Thousands march to demand US immigration reform
By Paula Bustamante LOS ANGELES — Thousands of immigrants poured into the streets of Los Angeles on Sunday to demand that President Barack Obama fulfill his campaign promise to legalize millions of undocumented immigrants. "Legalization or no re-election!" chanted the demonstrators participating in protest on May Day protest, a holiday mostly ignored in the United States. Most were immigrants from Central America and Mexico demanding the immigration reform Obama has promised for some of the estimated 11 million illegal immigrants in the United States to gain legal status. Organizers said 10,000 immigrants protested downtown, while the Los Angeles Police Department put the crowd's numbers at 3,500. Though leaders of the pro-immigration reform movement advocate for immigrant rights, they have largely stopped short of asking the Hispanic community to vote against the president and his fellow Democrats in the 2012 elections after Hispanics played a significant role in bringing Obama to the White House. "We all known that it is the Republicans who are blocking immigration reform and that a Republican administration would simply stall all our requests, so we cannot threaten right now that we will vote against Obama," said Javier Rodriguez of the March 25 Coalition. But Alfredo Gutierrez, a former Democratic state senator from Arizona, said Obama could not be counted on to enact the promised reforms. "We should deny our votes to Obama, a man who clearly is not sincere about his intentions," he told AFP. "We will not get anything from Obama. We just need his to stop the systematic deportation of children, students and parents, because it is destroying our community." Maricarmen, an undocumented Mexican-born woman who has lived in the United States for 10 years, blamed "American double standards." "We work hard. They say we don't have papers but we are employed and we pay taxes, just like any other citizen here." She said she wanted to get legalized so she could travel to Mexico to visit her family. "I live here to work and because I need to do so, I'm not robbing anybody," added the woman who only gave her first name, adding that she was working as a cashier at a supermarket. In the fiscal year that ended September 30 alone, the United States deported a over 392,000 unauthorized immigrants, a record. Thousands more protesters marched in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in support of immigrant and worker rights, according to estimates provided by local media. Milwaukee saw its congenial political culture change after Governor Scott Walker introduced a proposal in February to strip unions of collective bargaining power. The bill sparked huge protests and led 14 Democratic state senators to flee to neighboring Illinois in a futile attempt to stop its passage. Opponents of the changes say the measures seek to kill public sector unions, which tend to back Democrats. "This is an aggressive attack on the basic democratic process and a consolidation of corporate power," said Christine Neumann-Ortiz, executive director of the Milwaukee-based Voces de la Frontera, a group tasked with rallying labor membership among the region's growing Hispanic population. Copyright © 2011 AFP. All rights reserved. So I've recently decided to take more advantage of being a college grad with wayyy too much free time and read up on some things and came across this awesome book............. Which you can buy here. :) ¡Chicana Power! Contested Histories of Feminism in the Chicano Movement By Maylei Blackwell The first book-length study of women's involvement in the Chicano Movement of the late 1960s and 1970s,¡Chicana Power! tells the powerful story of the emergence of Chicana feminism within student and community-based organizations throughout southern California and the Southwest. As Chicanos engaged in widespread protest in their struggle for social justice, civil rights, and self-determination, women in el movimiento became increasingly militant about the gap between the rhetoric of equality and the organizational culture that suppressed women's leadership and subjected women to chauvinism, discrimination, and sexual harassment. Based on rich oral histories and extensive archival research, Maylei Blackwell analyzes the struggles over gender and sexuality within the Chicano Movement and illustrates how those struggles produced new forms of racial consciousness, gender awareness, and political identities. ¡Chicana Power!provides a critical genealogy of pioneering Chicana activist and theorist Anna NietoGomez and the Hijas de Cuauhtémoc, one of the first Latina feminist organizations, who together with other Chicana activists forged an autonomous space for women's political participation and challenged the gendered confines of Chicano nationalism in the movement and in the formation of the field of Chicana studies. She uncovers the multifaceted vision of liberation that continues to reverberate today as contemporary activists, artists, and intellectuals, both grassroots and academic, struggle for, revise, and rework the political legacy of Chicana feminism. Maylei Blackwell is Assistant Professor in the César E. Chávez Department of Chicana and Chicano Studies and Women's Studies at UCLA. An interdisciplinary scholar activist and oral historian, she works with indigenous women's organizers in Mexico, Latin American feminist movements, and sexual rights activists, all of whom are involved in cross-border organizing and community formation. Poem about My Rights
