Friday, August 21, 2009
Efrain's Corner: Exclusive Interview with Writer, Producer and Director, Vagabond Beaumont on his Film 'Machetero'
Q&A with activist Vicente "Panama" Alba
The organization “For a Better Bronx,” a community-based organization in the South Bronx, which fights to achieve environmental, social and food justice through education, community organizing, and empowerment held a special event earlier this year at St. Luke’s Church in the Bronx. That day, long-time activist Vicente “Panama” Alba was honored for many years of service to the organization and his commitment to people. Vicente has done it all in his many years of activism, including being a member of the influential Young Lords Party, which this weekend celebrates its 40th anniversary, and being a member of the underground group the F.A.L.N. (Fuerzas Armadas Liberacion Nationalista). He has fought against police brutality and against the war. He is an environmentalist. He was also active in the movement to get the Navy out of the Puerto Rican town of Vieques.
With the anniversary and reunion of the Young Lords, Alba reflects on his time with the organization and says it continues to shape his work as an activist.
Q: Let’s talk about the Young Lords. It’s been close to 40 years since they took over the church at 111th Street and Lexington Avenue. Why are the Young Lords still in the minds of people to this day?
A: As far as the history of my involvement, I am a proud former member of the Young Lords Party. That experience has paved the road I’ve been walking since.
Q: Should there be a memorial in this (NY) city despite their birth in Chicago, Illinois?
A: As far as should there be a memorial for the Young Lords, it needs to be clear that the great majority of us never thought that we were making history. That was not our motivation. We just loved our people, hated what we were being subjected to, and dreamed of a better world. Those are the things that drive me to do what I do to this day. We, without realizing it, did make history. All the credit is deserved by Cha Cha, Sal, Omar, and the women who turned a gang into a revolutionary force and inspired young people in NY and then other parts of the country to join. I have to say, though, I believe that if the YLO had not happened in Chicago and moved people here, something else after that would have been born here because the reality we demanded it. As far as a memorial, that is not for me to say.
Q: Richie Perez was in the Lords with you. Can you tell us a little about him? He once stated that being in the movement keeps you young and strong.
A: As for as Richie Perez, the fact that from amongst all the people who lived for our people, you ask me about him speaks for itself. I first met Richie as one of the fellows when I was a teenager. He was soon after a teacher at Monroe High School where I was registered, but never went. Richie along with Cleo Silvers were the two most influential people at that time in my life. They knew me as an out-of-control rebel and guided me to the path I’ve been on since I joined the YLP. Until his death, he was my brother, my friend, companero de lucha, and is today one on whose spirit I call on. Richie was one of the most caring and committed people I’ve been honored to have in my life. Probably the most brilliant person I have ever come across. He never asked others to do something he would not do himself.
Ismael Nunez is a contributing writer to Puerto Rico Sun.
(photo by Ismael Nunez of Vicente "Panama" Alba, center, with his children at the Better Bronx event)
(Young Lords flier; click on image for larger text)
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
PRSUN Radio chats with the folks behind Coqui Mexicano
Coqui Mexicano is a new bodega/cafe on Brook Avenue in the South Bronx. It is also a cultural spot, featuring art and books.
NCPRR NYC to meet August 27
Community calendar
Chapter meeting 6:30 p.m., Thursday, August 27 CSS BUILDING, 105 East 22nd Street, 4th Floor conference Room 4A, Manhattan For more information on the NCPRR, go to www.ncprr.us. |
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
A Q&A with Whose Barrio's Ed Morales
-- Ismael Nunez
Ismael Nunez is a contributing writer to Puerto Rico Sun.
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Happy birthday to Sol
Sol, the mascot of Puerto Rico Sun Communications and the face of the PRSUN for the ASPCA campaign, turns 6. She is my beautiful feisty boricua cat. She is a rescue from the island.
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Senator reacts to city's plans to create commercial kitchen space at La Marqueta
I recently went to La Marqueta and hope not to return until there is new life there. It is a depressing place to visit and something must be done and very soon to revitalize La Marqueta in NYC's El Barrio, which at one time was a happening place. The place feels like a ghost town. It is sadly not worth visiting.
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Puerto Rican crime film as protest
Film
This year PRdream’s Summer Film Fest in East Harlem kicks off tonight with La Venganza de Correa Cotto.
PRdream presents two Puerto Rican crime films La Venganza de Correa Cotto, directed by Jeronimo Mitchel; and La Palomilla (tomorrow night), directed by Efrain Lopez Neris, as an exploration of crime as a form of protest. Classics in their own right, they were produced in Puerto Rico in the seventies and reflected an earlier period of transformation and transvaluation of island society brought on by U.S. investment policies known as Operation Bootstrap.
These films portray the law as an external imposition, foreign to the values of the common folk, and the outlaw as the unconscious expression of revolt. Both Correa Cotto and Jose Anibal Gerena Lafontaine (La Palomilla) were simple men, thrust by circumstances into extraordinary acts of transgression that challenged the colonial status quo. Correa and Gerena were men of their times, embodying the passions of a people experiencing the trauma of rapid urbanization and displacement. Anthony Felton who also produced Correa Cotto: Asi Me Llaman will be present for a Q&A after the film. Jaime Sanchez. A leading actor in both Puerto Rican and American cinema, who stars in La Palomilla will be present after that screening. Ritchie Velez, an actor who appears as a cell mate in La Palomilla will also be present. Some graphic scenes.
