African American Leaders Jesse Jackson and Ajamu Baraka Support a Comprehensive Immigration Reform [VIDEOS]

Black leaders Jesse Jackson and Ajamu Baraka are in support of an Immigration Reform in the United States, and they encourage Black and Brown communities to work together in many issues that affect us directly.


In recent past, some hate groups in the United States have tried unsuccessfully to convince Black Americans to stand against Immigration Reform, with false information including mostly racist rumors and manipulated data, so that African Americans would feel threatened in some way by immigrants.

Blacks in the U.S. are seeing how the population of their towns is changing rapidly, and many fear of racism and discrimination, or a higher unemployment rate. In the last decades most undocumented immigrants are Indigenous and Black peoples from the Americas.

African American Civil Rights leader Reverend Jesse Jackson; and Ajamu Baraka, Director of the U.S. Human Rights Network.

This video was recorded during yesterday's Rally for Immigration Reform in Washington, DC.
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Hundreds of Thousands Rallied in Washington DC for Immigration Reform: President Obama is Committed to Fix Broken System in 2010 [VIDEOS PHOTO]

Over 250,000 people rallied today in the National Mall of Washington, DC, to demand president Barack Obama and the U.S. Congress to pass an Immigration Reform in the United States. People from all across the U.S. gathered in the biggest popular rally since Obama took office.

Photos and videos by Carlos A. Quiroz

Immigration Reform is coming. One way or another, it's coming.

Today I saw the future of this country in the faces of hundreds of thousands of people rallying in support of an Immigration Reform, a pending bill seating in the bureaucratic U.S. Congress that is voting today on Health Care Reform.

Early on today, I met with several friends at the National Museum of the American Indian, where we held a brief pray for all families divided by a racist and obsolete legislation that keeps repressing the poorest of this nation.

We prayed for the children and parents who are incarcerated, abused, deported every day. We prayed for those fighting for justice for all immigrants. We prayed for strength.

Then we walked to the rally.

What a nice surprise to see so many people, chanting, singing, demanding justice and the reform of an obsolete legislation. I met friends and people who came from the Virginia and Maryland suburbs, as well as cities of Alabama, Illinois, Ohio, New York and North Carolina. The energy of the people attending reminded me of the historical 2006 Immigration rallies.

More than 250,000 people showed up. According to news reports, people came from as far as Nebraska, California, New York, Illinois. Some sources said that a many as 500,000 people rallied in DC, which makes sense.

Only in Maryland, the organization CASA brought over 50,000 people and this was one of hundreds of organizations, besides individuals and families that joined in their own effort. Among the thousands, there U.S. citizens of all races supporting the cause. However, the majority were Latinos, mostly Indigenous peoples.

One thing I didn't like about the rally was the presence of foreign flags, a Cuban American blogger for the Washington Post makes a good point, and I will blog about this.

President Obama sent a video message to the rally attendees, reassuring his commitment for an Immigration Reform this year. I interviewed Congress member Xavier Becerra (D-CA) and he confirmed that Obama wants to reform the current immigration legislation:

The event was very well organized but it was obvious that the response had surpassed all expectations. Hundreds of media reporters were there and I couldn't get a press pass since they run out of them. A well known activist gave me a press pass -some of the rally's organizers were hostile to this blogger, which I protest publicly.

I had the chance to meet and interview several people, including Congress members Robert Menendez (D-NJ), Xavier Becerra (D-CA) and civil rights leaders Rev. Jesse Jackson and Abuku Baraka, as well as the staff of Reform Immigration For America (RIFA) who were the rally's organizers (read their blog here), and several activists, undocumented immigrants and students advocating for the DREAM Act.

Anti immigrant media

Most TV news channels in the DC metro area have ignored the rally, obsessed with covering the Health Care Reform vote in Congress and plainly following an anti-immigrant pattern. It's very common for the mainstream media to report negatively on our immigrant communities, and they missed a great chance to cover a beautiful rally of hope and unity.

The usually anti-immigrant newspaper The Washington Post has posted a brief report online about today's amazing public demonstration of support for Immigration Reform and social justice. The little piece includes only seven (bad) photos showing immigrants waving foreign flags to the rally -which I oppose to- along this description:

With unemployment at 10 percent and time running short before this fall's midterm election, the odds against passing an immigration overhaul this year would appear to be growing insurmountable.

Marvin Joseph-Washington Post

If The Washington Post had the decency to cover the Immigration Reform rally with honesty and transparency, they would mention that an Immigration Reform would promote the creation of new jobs, businesses, and it would bring $1.5 trillion dollars to the U.S. economy in ten years, comparing with the $2.6 trillion dollars that would cost the deportation of all undocumented immigrants, besides the humanitarian crisis that such a disgraced action would cause.

News coverage on the internet has been more accurate. RIFA's blog has an extensive list of links of the impact of the rally on the media.


Immigration Reform is coming

President Obama sent a video message to the people who rallied today, where he reassured his committment to pass an immigration overhaul by 2010. Last week, Senators Charles E. Schumer (D-NY) and Lindsey O. Graham (R-SC) have introduced an initiative in the Senate for Immigration Reform.

The Schumer-Graham initiative includes four main measures:

Our plan has four pillars: requiring biometric Social Security cards to ensure that illegal workers cannot get jobs; fulfilling and strengthening our commitments on border security and interior enforcement; creating a process for admitting temporary workers; and implementing a tough but fair path to legalization for those already here.

The odds of passing an Immigration Reform this year are little for many, but Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ) said yesterday that he expects the bill will be introduced to vote in Congress, after the November 2010 mid-term elections, when there is less political pressure to vote "for what is right" for America. In the two months before the new Congress takes office, an Immigration Reform bill could be passed.

Millions of people around the U.S. and the world are really hoping this bill will become a reality.

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Thousands Protested in Anti War Rally in Washington DC Demanding U.S. Withdraw from Iraq and Afghanistan [VIDEOS & PHOTOS]

Photos and videos by Carlos A. Quiroz

Over 5,000 people rallied yesterday in the streets of Washington, DC, against the current wars and U.S. occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan, demanding the Obama administration to withdraw all troops from those countries, and to stop the expansion of the U.S. military machine around the world, including the new bases in Latin America and Africa, and the military and monetary funding of conflicts around the world including Congo, Colombia and others.

These are photos I took during the rally, feel free to repost them anywhere:

The protesters called the U.S. invasions of other countries as "imperialistic wars" and they demanded the U.S. government start taking care of its own citizens first, especially when it comes to jobs, health care, housing, education, urban safety and other urgent issues within the U.S.

These 5 protesters were arrested after they laid on ground in front of the White House, next to fake coffins representing the civilians killed in the wars of Iraq and Afghanistan.

These are the first two of 3 videos that I recorded during the protests, which attracted many combat veterans, college students, organizers, mothers, relatives of U.S. military personnel, peace activists, regular citizens and people who are concerned about the current economic crisis in this country that is spending billions of dollars in wars overseas.

