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Martes Media Minute : Roe v. Wade Anniversary, Medicaid Mama y Midwife Victory, Cervical Cancer Awareness month, & Mala’s Mami Closeup,

9:23 am By Maegan La Mala · Family|GLBT|Health|Women · No Comments

24 Jan 2012

Happy Lunar New Year for those celebrating today. I have a few longer posts in the works but didn’t want to start a new week without somethings for our readers to reflect on.

Latin@ Reproductive Health, Access, y Justice

This weekend marked the anniversary of the Roe v. Wade U.S. Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion. But (re)defining access for Latin@s goes beyond a court decision. It involves internalized oppression, stereotypes, and access to not just birth control and terminations, but also to births the way we want them.

The National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health recently released polling looking at the attitudes of Latin@s towards abortion. This polling, which also comes at a time when the GOP is courting the Latino votes on the basis of alleged shared values, reveals that the majority of registered Latino voters believe in keeping abortion legal and accessible.

Following last week’s liveblog of a conversation on cervical cancer and Latin@s, Bianca Laureano shares her ideas for Cervical Cancer Awareness Month 2012 on what really needs to happen to end the disease.

We are celebrating along with Mamas of Color Rising in Texas the decision of the Texas Health and Human Services Commission to make a rules change that adds Licensed Midwives as health care providers under Texas Medicaid. All mam@s deserve the birth experience they want regardless of income.

And finally, yesterday I sat down with some of the mamis of Latina Mami for a wonderful conversation about the mami’hood. You can watch/listen to the interview here (please note the link autoplays the interview)

LGBTQ Undocumented Youth in the US Northwest Scholarship

2:18 pm By BiancaLaureano · Education|GLBT|Immigration|Oregon|youth · 3 Comments

21 Dec 2011

A homegirl of mine shared this information on one of the few scholarships available for LGBTQ people who are also undocumented. The Pride Foundation does not ask for social security numbers or immigration status. Folks living in Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington are eligible. Deadline is January 31. Please share with folks who may be interested!

VL Digest

13 Dec 2011

Instead of me finding time to write about some of the news stories that are of interest (which seems to be a challenge these past few weeks) I’ve decided to share with you the stories. Yes! These are stories I would love to write more about, share my perspective, challenge our ideas, and forge a conversation about them with VL readers. Perhaps we can do that without individual posts for each piece? Perhaps not, either way, here’s a VL Digest. Have VL readers heard of these stories? What are your thoughts?

An Apology 30 Years In The Making: El Salvador Marks El Mozote Massacre

Yesterday I was reading about the apology the Salvadoran government gave for El Mozote massacre where over 800 women, children, men, people were killed by the Salvadoran military. The Massacre occurred 30 years ago in December. I remember growing up in Maryland and hearing about this massacre by the Salvadoran immigrants who migrated to the Takoma Park and Langley Park area. I remember my parents telling me that some folks who we met may not ever be able to go back home because of a Civil War. It all began to become more clear to me years later when I started reading more on the historical accounts and injustices that were occurring, especially the role the US played in training the military in the Americas.

The Exiles of Puerto Rico

There was a lot of buzz about TEDx San Juan, and I’m eager to see what video is available of our friend Larry La Fountain-Stokes’ presentation of the work, activism, and survival of Puerto Rico’s LGBTQ community. In attendance was Forbe.com blogger Giovanni Rodriguez who shares his ideas of Puerto Ricans as being exiles (inspired by Larry’s usage of queer Puerto Ricans as sexiles who use music, art, songs, and writing to share their testimonios). Rodriguez considers those Puerto Ricans who migrated from the mainland to the US as exiles as well (this would include my parents) who were searching for more secure and better economic opportunities. He argues that many Puerto Ricans leaving now are doing so reluctantly.

Third Party & Independent Candidates 2012

I am often exhausted with hearing only two party debates, discussions and media coverage. This week I went in search of who may be considering running as Third Party and Independent candidates for President of the US in 2012. This site was useful to give me an idea and remind me that there are always more than two options when it comes to voting, and knowing all of those options is what makes someone, in my opinion, an educated voter.

