This could turn into a very big story. According to this Associated Press story written by Suzanne Gamboa Saturday, every person with a Puerto Rican birth certificate will need to get a new one this year. A law passed in December invalidates all birth certificates issued by the Commonwealth as of July 1 of this year.

About a third of the 4.1 million Americans of Puerto Rican descent could be affected, AP reports.

The odd thing is, despite the fact that Puerto Ricans are born U.S. citizens, the reason for the new law relates to immigration. Documents, especially identity documents that have Spanish-sounding names and confer automatic citizenship, are a hot property on the black market.

Puerto Ricans on average get about 20 copies of their birth certificates over their lifetimes, said Kenneth McClintock Hernandez, the commonwealth’s secretary of state.

This is because they are regularly asked to produce them for such events as enrolling children in school or joining sports leagues. Schools and other institutions have typically kept copies, a practice prohibited under the new law since January, McClintock said.

As much as 40 percent of the identity fraud in the U.S. involves birth certificates from Puerto Rico, McClintock said he was told by the State Department.

“It’s a problem that’s been growing and as the need in the black market for birth certificates with Hispanic-sounding names grew, the black market value of Puerto Rican birth certificates has gone into the $5,000 to $10,000 range,” McClintock said.

Puerto Ricans are already getting greater scrutiny because of America’s vexing and often hysterical immigration debate. As motor vehicle departments have gotten into the business of checking people’s immigration status – especially people with Spanish surnames and/or accents – Puerto Ricans are often asked for “green cards” they, of course, don’t have.

With GOP political strategists thinking up new ways each year to erect barriers to voting – especially for people they think may vote against them – the deadline for resolving this identity issue could have electoral implications in important states with large populations of citizens born in Puerto Rico.

But so far, AP reports, the word has not spread widely:

Rep. Jose Serrano, D-N.Y., has been getting a steady stream of calls about the law at his district office. Serrano — who must replace his birth certificate, too — said he is trying to provide answers without triggering a panic.

“No one has thought about what effect this could have, if any, on those of us born in Puerto Rico who now reside in the 50 states,” Serrano said.

Here’s an idea: What if the United States had a functioning legal immigration system that allowed people to come to the U.S. with visas within reasonable limits and within reasonable time frames? What if that were combined with a tightly regulated system to get the millions of immigrants in the U.S. illegally into the system and legal? Maybe then we wouldn’t have such a huge black market for false documents and wouldn’t have to twist ourselves in knots with workarounds like invalidating millions of birth certificates. That’s what immigration reform is for, but the President and Congress don’t seem to be moving forward very quickly.

Read Gamboa’s AP story, but I suspect we’ll be hearing more about this…

Popularity: 29% [?]

From: Reuters

Colombian rock star Juanes says a public concert he plans in Cuba next month could help further thaw U.S.-Cuban ties despite outcry from some Cuban exiles who accuse him of pandering to the island’s communist rulers.

Juanes, who lives in the United States, told the Miami Herald in an interview published on Wednesday he saw his scheduled September 20 concert in Havana’s Revolution Square as a chance to promote reconciliation between Cuba and the United States, which have been ideological foes for nearly 50 years.

“I am not a communist … I’m not going to Cuba to play for the Cuban regime … Our only message is one of peace, of humanitarianism, of tolerance, a message of interacting with the people,” he told the paper at his Key Biscayne home.

Juanes, 37, whose full name is Juan Esteban Aristizabal Vasquez, is a major star in the Spanish-speaking music world and has won a string of Latin Grammy Awards.

A 47-year-old U.S. trade embargo against Cuba restricts travel to the Communist-ruled island by Americans, although special licenses can be granted.

A U.S. State Department spokesman said Juanes met Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in May to propose his concert and they had discussed the general support of President Barack Obama’s administration for “people to people” contacts with Cuba.

But he said Clinton refrained from taking a specific position and it would be up to the Treasury Department, which enforces the U.S. embargo, to issue the necessary licenses for those involved in the concert to make the trip.

A Treasury spokesperson said Juanes required a license because he resided in the United States, which made him subject to U.S. jurisdiction even though he was Colombian. The spokesperson did not say whether the license had been granted.