Afghanistan War Veteran
& Students Speak Out

Activists Speak Out

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Rally for Immigration Reform 2010: Thousands are Coming to Washington DC on March 21 to Demand Social Justice

Thousands of activists from across the United States are coming to Washington, DC, this weekend to demand the Obama administration and the U.S. Congress to pass an Immigration Reform and for social justice for all U.S. citizens.

An interfaith service, a rally and march is scheduled for this Sunday March 21, 2010 starting at 1:00 PM at the National Mall between 7th Street NW & 14th Street NW (see map)


If you live in the Washington, DC, area, please join us. Hundreds of buses are coming from different cities, bringing activists, undocumented students, families, organizers, unionists, African American and Native American leaders, Latino civil rights groups, LGBT activists, religious groups, regular citizens who believe in justice.

This is a difficult time but this reform is necessary, and it cannot wait any longer. Even when Health Care Reform is facing a difficult final vote in Congress, and the economy of working class families continues deteriorating, but it is imperative that Immigration Reform is passed.

By allowing millions of undocumented workers get a chance to legalize their immigration status, billions of dollars will be paid in fees and families will be able to open business and improve their economy and their communities. The immigration crisis is a humanitarian crisis, it's a human rights issue, and the longer it's placed aside it will get worse.

Something must be done, including stopping raids, incarcerations and deportations. The rally's organizers tell you Why We March:

March For Democracy: Our democracy is betrayed by having 12 million people who work, pay taxes, and are part of our communities, but are excluded from the full American family. Immigration reform must include a path to earned citizenship for the undocumented that helps new Americans learn English, become naturalized, and contribute fully to our economic renewal.

March for Families: Immigration policy that keeps families together is good for the country: families help their relatives get jobs, get housing, and get started. Anti-family policies have put more than 5 million Americans who have applied to bring family members here into a never-ending bureaucratic line. Thousands of American families have been thrown into poverty because the breadwinners have been deported. We’ve created a new group of high tech indentured servants, captives of corporate sponsors and living without their families. All workers deserve to be with their families.

March For American Workers: Decades without immigration reform have created a second class of workers who are exploited by unscrupulous employers. Immigration reform must slam shut this trap door on the wage floor that drags all workers down. Reform is a crucial component of restoring fairness to the labor markets and will help our economy recover.

March For Justice: The United States has always lifted up justice, ensuring everyone is afforded due process and fairness. Anti-immigrant conservatives have been whittling away at our great justice system, putting important court decisions in the hands of low-level clerks. It’s time to restore justice by ensuring immigrants have full due process protections and by re-prioritizing judicial discretion over capricious bureaucracy.

I will see you there!

Also, please join us and spread the word. A group of Native activists from all the Americas are rallying together to keep Indigenous families together. Read more information here.


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Some Black Americans see Black Latinos as Competition for Profits while Denying their Common Heritage

When tensions rise between African Americans and African Latinos, there is a major element in the middle of such dispute: profits.

Two days ago I was talking to a couple of people I had just met in a party; they were African Americans with family ties in South Carolina and the Caribbean.

They were commenting on the difficulties their relatives have finding jobs now that their hometowns –which used to be mostly Black populated- are now filled with Mexican and Guatemalan Indigenous immigrants.

Torii Hunter of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim . Photo by Getty Images

This conversation reminded me of a friend who is a construction worker in the suburbs of Washington, DC., and who tells me that he can’t get much work because most employers today prefer hiring Salvadoran and Mexican immigrants. My friend is Black American also.

Torii Hunter is a talented professional baseball player, always proud of his African American heritage although is obvious that he ignores many things about his own history. Hunter is protesting that more Afro Caribbean -or Afro Latinos, African Latino- players are brought to the Major Baseball League (MBL), reducing the chances of Black American players to get hired. His words caused justified controversy, and this is part of what he declared to USAToday:

"As African-American players, we have a theory that baseball can go get an imitator and pass them off as us. It's like they had to get some kind of dark faces, so they go to the Dominican or Venezuela because you can get them cheaper. It's like, 'Why should I get this kid from the South Side of Chicago and have Scott Boras represent him and pay him $5 million when you can get a Dominican guy for a bag of chips?"

He added, so sadly:

"People see dark faces out there, and the perception is that they're African American. They're not us. They're impostors. Even people I know come up and say, 'Hey, what color is Vladimir Guerrero? Is he a black player?' I say, 'Come on, he's Dominican. He's not black.' "

In some way, I understand Torii Hunter's frustration. This data posted by USA Today confirms his fears:

The African-American population in baseball is only about 8%, compared to 28% of foreign players on last year's opening-day rosters. Yet, although MLB is trying to increase the number of black players in baseball, the [Afro Latino] population continues to grow.

What I cannot understand is why Hunter believes that Afro Caribbean people -including the Venezuelan and Dominican players he attacks- are not Black people. That is sounds like plain ignorance, racism and xenophobia.

Firstly, Hunter should've had this kind of conversation with more respect and more information about the world's history and cultures. He should have learned some things about his own heritage before embarrassing himself and other Black Americans.

Also I find it very sad that Hunter said these things, especially because he plays for a Los Angeles team, a city that has seeing a 28% increase of racial violence in 2008, between Black and Latino (mostly Mexican) poorest population.

Perhaps, Torri Hunter ignores that most of the population of Venezuela and Dominican Republic are African descendants, like the players that some White people like to call Latins. The region wrongly called Latin America has four (4) times more Black people than the United States, and they all share a common history.

Many, if not most ancestors of all African descendants in the Americas -including Torii Hunter's relatives- were brought by force and slaved by Europeans. Those who were slaved by Anglos Saxons learned English and developed an Anglo culture, mostly in Canada, the U.S. and the Caribbean. Those who were slaved by Hispanics and Portuguese learned Spanish and Portuguese, mostly in Mexico, Caribbean and South America.

As a result, African Latinos and African Americans might not share the same cultures completely, but they are so close that they are more like cousins separated only by a language barrier. At the end they don’t only “look” alike, but they think alike and they need to recognize their closeness instead of dividing communities.

My Afro Dominican friend used to suggest me not to walk home from the Metro station by myself. He would say "esos negros te pueden pegar y robar..." [those Black men could hurt you and robbed you]. He was referring to the teens who hang out down the street, mostly children of African immigrants.

Torii Hunter is from Pine Bluff, Arkansas, a city with that lands in a region that used be populated by Indigenous peoples who were displaced by European colonizers who brought the first African slaves. Today, about 66% of Pine Bluff population is African American.

Like many African Americans in the south, Hunter could easily have not only Indigenous but also Caribbean ancestors. Many Afro descendants in the U.S. are related to Afros in the West Indies, even if they don’t speak the same languages, because migrations of Blacks between the both regions have been happening for centuries. Torii Hunter could be even related to the same Dominican and Venezuelan players that he is attacking as “impostors”.

