Juan of Words

De Paisano a Paisano: Una Calavera – Day of The Dead

So today my good friend Sue Valencia dedicated a special calavera just for me – in return, she asked for nothing more than a calavera in her honor.  Now if you’re thinking the more traditional painted-white-artistic-rendering-of-a-skull, I’m sorry to disappoint, but I’m just not artistically talented in that way.  The calavera we’re talking about here is of the other variety: the traditional satirical poems written in Mexico to commemorate the Day of the Dead.  These poems are about the living and more often than not describe how the object of the calavera will die.  Eerie-sounding I know, but these works of the written word are meant to honor and celebrate the living while poking fun, together, at the inevitable: ¡la muerte!  Personally, I’m not that comfortable with the idea of death, and so this humble offering on El Día de los Muertos is more a lighthearted dedicatoria to all who can relate.

I hope you guys enjoy it!

De Paisano a Paisano: Una Calavera         

They say we’re the problema.  Los burros que no entienden.
They kick us out, and we come right back.
They build a fence; we swim around or underneath it…
Unos nos la brincamos.  Otros, we just walk on straight through it.

They say we’re inconvenient.
We say they’re inconsiderate.
They say we’re uneducated.
We say “dame una chanza please!”

Una chanza pa’ demostrarles lo que podemos.
Una chanza pa’ demostrarles que somos luchadores.

We’re not on Main Street or Wall Street.
We’re on streets like Macario García and Cesar Chávez.
Pounding the ground every day, batallando to put food on the table…

Every day!

We’re cooking, cleaning, working outside…
Doing whatever we have to.
Going without, Doing with less.
Making it however we have to.

Un día cuando ya no estemos,
You’re going to look around and miss us.
Los burros that always kept their heads down,
That never said a word.
La burla de todos: El Mentado Sleeping Giant!

Los burros that always said “yes” and never called your bullshit!

Pero ¡ojo!
Los días ya están contados,
And as they say in your americano,
Nothing lasts forever!  

Te lo digo de paisano a paisano.

The Immigrant Advantage: An Inspirational Slice of American Culture -Book Review

A couple months ago I got the email.  It was author Claudia Kolker and she wanted to get together to catch up and talk.  We did, and what she had to tell me in that very fast and furious lunch was just as exciting as the book that would eventually make it into my hands as a result of this meeting a couple of weeks later.  Now I’ve known Claudia personally for several years now and from the very beginning, our very first encounter canvassing local neighborhoods encouraging people to register to vote, she has been one of the most impassioned and giving people I know.  I mean she literally showed me the path, complete with who to talk to and what to tell them, to take my love for writing from a farfetched dream to a reality.  To me, Claudia has always been a wonderful mentor… and a very generous one at that.

So it seemed only natural that when she started describing her new book, The Immigrant Advantage, that it was all about helping others in a new way.  What she described about learning from people like my parents, their parents, and so many others like us, Mexican or not, all recent immigrants to this great country, at once struck me as both genius and quite daunting.  I’ll admit, I was a little confused at first at how such an innovative and broad subject matter could be tackled in just one book, but I knew Claudia’s writing well enough to know that if anyone had the finesse and thoughtfulness to put something like this together in words it would be her.

Turns out, I was right!

Not only does the book take the reader through a colorful slice of American culture, from Korean afterschool programs to the conundrum of having your parents literally helping you select your best potential spouse (this would have been a pretty hilarious process in my case), as well as the importance of mothering a mother after she gives birth in the Mexican tradition known as the cuarentena, among several others, The Immigrant Advantage tells these stories in a heartfelt and often humorous tone.  I think that’s what I’ve enjoyed most about the book; that it has made me feel like I’ve been right there next to Claudia the entire time she was visiting and talking to these families and characters about their stories.  I feel connected to them.

And best of all, after finishing The Immigrant Advantage I feel like I have so many new tools at my disposal.  Honestly, I can’t wait to try out a lot of these customs for myself.  I might be hitting up some of you to join my tanda (money saving club – one of the chapters in the book) pretty soon… so beware!