Lunes Libro : Hey, Shorty!

7:55 am By Maegan La Mala · Books|GLBT|New York City|Violence|Women · 2 Comments

16 May 2011

As a mother with a teenage daughter about to enter the NYC Public High School system, as a woman of color with daughters of color living in New York City sexual harassment and violence is always somewhere on my mind. Sometimes these thoughts determine how I dress, what time I go out, where I go out to, and what streets to walk through or not. As a radical tutor who works with young women of color who are learning inside the NYC public school system and as a daughter who clearly remembers walking home from school in my neighborhood feeling a gauntlet of eyes and words against my body and the shame I felt when receiving my first piropo/catcall while walking with my mom, I was excited and feeling grateful for the release of Hey, Shorty! A Guide to Combating Sexual Harassment ad Violence in Schools and on the Streets by Joanna N. Smith. Mandy Van Deven, And Maegan Huppuch of Girls for Gender Equity.

The book follows two paths. One is a narrative path that looks at the process of organizing young woman, primarily of color, first in a public school in Brooklyn and later NYC wide around the issues of sexual harassment and violence experiences daily from the moment they leave their homes to go to school until they return home. The second path, which crosses and overlaps with the first, contains concrete strategies for understanding, confronting, and preventing sexual harassment and violence.
Read more…

Obama’s Hopes for Immigration Can’t Hide Ugly Realities

31 Mar 2011

Earlier this week, President Obama appeared on an Univision hosted television forum on Latinos and Education. While education is an important key in the future of the growing Latino population in the US, now estimated at 50 million, immigration is tied into this future as well. During the forum, Obama said that he still had hope for comprehensive immigration reform including the DREAM Act. All the hope in the world however, cannot obscure the ugly reality of current policy and this week has proven chock full of examples of the double speak the administration is engaging in, especially to the Latino community in all it’s intersections.

False Hope for Immigrant LGB Couples

For 24 hours, immigrant gay and lesbian married couples believed that their struggle to have their marriages recognized and having that recognition work in their favor to access the same right to permanent residency green cards as straight married couples was over.
For 24 hours U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services initiated a temporary hold on on green card applications from married same-sex couples based on President Obama’s declaration that the Defense of Marriage Act is unconstitutional. This meant a hold on deportations of foreign nationals in legally recognized same-sex marriages. Quickly though, USCIS declared it’s intention to return to business as usual as per Obama’s deportation first immigration policy.

Christopher Bentley, a spokesperson for U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services, confirmed on Wednesday that the temporary hold on green card applications from married same-sex couples has been lifted after the agency received the anticipated legal instructions on issues that emerged after President Obama declared the Defense of Marriage Act unconstitutional.

“USCIS has not implemented any change in policy and intends to follow the president’s directive to continue enforcing the law,” Bentley said.

Steve Ralls, spokesperson for Immigration Equality, expressed disappointment that the Obama administration resumed its authority to deport foreign nationals in legally recognized same-sex marriages.

“Our government should be in the business of keeping families together, not tearing them apart,” Ralls said. “The Department of Justice has said it believes DOMA is unconstitutional. Immigration Equality agrees, and we believe it is inappropriate to use that unconstitutional law to separate American citizens from their loved ones.”

US citizenship does not equal safety from being separated from your loved ones, even if you are a U.S. citizen child. Just ask four year old Emily Ruiz.
Read more…

Calle 13 Kicks It at Viña del Mar

8:44 am By Maegan La Mala · Chile|GLBT|Music · 8 Comments

25 Feb 2011

Not having satellite television means missing out on the Festival de Viña del Mar en Chile. While some of the lesser known artists can be reminiscent of a bad American Idol audition video, when the stars come out on stage they really shine. Case in point Calle 13. And as much as I want to dislike some of their sexist messaging, there are times like two nights ago at la Quinta Vergara where they make you go hmm.

Not only did they call out homophobia, which has been in the headlines in Chile recently, including criticism at the Festival itself, but Residente, also had a message for the Mapuche written on his back. Now this last action, reminded me of Lady Gaga’s so called pro-DREAM act act where wearing a tee shirt = activism. But who knows if Residente’s body graffiti made people google Mapuche.