When Hunter, like my friends talks about how Blacks are getting less job opportunities because of the presence of more Indigenous and Afro descendant immigrants from Latin America, they are missing a very important detail. They need to ask themselves: Who is doing the hiring and layoffs? Who still owns the cotton fields and construction sites in this country? Who owns the Major Baseball League? It's all about money, profits and of course, race.

Hunter is playing a sport invented by Anglo immigrants in New Jersey, which has become a multi-million industry run by White corporations and whose biggest fan base is made up of Caucasians, because many younger African American kids do not like the sport as much as their grandparents did.

The two times I have been to a baseball game were at the new Washington D.C.’s Nationals stadium. The only Black and Brown people that I saw there, were working at the food and ticket concessions, while people who could afford to pay for a game ticket were mostly White suburbanites with very few exceptions. Whose fault is this?

Also, because of immigration, this country is changing and it already has. Who is running the displacement of humans in this country? Honestly, I feel the anxiety of many African Americans who see their world and cultures as they know it, disappearing or just evolving. They tend to blame this changes to the new comers, but they must understand that is human history, it happens every where. It's perhaps how Native peoples felt before, and as other racial groups see it happening in their towns across the United States.

So I would like to ask Torii Hunter about his culture, his Blackness, his African American identity today. What is being Black in America? Is it Langston Hughes, Oprah, Barack Obama, Fabulous or Lil Wayne? Does he know of the vicious racism that Black communities face in Venezuela, Dominican Republic and all across the so called Latin America?

Who would think that Afro Latino baseball players were to find racist rejection in the United States from their own people? That’s not really sporty isn't it? But it might not be racism because as most current social conflicts in this country, it's more about money than just race.

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Coming Out of The Shadows: Undocumented Students in the US create Campaign of Civil Disobedience to Promote Immigration Reform [VIDEO]

A national internet campaign is encouraging undocumented students all across the United States “to come out of the shadows” and declare publicly their immigration status, in order to create awareness of a worsening crisis affecting millions of high school and college students who lack of proper immigration documents.

Mario Rodas poses at one of the gates of Harvard University. As an undocumented Guatemalan-born immigrant, Rodas would have had to pay out-of-state tuition fees to go to a public college in Massachusetts and he would be rejected by most colleges in the United States. Rodas was granted asylum in the U.S. and now he studies at the Harvard University Extension School. Photo AP

The “National Coming Out of the Shadows Week” campaign intends to give visibility to many people who are tired of waiting for an Immigration Reform while living in fear. Interesting enough, this campaign of civil disobedience is inspired by the LGBT movement and its leader Harvey Milk.

By sharing their stories, the NCOS activists hope to gain a bigger public spupport for the pending Immigration Reform and especially the DREAM Act bill, introduced first in 1996 and lately in 2009, which would allow undocumented students raised in the U.S. before turning 15 y.o. to become legal residents.

The NCOS campaign is organized by the immigrant rights organizations Immigrant Youth Justice League and Dream Activists, which include many undocumented immigrants among its members. The campaign started today in Chicago with a public rally in the city -- read this report of the Chicago Tribune and also please watch one of the first videos posted in Youtube already:

"My name is Gabriel and I am undocumented"

The campaign organizers are encouraging students to post audio, video, article and other media to tell their personal stories. Dream Activists gives specific details on how to take part of this campaign:

Congratulations! You have decided to come out of the shadows about your undocumented status. Perhaps you have finally decided to tell your friends why you haven’t signed up for your drivers’ ed. class or why you still don’t drive to school. Maybe, you will come out to your guidance counselor, who has asked you repeatedly to turn in your college application, but you were too afraid to tell him/her that you don’t have a social security number and that you still don’t know how you will pay for college without financial aid.

Please remember you are not alone. You are part of a large community of courageous undocumented youth who have decided to come out of the shadows about our immigration status. We live every day in fear and we are tired of it. We want to be able to talk about our lives and our stories without fearing persecution or deportation. We are not free to travel, go to school, work, live, but we refuse to be helpless.

This is an audio recording of an undocumented student “coming out” to his classmate in college:




A Risky but Needed Decision

Declaring that a person lives in the U.S. without immigration documents is a very risky move. Indeed, it exposes that person to be caught by Homeland Security’s ICE and eventually deported, and to hateful and racist groups and individuals. Safety in this case depends on how much information is given away.

However, this is a needed action according to two immigration attorneys who support an immigration legislation reform. I spoke to attorneys Jose Pertierra and Arturo Vizcarra in Washington, DC, and asked them about their opinion on this campaign since they are immigrants to this country and now U.S. citizens.

Attorneys Vizcarra and Pertierra said that as professionals and U.S. citizens, they do not encourage anyone to do declare their immigration status, nor they promote illegal immigration. However they see these actions as positive and even necessary.

Arturo Vizcarra said that he is a bit concerned about the possibility of repercussions against the students who take that step of “coming out”, so he recommended to be cautious on the way they do it. But he supports every action towards promoting an Immigration Reform.

Jose Pertierra told me over the phone that this is a very personal decision and a form of civil disobedience, similar to what has been done before with Blacks in the South, with the Chicano movement in California and the Hindus against the British colonial rule.

“There are many undocumented students who are sick and tired that an Immigration Reform is not becoming a reality. There will be many people who are going to take part of this activism in the future, it’s inevitable, and especially to support the DREAM Act which has more possibilities of being approved if it’s proposed separated from a general legalization to all undocumented immigrants.”

Many undocumented students were brought to this country as babies and never knew of their status. Pertierra shared a case of a family who arrived to his office after his twin sons were rejected at a prestigious college, even after getting a full scholarship. “The parents begged me to tell their kids that they were undocumented but they had never told them,” Those students were brought to the U.S. when they were 2 years old, and this is the only country they know.

“This is the most powerful country in human history and it needs to be a bit generous with these young students,” said Pertierra adding that in case of a potential persecution by ICE, “it would be a political mistake of the Obama administration to instead of going after terrorists; they decide to prosecute talented students who are more American than many Americans.”

“The laws sometimes need to be reformed, and for that change to happen sometimes sacrifices are needed to be taken” said Pertierra.

As an immigrant and a blogger, I support the “Coming Out of the Shadows” initiative completely. To those of you who are taking this decision I commend you for your courage and remind you that this will impact positively on the lives of many, and it will be remembered for generations.

Surely, the anti-immigrants will call you names like “illegals, aliens, cockroaches, criminals, law breakers, wet backs” and other hateful things. They can’t break you anymore, because you are not alone and they are weak. They are driven by hate and fear, which are powerful things only if you let them get you.

Stay strong, as you are doing the right thing.

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Helping Kimo: Teacher Jaime Escalante is Battling Cancer and You Can Help Today [VIDEO]

Photo via Ahetems

Jaime Escalante is not just an exemplary teacher, he is a hero, a community leader, a role model, an inspiring man who became famous when as a mathematics teacher, he helped many young troubled Latino Native students to change their lives through education. Escalante is currently fighting cancer, and he needs all our help.

