THE “BOOK SMUGGLERS” PROTEST ARIZONA’S CONTROVERSIAL BAN ON ETHNIC STUDIES CLASSES: MEET THE LIBROTRAFICANTES

Arizona Ethnic-Studies Ban’s Unintended Result: Underground Libraries

Meet the Librotraficantes—the “book smugglers” protesting the state’s controversial ban on ethnic-studies classes—and putting Mexican-American works in students’ hands.

Some 30 students, teachers, and activists emerged from the bus carrying boxes of books. As they stepped onto the pavement Saturday and into the bright Tucson sun, they chanted in unison, “What do we want? Books! When do we want them? Now! Who are we? Librostraficantes!”

The Spanish term, which means “book smugglers,” is the brainchild of Houston Community College professor and author Tony Diaz, who with a few dozen supporters set out March 12 for Arizona to protest a 2010 state law that prohibits certain types of ethnic studies in public schools. In January officials shut down the Tucson Unified School District’s Mexican-American-studies curriculum. The Librotraficante Caravan traveled through Texas and New Mexico, stopping in cities along the way to hold literary readings, collect donated books, and establish “underground libraries” filled with titles from Tucson’s banned courses. Several authors whose works were discontinued participated—Rudolfo Anaya, widely considered the godfather of Latino literature in the Southwest, even invited the caravan into his Albuquerque home for posole, traditional pork stew.
“I’m much obliged to the Tucson Unified School District for creating this little book club,” Diaz said after arriving at a youth center that will be the site of Tucson’s “underground library,” home to copies of some 80 books taught in the now-defunct program, including The House on Mango Street by bestselling author Sandra Cisneros, Rethinking Columbus: The Next 500 Years, and The Devil’s Highway by Luis Alberto Urrea. “When Arizona legislators decided to erase our history, we decided to make more!” The law originated amid Arizona’s heated debates over the immigration crackdown spearheaded by Republican legislators, Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio, and Gov. Jan Brewer. The governor signed the ethnic-studies measure in May 2010, just weeks after signing into law the country’s toughest immigration bill in generations. (That measure, S.B. 1070, is heading to the Supreme Court in April.) Soon after, officials declared the Tucson program illegal, and a group of teachers sued the state in federal court. In January an administrative judge approved the courses’ elimination, and the classes’ books were boxed up and taken to storage facilities and school libraries. A district-court judge is scheduled to hear motions in the case today.
                                                                                                                                                                       Megan Feldman
Arizona Attorney General Tom Horne wrote the ethnic-studies law while he was the state’s superintendent of public instruction. Banning courses that promote the overthrow of the U.S. government, encourage resentment against a group of people, or are created specifically for one group, the law was aimed squarely at the Tucson Mexican-American-studies program. Its teachers, Horne claims, taught Chicano history and literature through a racist and politicized filter that wrongly informed students that they’re oppressed by white people. (He says he began looking into the program in 2007 after labor leader Dolores Huerta told Tucson students that Republicans hated Latinos, and when he sent a Latina Republican aide to the school to counter that view, some students turned their backs and raised their fists in the air.)

“It’s a fundamental American value that what matters about us is what we know, what we can do, and what is our character—and that what race we were born into is irrelevant,” Horne says. “This program is teaching students the opposite—that what matters about people is their race.” In a recent court brief, he cites former district teachers who claim students became resentful and mistrustful of authorities after taking the classes, as well as a white student who said Hispanic students ceased speaking to her because of her race. The program’s teachers and many of its students dismiss such accusations. Alfonso Chavez, 20, says the classes helped him understand his culture and history while getting an education that included the state-mandated core curriculum. “These classes are very relevant, especially here in the Southwest,” he said at a Librotraficante breakfast hosted by a Tucson gallery. “It helped me grow as a person, and my grades started improving.”

“THE BIG CULTURAL AFFRONT TO ME IS THAT THEY WALKED IN THE CLASSROOMS AND BOXED UP THE BOOKS IN FRONT OF THE LATINO STUDENTS. THAT WAS THE SINGLE ACT THAT GALVANIZED US AND THIS WHOLE MOVEMENT!”

Erin Cain-Hodge, a 19-year-old University of Arizona student, says being one of three white pupils in one of the now prohibited courses was valuable. “I took the classes because I was constantly hearing from the same white male authors,” she says. “I thought, ‘There has to be more.’” Horne says the state’s standard courses include Chicano authors and even instances of historical oppression, but Mexican-American-studies supporters say Latino history and literature are underrepresented.
“Many of my students would come in and say they’d never read any Chicano literature before,” said Curtis Acosta, a plaintiff in the case who has taught in the Tucson schools since 2003. In a district that’s more than 60 percent Latino, teaching Chicano history and literature is crucial for students’ sense of belonging and academic development, he said. As for claims that he taught students to resent white people? “I think Horne needs to take credit for his own work,” Acosta said. “If he feels that anger, we definitely didn’t have to teach it, because he’s teaching it to them.”
READ MORE: THE DAILY BEAST

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CAN DREAMS COME TRUE?

