Friday, September 24, 2004

POETRY
By Fernando A. Zapater

CONDEMNED

In that poker game god dealt me cards
An anti-Semitic joker as a wild trump
That played me like a well-tuned guitar
To the fine tune of a mashuganov gentile
I traveled 32 hundred miles
To reach the rabbis daughter and reconcile
But imagine a balsero boricua all the while
After he had his heart circumcised
Perhaps in past incarnations I had been
A nazi luftewaggen first lieutenant air force
Maybe I was the roman soldier who gave Christ
His hideous last drink
Or perhaps had been the Jew that condemned
Him to be crucified
It is my karma I accept in mazeltov
All the while thinking in Luria's mysticism
And when my love for Mordecai borders fanatism
You will know me also as his sidekick companion
Esther's lover, Lilith's cousin, a Jew beloved
Like Moses leadership amongst the waters
But when Palestinians explode like watermelons
It is time to corner Arafat with serious questions
Not only traveled a mile for a camel
But 32 hundred for a whole herd
With which we will conquer the west
And will have again Jerusalem and Bethlehem
We must not thrust aside the Palestinians
For they are a tribe that is here to stay
I have been dealt the anti-Semitic trump
It's now my turn to twist and shout, to hum and hump
We shall live like a civilized tribe
Amongst human, spirits, and animals alike
Love and peace shall prevail amongst all the same
Shalom, Mazel-tov, Hola, Hello, Bienvenido, y Como estas.


c Condemned, by Fernando A Zapater
Published in "Cuentos Cortos y Poemas de Un Balsero", Volume II, by Fernando A. Zapater.

Zapater is a contributing poet to Puerto Rico Sun.


Community News

NCLR Supports Report Showing that "Three-Strikes" Laws Fail to Control Crime

Washington, D.C. - The National Council of La Raza (NCLR), the largest national Latino civil rights organization in the U.S., welcomes the report released today by the Justice Policy Institute demonstrating that the "three-strikes" mandatory sentencing laws are highly ineffective. This report, Three Strikes and You're Out: An Examination of the Impact of 3-Strike Laws 10 Years After their Enactment, is a timely analysis of these laws which have been adopted by approximately two dozen states and the federal government in the last ten years.

NCLR has expressed great concern with "three-strikes" laws because, in addition to being ineffective, these laws impose unduly harsh sentences on people who commit minor, non-serious crimes, such as shoplifting, and waste resources that could be invested in better methods for reducing crime. Given the data in reports such as this one, it is clear that "three-strikes" laws give the public a false sense of safety and do not make good on their promise of reducing violent crime.

The "three-strikes" laws put into place in the past decade had two primary goals: to reduce crime by incarcerating repeat offenders for long periods of time and to dissuade individuals with criminal records from committing new crimes. "Three-strikes" laws were designed to make communities safe by reducing violent crime. However, violence has not decreased at a faster rate in the states that have implemented these laws as compared to the states that do not have "three-strikes" laws.

"Tough-on-crime" measures, like the "three-strikes" laws, result in the incarceration of tens of thousands of petty criminals for life, while not reducing crime and wasting billions of dollars. Instead, those resources would be better invested in education and job training, as well as prevention and treatment programs for people with substance abuse and mental health problems.

For example, while 31% of California's population is Latino, nearly 40% of prisoners in the state are Hispanic. In this state, a person could conceivably receive a 25-year-to-life sentence, under the "three-strikes" laws, for shoplifting. Thus, approximately a quarter of the total prison population is serving time as a result of this punitive measure. This overreliance on incarceration causes a strain on the state budget and dries up resources needed for community programs.

The Latino community believes that the punishment needs to fit the crime; severe prison sentences should be reserved for violent repeat criminals and not for nonviolent minor offenders. "Three-strikes" laws offer a "cookie-cutter" solution to crime. NCLR urges the states and the federal government to look for smart approaches to public safety and crime reduction, which yield results and address the root cause of the problem.

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Wednesday, September 22, 2004

Manny Hernandez


Picture MH
Originally uploaded by Manny.
Read Manny's empowering articles on education right here at the prsun.blogspot.com.
Education Corner

Commentary

The Key That Unlocks The Door: Education
by Manuel Hernandez


Education is the key that unlocks the door to a new world of opportunities here and anywhere in the world. Without education, humanity merely survives and risks its existence. Yet, the talk is about war and politics these days. With all the kidnappings, bombings, and the presidential campaign, education, the key to the future, has been relegated to the back door of daily conversation.
When you are born, you do not choose where you will start out in life. I had the blessing of being born in a legendary town right across George Washington's Hudson River, Sleepy Hollow. The positive learning environment imparted by teachers and the educational community at John Paulding, Pearson and Winfield L. Morse went beyond all academic expectations. I was taught to care, open my mind, think for myself, speak out, stand up for what you believe in and be creative. The rising factor in an education is motivation, and I was handed that package at a very early age. But this is not the story of millions around the world.
What happens when you are brought up in, during or in times of war and tragedy? How do you evoke or provoke yourself to grow and care without appropriate role models? When do you decide to march forth in life and go beyond the negative expectations of those who surround you? How do you restore faith when there is disaster, crisis, destruction and adversity knocking at your door constantly? The best-selling Latino poet, Tato Laviera, answers these questions and others purposefully in "Fighting":

ceased to be physical

when I realized my natural

potential for dealing with

institutions on their own

word and logic turf


ceased to be physical when

the power of my uneducated job

prose elicited respect at a job

interview at Livingston college

(first and third stanzas, La Carreta Made a U-Turn, p. 31)

All of our modern day heroes have learned to take these questions and transform them into keys to unlock the doors of opportunities in their lives. Motivation does not come easy. It takes purpose, strength of character and leadership to go deep inside within. When doors are seemingly closed, others will open. When role models fail, big brothers and sisters will fulfill their duties. Bigotry, ignorance and prejudice can only be confronted from an educational standpoint. The current Secretary of State of the United States has learned to serve and lead under both political parties. Mr. Powell comes from a very humble background in the South Bronx and has used his great determination and will to demonstrate that no one is excluded from greater doors of opportunities.
When the reflection in the bedroom window (past experiences) are not the brightest, the key to salvation may very well be an education. It will take an encounter within to heal and restore, but it is possible. With all the talk on war and terror, education will soon surface to the top, and all Americans will understand its role to unlock those hard-locked doors. There will be no need to bring the doors down. They will open naturally.

Manny Hernandez, a Puerto Rico Sun contributing writer on education issues, is an educator and columnist. He may be reached at 787-448-6080, or you may write:
HC-O1, Box 7717, Luquillo, Puerto Rico 00773