Among the anti-communist Cuban exile community in the United States, critics have pilloried Juanes as “naive”, saying his concert will be a boost for Cuba’s communist leadership while ignoring the plight of detained Cuban dissidents.

A number of well-known Latino singers Juanes had invited declined to take part because of the political sensitivity.

But Juanes said the planned “Peace without Borders” event in Havana, which will follow a similar reconciliation recital he gave on the Colombian-Venezuelan border last year, could help revive U.S.-Cuban cultural exchanges that had remained largely frozen under former U.S. President George W. Bush.

“RIGHT MOMENT”

Obama, while calling on Cuban leaders to improve human rights and political freedoms, has said he wants to seek more normal ties with Havana and in April lifted restrictions on Cuban Americans traveling to the island, slightly easing the long-running U.S. trade embargo against Cuba.

“This is the right moment to start something,” Juanes told the Miami Herald. “In the last administration, for sure we weren’t talking about this. But with this administration, with Obama as president, I believe it’s different.”

Miami media have reported Juanes has received death threats over the concert and a small group of right-wing Cuban exiles smashed and burned CDs of his music in Miami last week.

Juanes said he met with Clinton and members of the U.S. administration and Congress in May to see if they would back his initiative and give permission to U.S. musicians and technicians to attend the show.

The Miami Herald said Juanes would hold the September 20 concert in the same Revolution Square location where Pope John Paul II gave a mass in 1998 during his historic visit to Cuba.

Fellow pop singers Miguel Bose of Spain and Olga Tanon from Puerto Rico would join the Colombian rocker, it added.

Cuban American commentator Ninoska Perez, a fierce critic of Cuban President Raul Castro and his brother, former leader Fidel Castro, said she had told Juanes she feared the Cuban government would use his concert for political manipulation.

“He said he wanted to sing for the people. I replied that what Cubans needed was freedom, not concerts,” she wrote in the Spanish language El Nuevo Herald at the weekend.

Popularity: 60% [?]

From: LA Times

Teenagers of Latino families new to the United States appear to be more successful if they retain their ties to their Latino heritage and if their parents make an effort to embrace American culture, say the authors of a new study.

Researchers at the University of North Carolina interviewed 281 Latino youths and parents in North Carolina and Arizona as part of a longitudinal study called the Latino Acculturation and Health Project, which is supported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The families were asked questions that measured the teens’ mental health, lifestyle and academic success.

The study found that teens who maintained strong ties to their Latino culture performed better at school and adjusted more easily socially. For every one-point increase on a scale that measured involvement in Latino culture, there was a 13% increase in self-esteem and a 12% to 13% decrease in hopelessness, social problems and aggressive behavior.

But these adolescents also benefit from parents who are willing to learn about their new homeland. For every one-point increase in a parent’s involvement in U.S. culture, there was a 15% to 18% decrease in adolescent social problems and behavior problems.

The findings illustrate the need for both teens and parents to do the opposite of what their natural tendencies tell them. The authors said parents need not cling to their former culture and teens need not reject it.

“Such results suggest that Latino youth and their parents benefit from biculturalism,” the lead author of the study, Paul Smokowski, said in a news release. “Parents who were more involved in U.S. culture were in a better position to proactively help their adolescents with peer relations, forming friendships and staying engaged in school. This decreases the chances of social problems arising.”

The study is published in the Journal of Primary Prevention.

Popularity: 30% [?]

From: CSNews.com

Visits to two authentic Latino supermarkets and two national retailers with Hispanic-focused stores will kick off this year’s Hispanic Retail 360 Summit, being held Aug. 9 to 11 in Las Vegas.

This year’s store tour, which will leave the Venetian Hotel at 11:30 a.m. on Aug. 9, will take pre-registered attendees to Supermercado La Bonita, Marianna’s, Best Buy and Family Dollar Stores in the Vegas market. The guided tours will be led by Hispanic market experts from XL Edge and api+.

Supermercado La Bonita, with four stores in the market, has been serving Hispanic shoppers in Las Vegas since 1988. Its stores feature a dedicated bakery, taqueria, dairy-deli and carniceria.