If you could use a little help in any of the following subject matters, this book is definitely a must read: saving money, making time for a family meal, supporting a college education, maybe even fending off diseases, financing home ownership, and/or building a buffer from the physical and psychological assaults of poverty.

NOTE: Author Claudia Kolker will be visiting this blog on Monday, October 24, 2011, to review your messages and answer any questions you might have, so please feel free to leave all comments below.  I will also be giving away a copy of The Immigrant Advantage to one lucky reader.  For a chance to win this free copy please leave a comment on this post, along with your email address so that I can contact you if you are the winner.  The winning commenter will be selected at random.

This post is an official tour stop of The Immigrant Advantage Book Tour.

Monday, October 24, 2011: Juan of Words – http://www.juanofwords.com/
Tuesday, October 25, 2011: Chicano Soul -http://thechicanosoul.blogspot.com/
Wednesday, October 26, 2011: Spanglish Baby – http://www.spanglishbaby.com/
Thursday, October 27, 2011: Latinaish – http://latinaish.com/
Friday, October 28, 2011: TikiTiki Blog – http://tikitikiblog.com/
Tuesday, November 1, 2011: Voto Latino - http://www.votolatino.org/
Wednesday, November 2, 2011: Motherhood in Mexico – http://www.motherhoodinmexico.com/
Thursday, November 3, 2011: Atzlan Reads – http://www.aztlanreads.com/
Friday, November 4, 2011: Multicultural Familia – http://www.multiculturalfamilia.com/

About the Author: Claudia Kolker has reported extensively from Mexico and Central America, as well as the Caribbean, Japan, India and Pakistan. A former Los Angeles Times bureau chief and member of the Houston Chronicle editorial board, she has also written for The Economist, The Washington Post, The Boston Globe, O: The Oprah Magazine, Slate, and Salon. She lives in Houston with her family.  For The Immigrant Advantage, Kolker visited Korean and Chinese afterschools, West Indian multigenerational households in New Jersey, and Chicago’s “Little Village,” among others.

About the book: The Immigrant Advantage is a fascinating look into the lives of immigrant enclaves in the United States that we so seldom gain access to, and an inspiring exploration about how these customs can enrich our own lives.  You may purchase a copy of this book at Amazon.com

FTC Disclosure: Juan of Words received a free copy of the book from the author as part of a Simon & Schuster book tour. Juan of Words was not required to write a positive review. The opinions expressed are my own.

Unos Nacen Con Estrella, Otros Nacen Estrellados

Some Are Born In A Silver Crib, Others On A Silver Platter

About us they never knew a single thing.  Not the way we woke up every single morning to the scent of huevo con chorizo frying in the kitchen, tortillas freshly made, stacked under a carefully embroidered napkin of white cloth with pink and blue flowers at every corner, both flour and corn.  Not the way an occasional allowance of no more than one dollar made us so happy and grateful.  Not how good it felt to come home with the clothes we’d picked out for the next school year several months earlier, at the end of every summer when we’d pick them up from layaway, racing back and forth, changing from one outfit to the next, until all three had been paraded around our living room.  Or for that matter what the experience of actually shopping for anything new meant to us.  To them we were just another family like thousands of others: poor, uneducated, uncultured, with parents that spoke only Spanish, and worst of all stuck in our pitiful existence. 

We were the Mexicans people talked about so much in those days, before Reagan and his amnesty for immigrants.  The ones with a carload of children popping out of every door every stop we made in our multi-colored vehicle on its last wing; the ones stealing jobs and opportunities from Americans; the very ones that had to be detained and deported to prove a point that this country was not a place to violate laws.

