News & Politics

LATISM's Top Blogueras Briefed at the White House

Adriana97 — Fri, 25 May 2012 22:19:46 +0000

Earlier in the week, sixty-five Latina bloggers, sponsored by Latinos in Social Media (LATISM), attended a briefing at the White House. I was fortunate to be part of this dynamic group of women. Key issues covered included: jobs and the economy, education, and health care.

The group was initially greeted by the top Latina in the White House, Cecilia Muñoz, who heads the Domestic Policy Council. She was followed by Julie Chavez Rodriguez of the White House Office of Public Engagement, Alejandra Ceja, of the Department of Education, Lisa Pino of the Department of Agriculture, and Marissa Duswalt, who works with the First Lady in the Let's Move! Initiative.

Image Credit: Rachel Matos, Latina Bloggers Connect

Overall, this briefing provided the White House with a captive audience of Latinas who are very engaged in social media to talk up the administration's achievements that pertian to the community. As expected, the White House stayed on script. However, there were a few key things worth noting.

Notably absent from the briefing agenda was any mention of immigration. The Obama White House has been perceived as being tougher on immigration than previous administrations. To put things in perspective, in fiscal 2011, the Obama administration deported nearly 400,000 people. This has caused a foster care crisis in many of the states, where U.S. born children are left without mothers and fathers.

One bloguera who attended, Maegan Ortiz of VivirLatino, asked Muñoz about the deportations and how she would respond to critics who have questioned her promoting the Obama deportation policies. Muñoz didn't depart from her usual talking points about finding partners to work with in Congress to pass immigration reform and how there are few administrative tools to use to alleviate the deportations. In essence, blaming Congress continued to be the default answer for why certain things were not being done or accomplished quickly enough. After answering Ortiz's question, Muñoz quickly left the room.

But beyond omissions, the White House did talk about some of its key accomplishments that are of interest to the Latino community. How many more Latinos will gain coverage under the Affordable Care Act was addressed. The work being done at the newly created Consumer Financial Protection Bureau was covered. Private sector job growth was discussed. Improvements to the FAFSA (Free Federal Application for Student Aid) application were explained by Alejandra Ceja. And Lisa Pino and Marissa Duswalt addressed food policy and efforts to combat childhood obesity, which has become an epidemic in the Latino community.

In many ways, this briefing was an extension of the White House Community Action summits that have been taking place across the country to engage Latinos. These community summits came out of the White House Hispanic Policy Conference that occurred in July 2011. The goal of the White House is to host a total of 21 community action summits by the end of July 2012. The Obama White House realizes how important it is to connect with this growing segment of the population, and connecting with Latina bloggers is certianly a good way to generate dialogue as women in the community are often the more effective communicators and reach family members throughout their work in and outside of the home.

It was also productive for the White House to hear a series of questions, complaints, and issues from the women so that the administration can specifically address what's going on outside of the Washington Beltway. When a line of about 20 of the blogueras addressed the administration panel, notes were being jotted down and referrals to other information sources were being made.

Finally, in closing Ana Roca-Castro, one of the co-founders of LATISM, told the White House representatives that the bloggers were an avenue for maintaining communication and engagement but that they were not titeres (puppets). And that's the key -- bloggers work hard to generate content, build audiences and communities, and gain credibility. When they decide to bring a message to their readers, it's because they truly want to amplify an issue, cause, or product for better or worse. And with that, the White House would be wise to continue engaging bloggers from all segments of the population because people are still turning to independent media makers for perspective and analysis.

Touching memory

admin — Fri, 25 May 2012 21:30:06 +0000

The following essay was first published by HipMama.com on March 13, 2009. I am rerunning it because I’m still reeling from turning the last page of Alison Bechdel’s new graphic novel Are You My Mother? The book is dense as hell, and I will likely devote a few dozen original posts to it, but I was most touched by this particularly devastating panel:

When you read my 2009 essay, you’ll understand why I want Alison Bechdel to be my new big sister–or better yet, my new therapist.

