Some of them are members of Union Del Barrio, an organization from which I derive great inspiration. That these brothers and sisters can speak the truth AND WIN ELECTIONS is a great beacon of hope for me.

Congratulations!

However, others seem to have new, emerging concerns about DREAM. Last week a stalwart of Houston’s community activism wrote a piece about the possibility of DREAM causing a split in the movement and dampening commitment to a comprehensive bill.  (No names on the author because I’m not sure if it was an open letter). 

Additionally, Stace Medellin of DosCentavos.net has also written that he is no longer as eager to see a stand alone DREAM Act, since it might give some Brown Cred to Republicans who don’t deserve it.

It will not be a novelty to see a movement who has fought for years and has garnered some significant victories to demand more than what it initially did. I hope that this is where we are headed.

I write this with no offense intended to my friends who are fighting for a stand-alone DREAM Act. They exemplify dedication and will. I just think that we should not sell ourselves short.

A little information on the event:

Protest Rally at Chevron in Houston
Wednesday, May 26 2010 7-11am
Houston, TX
On May 26, 2010, Chevron will move its annual shareholder meeting from San Ramon, California (where it is based) to its Houston, Texas headquarters (in the infamous Enron Building). Chevron is trying to run from its critics.

Chevron can run, but with your help, it cannot hide!

Community leaders from Angola, Burma, New Mexico, Australia, Kazakhstan, Alaska, Ecuador, Texas, Nigeria, California, Colombia, Mississippi, Canada, Thailand, Wyoming, and more will go inside the meeting to address the gathered shareholders. Outside, there will be a celebratory, colorful, and fun protest rally at Chevron’s headquarters at 1500 Louisiana.
Please join us!

Location:
Chevron’s Houston Headquarters
1500 Louisiana
Houston, TX

Sponsored By:
The True Cost of Chevron Network

Apparently, even certain shareholders and properly credentialed individuals were being denied access. When his father got too close to the entrance, Bryan Parras, says that his father was detained by two law enforcement officers and put in the back of the transport vehicle. Bryan says that he did not think his father was injured in any way.

The Mexican American Political Association (MAPA) and the Hermandad Mexicana Latinoamericana make a call for full support for the students and youth who are demonstrating courage in the struggle for legislation that they interpret will provide them an option to obtain legal immigration status. The legislation is the Dream Act, which proposes to permit those students and youth who arrived to the U.S. at an early age without legal status, and have completed high school, the option to apply for legal status while attending college or serving some branch of the U.S. military.

Notwithstanding many concerns with the legislation raised by many organizations nationally, particularly those that oppose mandatory military service, obligatory military registration, the draft, and the use of the military, and war, to resolve international disputes, MAPA and HERMANDAD go on record in support of the youth who are defining their own options through courageous acts of political/civic action.

The Dream Act is not without controversy, however, and both MAPA and HERMANDAD have raised concerns about the legislation since the beginning. The original version of the Dream Act was actually the best in that it did not include military service as an option to obtain legal status, but instead listed the pursuit of higher education, which included vocational, and community service as the criteria to qualify for eligibility.

It is now no secret that the Pentagon had a hand in fashioning later versions of the legislation with the willing help of congressional legislators. Historically people of color have been easy prey for conscription, the draft, and even the “all-voluntary” military service considering the financial inducements on the one hand, and the dire poverty statistics of these communities on the other. The various branches of the U.S. military have experienced increasing difficulty in meeting their goals for recruitment, and in the face of multiple wars of a prolonged character, the military is hard-pressed to find sufficient willing adherents to its brassy and provocative slogans like “BE ALL YOU CAN BE.”

It should also be acknowledged that the vast majority of immigrant youth, particularly Latino, do not and will not attend college (less than 10 percent), nearly 30 percent do not complete high school, and less than 40 percent who enter college do not complete the instructional program with a degree. These are horrific statistics on the down-side of this social dynamic that cannot and should not be ignored when we are considering immigration-related legislation to address the issue of legal status of our youth and family members.

It is for these reasons that MAPA and HERMANDAD only conditionally support the Dream Act, and advocate for the cleansing of the bill of its military service clause, or minimally return the community service option as an integral part of the legislation. When people talk of choice in the Dream Act, but ignore the statistics indicated above, and leave out of the legislation other viable alternatives such as community service to permit a path to legalization, in reality they are opposed to real choice and real options.

For now, however, we are called upon to support our youth and students who are defining the struggle for options by their courageous actions while we continue the debate about the best form of the Dream Act that should be enacted by the U.S. Congress.

Nativo Vigil Lopez
National President

The exhibit shows photography of peoples’ movements from around the world.  In the interview, she describes some of the photos and explains that some of the photos taken in Palestine were taken secretly, after officials required the photographer to put up her camera.

The exhibit is part of Foto Fest, which occurs every two years, but it looks like we won’t have to wait that long for another exhibit.

The audio is a little bumpy, but I’m still experimenting with this little device, and with the art of interviewing, so take it easy.

Bohemeo’s has recently rolled out some new, cold drinks for the summer, so make sure that you visit soon to cool off.

 

 

“If you have a trip planned here or do business with an Arizona-based company, cancel it.  The boycott is the only thing that we have left” for the short run, she said.

In the meantime, activists like Andrew Sanchez, who I interviewed when he came through Houston, have been sleeping in front of the state capitol in order to have a physical reminder of the opposition to this law.

More information and interviews as they become available. Check out Isabel Garcia on Democracy Now. She is calling for an end to immigration enforcement, a position that I endorsed last year. Listen to the entire interview. She calls out the “power brokers” that manipulated the 2006 marches.

A participant in the counter coup mass mobilizations recounted how he marched against the coup supporters and how the situation quickly turned violent, with opposition sharpshooters opening fire on the Chavez supporters. The marchers painted the face with a red line in order to distingush themselves from the opposition. He remembers how people relatively close to him fell in this encounter. This post will not do justice to the impassioned speech, and I hope to hear from him again.

Nicaragua’s Consul says that due to Chavez’s great work, especially with the implementation of ALBA, he has risen, in his opinion, to the status of historical leader, surpassed only perhaps by Simon Bolivar himself. For this, he has earned the title, “Comandante.”

A brother in the Iran struggle voiced his support and urged all of us to work together for a greater society. The consul treated us to traditional Venezuelan foods, and provided us with three documentaries. If you have not seen “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised,” get it today.  It is a documentary about this very coup.

In the ten years that Chavez has been president, social spending has increased from 9.5% of GDP to 17.5% of GDP, ostensibly from the redistrubution of petroleum wealth from the wealthy elite to the people. Extreme poverty has fallen from 20.2% to 9.5% as a result.

"We painted our faces with a red line to distinguish ourselves from the opposition."

Let's remember those who died during the coup

Bryan Parras

Freddie Porras, A Teacher and Homie

Me and The Consul.

Nicaragua's Consul General

Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela

Vice Consul

Iranian Supporters