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The House Health Care Reform Bill That Passed and Passed Over

11:28 am By Maegan la Mamita Mala · GLBT| Immigration| Politics| Women · 4 Comments

9 Nov 2009

Some are celebrating the weekend passage of a health insurance bill in the House of Representatives. Pero those unhappy and critical aren’t just tea-baggers and others crying over a red scare. From jump, I was angered that health care reform was excluding and scapegoating some of the communities I feel strongly about, immigrants and women.

The Affordable Health Care for America Act, aka HR3962, passed 220-215 but the act contains provisions that bar access to services for women.

The Stupak Amendment (does that rhyme with stupid) bans coverage for abortion under any plans that use federal monies. This amendment apparently was a response to threats from the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops who threatened to dis the bill at masses across the country if abortion was covered. I went to church this Sunday specifically to see if the health care reform bill would be mentioned instead the priest talked about the World Series. Hmm.

Additionally the amendment requires that those participating in the “health exchange”, individuals and employers, buy riders for covering abortion services. The only exceptions are for pregnancies that are the result of rape/incest or when the life of the pregnant woman is in danger (her life, not her health). Additionally employer sponsored and private plans that don’t take government money are exempt. This means that women who participate in the public option of health care exchanges couldn’t even use their own money to access abortions.

Remembering Marcelo Lucero : Images and Thoughts from Vigil in Patchogue, Long Island

11:40 pm By Maegan la Mamita Mala · Ecuador| Family| Immigration| New York| Violence · 8 Comments

8 Nov 2009

On Saturday evening I took the trip from NYC into it’s suburbs, specifically Patchogue, Long Island. On about an hour and a half drive out there, it’s easier to try and understand why immigrant communities are more isolated and why Lucero’s family and his case hasn’t gotten the support that it deserves. At only 5:30 at night, the streets were dark and isolated and I remembered the Southern Poverty Law Center report telling of people being driven off the rode and not walking alone after dark. This is a stark contrast to my immigrant hood where yes, people look over their shoulders and put their heads down as they pass the police that patrol, but it never stops. The traffic, the hum of conversation, musica and children. Stores stay open late as do restaurants. In Patchogue, at the end of a road that led to the tracks of the Long Island Railroad, a crowd of a few hundred gathered where Ecuadorian immigrant Marcelo Lucero was killed by a gang of racist youth to remember.

Remembering Marcelo Lucero, One Year Later from VivirLatino on Vimeo.

Images from November 7, 2009 vigil remembering Marcelo Lucero, an Ecuadorian immigrant killed in Patchogue, Long Island in a hate crime.

The Lucero family asked that the vigil not be political, rather that the message stay focused on peace and unity and everyone in attendance respected the wishes of the family, I will do that as well by not inserting political commentary here but rather just showing what I saw, heard, and felt.

Marcelo Lucero Vigil : America the Beautiful from VivirLatino on Vimeo.

Scenes from vigil in memory of Marcelo Lucero. 11-07-09 Patchogue, Long Island, NY.

Vigil for Marcelo LuceroThis Evening in Patchogue, Long Island, NY

11:17 am By Maegan la Mamita Mala · Events| Immigration| Justice| New York · No Comments

7 Nov 2009

marcelo-lucero

Vigil in Memory of Marcelo Lucero
Saturday November, 7th @ 6:00pm
RailRoad Ave. Patchogue, NY
Religious Service to follow at Congregational Church 7:30pm

My family’s wish is to create a new environment of peace and unity for our community. We would like to invite members of all communities to share in the vigil in memory of my dear brother, Marcelo Lucero, on Saturday November 7 at 6pm next to the train station where he lost his life. Following the vigil, we will walk to the Congregational Church of Patchogue located on Main Street for a religious ceremony scheduled for 7:30pm. We request from all who attend to wear a white t-shirt in solidarity to share in this day of peace, healing and hope. Our message is no more violence but peace, no more racism but instead brotherhood and no more abuse rather respect.

During the vigil, we will collect donations for the Marcelo Lucero Scholarship that I created last year for the students of Patchogue-Medford HS and monies will also be used to send a mural to Gualaceo, Ecuador, which was created by Pat-Med students as a symbol of peace. If your organization would like to send a contribution in advance please write checks to: Marcelo Lucero Scholarship and send it directly to the Patchogue-Medford HS, 181 Buffalo Avenue, Medford, New York 11763.

Please be advised that this event will not be used for any political agendas. We would like to thank you in advance for your support and for respecting our wishes.

En Solidarity,
Joselo Lucero and family

Remembering Marcelo Lucero : One Year Later, The List of Hate Crimes Grows Longer

12:18 pm By Maegan la Mamita Mala · Immigration| Justice| New York| Violence| crime · 3 Comments

5 Nov 2009

There is much remembering that one year ago the United States elected it’s first person of color president. The U.S. was overwhelmed with bold, bright promises of hope and change. People wept, and I was among them. The start of the Obama era marked the end of the Bush era and hopefully would mean policy changes that would directly impact the everyday lives of all people pero yes, for people of color and immigrants there was a special hope. Hope that immigration reform that would keep all families together and value the lives of people who live and work in the shadows and out in the open.

But then something happened that many thought wasn’t supposed to happen anymore. Weren’t we post-racial? Days after Barack Obama became the president-elect a group of teenagers in Patchogue, Long Island, NY hung out doing what they did about once a week. “Beaner jumping”. That’s what they called it when they went out looking for anyone who looked Latino (they don’t care what kind of “beaner” you are) so they could assault them. That night the young men were out for blood though and they killed Marcelo Lucero.
Read more…

Maine Voters Said Yes on 1 and Yes to Marriage Inequity

3:32 pm By Maegan la Mamita Mala · Family| GLBT| Immigration| Maine| Politics · 5 Comments

4 Nov 2009

5450_109742748525_105762473525_2307856_7278867_n In more bad election news, yesterday voters in Maine said yes to Question 1, overturning the state’s marriage equality law.