What they failed to realize was that by sending us back they brought us closer together, and made us stronger.  In the arroyos of El Sauz we learned of civility, humility and dignity from the other children who treated us like royalty just because we had come from the other side.  El Norte that everyone talked about so much, where we were dirt poor by all accounts, but rich in comparison to the people living in our parents’ hometown.  With every trip to the nearby pond to gather water for our baths in small galvanized pails carried over our shoulders with a wooden stick, we became more aware of our parents’ sacrifices.  From our grandmother we learned how strong and beautiful the word Mexican actually is – not a term to be used derogatorily or in which any shame should be placed.  She was our matriarch who prayed to the Catholic virgin everyday, who enticed us with chocolate-infused coffee every morning, who constantly reminded us that we were her grandchildren and needed to speak Spanish to communicate with her.          

Upon our return we were no longer the same brood of speechless immigrants too afraid to make any waves for fear of being deported.  We had been there and back as a family, and now we had finally found our voice.  You don’t have a heart, all of you immigration people are heartless, my mother exclaimed at the judge after being told she would be the only one in our family not obtaining a green card, but as long as my kids and their father get legalized I’m happy.  It was a gutsy move, but one that proved quite worth it.  A few weeks later we found out that everyone in our family soliciting green cards would be getting them, including my mother.  Almost as if in that instant, that immigration judge had seen past our illegal status, to the pleading heart of a desperate mother wanting nothing more than to remain with her children.  

Yes, we were poor – uneducated and uncultured, as well.  Our parents did speak mostly Spanish, very little English.  And maybe our existence was pretty pitiful to outsiders, but we were on our way and now we knew that we were worth much more than what we had been told.  We were definitely not stuck, just at a crossroad. 

This post is dedicated to the new wave undocumented immigrants facing hatred and discrimination because of whom they have been told they are in this country.  May you find your true voice and strength, and fear not what the result might be of standing up for what is right.

Houston March for Dignity organizers vow to protest Arizona’s SB 1070 on May 1st

All defendants of human rights and civil liberties are urged to join a nonviolent demonstration against the new law, for comprehensive immigration reform

And so the battle continues.  With the signing of SB 1070 into law yesterday, Arizona Governor Jan Brewer (R) raised the stakes on the fight for comprehensive immigration reform in the United States.  Her state intends to require local police to enforce federal immigration laws by making it a state crime to be in the country illegally.  This despite broad opposition from Hispanic and human rights organizations far beyond Arizona’s borders, and including President Barrack Obama’s harsh words against the bill just hours earlier.

“Our failure to act responsibly at the federal level will only open the door to irresponsibility by others.  That includes, for example, the recent efforts in Arizona, which threaten to undermine basic notions of fairness which we cherish as Americans, as well as the trust between police and their communities that is so crucial to keeping us safe,” President Obama stated at a televised press conference.  “In fact, I’ve instructed members of my administration to closely monitor the situation and examine the civil rights and other implications of this legislation, but if we continue to fail to act on a federal level we will continue to see misguided efforts opening up around the country.”

With their new authority, police in Arizona would be allowed to ask anyone whom they suspect are in the country illegally to prove their legal residency status in the United States by producing a valid “alien registration document,” including a green card, an Arizona divers license, or a passport.  If they are not able to produce these documents they would be subject to arrest, could be jailed up to six months and fined $2,500.  Harsher restrictions are also placed on anyone knowingly “concealing, harboring, or shielding an illegal immigrant.”  This law becomes the toughest anti-immigration law in the nation and marks a new level of assumed state government authority.

At a press conference in downtown Phoenix on Thursday where she was discussing border security, Brewer defended her state’s actions toward illegal immigration.

“I will not stop.  I will not be deterred.  I will not give ground when it comes to keeping us safe.  Securing the border might not be Arizona’s principal job, but we have no choice.  We must show resolve and courage where those who have failed to protect us have shown only weakness and delay.”

After signing SB 1070 into law she dismissed protesters’ concerns over racial profiling as “overreacting” and categorized opponents as “alarmists” and “cynics.”  Meanwhile, the American Civil Liberties Union as well as the Mexican-American Defense Fund have already vowed to contest SB 1070’s constitutionality in the courts, before its anticipated late July-early August implementation.