An Indigenous Aymara man born in Bolivia, Jaime Escalante moved to the United States in the early 1970's and he became widely recognized when his students excelled in a national calculus test. In 1998, he retired from the school system and in 2001 he returned to Bolivia where he currently lives with his wife. Sadly, Escalante is fighting cancer and he needs our help.

Edward James Olmos a great actor and leader of Mexican Indigenous heritage, who played as Escalante in the film "Stand and Deliver", is asking everyone to help by making a donation through his website:

An Appeal to the Friends of Jaime Escalante

Anyone who has seen “Stand and Deliver” knows how much Jaime Escalante (Kimo) has done for this country. The love and dedication he gave to his inner city students, and his unfailing conviction that every one of them was “gifted,” brought out talent that had been untapped – and unseen - by other teachers.

The genius that he awakened in the “unteachable”

commanded the attention of the entire world. It caused countless educators to reconsider what their students might really be capable of if, like Kimo, they could awaken the “ganas” (desire) in them.

Jaime didn’t just teach math. Like all great teachers, he changed lives. Gang members became aerospace engineers. Kids who had spent their youth convinced their lives didn’t matter discovered they were leaders.

Now, Kimo needs our help. He is seriously ill, and the treatment he needs has depleted all the funds his family can raise. They did not want to ask for help, but we took it upon ourselves to get the word out to all the country and around the world, to make his final days as comfortable as possible - and maybe even give him a chance to beat the cancer that has afflicted him.

I have been moved to tears to hear of the circumstances of this great man and am calling for a last National Understanding of his selfless contributions to “making a difference in this world.”
Together, we have a chance to make a real difference in his life. I could not bear to think that we would do any less for one who has given so much for so long.

You have my deepest appreciation for any and all prayers and help that you can give.

Edward James Olmos

Watch a video of Jaime Escalante speaking on being a teacher, and watch this news reports of CBS KCAL Los Angeles, on the current efforts to help Mr. Escalante:

Please remember to donate here!


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Gentrification in DC is Not About Race: Historical Anacostia is Getting More than New Neighbors

The Washington DC City Paper posted yesterday an article by Chris Lewis about the ongoing process of gentrification happening in Anacostia, the East of the River neighborhood located in the poorest side of this already gentrified city.

The mentioned article has created sparkle, mostly because some people who were interviewed by the WCP, are upset with what they call is a message of division and tension between newcomers and old neighbors. In the center of the debate is an organization called River East Emerging Leaders, which is presented as some alienated group of richer, college-educated folks, trying to even change the name of the area where they moved in recently.

The WCP's article choice of words and some of the mentioned neighbors lean towards justifying gentrification, from an economic point of view. It assumes that with richer neighbors, a city can get more businesses, more jobs, more White folks. It doesn't say anything about those who are displaced.

The influx of shopping centers, gourmet coffee shops, and young wealthy white folks has sent the cost of living through the roof—scattering residents who couldn’t keep up. Demographics are changing, too. In 2000, 60 percent of the city’s residents were black and 30.8 percent were white. Demographic projections now put D.C. at 52.4 percent black and 37.5 white. The city could lose its black majority as early as 2014.[...]

According to the Washington, DC Economic Partnership, more than $2 billion worth of development has been completed since 2001 in Wards 7 and 8, which share all D.C. land east of the Anacostia. Projects totaling $1.6 billion are currently under construction, and the Economic Partnership estimates that in the coming years, $12 billion is in the pipeline.

[...] “We need diversity,” says LaShaun Smith, author of the blog Southeast Socialite. She was born in Southeast, grew up in Prince George’s County, and moved back to the District in 2007. “It’s nothing wrong with it being a predominantly black neighborhood, but we need other people to come in.” If those people take root, she says, so will new businesses. “We could keep it the same, but the whole city is going through this change,” she says.

And for Smith, the change would optimally involve some ordnance detonated on iconic Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue. “I would love a bomb to come through and just blow the whole street up, because it looks terrible,” she says. “It looks awful. The whole street, and just rebuild anew. The whole street looks terrible.”

LaShaun Smith sounds upset, perhaps with all the changes occurring across the river -the Waterfront SW area where the new baseball stadium is located- she feel frustrated because her area is not changing as much. When it comes to WCP LaShaun wants to correct some things:

Will no longer talk to the city paper!

I was contacted last year to discuss the Gas stations on MLK ave. We all know they are horrible even our own Council member avoids them. And now I read the city paper to see my comments blown into some sinister plot to get rid of older people. Everyone who reads my blog knows I do not care about age, class, social status I just want to be safe in my own neighborhood. I want to be able to have dinner in my own neighborhood. Simple things that people in other wards take for granted. As far as the ANC 8C they are stealing our money and yes people who steal from the government need to go. That money could be used to do some good for our community. If our ANC 8C commissioners were doing a really good job I would not have any complaints. But when these liquor stores continue to get their licenses renewed and we can not get simple things done for our residents there is a major problem. And yes, MLK ave looks horrible and it needs to be revamped. It does not represent the community at all. I’m done with this. And I’m done talking with people that do not understand our struggle.

She adds, here:

What is this crap of ‘old residents vs. new residents’ or ‘middle class vs. working class’ or ‘East of the River vs. River East’? It’s nothing but a diversion; a diversion to keep us busy fighting each other instead of working together to solve real problems like homelessness, illiteracy and unemployment. If you live in Ward 8 then you are my neighbor – it's that simple. It is time to smarten up people. Stop letting third-parties play our community for fools. Let’s stop playing to the stereotype. Let’s stop being crabs!

The article of WCP was written by a "20-year-old white college kid" and basically it makes you believe that smart, sophisticated, energetic, salad-loving folks are for gentrification. While poor, dumb, ghettoized neighbors are afraid of the changes, and of White people:

“You can’t just concentrate low-income people in one area and expect that area to thrive,” says Susan Kennedy [author of the blog Barry Farm (Re)Mixed]. “I think there needs to be more variety. I think I need to see a better mix, whether it’s single-family homes, or apartment rentals, or condos.” [...]

Morgan is 52 and African-American. He eyes me—the 20-year-old white college kid. “We’ll see a lot more people that look like you instead of me, very soon.”

Another blogger mentioned by WCP is Barry Farm ReMixed, who is very unhappy with her current Councilmember, Marion Barry:

Jonetta Rose Barras wrote an article for the Examiner today that called for Marion Barry's impeachment. Do you agree? / If you read my blog, you know that I do.

What this article points out correctly is that, unlike other parts of D.C. the early gentrification process in Anacostia is not about White vs. Others neighbors. At least not just yet:

Though white influx is an inevitable part of gentrification in Chocolate City, the early battles in wards 7 and 8 break down largely along class and generational lines: a set of ambitious and largely black newcomers versus a black working class that abhors high-priced condos and new urbanist branding schemes.

