Día de los Reyes and Disney dollars
If there’s an attack on Christmas, it’s not coming from the secularists, but from the commercialists: “Los Tres Reyes Magos is going to Disneyland. The California theme park is going all out for the...
View ArticleLatino religion v. Latino education
A bit of nonsense is being stirred up by a Latino family in Texas: “A federal judge has ruled that a Texas school has the right to force a student to wear an ID badge, something she was refusing saying...
View ArticleFinding purpose by connecting with our roots
As a psychic, when 2013 was approaching you would have thought I had a direct line to the Aztecs the way my email and phone were blowing up. I found an increase of both apprehension and excitement –...
View ArticleThe politics of hiring a nanny
If you’ve ever driven around my current hometown of Los Angeles, you know that Latinas pushing strollers of white, blue-eyed children is a common sight. These women are usually nannies, and they get...
View ArticleLa Santa Muerte and other forms of crazy
Jim Morrison was right — “people are strange”: “Popular in Mexico, and sometimes linked to the illicit drug trade, the skeleton saint known as La Santa Muerte in recent years has found a robust and...
View ArticleSometimes affordable healthcare is not enough
Being healthy means…….. For most of us hardworking Latinos it means, being proactive. But what if that is not enough? A recent study by researchers at the UCLA School of Nursing, “Barriers to Prostate...
View ArticleMore couples living together than marrying
A report by the U.S. National Center for Health Statistics shows that more women are exchanging keys to a home with their partners, rather than exchanging wedding rings. The study also finds that this...
View ArticleMattel: Perpetuating stereotypes or teaching culture
Mattel has been criticized for its Barbie dolls and her unrealistic measurements and her negative effect on girls’ body image. Now it is under fire again for its Dolls of the World collection which...
View ArticleDisney withdraws patent petition for “Día de los Muertos”
Recently, Disney filed for a new patent, and you might be interested to know what the patent was for. Apparently Disney was hoping to secure the rights to the phrase Día de los Muertos. The patent...
View ArticleAmericans embrace Latino culture
When we were younger, we were taught that America is what is called a “melting pot” meaning that although it is full of different cultures, the cultures live together and blend, maybe either borrowing...
View ArticleFashionable funerals: Black pallbearers required!
Progressive Latinos in the United States often look to their brethren in Mexico, Central, and South America as examples of countries and cultures which practice equality and don’t look at the color of...
View ArticleMusica Amansa a Las Fieras, or Music Soothes The Savage Beast
By Russell D. Longcore The human soul seems to be vacant without music. Look at all of the types of music found around the world. Anywhere a person can tap on something and hum a tune, music is found....
View ArticleAre Latinos savvy food consumers?
With a rise in the obesity rate seen in the Latino community in recent years it is imperative that two things continue to evolve. The first is how manufacturers and marketers effectively communicate...
View ArticleDo we still need Hispanic Heritage Month?
National Hispanic Heritage Month ended a few days ago. The month, which is from September 15th to October 15th, celebrates “the long and important presence of Hispanic and Latino Americans in North...
View ArticleHaving curves is what sets us apart from everybody
Jennifer Lopez is one of the most famous and successful Latina singers around the world; and now she has her own Barbie! Mattel has released two Barbies that supposedly represent JLo, but many critics...
View ArticleHow to keep our heritage alive
I recently read an article about a Kansas family who adopted four Ukrainian kids, they barely escaped the chaos in Kiev. This made me think of the numerous times my father told me about my great...
View ArticleRooting for the country of your birth or your origins?
In 2007 the national soccer teams of Mexico and the United States faced off in Phoenix, Arizona. Naturally, the atmosphere was tense. Passionate fans of both sides expressed their support in a...
View ArticleLatino identity seen through our music
“I grew up in the sixties watching B.B. King and Tito Puente and Miles Davis and John Coltrane, everybody, Marvin Gaye, Jimi Hendrix. And at the same time, with my left eye I was watching Dolores...
View ArticleLatino identity seen through our music Part 2
As summer begins to wind down and we look back at all the family gatherings, asados at the lake or heading out to the beach for some fun in the sun, one of the things that help mark these outings is...
View ArticleWinning the hearts and minds of Latinos
Let’s begin by saying that Latinos do not need to be won over, because it is within the heart and mind that drives us to get up and fight every day for our family and selves. Any negativity will be...
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