Founded by the Anaya family in 1989 as a simple tortilla establishment, the first Marianna’s supermarket opened in 1999, bringing a new Hispanic concept to the Las Vegas market. Now with three stores, Mariana’s was recognized in 2004 as the best ethnic market in Las Vegas by the Review-Journal Best of Las Vegas readers poll.

Best Buy, the giant electronics superstore chain, has one of its top Latino-focused stores in this market. Last year, the specialty chain won a Hispanic Retail Excellence Award for its Latino market efforts.

Representing one of retailing’s fastest growing channels, Family Dollar serves a heavily Hispanic clientele and presents audience members with an opportunity to see how a dollar store serves the Latino market.

The Hispanic Retail 360 Summit’s conference program will start on the afternoon of Sunday, Aug. 9, with a keynote by Teresa Iglesias-Solomon, vice president of Hispanic initiatives for Best Buy, followed by a presentation from Cindy Nuñez-Hasman, multicultural marketing manager for Ace Hardware Corp., and José Gonzalez, partner, Revolucion. They will present a case study on Ace’s first foray into Hispanic marketing and provide five “surefire tips” every retailer can use to increase Hispanic footsteps in their stores. Nuñez-Hasman is a skilled, bilingual senior manager with a strong record of success with advertising agencies, such as WPP’s Bravo Group, and retailers, including Sears Roebuck & Co.

In addition, retail and multicultural experts from Nielsen, the world’s largest marketing and media information company and parent company of Convenience Store News, will debut research from the firm’s new national Hispanic household panel about how Latino households are faring in these difficult economic times. They will also provide insights on key areas of focus for retailers and suppliers in order to be successful with Hispanic consumers in a recessionary economy.

Also on the agenda is an impressive lineup of speakers from retailers, consumer product goods manufacturers and leading multicultural marketing authors, consultants and agencies, including a special retailer panel moderated by strategic analyst Art Turock. The panel will explore innovation in addressing Hispanic shoppers through “how-to” stories and advance insights from prominent retailers who are leaders in serving Latino shoppers. Panelists include Tracy Krogstie, marketing and promotions manager for Jewel-Osco; Jose Amaya, director of diversity for HY-VEE Inc.; Marco Orozco, territory Hispanic market manager, Southwest USA and Hawaii, Best Buy; and Juvenal Chavez, president of Mi Pueblo Food Centers in northern California.

Last year’s summit, held in Miami, attracted approximately 400 attendees, composed of retailers from across all channels of retailing, major consumer products goods (CPG) manufacturers, advertising agencies and consultants. Last year, the summit’s store tour included Publix Sabor and Winn-Dixie’s new Latino format in the Miami area.

Attendees included representatives from such major retailers as Walmart, Best Buy, Publix, Winn-Dixie, Family Dollar, SuperValu, Navarro Discount Pharmacies, CVS, Advance Auto Parts, Hy-Vee Supermarkets and Kroger.

Hispanic Retail 360 is the retail industry’s only conference designed to give retailers the tools and insights they need to grow their business with the Latino consumer market in the U.S. The summit is produced by Progressive Grocer and Convenience Store News, two leading media brands owned by Nielsen Business Media. Brandweek, another Nielsen Business Media brand, is a one of several media sponsors.

For the fifth consecutive year, Coca-Cola is the presenting sponsor for Hispanic Retail 360 Summit. Other sponsors include Geoscape and Café Bustelo. To learn more about the many levels of available sponsorship opportunities, please contact Michael Hatherill at (646) 654-7501, or at mhatherill@csnews.com.

For more information, or to register go to www.hispanicretail360.com.

Popularity: 32% [?]

From: Southern Poverty Law Center

Low-income Latino immigrants in the South are routinely the targets of wage theft, racial profiling and other abuses driven by an anti-immigrant climate that harms all Latinos regardless of their immigration status, according to a report released today by the Southern Poverty Law Center.
The report — Under Siege: Life for Low-Income Latinos in the South — documents the experiences of Latino immigrants who face increasing hostility as they fill low-wage jobs in Southern states that had few Latino residents until recent years.

“This report documents the human toll of failed policies that relegate millions of people to an underground economy, where they are beyond the protection of the law,” said Mary Bauer, author of the report and director of the SPLC’s Immigrant Justice Project. “Workplace abuses and racial profiling are rampant in the South.”