PRdream's summer films are in the 103rd Street Community Garden (103rd Street and Park Avenue). Free admission.
For the rest of the lineup for this year's outdoor film festival, go to www.prdream.com. For more information, Judith Escalona at 212.828.0401 or judith.escalona (at) gmail.com.
Sunday, August 09, 2009
Puerto Rican Obituary and the Meaning of Sotomayor's Accomplishment
Puerto Rican Obituary reminds us how far we have come as a people, and how far we have yet to go. It is also a reminder of how the Puerto Rican experience, although not technically one of immigrants, parallels many of the realities that Latino and other immigrants face today.
We have acknowledged and celebrated our collective accomplishment with a Justice Sotomayor in the Supreme Court as Latinos. Now the work continues in the fight for social justice for our people and all humanity. As Puerto Rican Obituary shows us as a historical baseline, we have made some real progress, but much still needs to be done. Keep a copy with you and refer to it next time something amazing happens.
Un abrazo.
Angelo Falcón is president of the National Institute for Latino Policy. This article was originally published in the Institute's e-newsletter.
Saturday, August 08, 2009
Judge Sonia Sotomayor Sworn In As Supreme Court Justice
Coverage of Judge Sonia Sotomayor as she is officially sworn is as an Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court by Chief Justice John Roberts in Washington, D.C. Her mother and brother are with her. Felicidades to this boricua who hails from the Bronx.
source: PoliticsNewsPolitics, YouTube
Wednesday, August 05, 2009
Salsa in the Park at Crotona
Community calendar
Monday, August 03, 2009
Manny Hernandez Jr. chats with PRSUN Radio
Sunday, August 02, 2009
Bronx News Network: Protest Over Controversial Art Piece Fizzles
Friday, July 31, 2009
Broken Promises
During this period, the Navy tested nearly every kind of munitions employed by the military, dropping over 80 million pounds of ordnance on Vieques from 1984-1998 alone. The Navy has refused to disclose the complete list and amounts of all materials sprayed, dropped, tested, or disposed of on the island and surrounding ocean during the 62-years of weapons testing.
The people of Vieques have a 25% higher infant mortality rate, 30% higher rate of cancer, a 381% higher rate of hypertension, a 95% higher rate of cirrhosis of the liver, and a 41% higher rate of diabetes than those on the main island of Puerto Rico a mere 8 miles away. Despite these facts, the Navy denies any culpability and refuses to help alleviate the suffering it has caused.
The health claims of the American citizens in Vieques have been supported by a multitude of groups and faith-based organizations, including the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC), the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO), the National Council of La Raza (NCLR), and the American Values Network, among others.
The full white paper is at http://americanvaluesnetwork.org/vieques/white-paper/
'The War Boys' premieres tonight at the NYILFF
The War Boys Trailer from Brandon Roots on Vimeo.
Revisiting "Down These Mean Streets'
Reading "Down These Mean Streets" after twenty years, when i was young i was not prepared to read "Down These Mean Streets," now I respect Piri. -- Coconut Brujita |
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Director Victor Cruz speaks on his short film 'La Operacion'
Examiner speaks to Victor Cruz on his "La Operacion (The Operation)," a short 15 minute film he directed on the sterilization of Puerto Rican women during the 1940s.
The synopsis of Victor's film is based on a bill passed in 1937, which allowed the sterilization of women on the island and the decision one woman makes on whether to go ahead with the procedure.
"La Operacion" is now part of the lineup of short program playing at the New York International Latino Film Festival in Manhattan.
For more, go to my Examiner site at http://www.examiner.com/x-11970-NY-Latino-Community-Examiner~y2009m7d30-Director-Victor-Cruz-speaks-on-his-short-film-La-Operacion
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Re: The Death of former NY State Senator Olga Mendez
“Olga Mendez was a great role model not only for the residents of her Bronx and Manhattan district, but across the United States. As the first Puerto Rican woman elected to the New York State legislature, she opened doors for all who came after her, myself included. She was a tireless advocate for the concerns of her constituents, and she will be sorely missed. My thoughts and prayers, as well as those of all Bronxites, are with her family as they mourn her loss.” -- Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr.
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
The NY International Latino Film Festival celebrates anniversary with movies
For more, go to
http://www.examiner.com/x-11970-NY-Latino-Community-Examiner~y2009m7d28-The-NY-International-Latino-Film-Festival-celebrates-anniversary-with-movies
I'm the NY Latino Community Examiner. Have story ideas for my Examiner column, feel free to e-mail me at clariselgonzalez (at) yahoo.com.
Friday, July 24, 2009
Artist restores Spirit of East Harlem
Artist Manny Vega began restoration on July 17th of Hope Community's defaced Spirit of East Harlem mural. The artist will complete the work by the end of July. Vega, along with community artists from different genres, will participate in an educational forum on the history and cultural significance of community (outdoor) artwork that Hope Community will host on August 13th. (photo and text courtesy of Marina Ortiz) To view more photos, go to http://www.hopeci.org/Spirit_Vega071709/index.htm |