Dear Urban Jibaro,

I work in the toy department of a major retailer in a pretty diverse part of Pennsylvania. I see a lot of Latino families and I am curious about something. Whenever a kid throw a tantrum in my department, I hear their mothers threaten them with "John Kletter" and they immediately start behaving in most cases.

I have 3 kids myself and I would love to know how John Kletter can help me when they act up.

My question is "Who is John Kletter, and why are Latino children so afraid of him?

"Gracias" (thats all the Spanish I know)

Misty (Lancaster PA)

***************************************************

Ok...so being that fact that I am completely new at this, I honestly did not know what the hell Misty was talking about. I googled "John Kletter" and did not find much...and was about to move on to our next submission...that is until I mentioned the question to one of my friends (she made me swear not to reveal her name) who has a thick accent and she said "que eso de jon kleta?"and then it hit me me like a ton of bricks...we had a phonetic translation issue here....John Kletter doesn't exist...at least not in the Latino universe what Misty actually witnessed was the power of the almighty "CHANCLETA".

This whole ASK A LATINO thing is gonna be fun...

So now that we got that squared away...Click below to read my official response to the first "ASK A LATINO" question.

A couple of summer ago the fashion in the streets was to rock images of Scarface. No one cared/remembered that their beloved kingpin hero dies in the end. Blazed with bullets, alone. This bothered me. Yes, I love the movie. Yes, I have seen it 15+ times, can speak along with most scenes. But to see it rocked? To see kids really celebrating, the devastating end that in reality also comes to many uncles, brothers and friends, didn't sit right with me. I doubt the tshirts and nikes with Tony's distraught face was inspiration to go and looked up the Mariel boat lift

Several years back further, anything with Che was all the rage. But when asked, rarely could anyone tell me what he did and stood for. Forget about where he was from or how he died.
Walk down the streets of el barrio, ask a 13 year old who the young lords were. Most likely you'll get a blank stare. Walk across town to Harlem and ask who the black panthers were, you'll see some recognition but it the details will be hazy.
It bothers my soul to think about the abridged history that is being taught in our schools. Thankfully the internet is starting to shape up as salvation to combat the growing complacency of our youth. At their finger tips is the uplifting movements of people who believed in themselves and by remembering their past sought to better their future. By choosing images that are unfamiliar to most, I am helping to inspire questions. Littlepoco is not making a political statement, we are helping mi gente to seek out buried information. The images I choose are ones that have always moved me and lead me to ask my own questions. For me it is less about political beliefs and more about honoring the determination of our people to strive for better.
I like the idea that these images are worn by our children. I like to imagine that when the aw in a toddlers eyes is combined with these powerful images, anyone can be jump started to seek more knowledge.

This online directory will help Internet shoppers easily find and do business with Latina Business Owners and Professionals in the United States, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, registered in the Directory. “According to the latest U.S. Bureau of the Census report (2002), there are 540,909 Latina owned businesses in the United States and another 111,287 Latina businesses jointly owned with a male partner. All are excellent prospects to be registered in this new Directory,” stated Lourdes Aponte-Rosario, President of HBWA and Publisher of the Online Directory.

Como diseñadora de mi propia línea de ropa siempre estoy consciente sobre todos los aspectos del negocio del diseño, eso incluye dónde y cómo se produce mi ropa.

Kmart y Sears, que son los únicos responsables de toda la producción y manufactura de mi línea de ropa y en quienes confío y sé que son muy diligentes, se aseguran de que las fábricas involucradas cumplan con los rígidos requisitos de la ley y de que sean auditados. Kmart me ha asegurado que éste no es uno de sus vendedores y que ellos manejarán este asunto de la forma más expedita posible

Age: 36

Occupation: Singer, actress, dancer, designer

Place of Residence: Los Angeles and New York City

Bio: Jenny from the block was born Jennifer Lynn Lopez in the Castle Hill section of the boogie down Bronx to Puerto Rican parents Guadalupe Rodríguez and David Lopez. She has two hermanas, Lynda and Leslie. Jenny from the block was educated in Catholic schools and paid for her own singing and dancing lessons since she was 16. She completed one semester at City Univeristy of NY Baruch College before leaving to persue her dreams of dancing and acting.

I remember as a child my parents taking me to the movie theatre and I knew that they didn’t understand a word the actors or cartoons were saying but yet they continued to take me. After I grew older my parents stopped going to the movie theatre. They no longer had a child to take and what was the purpose anyways if they didn’t understand the language.

I think that this company’s business plan is a great idea. Now, instead of having to wait for the movie to come out on DVD with Spanish options, Spanish speakers can watch films as soon as they hit the movie theatres.

…Many of these Hispanics are movie buffs — going to the cinema an average of 12.1 times a year compared with Anglos visiting theaters 9.4 times a year and African Americans buying movie tickets 6.6 times a year, according to 2004 data from the Motion Picture Association of America.

Via / Houston Chronicle

Via / TBO.com

#1 Large City: Phoenix, AZ
Phoenix earns the top spot due to its high percentage of start-ups in the past year, real estate prices in the area, and community services to help entrepreneurs get started.

But that doesn't mean that Phoenix doesn't have its challenges. Maricopa County had the largest population increase in 2003-2004, as compared to all other counties across the US. The city is also implementing a light-rail project which is a multi-year project that will disrupt multiple parts of the city during its construction.

#1 Mid-Sized City: El Paso, TX
Ranking near the top in start-ups and growth, El Paso beat out other cities by its high scores across the board. Because of its location, El Paso is more closely tied in business and in life to Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, that to other cities in Texas. This location gives El Paso good business with the maquiladoras in Juarez and over $3.4 billion a year in spending from Mexican tourists. Additionally Fort Bliss nearby provides work in government contracts, currently about 16% of El Paso's economy.

City of Phoenix, Arizona
City of El Paso, Texas

Via / Entrepreneur.com: Best Cities for Entrepreneurs
Arizona State Guide to Doing Business
Texas State Guide to Doing Business

Palapa Azul was recently featured in Fortune Small Business, and I was frankly quite inspired. What they call "Mexican-style premium frozen treats", their most popular product is "la paleta", a popsicle.

Hoping to create a high quality, authentic product, the two owners still needed to find a way to do research on a budget. So as they were trying to decide on names and flavors, they hit the streets and did the market research themselves.

They were able to find out trends related to things such as culture:

As the weeks went by, we noticed patterns. Asian palates seemed to prefer tart flavors such as plum and kiwi, while pineapple sold particularly well in African-American areas.

And gender (read this, it cracked me up and I'll tell you why):

More interesting, we noticed a gender difference: We could offer two dozen flavors, and still most men would want strawberry. Women, however, were much more adventurous and willing to try new flavors. Women would say, "You have mango-chile? Interesting! I'd like to try that." Men would say, "You have mango-chile. Interesting! I'd like strawberry."

(So why did that last line make me laugh? I decided to ask my husband while I was reading the article: "What's your favorite flavor of paleta?"...his reply: "Strawberry". I guess their market research worked!)

Now being sold in such stores as Whole Foods and Costco, the Palapa Azul products are on the market...and the owners did it all by themselves. Check out the article below to read their whole story.

Palapa Azul

Via / Fortune Small Business