Under Siege is based on a survey of 500 low-income Latinos — including legal residents, undocumented immigrants and U.S. citizens — at five locations in the South. The locations were Nashville, Charlotte, New Orleans, rural southern Georgia, and several towns and cities in northern Alabama.

The survey findings, coupled with accounts from in-depth interviews, depict a region where Latinos are routinely cheated out of wages by employers and denied basic health and safety protections. They are racially profiled by overzealous law enforcement agents and victimized by criminals who know they are reluctant to report crime to these same authorities. Even legal residents and U.S. citizens of Latino descent said racial profiling, bigotry and other forms of discrimination are staples of their daily lives.

A number of immigrants in the survey described the South as a “war zone.”

“The assumption is that every Latino possibly is undocumented,” Angeles Ortega-Moore, an immigrant advocate in North Carolina, told SPLC researchers. “So it [discrimination] has spread over into the legal population.”

Maria, who came to Tennessee from Colombia, told SPLC researchers her immigration papers are in order, but she is still afraid of being stopped by the police. “You never know when you will come across a racist police officer,” she says in the report.

Discrimination against Latinos in the region constitutes a civil rights crisis that must be addressed, the SPLC report says. The report concludes that comprehensive immigration reform — including a workable path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants — is the only realistic, fair and humane solution.

Reform legislation must be coupled with strong enforcement of labor and civil rights protections. This would make crime victims and communities safer, curb racial profiling and other abuses, and better protect the wages and working conditions of all workers, according to the report.

“We’re talking about a matter of basic human rights here,” said SPLC President Richard Cohen. “By allowing this cycle of abuse and discrimination to continue, we’re creating an underclass of people who are invisible to justice and undermining our country’s fundamental ideals.”

Popularity: 30% [?]

From: PR Week

Heineken is expanding its Mural Arts Series and incorporating this initiative into its overall marketing platforms: “Give Yourself a Good Name,” and the Spanish version, “Demuestra Quien Eres.” Targeting Hispanic males, the initiative showcases the beer company’s commitment to local Latino artists.

In the Bronx, NY, Miami, and Los Angeles, Heineken will install murals, as well as, for the first time, on-the-ground art installations, done by Latino artists who are representative of the Hispanic communities in these areas.

“The murals program is just a really excellent manifestation of Demuestra Quien Eres,” said Tara Carraro, senior director of corporate communications for Heineken USA, mentioning how the Latino artists are able to connect with the target audience. “It really taps into the cultural pride of the Hispanic consumer, and I think the opportunity that we have here is to be very localized.”

In addition to events in New York and Miami, Heineken is focusing on traditional local media outreach and targeting Web sites like NocheLatina.com and online communities for Latino artists, Carraro said. RLPR serves as PR AOR for Heineken Hispanic. The company is hoping that when it comes to social networks and online communities, the outreach will spread organically.

Popularity: 30% [?]

From: Huliq.com

The 43rd annual Smithsonian Folklife Festival will explore music and its meaning in Latino culture in “Las Americas: Un mundo musical/The Americas: A Musical World,” the fourth and final program in the “Nuestra Musica: Music in Latino Culture” series, an initiative that explores and presents the diverse, evolving and expanding universe of Latino music.

The Festival will be held Wednesday, June 24, through Sunday, June 28, and Wednesday, July 1, through Sunday, July 5, outdoors on the National Mall between Seventh and 14th streets. Admission is free. Festival hours are from 11 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. each day, with such special evening events as concerts and dance parties beginning at 5:30 p.m. The Festival is co-sponsored by the National Park Service.

“What we often call ‘musica latina’ is not just an inviting rainbow of musical sounds, styles and traditions,” said Dan Sheehy, ethnomusicologist and program co-curator. “It is a vivid testimony to how music can be much more than melodies and rhythms. Each tradition represented in the program is a musical flag of identity, a beacon that unites cultural communities and a means of cultural self-actualization.”

Program co-curator Olivia Cadaval said, “This Festival program provides a unique opportunity to bring together a range of music traditions that have shaped what we call Latino music in settings that encourage exchange and dialogue. In addition to performances, workshops will give artists the opportunity to compare common traditional threads and differences and to discuss how their traditions may be changing in this era of migration and globalization.”