THE HISPANIC BLOG IS THE LATEST HISPANIC NEWS BY JESSICA MARIE GUTIERREZ

photo source AP

If you can look a poor child in the eye and tell her that she can’t attend the college of her choice — a university to which her hard work and exceptional grades earned her admission — then you might believe that immigration reform is not the answer.

But, if you experience what I do each day, then you would quickly recognize the need for relief for undocumented students.

The sooner, the better.

I encounter many undocumented students in my role as chairman of the LEAP Academy Charter School in the impoverished city of Camden, New Jersey. Our school sets high goals for students from pre-K through high school and makes strong academic demands, all in the name of helping each child achieve college placement and study for more than just a job, but a career of their own making. For these kids, education represents a chance to emerge from a culture of poverty into a career of their dreams.

Unfortunately there are restrictions on the dreams of undocumented students, roadblocks that may compromise their true potential.

I had the difficult conversation with an undocumented student — to tell her that the Ivy League school to which she was admitted will not offer a financial aid package because she is not a legal U.S. resident.

Despite bipartisan support, the proposed DREAM Act was handed a setback this week, turning the focus back onto how to deal with the issue of children of illegal immigrants. (DreamActivist / Flickr.com)

That student eventually went to college — a state university, though, not an Ivy League institution. Her tuition and board was paid for with private scholarship money, not federal aid. That student has been admitted to graduate medical school and again is confronted with the same challenge.

It is unfair. Yet it is fixable.

Could an Ivy League education improve that student’s life and career outlook significantly?

Sadly, we’ll never find out.

The most difficult challenge that college-ready undocumented students confront is restricted access to financial support for college tuition. In addition to employment restrictions, they are ineligible for federal and state aid and have limited scholarship opportunities.

The DREAM (Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors) Act — which would increase the financial resources available to undocumented students — remains in limbo despite support from President Obama, members of his Cabinet, the business community and organized labor. Presidents and Chancellors at more than 73 colleges and universities across the U.S. have also voiced enthusiastic support for the bill.

The DREAM Act, if passed, could grant as many as 2.1 million students access to legal residency and limited forms of federal financial aid. Its passage is the most important political issue for the more than 48 million Latinos living in this country.

Our undocumented student did not choose to violate the law. In so many cases, students like her were brought to the U.S. as babies by their parents. In almost every case, these students love the United States — the only country they have ever really known — as much as any of us.

Denying opportunities to the children of undocumented immigrants creates a bitter and disenchanted group of young people who are unable to take advantage of the vehicles that would allow them to contribute to our economy and society.

The DREAM Act needs to be reintroduced, passed and implemented without delay. Preferably before I have to look another promising student in the eye to tell her that her immigration status is the reason her Ivy League dreams are being denied.

Read More: The Huffington Post

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WHY ARE REPUBLICANS VISITING PUERTO RICO?

THE HISPANIC BLOG IS THE LATEST HISPANIC NEWS BY JESSICA MARIE GUTIERREZ

Romney to Puerto Rico: You can still speak Spanish in my America!

PHOTO BY AP

Mitt Romney landed in Puerto Rico today ahead of the islands primary this Sunday. And unlike what Rick Santorum said Wednesday, Romney would not require Puerto Rico to meet any language requirement prior to becoming a state. When asked by reporters if Romney would require Puerto Rico to make English the territory’s official language, Romney said he had no “preconditions,” ABC News reports.
http://c.brightcove.com/services/viewer/federated_f9?isVid=1

You know a presidential primary has turned into a scramble for every last delegate when the candidates start showing up in Puerto Rico.

Politics is a boisterous pastime on this island territory, where campaigns feature festive parades and caravans of cars blaring music. Few places in the world have higher voter turnout.

So you can imagine the excitement over today’s Republican primary in Puerto Rico, which in most presidential campaigns earns at best a token visit from a candidate’s spouse or kid, but last week had Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum hitting the streets of San Juan.

With 23 Republican delegates at stake, Puerto Rico has more influence on the nomination than Hawaii or Delaware. But in the rare occasions when presidential primaries extend into a fight for every delegate, the commonwealth becomes more than a political afterthought bypassed by the major candidates. Four years ago Hillary Rodham Clinton won Puerto Rico handily after she and Obama campaigned aggressively in the territory, and Romney and Santorum made appearances last week.