Even tonight and I need to take a walk and clear my head about this poem about why I can’t go out without changing my clothes my shoes my body posture my gender identity my age my status as a woman alone in the evening/ alone on the streets/alone not being the point/ the point being that I can’t do what I want to do with my own body because I am the wrong sex the wrong age the wrong skin and suppose it was not here in the city but down on the beach/ or far into the woods and I wanted to go there by myself thinking about God/or thinking about children or thinking about the world/all of it disclosed by the stars and the silence: I could not go and I could not think and I could not stay there alone as I need to be alone because I can’t do what I want to do with my own body and who in the hell set things up like this and in France they say if the guy penetrates but does not ejaculate then he did not rape me and if after stabbing him if after screams if after begging the bastard and if even after smashing a hammer to his head if even after that if he and his buddies fuck me after that then I consented and there was no rape because finally you understand finally they fucked me over because I was wrong I was wrong again to be me being me where I was/wrong to be who I am which is exactly like South Africa penetrating into Namibia penetrating into Angola and does that mean I mean how do you know if Pretoria ejaculates what will the evidence look like the proof of the monster jackboot ejaculation on Blackland and if after Namibia and if after Angola and if after Zimbabwe and if after all of my kinsmen and women resist even to self-immolation of the villages and if after that we lose nevertheless what will the big boys say will they claim my consent: Do You Follow Me: We are the wrong people of the wrong skin on the wrong continent and what in the hell is everybody being reasonable about and according to the Times this week back in 1966 the C.I.A. decided that they had this problem and the problem was a man named Nkrumah so they killed him and before that it was Patrice Lumumba and before that it was my father on the campus of my Ivy League school and my father afraid to walk into the cafeteria because he said he was wrong the wrong age the wrong skin the wrong gender identity and he was paying my tuition and before that it was my father saying I was wrong saying that I should have been a boy because he wanted one/a boy and that I should have been lighter skinned and that I should have had straighter hair and that I should not be so boy crazy but instead I should just be one/a boy and before that it was my mother pleading plastic surgery for my nose and braces for my teeth and telling me to let the books loose to let them loose in other words I am very familiar with the problems of the C.I.A. and the problems of South Africa and the problems of Exxon Corporation and the problems of white America in general and the problems of the teachers and the preachers and the F.B.I. and the social workers and my particular Mom and Dad/I am very familiar with the problems because the problems turn out to be me I am the history of rape I am the history of the rejection of who I am I am the history of the terrorized incarceration of myself I am the history of battery assault and limitless armies against whatever I want to do with my mind and my body and my soul and whether it’s about walking out at night or whether it’s about the love that I feel or whether it’s about the sanctity of my vagina or the sanctity of my national boundaries or the sanctity of my leaders or the sanctity of each and every desire that I know from my personal and idiosyncratic and indisputably single and singular heart I have been raped be- cause I have been wrong the wrong sex the wrong age the wrong skin the wrong nose the wrong hair the wrong need the wrong dream the wrong geographic the wrong sartorial I I have been the meaning of rape I have been the problem everyone seeks to eliminate by forced penetration with or without the evidence of slime and/ but let this be unmistakable this poem is not consent I do not consent to my mother to my father to the teachers to the F.B.I. to South Africa to Bedford-Stuy to Park Avenue to American Airlines to the hardon idlers on the corners to the sneaky creeps in cars I am not wrong: Wrong is not my name My name is my own my own my own and I can’t tell you who the hell set things up like this but I can tell you that from now on my resistance my simple and daily and nightly self-determination may very well cost you your life written by June Jordan http://www.junejordan.com/ http://iambecauseweare.wordpress.com/2007/02/11/poem-about-my-rights-by-june-jordan/ America
Although she feeds me bread of bitterness, And sinks into my throat her tiger's tooth, Stealing my breath of life, I will confess I love this cultured hell that tests my youth! Her vigor flows like tides into my blood, Giving me strength erect against her hate. Her bigness sweeps my being like a flood. Yet as a rebel fronts a king in state, I stand within her walls with not a shred Of terror, malice, not a word of jeer. Darkly I gaze into the days ahead, And see her might and granite wonders there, Beneath the touch of Time's unerring hand, Like priceless treasures sinking in the sand. written by Claude McKay "Doctors seeing a constant stream of troops with symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder can start to have problems of their own — an issue that has not gotten enough attention, said Dr. Allen Taylor, a cardiologist at Walter Reed Army Medical Center for 20 years before recently moving to Washington Hospital Center.