“Las Americas: Un mundo musical” will feature outstanding artists from the United States and Latin America in an engaging cultural dialogue. The core of the artists will be from the Tradiciones/Traditions series of recordings published by Smithsonian Folkways. Launched in 2002, the Tradiciones/Traditions series has grown to 30 new recordings that, together with the nearly 200 historic albums in the collection, showcase the diverse musical heritage of the more than 40 million Latinos living in the United States.

Mexico

The Festival will feature several groups from different regions in Mexico including Son de Madera, who perform “son jarocho” music, a style emblematic of the southern Veracruz gulf region of Mexico; Los Camperos de Valles, a trio of musicians from the Mexican cattle-herding region known as La Huasteca, who play in the “son huasteco” style; and Alberto “Beto” Alvarez from Sonora, who specializes in the “corrido,” a popular narrative song and poetry style.

Colombia

The musical styles of three different regions of Colombia will be represented at the Festival. Festival visitors will hear the sounds of Grupo Cimarron, which performs “joropo” music, heard in the plains region of Colombia; Grupo Vallenato, which plays “vallenato” music, a popular style of folk music from the country’s Caribbean coast; and Las Cantadoras del Pacifico, a group from the Pacific coast of Colombia, which specializes in “currulao” marimba music.

Venezuela

Festival visitors will experience the sounds of Venezuela from Maestros del Joropo Oriental, which performs regional “joropo” music from the eastern portion of the country, and Grupo Cuero Madera y Costa CUMACO, an Afro-Venezuelan drumming ensemble from the Caribbean coast.

Dominican Republic

Renowned accordionist La India Canela and her ensemble from the Cibao region of this Caribbean nation will perform “merengue tipico” for Festival visitors. This musical style, which is centered on the accordion and percussion, is widely recognized as the national music and dance of the Dominican Republic.

Paraguay

Marcelo Rojas is a leading performer of one of Latin America’s most celebrated traditions of harp music. While he has toured abroad extensively, this will be his first appearance in the United States. Rojas specializes in Paraguay’s signature music, the “polca paraguaya,” which is characterized by virtuosic technique, cascading melodies and lively rhythms.

United States

Festival visitors will hear mariachi music from two well-known groups in the United States. Mariachi Chula Vista is a 14-member youth ensemble from Chula Vista High School in Chula Vista, Calif. The group has won numerous awards and has performed in many mariachi festivals. The Los Angeles-based Mariachi Los Camperos de Nati Cano has been performing for nearly 50 years and continues to be a major force in mariachi music in the United States. The group won a Grammy Award in 2009 for Best Regional Mexican Album.

Also performing at the Festival will be La Chanchona de los Hermanos Lovo, a group that performs Salvadoran “chanchona” music. The six-member ensemble, which features two violins, two guitars, percussion and a bass, takes its name from the large bass, which resembles a “chanchona,” or sow.

Arpex, from Fresno, Calif., will perform “musica de arpe grande” (large harp music). This musical tradition has its roots in Michoacan’s Tierra Caliente, and it is one of Mexico’s liveliest and best-kept musical secrets.

Festival visitors can hear the music of Puerto Rico from two groups: Ecos de Borinquen will play “jibaro” music, which has its origins in the hilly regions of the island, and Viento de Agua is a group that specializes in the “plena” and “bomba” traditions of Puerto Rico.

Los Texmaniacs also will perform at the Festival. This contemporary-sounding “conjunto” ensemble from San Antonio, combines traditional instrumentation and repertoire with blue, rock, rhythm-and-blues and country. — www.newsdesk.si.edu

Popularity: 32% [?]

Colombian singer Juanes met with U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton last week to ask support for his campaign against anti-personnel mines in Colombia.

Juanes — chairman of the Mi Sangre foundation that seeks to help victims of landmines and combat the illegal use of the explosives — reportedly also talked to Clinton about his plans for a second Peace without Borders concert that he organizes with Spanish singer Miguel Bose.

Assistant Secretary of State for the Western Hemisphere, Thomas Shannon and a number of Congressmen were was also present at the meeting to hear the Colombian about his humanitarian work.

“All expressed their support for Juanes and his intentions to use music as a way to spread the message of peace,” Juanes’ manager told newspaper El Tiempo.