“I was referred to by many in my state as Senador Puertorriqueño. They used to make fun of me. ‘Why are you representing Puerto Rico?’ ” Santorum boasted in San Juan, recounting his efforts as a U.S. senator to increase Medicare reimbursements to citizens in Puerto Rico.

His pandering was overshadowed, however, by an interview with the newspaper El Vocero in which he said he would support statehood so long as Puerto Rico made English its primary language.

The Constitution does not require any state to make English its official language, and Santorum stepped into the political mine field that defines why Puerto Ricans are sharply divided by the question of statehood: their identity. One Puerto Rican delegate pledged to Santorum promptly quit his campaign after the English language comment.

“Puerto Rico is very different from the United States, and if we became a state I worry we would lose something vital,” said Therese Santos, a university student, who like many Puerto Ricans speaks perfect English. “To say we have to speak English would be changing centuries of tradition and threaten our identity.”

That’s a common sentiment among Puerto Ricans. They say they’re proud to be Americans, but they are equally proud to wave their own flag, and field their own Olympic teams and Miss Universe contestants.

Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum waves at supporters following a campaign rally in Old San Juan, Puerto Rico, Thursday. Ricardo Arduengo/AP

“He really bombed with that comment, but I’m glad Santorum said that because he spoke the truth,” said Evelyn Nieves, a teacher. “And I hope people will question the party leaders pushing statehood who keep telling people everything would stay the same and we would continue with our own flag, our own national anthem.”

Romney has managed to antagonize some Hispanic voters with his calls for “self-deportation” of some 11 million undocumented immigrants in America, but he treaded carefully on the language question in San Juan on Friday.

“Spanish is the language of Puerto Rico’s heritage. English is the language of opportunity,” he said at a news conference. “I would hope that young people would learn both languages, but particularly English so that as they trade throughout the country and participate in educational opportunities throughout the country that their English skills would make it even easier for them.”

In November, Puerto Ricans will hold a referendum on whether they support continuing with territorial status or moving to statehood. Congress would have to approve it, but if Puerto Rico became America’s 51st state, most observers believe that would lead to Democrats picking up seats in the U.S. House and Senate.

“If a majority of Puerto Ricans wish to become a state, then I will support that effort in Washington and I will help lead that effort in Washington,” Romney vowed Friday, flanked by pro-statehood Gov. Fortuno, and Puerto Rican and American flags.

Romney is favored to win today’s primary, but other candidates can still pick up delegates if no one receives more than 50 percent of the vote.

“Puerto Rico’s never mattered more in a presidential primary because every delegate matters,” said John Regis, finance chairman of the island’s Republican Party, who hopes more than 130,000 people turn out.

READ MORE: http://www.tampabay.com/news/politics/national/puerto-rico-a-force-in-florida-voting/1220638

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UTAH GOVERNOR SIGNED PACKAGE OF IMMIGRATION REFORM BILLS

 

THE HISPANIC BLOG IS THE LATEST HISPANIC NEWS BY JESSICA MARIE GUTIERREZ


On March 15, 2011, Utah Governor Gary Herbertsigned into law a group of bills that reformed the state’s immigration laws that challenged the federal government to take national action. One of the bills required police to check the immigration status of anyone arrested for an alleged felony or serious misdemeanor. The bill was similar to Arizona’s SB 1070 that has been the subject of national debate and federal litigation. The other bills included the implementation of a guest worker program and an initiative that allows American companies and individuals to sponsor foreigners who wish to work or study in the US. The Utah reforms have been challenged by the Department of Justice (DOJ) in the US District Court for the District of Utah, but the court has decided to delay any rulings until the Supreme Court rules on Arizona’s controversial immigration laws.

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WATCH “THE ROAD WE’VE TRAVELED” TODAY…LIVE…BY ACADEMY AWARD WINNING FILMMAKER WHO CAPTURES OBAMA’S 1ST TERM

THE HISPANIC BLOG IS THE LATEST HISPANIC NEWS BY JESSICA MARIE GUTIERREZ

CAN TOM HANKS AND BILL CLINTON SAVE PRESIDENT OBAMA?

YOUTUBE/BARACKOBAMA.COM

That’s right folks, this Thursday if you are a Democrat or an UNDECIDED voter, this is your chance to see the 17 minute Documentary by Academy Award-winning filmmaker Davis Guggenheim‘s. The sole purpose of this film is to see what President Obama had to undergo his first 3 years and the choices he had to make in order to capture Osama Bin Laden. If you are an Obama lover, then you don’t have to wait for the big screen. As you know our President is BIG on social media, so his campaign will be streaming THE ROAD WE’VE TRAVELED LIVE this Thursday and you can be among the first to watch it!

The campaign calls the teaser Tough Decisions: “The Road We’ve Traveled” Obama for America 2012!!!! SCROLL TO THE BOTTOM TO TAKE A SNEAK PEAK JUST CLICK ON THE VIDEO!