This conclusion can be proven... at least for first impressions, by this video of one of R.E.E.L.'s community events:

First I noticed about this age/money divide [richer and younger vs. older Black neighbors] during a 2009 rally against Mayor Adrian Fenty, outside of his fundraising party at a U Street bar. The protesters outside were mostly older Black neighbors, and inside the party attendees were younger Black people mixed with people of different races. This age divide is not a general rule of course. A 23 y.o. Ward 8 ANC Commissioner thinks that the problem with 'River East Emerging Leaders' is their way of approaching other neighbors:

Darrell Gaston cuts the profile of an ideal r.e.e.l. joiner. At 23 years old, he sits on Advisory Neighborhood Commission 8B [...] But Gaston isn’t as enthusiastic about r.e.e.l., though he has gone to a few r.e.e.l. meetings and is friendly with members. “I respect and appreciate the effort r.e.e.l. is putting into the community,” he says, but when they suggested that Gaston join and become a paying member, he deflected the request. [...] Why? He challenges the group’s inclusiveness. “They’ve only had one meeting in Ward 7, and it was in Hillcrest, one of the most affluent neighborhoods in Ward 7. They made no effort to reach out to the more serious neighborhoods.”

Anyways, let me finish with this. As I said before, some people who were interviewed by WCP are really upset with the article. Nikki Peele of Congress Heights On The Rise, makes her case very clear.

Sometimes despite all assurances and promises, despite my best of intentions - shit happens. In this case,what I was made to believe would be an article focusing all the wonderful things going on in the River East/East of the River community and the residents (new and established) who work together to make that happen, ultimatetly that is not what was printed. [...] And for the other folks who were also quoted in the article (some out of context), whether you were classified as an "us" or a "them" at the end of the day we are all neighbors, we are all community members, who are all family.

Now let me say some things about gentrification and racial divide in D.C. In order to bring diversity and more business to poor or neglected neighborhood you don't need to kick out its current neighbors, or make it impossible for the remaining to stay because of ridiculous living expenses.

Parts of Washington, DC, represents today what the U.S. is becoming: you either have a lot of money, or you struggle every day to survive. If this is called progress, then why don't just let the sick die, the poor starve and the weak unprotected. We all share a responsibility with our communities, and we can't just rule out all poor peoples as failed neighbors.

When humans become second priority to profits, then you are creating a society with guaranteed violence in the future. You might not see it in your fancy street, but is out there somewhere.That is why gentrification is inhuman and corrupted, and it needs to be stopped as a model of urban development. Instead, residents must rebuild their neighborhoods with the leadership of their government, and the participation of current neighbors along those who want to become part of it.

New neighbors in DC's Columbia Heights
Photo by Carlos A. Quiroz

What people in Anacostia need to do is to find a balance. You can't expect old neighbors to assimilate to what newcomers think progress is all about.

In this case I find it really sad that younger Black folks aren't realizing that their older generation wasn't given the same education opportunities, therefore they cannot afford the luxurious things you think are basic needs. We can't forget our parents didn't have the same chances in life, so we shouldn't blame them for all their problems. The current age divide seems not to care about your race, but about how much money you got.

In that sense, it's also is true that South East D.C. has many wrongdoers messing up the whole area, and people need to take responsibility. All about balance.

A few years ago I used live in Southeast D.C., yes I did and I passed by Anacostia all the time. Honestly I felt sorry for the people that lived there, I was hoping that the city authorities would take the lead to change it. But considering that Ward 8 -where Anacostia is located- is run by a Councilmember who seem not to understand when is time to retire and give the post to others, things haven't changed much since then. Until the last two years or so.

Part of the problems of Ward 8 and 7 might have to do with part of its current neighbors, with their ways of living. In some way they are victims of their own isolation, and dependence on social assistance. I have seeing it. At the same time, we can't forget that in reality most of them are hard-working people who are poorer only economically, but richer in many other ways. These are decent people who are struggling in life, because of the color of their skin. We all know what I'm talking about.

True.

A reader of the WCP article wrote this:

Honestly, gentrification is what this city needs. There are very few affordable places to live that aren't infested with crime and gangbanger scum. Gentrification will drive those people out and hopefully make DC a better place where people actually want to live. It's about time that DC took a tip from Manhattan and made the streets safe for families, women, and decent law-abiding citizens.

This racist and stereotyped comment, and so typical, is actually useful to understand how some D.C. residents really think about their working-class neighbors. Don't doubt about it. To respond it, please read what Mel Dyer wrote about street crime in his S.E. neighborhood. Mel is a D.C. blogger and son of a Mexican-Black family, and he grew up and still lives in Penn Branch:

We live in a place, where you can look straight up into the sky on a clear, starry night and see a flurry of golden, shooting stars raining like gold coins from the heavens ..or the International Space Station pass overhead, looking very much like a traveling planet. We live in a place, where our children carelessly play outside, well after nightfall, and summer lovers steal kisses in the shade of dogwood trees, ..bewitched by the fragrance of *Concorde grapes on a passing breeze—where old, silver-haired friends look back on harder times from the comfort of a porch ..and laugh out loud! We live in a truly blessed place, this majestic and wondrous Penn Branch.

This neighborhood is so much more than where we live – it’s who we are. We are good people, and it’s going to take more than men with guns to take that away from us. We will be vigilant. We will be careful and wary and prepared for the worst, ..but, we will be Penn Branch. We will never give it up.

People in Anacostia needs to find common grounds and work together. The older and newer residents must listen to each other. Don't be fooled by fancy renderings. Constructions come and go, but a city without soul is dead. Don't let your neighborhood fall into the same fate of the Shawn-U Street, Columbia Heights sections of N.W.

Last year, I attended by accident a neighborhood meeting in regards of the future hotel on U Street & 13th Street N.W. I was shocked to see that all the neighbors were White, except one Black person. When I walked in that remodeled-old townhouse, the attendees ignored and made me feel unwelcome, and one of them questioned my presence very politely of course. This used to be the Black Broadway. I thought that was a sad experience that perhaps reflects on the future of that part of town.

When I walk into some of the D.C. gentrified "mix-income" buildings [with enough affordable housing] I see good examples of why I believe that mixed neighborhoods are a good choice for D.C. In fact, diversity of income, races, interests, etc. can bring much needed energy to this city. By living together, people learn from each other. By separating ourselves we fear our differences, we stereotype people, and rumors start spreading around. They can even write articles about them.

Also, people in Anacostia and other East of the River neighborhoods, needs to get their voices united, and work with current plans of the D.C. government and its Anacostia Waterfront Initiative, which unfortunately is not doing much to eliminate that horrible 295 highway that separates Anacostia from its river:



The current Anacostia, the current Ward 8 is an area of crisis. Blame this on Reagan, Barry, people's skin color or whomever you want to, but some things need to be done -and it's not about opening more new condo buildings:

Washington, DC, population is 591,833 habitants by 2008 estimates of the U.S. Census. About 73,000 people live in Ward 8.