Popularity: 34% [?]

From: Pasadena News Now

Pasadena Unified School District (PUSD) graduates participated in a Latino Student Recognition Ceremony that celebrated students’ personal success and academic achievements in the spirit and tradition of Latino culture yesterday afternoon.

Held at Pasadena City College, the ceremony was open to all students and offered an opportunity for them to publicly thank those individuals who assisted them in their academic career.

Dance troupe Yankuititl Danza entertained the crowds with traditional dances before the bilingual ceremony began and the national anthems of Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Venezuela, Republica Dominicana, Puerto Rico, Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala and Mexico were played.

Maria Garcia, mistress of ceremonies for the event and Telemundo Los Angeles news reporter, introduced PUSD Superintendent Edwin Diaz, who congratulated the students on their success.

“I’m so proud of your accomplishments. It’s very exciting to see the type of accomplishments this year’s seniors have achieved,” Diaz said. “I’m confident that you’re going to do an excellent job as you warriors go on to the next level and pursue your next path.”

When Diaz finished his speech, Garcia returned to discuss the Mark A. Leon scholarship, which Jose L. Alvarenga, a Blair High School student, and Veronica Velez, a doctoral candidate, were awarded with.
After each recipient delivered a speech and were presented with certificates, the ceremony closed with a festive performance by a mariachi band.

As the celebration came to a close, Pasadena High School student Karina Servin said she thought the event went well and was happy to see Alvarenga and Velez receive their awards.

“I was excited,” she said. “I feel like more people are getting involved in helping out students.”
Ceremony organizers and sponsors included APPLE-IDEPSCA, Latino Heritage, Pasadena Latino Forum, Teens in Action, Councilmember Victor Gordo, MEChA, the Pasadena Armory Center for the Arts, Pasadena City College and PUSD.

Popularity: 30% [?]

From: The Daily Texan

Even though some Mexican-American soldiers felt they were a part of a brotherhood while serving in World War II, they faced civil unrest when they came back to the U.S., according to a new museum exhibit directed by UT faculty.

“They faced some of the same obstacles as before the war,” said Maggie Rivas-Rodriguez, an associate professor in the School of Journalism and director of the project. “We know they had to fight to tear down some segregated institutions. They had to protest, write letters.”

The Latino and Latina World War II Oral History Project, created by the humanities program at UT, brings light to the oral and written accounts of Mexican-American veterans who fought in World War II. The exhibit will be on display at In Their Own Words Veterans Museum in Perham, Minn. until July 31.

Rivas-Rodriguez said the exhibit aims to educate citizens about the role that Mexican-Americans played in World War II.

“[The exhibit] is about the Latino World War II experience, so it deals with Latinos, and it spans their childhood and some of the educational benefits they got out of the war,” Rivas-Rodriguez said.

The oral history project encourages volunteers to conduct interviews with veterans within their community, and is devoted to preserving the stories of those who participated in WWII. Lina Belar, executive director of the museum, said that the loss of many servicemen greatly impacted their communities.

“[The war] didn’t just affect those that went into battle, but the community that was left behind,” Belar said. “It has made a difference in a lot of peoples’ lives to go into the service, to go away from their community, to have different states of cultural imperative.”

Belar said she hopes the project breaks down barriers between citizens and veterans and sparks discussion about veterans’ war experiences. She said that the problems many veterans faced are due in part to their inability to freely communicate in an open forum.

“Very often, they have been so changed by their experiences — sometimes for the better, sometime for the worse — that they have a hard time communicating with those they spoke to originally,” Belar said.
Rivas-Rodriguez said that firsthand accounts of the war written by veterans are valuable to the project — but the oral accounts are especially important.

David B. Gracy, professor in the School of Information, helped the project archive all of the interviews.
“Oral history is something that happens after the event,” Gracy said. “[Documentation] is unchanging, whereas memories can change over time.”

Belar said that she hopes the project will help veterans come to terms with their experiences.
“A way to help that is to educate communities of the lives of veterans, so they are more sensitive to it,” she said. “[Veterans don’t] have to keep it to themselves — they are going to be able to have a forum. That’s the kind of cultural change that you hope will happen.”

Popularity: 30% [?]