So where do Tom Hanks and Bill Clinton fit in all of this?

PHOTO CREDIT AP

The All-American Tom Hanks narrates the story of the current President of the United States, Barrack Obama. The film captures the Commander and Chief who must make a crucial decision.

The Director captivates us as we experience hand in hand with the President those last intricate moments before  “Operation Kill Bin Laden.”

While President Bill Clinton the man we all came to know and love describes the President’s decision as honorable and he wonders if he could have made that same decision.

“After midnight, a large number of commandos encircled the compound,” Nasir Khan of Abbottabad told Reuters. “Three helicopters were hovering overhead … All of a sudden there was firing toward the helicopters from the ground. There was intense firing, and then I saw one of the helicopters crash,” said Khan, who watched the scene from his roof nearby. “In the end, bin Laden was not found hiding in some cave deep in the mountains along the Afghanistan-Pakistan frontier. “The attack on bin Laden did not occur in some remote area outside Pakistani control but in a compound in a city of some 100,000, and less than 100 miles from a major Pakistani population center like Islamabad, and one occupied by a brigade from the Pakistani army’s second division and the location of the army’s military academy,” Anthony Cordesman of the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

“Early discussion of bombing the compound was scrapped in favor of a snatch and grab — the U.S. wanted bin Laden’s body as evidence of his demise. Even in a bombing mission, U.S. or allied personnel would have had to go to the compound for evidence. It made more sense, although it was riskier, to raid the place and get bin Laden, dead or alive. “The men who executed this mission accepted this risk, practiced to minimize those risks, and understood the importance of the target to the national security of the United States,” a senior Administration official said. “This operation was a surgical raid by a small team designed to minimize collateral damage and to pose as little risk as possible to non-combatants on the compound or to Pakistani civilians in the neighborhood,” another official added. “Our team was on the compound for under 40 minutes and did not encounter any local authorities while performing the raid.”

Photo by the AP

“I think we experienced the same sense of unity that prevailed on 9/11.”

“We were reminded again that there is a pride in what this nation stands for and what we can achieve

that runs far deeper than party, far deeper than politics,” Obama said. “I want to again recognize the

heroes who carried out this incredibly dangerous mission as well as all the military and

counterterrorism professionals who made the mission possible.” -President Obama

The Road We’ve Traveled

The Synopsis Released by President Obama’s Campaign:

When President Obama took office, our economy was in crisis, with 750,000 people losing their jobs every month, the auto industry near failure, and the markets close to collapse.

The Road We’ve Traveled follows the tough decisions the President made to bring our nation back from the brink and fight for the security of the middle class, from reining in Wall Street to ending the war in Iraq, reforming health care, and getting millions of Americans back to work.

The story’s told by the people who watched it unfold — like the First Lady, Vice President Biden, President Bill Clinton, and Elizabeth Warren.

Between now and November, this film will be one of the many tools we have to bring others into this campaign and get folks out to vote for the President.

PLEASE REMEMBER THAT YOU MUST SIGN UP TO WATCH THE MOVIE AS THE CLIP BELOW IS JUST A TRAILER SIGN UP INFO IS BELOW THE MOVIE CLIP!

ALRIGHT AMERICA GET YOUR POPCORN OUT AND SHARE THIS IF YOU ARE A SUPPORTER OF PRESIDENT OBAMA.

Check out the trailer now, and sign up to watch LIVE via livestream on Thursday

03/15/2012:

SIGN UP NOW AND…PER PRESIDENT OBAMA’S CAMPAIGN:

https://my.barackobama.com/page/share/road-traveled-be-the-first-to-see

After you sign up, look for an email on Thursday with the link to the livestream of the film.

When President Obama took office, our economy was in crisis, with 750,000 people losing their jobs every month, the auto industry near failure, and the markets close to collapse.

The Road We’ve Traveled follows the tough decisions the President made to bring our nation back from the brink and fight for the security of the middle class, from reining in Wall Street to ending the war in Iraq, reforming health care, and getting millions of Americans back to work.

The story’s told by the people who watched it unfold — like the First Lady, Vice President Biden, President Bill Clinton, and Elizabeth Warren.

Between now and November, this film will be one of the many tools we have to bring others into this campaign and get folks out to vote for the President.

If you’re a part of this campaign already, you should see it first, then share it with everyone you know who’s been asking questions about the President’s record or needs to get more engaged around this election. You could even invite them over to watch it with you on Thursday.

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God Bless and may you have a fabulous day!

powered by Influential Access – “Transforming the Ordinary to EXTRAordinary!” – CEO – Jessica Marie Gutierrez – Creator of The Hispanic Blog #thehispanicblog