'It's time for some introspection: Who cares for the caregivers?' he said." Okay, so we're a little late on this but an important article was published in USA Today that we found after looking up information on Alexis Hutchinson, a single mother soldier who refused to deploy to care for her infant. Aside from that also very interesting story, the Fort Hood massacre is still fresh in everyone's minds. Majority of the coverage on Hasan and his violent breakdown has focused on the fact that he is Muslim and allegedly espouses anti-American views. However, the following article focuses on the fact that army mental health specialists are not given adequate support services. Please take a look if you haven't already: In wake of attack, military asks: Who cares for the caregivers? We wanted to share the article, Mourning for Melody turns into a celebration by Tim Grobaty, and particularly, the comments it provoked because it has brought to light some disturbing, ignorant, and outright racist perspectives on the Melody Ross incident. Post-racial society? I think not. Please take a look. We hope you can make it out tonight to honor Melody Ross and support her family. Quotes taken from the comments: “The fact that they are allowing a rap "artist" to take the lead on orchestrating an event that is the result of gang activity is the most tragic irony of all.” – Astounding of Los Angeles, CA “Rap culture helped kill this young girl and you think it's a great idea to hype this attention seeking rap "artist" as a way to celebrate her life.” – Peace of Long Beach, CA “…sure seems strange that a "rapper" is being highlighted in this event, since rap is the one unifying element in all gang activity without exception. You'd think that's the last thing they'd want at a memorial for a girl allegedly shot by a gang member.” – Wondering of Los Angeles, CA “Not only is he [praCh] rare as an Asian rapper, but even more so as a rapper with SUBSTANCE. His lyrics transcends the voice of the Cambodian people, putting light on the Cambodian diaspora. The genocide in the 1970s was one of the darkest chapters in human history, one of which most of the world knows little about. Prach's work challenges us to never forget that and never to allow such atrocities happen again. To me, Prach is a humanitarian. Rap is the vehicle he uses to convey his message, which in my opinion, is a highly effective medium to today's youth.” – Chad of Long Beach, CA “As for rap being only about gangs - could you sound any more stuck in the 80's? Some is crap and some is deeply relevant- like all forms of popular expression. To write it all off because you don't like it is to miss out on the artists that do have something to say. Sort of like people in the early 60's who didn't listen to Bob Dylan because they didn't like "that awful Rock & Roll". Subjugation of women? lets look at any hair metal band video from the 80's.Rap Culture didn't kill Melody Ross - a kid (yes I think 16 is a kid) who used to attend Wilson acted like an idiot and ended her life & his. period.” – LB Mom of Long Beach, CA “Do you know the history of hip hop? This was a movement that was started in the Bronx during the 70s to help decrease gang violence. Rap sessions were developed to have dialogue about the community and what could be done to improve it. Breakdancing was an alternative to settling issues with knives and guns [which is why we have bboy/girl circles]. Graffiti was a way to paint the ghetto beautifully and take it back as their own since they did not have the high privilege to be in fancy art museums. It was also an alternative to 'tagging', which more associated with gang members claiming territory. [Many taggers moved over to Graffiti]. And all this was started by people under the age of 25. But what happened? Hip hop got SO BIG that money became involved. Corporations jumped on the opportunity to use this for their own profit. This is why you see hip hop everywhere now, on your billboards and television, and this is why many in the 'rap game' have the 'get rich or die trying' mentality because they have been brainwashed to believe that this will get them out of the hood. Fact: Black Entertainment Television is owned by white males.” – Upset of Cerritos, CA “We will rewrite our own stories and take them back just how hip hop was meant to be. Peace, Love, Unity, and having fun.” – Upset of Cerritos, CA “The same people who boast of America as "a melting pot," in one sentence will speak positively of "the cambodian business alligance," or "koreatown," when those organizations only serve to maintain cultural separation and lack of assimilation. The fact that "whatevertown" used to be where immigrants were virtually forced to live, to keep them "in their place," makes the irony of their staying there when they don't have to all the more ironic.” – Astounding of Los Angeles, CA “NOTE TO praCh: "Escape" is pronounced "Es Kape," not "Axe Kape." If you want to improve your life, and the life of fellow Cambodians, don't take your pronunciation cues off of Black Ghettonians. They are laughed at, here in America, and Cambodians aspiring to taking their culture lower, will be a further source of unintended comic results.” – Wondering of Los Angeles, CA “What's the deal with Cambodians who speak with a black slum accent? Why do they listen to rap music, which is the language of failure in almost all cases. For every one rapper who "makes it," there are scores of "wannabees" who do not, and waste their youth on what amounts to playing lotto professionally, often engaging it gang or gang-like activity to support their ‘art.’” – Astounding of Los Angeles, CA “So you want to talk about assimilation? Refugees were not put into the best part of Long Beach, you know. They DID assimilate - in a community that consisted of mainly African Americans [which should answer your question of why they speak in a 'black slum accent']. They fended for themselves from the clear racism that existed in their surroundings. Not only that, but with parents constantly working and with little