Prerna Lal at Dream Activistreminds us how this ties into the immigration issue:

Why should an average non-gay DREAM Act student care about my queer rants? Because like your families, like the Mejia-Perez family, our non-straight families are also scrutinized, separated and pulled apart since the law refuses to recognize them and grant them full and equal rights. Quite like President Obama delivered change for your families and has yet to deliver, he is also largely ignoring LGBT families.

When you do eventually gain the right to vote on other types of families at the polls, just remember what your own family, especially those who lived in mixed-status families, have had to endure. After that, question your ‘faith-based leaders.’ Ask them why they exclude same-sex families when they talk about ‘family unity?’ The Catholic Church, on one hand, stands up strong for the rights of undocumented workers. On the same page, it denounces civil rights for gay couples. Ask your pastors and priests, your clergy and pundits whether ‘God’ would deport a gay immigrant over a straight immigrant. Ask them whether some rights are more important than others. Ask them to support all families.

Oh Wait So Lou Dobbs Lies, Again?

3:10 pm By Maegan la Mamita Mala · Immigration| Media · 2 Comments

2 Nov 2009

Last week I wrote about how Lou Dobbs’ twisted obsession with framing reality to fit his hateful agenda has been stepped up. Turns out that Dobbs’ characterization of the “attack” on his home was ::gasp:: not entirely accurate. I mean, hell even the NY Post, who usually is an apologist for racist behavior and attitudes even wrote it up. Our Unapologetic Mexican friend, Nezua, breaks it down.

Dobbs’ Guilt Causes Him to Project and Twist Reality

9:12 am By Maegan la Mamita Mala · Immigration| Media| TV · 2 Comments

30 Oct 2009

Let’s clear a few things up shall we? Last time I checked there wasn’t a campaign supported by mainstream media distortions and government policies that encourage profiling that puts the lives of white male television pundits. There are no hoardes of Latinos going white pundit hunting. Pero Lou Dobbs, who yes is the target of multiple campaigns to get his hate speech off the airwaves, or at the very least off CNN, now is claiming that he and his wife were the targets in a shooting and who is to blame? Latinos of course.

And as if Dobbs’ claims aren’t ridiculous enough, Maricopa country Sheriff Joe Arpaio wants to jump on the “protect me from the scary Latinos” bandwagon too.

Stay tuned because there will be more to come as it seems that Dobbs and his friends want to make Latinos out to be the scariest thing out there this Halloween.

CNN Wasn’t Having It, But MSNBC Says Yes to Drop Dobbs Ad

1:40 pm By Maegan la Mamita Mala · Immigration| Media| TV · 4 Comments

29 Oct 2009

When America’s Voice raised enough cash to buy a spot for their Drop Dobbs ad in a Latino in America time slot, CNN felt that their loyalty to hateful Dobbs was worth more so they passed.

Knowing an opportunity when they see one, the Drop Dobbs ad will play tonight on MSNBC during the Rachel Maddow show at 9:00 pm EST. America’s Voice was able to purchase air time on local cable networks in Atlanta, Los Angeles, Chicago, New York City, and Washington, DC. So tune in and even if you can’t tune in because the ad isn’t running in your ‘hood (or if you don’t have cable like me), let the CNN head know that one thing you aren’t watching is his network, especially as long as Lou Dobbs is on.

New Study Shows that for Latinos in NYC, The Recession is a Depression

10:35 am By Maegan la Mamita Mala · Immigration| Money| New York City| Uncategorized| economy · 1 Comment

29 Oct 2009

empty-pockets Latino NY’ers are have been especially impacted by the current economic crisis according to a study released today by the Community Service Society (full disclosure, I worked for CSS many years ago).

-More than 1 in 4 Latinos lost their jobs. More than 4 in 10 low-income Latinos either had their hours, wages, and/or tips reduced, or lost their jobs—or both—in the past year.

-Low-income Latinos are more likely than Whites or Blacks to frequently worry about having enough money to cover expenses and bills. Latinos are more likely to worry about housing as well.

-Low income Latinos are more likely to have multiple workers in their household, but less likely to report that they have employer-sponsored benefits;

-For moderate to higher income Latino families, one in five fell behind in housing payments, and over a third had their health care costs increase;

- Latina and Black low-income working mothers are most worried about not being able to find or keep a job.

Why Does Latino in America Equal Spanish Being Criminalized and Pushed Aside

28 Oct 2009

It’s not just immigration that is being criminalized as some people have commented. Any trace of Latinidad deems people as targets for varying forms of harassment ranging from traffic stops, to tickets, to jails, to beat downs, to deaths. While some think that skin color alone can “mark” someone as other, and in this case Latino, language and varying levels of accents also brand. Just look at how much time is spent in this discussion on Latino in America on the issue of assimilation, acculturation and the role of language.

The issue always is how can you speak Spanish and still assimilate/aculturate with the ultimate goal seemingly being not being labeled/identified/called out as “other”. If you are going to insist on speaking Spanish then for everyone’s sake do it at home, where no one else can see or hear you or else face the consequences:

Let us not forget that we started 2009 with someone getting physically attacked while having a cell phone conversation in Spanish.

Sometimes we don’t even need language. Just having a name that could remind someone that you are Latino is enough to get you fired.

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