Plus, They performed with Inti-Illimani and the song Latinoamérica felt especially powerful in that place.

Check it…

Via / Digital Girl

This Wednesday in NYC : HISPANIC PANIC!, TRANSFORMATIONS

3:17 pm By Maegan La Mala · Culture|Events|GLBT|Linking Latinos|New York City · 1 Comment

21 Feb 2011

HISPANIC PANIC!, New York City’s most avant-garde and experimental Latino reading series, has been featured on CUNY-TV’s Spanish-language culture show “Nueva York,” as well as in the Daily News. Shrugging off the icy world around us, six Latino/a writers and poets are set to share their stories of change and metamorphosis—sexually, artistically, and spiritually.

Readers include the NYC-area poets and writers Ema Lia, Tomas Rafael Montalvo, Consuelo Arias, Brittany Maldonado, and Miguel Angeles. Our featured guest reader will be novelist and writer Vanessa “La Loba” Martir, who is the curator of the successful La Loba reading series in Soho. Come experience the edge of the queer/Latino avant-garde for yourself!

Cheap drinks, great music, and even better people.

Organized and hosted by Charlie Vázquez

Info: http://www.firekingpress.com/

When : Wednesday, February 23 · 7:30pm - 10:30pm

Where : Nowhere 322 E 14th St (1st/2nd) – 21+ – free

New York, NY

Tell them Mala sent you. It won’t get you special treatment, I’ve just always wanted to say that.

Violence Targeting Transgender Women in Honduras Continues

11:23 am By Maegan La Mala · GLBT|honduras|Violence|Women · 2 Comments

13 Jan 2011

*****May be triggering due to discussion of extreme violence**************

In the last four weeks the bodies of five transgender women in Honduras have been found. The murder of women, especially transgender women, has been on the rise following the June 28, 2009 coup. According to the International Gay & Lesbian Human Rights Commission, prior to the most recent murders, there have been 31 deaths of LGBTI people in Honduras in the last year and a half.

In the most recent incidents, the media is reporting that these women showed signs of physical and sexual assault. According to Planet Transgender :

On December 22, 2010 in Comayagüela, 23-year-old Lorenza Alexis Alvarado Hernández was found dead, her body visibly beaten and burned. There were also signs of rape and she was beaten so badly, perhaps even stoned, that it was difficult to recognize her.

The same day, Lady Oscar Martinez Salgado, age 45, was found burned to death in her home in Barrio El Rincón of Tegucigalpa. Her body showed multiple stab wounds.

Less than two weeks later, on January 2, 2011, a young transgender woman known only as Cheo was found murdered on the main street of Colonia Alameda in Tegucigalpa. Her body was left without legal documentation. She appears to have died from a severe stab wound to her chest.

Lunes Libro : Best of PANIC! Book Available Now

12:36 pm By Maegan La Mala · Books|GLBT|literature|New York City · Comments Off

13 Dec 2010

Regular readers of VivirLatino will know that not only am I Editor here but I am also a poet. For two years now, I have proudly participated in the Hispanic PANIC! Reading series, housed at Nowhere here in NYC and and curated by author and friend to VL, Charlie Vázquez.

Charlie has done such an amazing job at bringing together talented, diverse word artists of and for the queer community that he decided to put some of their work, as heard during the literary series, in a book!

Released just in time for the holidays, the anthology features over thirty new voices and yes, mine is included.

You can get your own copy and one for someone you love here.

Don’t Ask Don’t Tell Killed in the Senate

9:50 am By Maegan La Mala · GLBT|military|Politics · Comments Off

10 Dec 2010

In contrast to what happened in the Senate yesterday morning with the DREAM Act, the Senate failed to move to even discuss the repeal of the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell (DADT) policy, which forces lgbtq members of the armed forces to serve in the closet or risk losing their position.

Via the Detroit News:

It failed in a 57-40 test vote, falling three votes short of the 60 needed to advance.
GOP senators mostly united in defeating the measure on procedural grounds, insisting that the Senate vote on tax cuts first. Maine Sen. Susan Collins was the only Republican to support moving to debate the bill.

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