Anacostia is an Indigenous name of the Nacochtank peoples. The area was built in the 19th. century for Whites only, then became mostly Black. It's located in Ward 8, a section of the city where about 90% of the population are African Americans, 5% White and 1.3% Brown or Latinos.

According to the DC Department of Health report (see PDF file) the population of Ward 8 has declined 15% from 1990 to 2000, caused mostly by a 23% decline of White population, while Blacks and Latinos increased in 2% and 18% respectively.

Ward 8 has a relatively young population, almost 40% are 19 years old or younger, and the media income is 38% lower than the rest of D.C. Sadly the four top causes of death are heart attacks, cancer, hiv/aids and homicide. About 15% of Ward 8 residents have been victims of sexual assault.

South East blogger LaShaun Smith is aware of the crisis, and she is tired of it:

I am sick of the entire saga that Ward 8 continues to perpetuate. I am sick of people wanting to live in poverty. I am sick of this hood mentality that has taken up deep roots in my neighborhood. And I am sick of reading blog comments from people that think this is normal behavior.

I'm with LaShaun in this one. There is some work to do in Anacostia in order to bring change to those beautiful streets, a change that doesn't only include fancy homes but most importantly happy neighbors, with a decent life.

Just don't let gentrification be the answer, not everything has to be sold in life.


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Same-Sex Marriage Law Takes Effect Today in Washington DC: How to Apply for Licenses - Meet First LGBT Couples to Marry [VIDEO & PHOTOS]

"Same-sex couples, including Gwen Migita, left, and Cuc Vu, gather at D.C. Superior Court to apply for marriage licenses on the first day of their availability in the District." Photo by Bill O'Leary / The Washington Post. See more photos

As of today March 3, 2010, it became legally possible for same sex couples to apply for a marriage license in the District of Columbia.

The D.C. Superior Court began accepting marriage license applications from same-sex couples today as early as 8:00 am. Today is indeed a date to celebrate and remember in the history of this city, and in the fight for equality and civil rights in all 50 jurisdictions of the United States.

Marriage ceremonies will begin on March 9, 2010. There are several wedding ceremonies planned in the city where media will be welcomed, including two wedding ceremonies to be held at the Human Rights Campaign Equality Forum.

According to marriage equality advocates, the D.C. same-sex marriage law might be objected by Congress in the future, most likely in the Senate and perhaps in the form of interfering with DC budget approval. If this happens, more debates are expected, which can be a risky topic for many Congress members who are running for reelection this year.

VIDEO - I recorded this by December 1, 2009 when the D.C. Council voted for first time to legalize same-sex marriage in the city. Some DC residents commented about it:

To apply for a marriage license:

Information provided by marriage equality activists in DC:

• In the District of Columbia you must visit the D.C. Superior Court Marriage Bureau located in H. Carl Moultrie Courthouse, 500 Indiana Avenue N.W., Room #4485.

• By law, three full days must pass between the day of application to the day that the license can be issued. (E.g. if one files an application on Monday the license cannot be issued until Friday). Each party to the marriage must bring proof of identity, such as a driver’s license, government issued non-driver’s identification, birth certificate, passport, or a similar official document. The application requires the parties to identify the name of the officiant who will perform the marriage ceremony.

• The officiant is any District of Columbia judge, certain court officials, or anyone who is authorized by a religious organization to officiate marriages, such as a minister, priest, rabbi, imam, so long as he or she is registered with the Marriage Bureau to officiate marriages (To schedule a civil marriage at the courthouse, two weeks’ notice is generally required).

• In addition, the costs are $35 for the marriage license application and an additional $10 for the Certificate of Marriage. The fee must be paid in cash or by a money order made out to “Clerk of the Court, D.C. Superior Court”. The marriage license application fee (but not the $10 fee for the Certificate) will be waived for those who present a Domestic Partnerships Certificate registered with the District of Columbia under DC Code §32-702 at the time of application.

• All fees must be paid before the license will be issued.

• If you are part of a District of Columbia Domestic Partnership, upon marrying, your Domestic Partnership automatically dissolves and you are simply married. If you are part of a Domestic Partnership or Civil Union from another state, the other state’s law may require you to dissolve it prior to marrying in the District of Columbia. Check the other state’s law about your responsibilities and obligations relating to dissolving that legal relationship prior to marrying.

Meet the first DC same-sex couples to apply for marriage licenses

Angelisa Young and Sinjolya Townsend

Angelisa and Sinjolya, both African-American females, will be married at HRC Equality Forum on March 9th in the presence of family and friends. Angelisa (age 47) and Sinjolya (age 41) have been together for 13 years and have two children ages 21 and 25. They both work for DC government and are long-time residents of the District.

Rick A. Imirowicz and Terrance Heath

Rick Imirowicz, a forty-three year old Caucasian male, will be marrying Terrance Heath, a forty-one year old African-American male. Rick is a doctor and practices Catholicism, while Terrance practices Buddhism. They are long-time District residents, have been together for 10 years and have two children

Cuc Vu and Gwen Migita

Cuc Vu, an Asian Pacific American woman and Gwen Migita, an Asian Pacific Islander, will be married in a non-denominational ceremony. Cuc (age 39) and Gwen (age 38) have been together since October 2008 and are long-time residents of the District.

Reginald (Reggie) Stanley and Rocky Galloway

Reggie and Rocky, both African-American males, are long time residents of the district. They are both 50 years old and have two children, Malena and Zoe Stanley-Galloway, that are each 15 months old. They will be married at HRC Equality Forum on March 9th. Participating in the ceremony will be their two children, Jim Cullion (the best man) and Cherrie McCoy (the best woman).

Aisha C. Mills and Danielle A. Moodie

Aisha Mills (32), an African American woman who is president of the Campaign for All D.C. Families and her fiancée Danielle Moodie (30), a Jamaican American woman who works for Mayor Bloomberg of New York’s Washington, D.C. Office of Federal Affairs, will be married in August at an interfaith ceremony on Long Island. The couple, who live in Columbia Heights, have been together for 6 years. They will be applying for their license on March 3rd and are in the midst of wedding preparations.

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Shakira' silence on the humanitarian crisis in Colombia and her ties to right-wing groups

"A woman cries as she speaks of her fear that her ex-boyfriend will kill their children. A member of one of the [Colombian paramilitary] successor groups, he wounded her in a knife attack after she left him. She is afraid of walking outside because members of his group control many neighborhoods, and if they see her they may report back to him. She is in hiding in a safe house in Barrancabermeja, Santander." Photo by Stephen Ferry / Human Rights Watch

Singer and right-wing groups spoke person Isabel Mebarak Ripoll, best known as Shakira, has strong ties to corrupted groups and right-wing politicians in Latin America, the U.S. and Europe. 


This explains her silence on the brutal human rights violations occurring in her country Colombia during the government of president Alvaro Uribe, a man with ties to drug trafficking and paramilitary groups.


