exceedingly expensive fees. Well it has been done. Last night the site was migrated and we couldn’t have done it without you, donations and support. There will be thank you cards going out.

I (Mala) couldn’t have done it without help (because I was having tech anxiety). So thank you tech angels from above. No, really they are North of VL HQ.

Please let us know if there are any bugs, as that sometimes happens when sites move.

Monday Meditation : Justice for Brisenia

9:29 am By Maegan La Mala · Justice · 5 Comments

14 Feb 2011

The jury in the case against Shawna Forde, founder of Minutemen American Defense, for brutally murdering 9 year old Brisenia Flores and her father Raul Flores, is still out.

Real justice would be not having to witness your partner and child killed in front of you because, as I wrote when little Brisenia and her father were taken, this is a casa of violence used against a family viewed as expendable to help further their cause of using violence against those viewed as expendable.

Namely immigrants, Latinos and those perceived as such.

Since Brisenia and her father were taken, things have not gotten better for immigrants, their children, our community. The dehumanization continues, with laws being presented that refer to children as anchors, with laws proposed that want to make it illegal to exist. In the absence of real laws and more importantly, the absence of a real shift that views the humanity of all people, especially women and children, the answer has become more violence. When that violence isn’t coming from someone like Shawna Forde, it comes from the policies itself, that detain, deport, and seek to disenfranchise whole communities by disappearing, one community member at a time.

Justice is a beautiful thing, it resembles the innocence of a 9 year old’s smile, and is worth fighting for in memory of that smile.

Monday Morning Musica : Vicente Garcia’s Mi Balcon

7:25 am By Maegan La Mala · Music · Comments Off

14 Feb 2011

Vicente Garcia just released his debut album, Melodrama, and while I haven’t heard the other tracks on it, I was so endeared by this video of his live performance filmed at Casa de Teatro, Santo Domingo, Republica Dominicana that I had to share it. It seemed a perfect way to start this “holiday” and anyway, he’s kind of hot no?

Now this is how I like my Bachata Baladas, all sweet and romantic, perfect for Valentine’s Day.

Update on Wilder Peña Case

11:54 am By Maegan La Mala · Colombia|Immigration · 1 Comment

13 Feb 2011

Thank you to all of you who signed your names to the letters in an attempt to stop the deportation of Wilder Peña, a 31-year-old Afro-Colombian male, I wrote about last week, originally from Jamundi, Department of Valle del Cauca, Colombia who fled to the U.S. to seek asylum in 2001.

Supporters set up a Facebook page on Wilder’s behalf and are calling for people, in an act of love for human rights, make calls tomorrow, Valentine’s Day, so that Wilder can stay with his familia in the U.S.

· If you are a Washington, DC resident or a member of a Colombia, human rights or solidarity organization please contact the office of Honorable Eleanor Holmes Norton at phone number: (202) 225-8050 and urge the Congresswoman to intervene on Wilder’s behalf. On Friday, the Congresswoman received a letter from U.S. activists, NGOs and constituents earlier today calling upon her to act. When you call say that you are greatly concerned about Wilder Peña’s safety and hope that she will intervene to protect Wilder’s life. If you are a Washington, DC resident you can also send your own letter to the Congresswoman via email through her site : https://forms.house.gov/norton/webforms/issue_subscribe.htm

You can also contact the following persons and ask them to take action:

· Contact Vincent Cochetel, Regional Representative for the U.S. and the Caribbean of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees at (202)296- 5191.

· Contact Eric Schwartz, Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Population, Migration and Refugees, U.S. State Department by calling the State Department switchboard at 202-647-4000 and asking to be connected to his office.

· Contact Maria Isabel Castro, Consul, Colombian Consulate in New York, at (212) 798-9055 or maria.castro@cancilleria.gov.co

· Contact , Libia Mosquera Viveros, Consul, Colombian Consulate in Washington, DC, herself Afro-Colombian, at (202) 332-7476/(202) 332-7573 or consuladowash@gmail.com

For more information about Wilder and his case please keep reading.

Thank you/Mil Gracias

Will Be Attempting Site Migration Today : Expect Downtime

8:49 am By Maegan La Mala · VivirLatino · 1 Comment

13 Feb 2011

Feliz Domingo VivirLatino readers, amig@s, and watchers.

At some point today, I will attempt (or if I get completely freaked out and scared by the process, which is likely, some dear friends will help) to migrate where this site is housed/served.

So if the site starts acting up or if you don’t see it, never fear, it’s just me trying to get techy and save some $ and stress.

While the site is down, you can keep up with us on Twitter, Facebook, or Tumblr.

Thank you all for your love, support, and patience.