Cuba: Hookers rob chef

admin — Fri, 25 May 2012 19:45:06 +0000

“If it’s good enough for the Secret Service and the DEA…”
Havana hookers rob U.S. chef bare
The program under which chefs traveled to Havana drew fire from a critic of trips to Cuba.
So who was the New York chef, or assistant chef, who went to Cuba for a bit of food diplomacy and wound up being robbed by the two hookers he took back to his hotel room?

It seems like nobody is willing to tell, although reports on the misadventure have been making the rounds of foodie blogs and websites and drawing jokes, insider jabs between chefs and at least one serious reproach of the trip to Havana.

Ten prominent New York chefs flew to Cuba earlier this month for the 11th annual Habana Bienal modern art show, to put on a piece of performance art with 10 Cuban counterparts — cooking in a kitchen built into a cargo container.

What Do You Do to Mark the Importance of Memorial Day?

Jane Collins — Fri, 25 May 2012 19:15:59 +0000

The last Monday of May is Memorial Day, a federal holiday created after the Civil War to commemorate fallen Union solidiers. When I was growing up, I was in the school marching band. Memorial Day often included a long, hot, two-mile slog down Main Street and over to the Memorial Park cemetery to honor the departed soldiers from our town. In the northeast, that included military heroes all the way back to the Revolutionary War.

Image by Ken Thomas: Philadelphia Tomb of Unknown Soldier, Revolutionary War, via Wikimedia Commons

Memorial Day factoid: If you fly the flag on a flagpole, military protocol indicates the flag should remain at half staff until noon, in memory of the more than one million men and women who have given their lives for this country over the past 200+ years.

What do you do on Memorial Day? Do you have a special friend, family member or ancestor from the military that you would like to honor on this day? Tell us about it on the BlogHer opinion poll as a comment and select your choices on the poll below!

Jamaican Me Craaazy, Mon!

gingerstar.kw — Fri, 25 May 2012 17:45:04 +0000

Tuesday, May 10, 2011

I just returned from a fabulous (Irie) vacation in Ocho Rios, Jamaica a few weeks ago. We learned 3 Jamaican phrases while we were there. "Yah, Mon!" which means yes, or okay. "No problahm" which they apparently say even when there is a problem, it's "No problahm." And "Irie" which means something is fantastic.

Going on vacation while 6 months pregnant is a completely new experience for me. Right off the bat, Spitfire says, "Mom, when people look at you, they look at your belly first, then your face, and then back to your belly." (No problahm).

I felt like in Jamaica, pregnant equals invalid, but I suppose the tour companies just didn't want to assume the liability for a pregnant woman participating in their excursions.

So while Mr. Wright and Spitfire did things like swim with de-barbed stingrays (Irie), climb waterfalls, and ride on downhill, 5-10 mph bike rides, I sat on the sidelines and watched my ankles swell and tried not to let the heat and humidity bother me (No problahm). But in the meantime, I learned some fascinating things about Jamaica, and perhaps you will find them fascinating too. (Yah, Mon!)

Read the rest of this post by clicking here:

http://livingvi-keri-ously.blogspot.com/2011/05/jamaican-me-craaazy-mon.html

Men on the Internet Would Like to Have Your Babies

admin — Fri, 25 May 2012 17:30:10 +0000

Online dating: The worst, or the absolute worst?

“Pro-Choice” Americans at a record low

admin — Fri, 25 May 2012 17:30:07 +0000

According to a recent Gallup poll, the percentage of Americans who identify as “pro-choice” is at an all-time low of 41%. By contrast, 50% of Americans ID as pro-life.

Of course, the pro-life/pro-choice monikers don’t really say much about one’s actual views on the legality or morality of abortion. Lots of folks who say they are “pro-life” don’t actually want to make abortion illegal — only 20% of respondents believe abortion should be legal in all circumstances, while 25% believe it should be legal in any circumstances, and 52% believe it should be legal under certain circumstances. In other words, a heavy majority of Americans believe that abortion should be legal sometimes.