Last week, Shakira visited Washington, DC. The press releases talked about Shakira coming to town “to launch a $300 million initiative for early child education”. This program is possible thanks to an agreement between the ALAS Foundation, Columbia University's Earth Institute and the World Bank. The event was held at the infamous World Bank headquarters in downtown DC.

President Obama received Shakira and her ex-fiance Fernando de la Rua at the White House last week. Photo by CN-Argentina

While in DC, Shakira also visited the White House where she met with several U.S. advisers on National Security (?) and also with president Barack Obama:

The Barranquilla-born star visited the White House to meet representatives of the National Security Council and the Domestic Policy Council, and was able to drop in on the president for a brief private meeting, according to the Associated Press.

Shakira talked about Immigration Reform to president Obama during her meeting:

While meeting in the Oval Office, Shakira also took the opportunity to push President Obama to pass comprehensive immigration reform legislation, another cause near and dear to her heart.

This is something that makes no sense to me. As an undocumented immigrant in the United States, I care about Immigration Reform deeply because the current legislation violates human rights and it is worsening a nationwide humanitarian crisis. I know people who are in this country without proper immigration documents, struggling every day to make a living and to keep their families together.

When I read that Shakira talked about Immigration Reform to president Obama, I thought it was a positive action, but I have to wonder if Shakira's intentions were honest considering her record on Colombia, where she has remained silent on the atrocities happening there to poor people.

It seems that Shakira might have talked about the pending controversial U.S. - Colombia Free Trade Agreement, or the destructive, corrupting and polluting Plan Colombia. Both are strategic deals for the current Uribe administration, which was recently cut short of running for a third-term as president by the Colombian Constitutional Court.


Silent about Colombia

Shakira is a well admired singer for many, including myself. However, her actions as an activist and public advocate for interest groups, made me distrust the real intentions of this Colombian-Lebanese artist. I have some questions in mind.

How come a mediocre singer and composer of sexist songs is a worldwide role model for children? Shakira, who based much of her success on exposing her body, is now a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador.

Why is that Shakira tries desperately to look White-Caucasian? Who named Shakira a leader for millions of undocumented immigrants in the United States? Why is Shakira a leader for youth?

How can we explain Shakira's enormous success in the U.S. being such a mediocre artist?

Shakira has a good talent for dancing and she looks good, but she lacks of singing skills and a good voice, and her songs are mostly forgettable. Regardless, she has suddenly become the "icon" of the Latino culture in the U.S., where supposedly she represents millions of Brown people who certainly do not look like her, nor listen to her music as much.

All of this "success" might have to do with her connections to certain people.

This beautiful woman of of Arab and Spanish heritage has changed her appearance to fit into the "U.S. Latino media" whitened version of what we Brown people should look like.

Shakira has been used as a "Latino / Hispanic" icon since she endorsed Barack Obama's candidacy during the 2008 presidential elections in the U.S. That was a great publicity move, or perhaps she was paid for to do that by the Democratic Party.

After Obama’s election, Shakira was invited to sing at the Inauguration Concert in Washington, DC. She became something as the Colombian connection to the White House.

Colombia is the strongest ally of the U.S. military machine in South America. This country receives the second biggest U.S. military funding in the world, after Israel, thanks to president Clinton's designed Plan Colombia. Immerse in a civil war for the last four decades, two-thirds of Colombia are said to be occupied today by leftist guerrillas and drug cartels.

In one way or another, the failed Plan Colombia has promoted violence, corruption, the displacement of about 4-5 million people, the pollution of lands and rivers by poisoning of entire communities and the funding of armed right-wing paramilitary groups.

Shakira has spoken against the violence of the guerrilla group FARC, and in support of the liberation of hostages held by those rebels. This is a legitimate demand, but there is not excuse for Shakira’s silence about the crimes of the Colombian paramilitary groups, the military and the drug mafias.

But as a Colombian citizen, Shakira also should protest against the abuses occurring in her home country, but she has never spoken out against the horrendous human rights violations committed by Colombian president Alvaro Uribe during his seven years in power.

Shakira has never protested against the killings of union organizers, as Colombia is the world's leading nation with more unionists assassinated. Also, Shakira has never protested against the 4-5 million displaced Colombians, the worst humanitarian crisis in the world after Congo and Sudan.

She has reasons to remain quiet.


Charities for profit

Shakira has created several “charity” foundations, including the Pies Descalzos Foundation which says works in behalf of poor children in Colombia. This foundation has received strong support from the Uribe administration, and big donations from the former U.S. president William "Bill" Clinton.

Bill Clinton is also a strong "Free" Trade advocate, he is close friend with Alvaro Uribe and a lobbyist for U.S. and Canadian mining companies in Colombia and Peru. Shakira has learned well from Clinton's experience on making charity a profitable business.

Another strong supporter of Shakira's charity work is the corrupted Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim, the richest man in the world who owns a big part of the economy of Mexico, a country where over 50% of the population live in extreme poverty. Shakira and Slim are both of Catholic Lebanese origins.

Bill Clinton’s role as a lobbyist for multinational corporations, has to do with his friendship with Carlos Slim and Canadian mining money-man Frank Giustra. Please read this post I wrote when Clinton visited Peru last year.

Another of Shakira’s charity projects is ALAS, or the America Latina en Accion Solidaria Foundation. Among its founders, again is Carlos Slim. In its website, ALAS also says they care about children's education:

ALAS is a nonprofit organization created by the most prominent Latin American artists, business leaders and intellectuals to mobilize Latin-American society towards the implementation of integrated early childhood public policies, so that every child from zero to six years old has access to health plans, education and nutrition.

Wonderful, we can only support a better educating our children, especially in the most unequal and racist Latin America, where only the rich gets access to quality education. I just wonder if children should have sexist-stripper like dancer Shakira as a role model. You think about it.

Shakira loves right-wing politicians, and they love her back. Among the strongest supporters of ALAS are included the non-elected king of Spain, Juan Carlos Bourbon, who was appointed by fascist Spanish dictator Francisco Franco.

Also, a former vice-president of ALAS is Carlos Clemente Aguado, a Spanish Congress member from the right-wing Partido Popular, who left the ALAS post under corruption charges. Clemente is said to have boycotted an international convention of Afro descendant women in Madrid, back in 2006.

Another close friend of Shakira is the former Hispanic Justice minister Jose Maria Michavila, of also a rightist of the Partido Popular and ALAS’ founding director.

There is more. Among ALAS advocates are included several right-wing activists including: Spanish singers Alejandro Sanz and Miguel Bose, Peruvian comedian and right-wing writer Jaime Bayly, Colombian singer Juanes, and others.

These are all well-paid activists who campaign openly against left-wing governments in Latin America, and most of them are connected to the oligarchy of Venezuela, Cuba, Colombia, Peru, Argentina and Mexico.

Let’s not forget about Shakira’s fiancé Antonio de la Rua. He is an Argentinean lawyer and publicist, the son of a former right-wing president who was forced to leave power during the 2001 Argentinean financial debacle.