Save the Date: CLPP’s 30th Anniversary Conference April 8-10

12:09 pm By Maegan La Mala · Amherst|CLPP|Women · 2 Comments

11 Feb 2011

Yours truly, Mala, will be co-facilitating a workshop with two inspirational mujeres, T.K. of the New Mythos Project and Rachel Caballero, a Community Caregiver de Tejas on self-care and healing as an act of resistance against colonialism at the CLPP Conference April 8-10th in Amherst.

One of the things I will be sharing is how redefining media and using media to speak truth can be a healing and developmental process for M/Others, Mamis and Community Caregivers of Color.

I hope that those who can come out. I have never been to this conference so I don’t know how the space is like and that always makes me nervous and defensive. I will be blogging & tweeting as the network there makes possible.

You can find out more and register here.

Urgent Action Alert : Afro-Colombian Faces Deportation

8:58 am By Maegan La Mala · Colombia|Immigration · 3 Comments

11 Feb 2011

Late last night I received an urgent appeal asking for help to prevent the deportation of Wilder Peña.

Wilder Peña is currently detained in an immigration detention facility in Batavia, NY and scheduled for deportation to Colombia on February 28. His life was threatened following a massacre of ten persons and the assassination of three members of his family and several of his friends at the hands of illegal armed groups. Unfortunately, due to poor legal representation he was denied asylum. Two appeals, made by the same lawyer, were also denied. Pending deportation to a country where he could potentially be killed, Wilder fled to Canada, leaving his partner and their infant son behind. He was detained at the border and has been in detention ever since.

The Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA) is collecting names for letters to the United Nations High Committee on Refugees in DC and the local DC congresswoman.

Clicking below will show you the text of the letters.

LettertoHolmesNorton
LettertoUNHCR

If you would like to sign the letters in order to help keep Wilder alive and with his familia, please send your name and organizational affiliation (if any) to GSanchez@wola.org

Gracias

More Police Violence Against UPR Student Protesters

12:10 pm By Maegan La Mala · Education|Puerto Rico · 1 Comment

10 Feb 2011

Riot Police Officer in Puerto Rico Covered in Pinkish Paint

Via Indy P.R. comes a photo-report of a protest that went down yesterday at the UPR in Rio Piedras, that ended with pepper spray, physical violence and arrests.

According to the report, students held a peaceful protest that involved them painting messages outside against the fee which sparked this latest round of protests and against the police presence inside the University and the violence it has brought. The protest was met with more police violence. According to the report the violence was a response to student complaints about video surveillance that the students say the police have been using to create files on students. The images in the photo report show police pulling protesters by the hair, police using pepper spray on students, police using their bodies as weapons by placing their knees on the necks of students.

You can see the full photo report here.

And don’t forget that if you are in the NYC area tonight, there is a fundraiser for the UPR student protesters.

Attacks on Immigrant Workers Cross Party Lines

7:50 pm By Maegan La Mala · Immigration|Labor|Politics · 10 Comments

9 Feb 2011

Just last month, I wrote about how I.C.E., a division of the Department of Homeland Security announced that it was stepping up so called “silent raids” or audits of companies suspected of hiring undocumented workers. This announcement, which really was just an official announcement of what I.C.E. has already been doing (besides “loud” raids in communities), certainly can be related to the mass firings and investigations into the employees of faux Mexican chain Chipotle.

Fact : Department of Homeland Security is run by Janet Napolitano, Democrat, appointed by Democrat President Obama. In fact here is what Napolitano had to say about E-Verify on C-Span.

NYC ♥ UPR Valentine’s Day Fundraiser!

5:50 pm By Maegan La Mala · New York City|Puerto Rico · 2 Comments

9 Feb 2011

Unfortunately I will be working and won’t be put early enough to get me to el Barrio but for those in the area who want to find a concrete way to help out and support the student struggle in Puerto Rico, well here you go.

When : Thursday, February 10 · 6:00pm – 11:00pm

Where: Taller Boricua’s Multi Arts Space at the Julia de Burgos Cultural Center
1680 Lexington Avenue @ 106th Street (# 6 Train to East 103rd Street)
New York, NY

Que: Support the students at the University of Puerto Rico in their struggle against a tuition increase, privatization of their school, and police repression! All proceeds will go to Pleno de Estudiantes Huelguistas/Radio Huelga!

$10 Donation
Raffle Prizes
Music by DJ Mellow G

Poetry & Open Mic with
Jesus Papoleto Melendez,
Bobby Gonzalez,
Frank Perez
Mariposa,
Bernardo Palombo and students from Taller Latinoamericano & Others!
Americo Casiano
Maria Aponte (newly added)
Bomba & Plena from members of Welfar Poets and Nuyorico

Artisan Crafts for Sale!

For more information, updates and details on how to get involved visit: VirtualBoricua.org or join our FaceBook group: NY with UPR!
Co-Sponsored by New York with the University of Puerto Rico and Taller Boricua.

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