Protesting Protesters

viki-mason — Fri, 25 May 2012 17:00:15 +0000

A couple of years ago I went on a seven-day cruise to Alaska. The only vacation I liked more was one I took about ten years ago. It was a fourteen-day cruise to Alaska. When, at the end of our last trip we were returned to picturesque Seattle, we encountered an interesting protest taking place near the pier.

I cannot remember what precisely the protesters were upset about. What I do remember was the fact that the demonstrators didn’t say a word. They stood silently on a little mound of grass and silently held up signs.

To my way of thinking, this is the way to protest.

Following the shameful antics of the Occupy Wall Street gang at the NATO summit in Chicago last weekend, I may have to change my position on freedom of speech. Of course the Occupy idiots have every right to protest and to say whatever they feel like saying. They don’t have the right to behave like union mobsters which some would say, they are. To be destructive of the property and persons of others ought to land them all in jail and, since there were more than 100 – the number which was ultimately jailed - of the protesters present, I’m of the opinion they didn’t take a sufficient number of the miscreants to the local hoosgow.

Wouldn’t it have been better to cover themselves with campaign buttons or bumper stickers which state their cases? God Almighty knows there are buttons, tshirts and other products available on the internet which succinctly (and almost always cleverly) make the statement of your choice gracefully and without offending anybody. Oh. But those Occupy folks wanted to offend somebody. I keep forgetting that part.

The occupy movement has gotten completely out of control and must be brought back into compliance with the law. Sadly, and some would disagree with me (but they would be wrong to do so) these thugs have the blessings of some highly placed individuals in Washington, D.C. and so, they will not be reined in anytime soon. Each day in which they continue to behave like criminals is a day of shame in this great Nation.

In the News

Etc.

admin — Fri, 25 May 2012 16:50:06 +0000

The Democrats are engaging in cynicism regarding Mitt and Bain._____

At Odds With Maslow

admin — Fri, 25 May 2012 16:45:18 +0000

I've often posted about Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, and how I absolutely disagree with it. Maslow presumes that we move "up" a hierarchy,and that basic physiological needs must be secured before we can move on to other "levels":

I disagree, since this would seem to imply that the chronically poor cannot be self actualized, nor do they have strong social relationships, sense of self, sense of beauty, etc... because they are absolutely focused on the physical needs they are at risk of losing, or are deprived of by their economic condition... That without food and shelter security (things an increasing number of us lack) there cannot be morality, creativity, acceptance, or sense of purpose. I'm calling bullshit on that.

News & Politics

LATISM's Top Blogueras Briefed at the White House

Touching memory

Read more from Touching memory at The Radical Housewife

Cuba: Hookers rob chef

Read more from Cuba: Hookers rob chef at Fausta's Blog

What Do You Do to Mark the Importance of Memorial Day?

Jamaican Me Craaazy, Mon!

Men on the Internet Would Like to Have Your Babies

Read more from Men on the Internet Would Like to Have Your Babies at Feministe

“Pro-Choice” Americans at a record low

Read more from “Pro-Choice” Americans at a record low at Feministe

Protesting Protesters

Etc.

Read more from Etc. at On The Edge

At Odds With Maslow

Read more from At Odds With Maslow at The Radula

News & Politics

LATISM's Top Blogueras Briefed at the White House

Touching memory

Read more from Touching memory at The Radical Housewife

Cuba: Hookers rob chef

Read more from Cuba: Hookers rob chef at Fausta&#039;s Blog

What Do You Do to Mark the Importance of Memorial Day?

Jamaican Me Craaazy, Mon!

Men on the Internet Would Like to Have Your Babies

Read more from Men on the Internet Would Like to Have Your Babies at Feministe

“Pro-Choice” Americans at a record low

Read more from “Pro-Choice” Americans at a record low at Feministe

Protesting Protesters

Etc.

Read more from Etc. at On The Edge

At Odds With Maslow

Read more from At Odds With Maslow at The Radula

Read more from Cuba: Hookers rob chef at Fausta's Blog