Fighting SB 1070

Opponents of SB 1070 have called for various measures to protest the passage of this new law in Arizona.  Some have promised to boycott the state by avoiding travel or business into its borders until SB 1070 is declared unconstitutional, a candlelight vigil is planned for this evening in Washington, D.C. at Dupont Circle, a social media based petition urging President Obama to take action against the new law is circulating Twitter, and a nationwide March for Dignity and Respect for All, which was scheduled for Saturday, May 1, 2010, has taken on a new purpose and strength.

So far nonviolent demonstrations have been the focus of protesters, but some speculate this could change as tensions rise in Arizona over the next few days.  In Houston, organizers are calling all individuals who support human rights and civil liberties to participate in a May 1st March for Dignity and Respect for All, scheduled to begin at the intersection of Bellaire Blvd. and Renwick Dr. at 4 p.m.

“We are faced with an unprecedented choice,” says Cesar Espinosa, president of Immigrant Families and Students in the Struggle (FIEL).  “We can stay silent and let our community continue to be trampled on or we can say enough!  The time for people to stand up is now.  The time to stop to Arizona and other copy cat states is now!”

FIEL is one of the leading groups organizing Houston’s May 1^st March for Dignity and Respect for All.  Local blogger and activist, Stace Medellin believes inaction is an invitation for further violations of human rights and civil liberties in Houston and across the nation.

“Yesterday’s action by the state of Arizona proved that Congress and President Obama must make comprehensive immigration reform the top priority.  The May 1st Marches around the United States have been given a boost by the fact there are groups who are more than willing to violate individual civil rights and liberties of specific groups of people” he said.  “There’s no doubt that these types of actions can lead to other groups being targeted as history has shown us, so it is important that we show a united, diverse front in calling for federal reform that is fair and humane.”

For more information about Houston’s May 1^st March for Dignity and Respect for All, text the word “MARCH” to (832) 497-5035 to receive updates, or visit the website www.houstonmarches.info

©Juan of Words

Census Sense!?

Much ado is being made about the 2010 Census taking place this year.  The Hispanic community in particular is being bombarded with messages that legal status should not prevent us from participating, that if we don’t participate we will lose out on federal funds and programs, that last time around thousands of us were not counted, and that as a result our communities did not receive the help they needed.

At the same time thousands of Latinos are being detained and deported straight from their job sites, employers are being pressured to eliminate undocumented workers from their work staffs, and much debate still remains about what ethnic group we can all be categorized under – even within our own community.  Some prefer the term Hispanic.  Others would rather be called Latino.  Many more favor terms like Mexican, Mexican-American, Chicano, Cuban-American, Puerto Rican, Costa Rican, etc., etc.

And those 10 infamous questions do not even list Hispanic, Latino or Spanish as a valid race option – perhaps because we make so many distinctions about our own demographic.

Lately, for example, I’ve been hearing a lot about how the most recent generations of Hispanics – the ones who speak mostly English and hold college degrees – are the ones that are making the biggest impact on our community.  That they are the ones that are voting, getting better jobs and leading us into new heights of success and acceptance in this country.  That may be true, but why should we denounce who we are in order to gain wider acceptance in this society?  When did speaking Spanish become a bad tag?

I like reading English newspapers and magazines just as much as anyone else.  And yes, sometimes speaking, reading and writing in English is my preference, but that doesn’t mean I don’t think it’s important for non-English speakers to have a voice.  Education and college degrees are important!  So are having pride in our personal backgrounds and standing up for those who can’t stand up for themselves.

I’m not advocating for a revolt against the 2010 U.S. Census.  It is what it is, and we should take the 10 minutes out of our lives to fill it out, regardless of what our legal status or education level is in this country.  Because it may very well impact how our communities evolve over the next decade.  In doing so, however, let’s remember our differences should not be greater than our similarities.

Holding a degree and speaking the language better than others does not make us better than anyone else!

It is in our hands.