money in their pockets, poverty resulted into violence [as it still does today]. Of course, that wasn't the case for everyone. Many people managed to step out of that crowd and took advantage of opportunities away from violence. But I hope this helps to paint a better picture for you of WHY Khmer gangs exist in Long Beach in the first place.” – Upset of Cerritos, CA “Now, with the Cambodian Business Alliance or other ethnic businesses out there. These organizations do not exist to maintain cultural separation. They are there to preserve a culture that has been stripped from genocide and war. But do you think they sit around talking about the killing fields all day? Of course not. This is their way of moving forward. It is vital that the community stays close knit because they must hold on to what they have left, while also providing opportunities and skills to excel in the business world - which is primarily white and male for those who have the most success.These ethnic towns all exist so we don't forget where we come from. So we can congregate and speak our own language without feeling isolated. Our cultures are beautiful. America is so focused on 'out with the old and in with the new' that people, especially teenagers, have been consumed with trying to fit in with the American stereotypes portrayed on television. Even old age is looked down upon in America. People dye their hair and try to stay young when in our culture it is an honor to be an elder.” – Upset of Cerritos, CA “this is crap, the city allows these people to honor this girl, but they turn there head when its a innocent black or mexican that got killed. asians, stop trying so hard to be white!!” – prickprakchamkprang of Garden Grove, CA “They are actually trying to be ghetto. Did you see the video of the uncle on the PT? The family is just going along for the political ride!” - La Santisima Muerte of Beaumont, CA “Are you serious? How dare you talk about a family using the death of their daughter to get fame. Cambodians are into hip hop because that is the neighborhoods that they come from. Refugees don't get relocated into Beverly Hills. You complain about there being no solidarity between communities of color and yet you bash a community that is coming together to grieve. I'm proud of my city for taking initiative to help support the family of Melody. I'm also glad that real action was taken on behalf of our city officials. Lets not forget that there were three families who lost children in this tragedy. Melody's and her 2 killers. I'm sure the parents of the killers need support right now as well.” - ugly comments of Los Angeles, CA “We all are haunted by the tragic death of Melody Ross. All my condolence to her family and friends. Another gifted life loss to yet another senseless violence. We have to look at the bigger picture here, what could have been done to help prevent this from happening again, and again.
When enough is enough is not enough, where do we go from here? what should we do next? instead of sitting behind the computer and insulting people whom is trying to make a change maybe you should go out there and make a change. That might make a different.” – Mick Harshpo of Laguna Woods, CA “Melody's tragic death is a realization that none of us are immune to random acts of senseless violence. I'm glad and inspired to see people like Prach making efforts to rally together our communities so that Melody's death was not in vain. Rather than being remembered as just another victim, I think it's great that her life (albiet short) is celebrated. I am also glad that people like Prach don't just shake their heads at the situation, do nothing and go on with their lives... or worst - criticize and do nothing!” – Chad of Long Beach, CA Okay okay okay. We have bigger issues at hand (like the fact that we're in two wars maybe?) than whether President Obama should have or have not bowed to Japanese Emperor Akihito. But for some reason, conservatives had a lot to say about this:
"I don't know why President Obama thought that was appropriate. Maybe he thought it would play well in Japan. But it's not appropriate for an American president to bow to a foreign one," said conservative pundit William Kristol speaking on the Fox News Sunday program, adding that the gesture bespoke a United States that has become weak and overly-deferential under Obama. Another conservative voice, Bill Bennett, said on CNN's "State of the Union" program: "It's ugly. I don't want to see it." "We don't defer to emperors. We don't defer to kings or emperors. The president of the United States -- this coupled with so many apologies from the United States -- is just another thing," said Bennett. Some conservative critics juxtaposed the image of Obama with one of former US vice president Dick Cheney, who greeted the emperor in 2007 with a firm handshake but no bow. "I'll bet if you look at pictures of world leaders over 20 years meeting the emperor in Japan, they don't bow," Kristol said. (taken from Yahoo! News) Hmm, what do you think? I find it strange that there is no mention of the fact that in Japan bowing is traditionally how two people greet each other, and that it is impolite to not return a bow when someone has bowed to you. In an effort to build stronger relationships with other countries, should the person who represents us all who live in the U.S. not conform to cultural norms out of respect and sensitivity? Just a thought. -s.i.m.f I may be halfway across the country, but I am still very very excited about the first Break The Silence Open Mic of the year! The first open mic of 2009 will feature the melodic, hypnotic, hip-swaying sounds of Canela Negra, and the talent, fire, and imagination that always comes from the open mic sets. Wish I could be there.
Break The Silence Open Mic January 29, 2009 18 open mic spots available Sign-ups start @ 7:15PM Show kicks off at 8PM Mirage Cafe & Hookah Lounge 539 Bixby Road Long Beach, 90810 Have a great show, everyone! Warmly from Chicago, Narinda |
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