De la Rua –of Spanish heritage- has been Shakira’s manager and the author of her contract with Live Nation, the biggest music producer in Europe and perhaps in the world. De la Rua is one of the founders of ALAS, and rumor has it that he owns an entire island in the Bahamas, which he is developing and selling to the world’s richest.

In her meeting with Obama at the White House, Shakira was accompanied by Antonio de la Rua.

"Jorge Morett, father of Lucia Morett, holds up a poster of Colombia's President Alvaro Uribe during a protest near where the Latin American leaders summit is taking place, in Cancun February 23, 2010. Mexican Lucia Morett was wounded when Colombia bombed a Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) camp in Ecuador on March 2, 2008. Colombia has accused Morett of cooperating with militants and has requested her extradition, but Morett claims she was visiting the guerrilla camp for academic research. The words on the poster read, 'Alvaro Uribe Velez, Wanted'." Photo by Reuters

Parapolitics

Shakira has also some connections to the paramilitary politics in Colombia. Learn this, the current president of Colombia, Alvaro Uribe along his close family and friends, have a long history of close ties with groups involved in the production and trafficking of illegal drugs, and right-wing paramilitary death squads as well.

In 2003, Uribe announced that he was demobilizing the paramilitary groups, in an effort to bring peace to Colombia. In reality, these violent groups became legalized political parties, known today as the parapolitica parties, which are strong supporters of Uribe’s policies. One of those parties is the Movimiento Apertura Liberal (MAL).

This year, Shakira’s uncle and her father's brother, Felipe Mebarak Chadid, run as a candidate to the Senate with MAL. This party has included in the past politicians linked to paramilitary groups, including Jorge Luis Caballero and others, among its leaders.

Instead of ending violence, the presence of paramilitary groups have increased it in some regions of Colombia. This week, Human Rights Watch has called the Colombian government to act in order to protect civilians and to prosecute paramilitary "successor" groups and their accomplices. The report denounces:

The successor groups regularly commit massacres, killings, forced displacement, rape, and extortion, and create a threatening atmosphere in the communities they control. Often, they target human rights defenders, trade unionists, victims of the paramilitaries who are seeking justice, and community members who do not follow their orders.

Colombia has a critical problem of racism, most of the victims of this violence are Black and Indigenous populations, or mixed Indigenous often called mestizos. The country's population is 30% African descendant, and most of them are now victims of racist displacement, killings and torture.

These abuses are committed mostly by right-wing paramilitaries connected to multinational corporations and the Uribe government, which Shakira seems to be fond of. They take people's lands for agro-business, mining, oil, drug production and other extractive industries.

Isabel Mebarak Ripoll, or Shakira, has never stood up and protests against these crimes or against the genocide of hundreds of Indigenous peoples in Colombia, which is another of Uribe’s saddest legacies. Why the silence?

Long are the days of the young Shakira who sang about love, passion and hope with a strong U.S. musical influence. Back then she sang about "an old race of barefoot people with white dreams", she was the rebellious, romantic and strong teenager.

As today, there is more to say about Shakira’s connections to rightist and racist groups in Colombia, Spain, Argentina, Mexico, England and the United States. These are groups of mostly economic, political and religious interests, and they are interested in our children.

These are exactly the same people who are to blame for Latin America's brutal reality, as one of the most racist and unfair regions in the world.

There is a reason why they call "Latin" to a region of the Americas that is mostly populated by Indigenous and Afro descendant peoples. This beautiful part of the world is controlled by corrupted and racist groups of European descendants, and they love having Shakira as their tool for mass manipulation.

Will Shakira ever stop acting like a stripper dancer and break the silence about Colombia?
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Resources for Young Poets and Poetry in Washington DC - Meet DC Poets and Listen Up: Poetry Heals [VIDEOS]

Meet two promising Washington DC poets and find a list of useful links for poets in the DC area at the end of this post. Listen to what Saint and JayTee have to say. In these brief interviews I asked them about their generation challenges, their poetry and why teenagers should write and speak up.

These are videos that I recorded during the DC Youth Poetry Slam, held last week at the Columbia Heights Community Center. Feel free to share them.

"Hope is in the Parents - This is a Pissed Off Generation
Poetry Helps - Just Vent"
Saint Butler is a young poet in Washington, DC. Listen to his words:



"Poetry Challenges Me
I Really Don't Know my Future But Can't Forget My Past"
Meet DC poet JayTee. This is John, he is a most talented poet:

Resources for Young Poets in Washington, DC, area

I collected this links and if you know of any other, please write a comment.

Word Works is inviting all DC High School students and poets to submit your poems for its Jacklyn Potter Young Poets Competition, it's free, you got until March 31. Read more information here.

Register now for the 2010 Split This Rock Poetry Festival & Book Fair to be held in Washington, DC, from March 10 to 13. This is an open festival for all ages and for "poets, writers, artists, activists, dreamers, and all concerned world citizens" and there is a fee to register but it is really worth it. Scholarships available. Go to this link.

Poetry Out Loud is a recitation contest for young poets, grades 9-12, run by the National Endowment for the Arts & Poetry Foundation, in all 50 states. The 2010 National Finals will be held in Washington, DC, on April 27, 2010. Register here.

The DC government has a Teen Program through its Department of Parks and Recreation, for teenagers ages 13 to 19, they have programs all year long. Check their website here.

Sol y Soul is a non profit working with young artists, poets, singers, mostly Black and Brown kids but open to everyone. They usually rehearse at Gala Theater in Columbia Heights, you can contact them at their Facebook Page.

The Library of the U.S. Congress [the biggest in the world] has a special program for Poetry, with resources, news and events. If you live in DC and like poetry then you MUST visit this website.

The Writers Center is a non-profit and independent literary organization and a community of writers, located in Bethesda, MD. They hosts literary events, readings and conferences, and is open for all ages and levels. Check their website here.

DC Poetry, is a website dedicated to promote and announce poetry readings in Washington, DC. This is their website.

The Beltway Poetry Quarterly posts news, events and book releases of poetry in the greater DC area, including northern Virginia and Maryland suburbs. You can submit your event here.

The Academy of American Poets, has several events, readings, programs and useful links posted in its DC chapter website.

Free Minds Book Club & Writing Workshops, is a non-profit working with teenagers who are incarcerated as adults at the DC Jail. They assist over 50 kids per year, using books and writing to empower juveniles "to transform their lives." Check their website here.

GALA Theater has programs for young artists very often. Although they are a "Hispanic" institution, they welcome students of all races. Visit them in this website.

The Poetry Society of Virginia." Since 1923 the PSV has been striving to encourage excellence in the writing, reading, and appreciation of poetry." Click here.

The Virginia Writers Club. "A 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization of writers and poets, screenwriters and playwrights, journalists and essayists, and other publishing professionals."
Maryland Poetry, features poetry and events and links in Maryland. Check their website.

Hope these resources help. Get your word out!


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