Category Archives: Latino/a

Stream some Laughs: Four Political Comedies from Mexico, Spain, and Puerto Rico

Subtitles don’t bite. Turn them on, if you need, and check out a superb satire from Mexican director Luis Estrada, The Perfect Dictatorship (La Dictadura Perfecta, 2014), streaming on Netflix. Prepare to laugh and squirm. In this uncomfortably relevant and … Continue reading

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Taking Applications for “Open Scene,” IMC’s Youth Media Project

The Urbana-Champaign Independent Media Center (UCIMC) and the City of Urbana are happy to launch Open Scene, a project to reimagine downtown Urbana through arts-based dialogues led by youth. Open Scene will be anchored at the UCIMC, a media and … Continue reading

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How Lawmakers Are Exploiting Public Fear After Orlando to Push More Police Militarization

To date, the Orlando Police Department has disclosed no definitive evidence that its military-style weaponry protected public safety the morning of the horrific massacre at the LGBTQ Pulse club’s Latin night. And the department’s chief has not ruled out that … Continue reading

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Racism and Mass Incarceration in the US Heartland: Historical Roots of the New Jim Crow

If asked what state had the highest rate of incarceration rate of black men, most people would likely cite somewhere in the old Confederacy, perhaps Mississippi or Louisiana. They would be about 1000 miles too far South. According to labor … Continue reading

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Incarceration figures

Some figures compiled in the Coalition for Prisoners’ Rights Newsletter (April 2016). Reprinted with Permission. I. Number Incarcerated in U.S., 2014 1.5 million people at an annual per person cost of $80 billion–approximately $51,250 each. (A “free world” minimum wage of $15/hr … Continue reading

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The Beheading of a Saint: Junipero Serra and the California Monument Wars

During his visit to Mexico in February, Pope Francis apologized for the “systematic and organized” exclusion of indigenous Americans over the centuries. This took place in San Cristobal de las Casas, the epicenter of the indigenous-identified Zapatista uprising in 1994, … Continue reading

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Groundswell Organizing and Obama’s Executive Action on Immigration

After President Obama signed his executive action on immigration last November, immigrant activists commended the president for his decision, which might help up to 4 million undocumented immigrants normalize their status, and at the same time emphasized that this action … Continue reading

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Political Memory at Work in Latin America

My recent trip to El Salvador and Argentina focused heavily on ‘sites of memory,’ locations where events of massive political violence had occurred and where attempts to learn from them are underway. These two countries have experienced extreme social conflict—military … Continue reading

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CU-Immigration Forum Holds Immigration Justice Month

  Several local religious congregations will be holding various faith-based and immigration-themed events throughout the month of October in what is sure to be an inspiring series of local community gatherings. The Allies of Faith is an interfaith coalition of … Continue reading

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“Secure Communities” Program Adopted by Sheriff Wreaking Havoc in Local Immigrant Community

The “Secure Communities” program being adopted in local counties across the United States has already caused much controversy in its short history. The implementation of Secure Communities by Champaign County Sheriff Dan Walsh has brought great distraught to several families … Continue reading

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2011 Latin American Film Festival

2011 LATIN AMERICAN FILM FESTIVAL Organized by the Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies (CLACS) September 23-29, 2011 Art Theater, 126 W. Church St., Champaign, IL También la Lluvia/Even the Rain FRI Set 23, 6:00 pm / SUN Set … Continue reading

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The New Operation Wetback? Immigration and Mass Incarceration in the Obama Era

(This article first appeared in Counterpunch Online August 4, 2011) Last week Representative Luis Gutierrez (D-IL) joined a demonstration in Washington D.C. to protest the refusal of President Obama to use his executive powers to halt the deportations of the … Continue reading

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Racial Microaggressions and its Impact on Campus Climate at the University of Illinois

On November 4, 2008, the first person of color was elected President of the United States of America and Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces. It is true that President Obama did break down some racial barriers, However, many … Continue reading

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La Colectiva, the University YMCA, and Growing Immigrant Population in Champaign County

THE UNIVERSITY YMCA AND THE UI STUDENT organization La Colectiva are developing new outreach programs that aim to build bridges with the Latino immigrant communities in Champaign County. The two new programs are a mentorship program with Latino high school … Continue reading

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Letter by an Undocumented UIUC Student

No identification, no rights. Am I invisible? Where do I belong? Who can I trust? What will I do? How can plan my future? When will I stop being an “illegal alien”? These are the mixture of feelings I have … Continue reading

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Colonized Wombs? Reproduction Rights and Puerto Rican Women

Following World War II, Puerto Rico and the rest of the Third World emerged as a problem for U.S. philanthropists, foreign policy makers, and social scientists to solve. A major concern of the times was that Third World populations were … Continue reading

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The Work Americans Won’t Do: How Latinos Bear the Brunt of Local, National, and Global Policy

“Food harvesters have always been treated he worst and paid the least inAm eri c a ,”Hu gh Phill i p s , the director of E l Cen tro, l oc a ted at 4 Bu ena Vista Co … Continue reading

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