Cuomo Picks Cesar A. Perales for New York State Secretary of State

Governor Cuomo Announces the Nomination of Cesar A. Perales for New York State Secretary of State

César Perales será Secretario de Estado de NY

Cesar Perales & The Latino Struggle

Cesar A. Perales - Wikipedia

Cuomo Names Antonio M. Pérez & Lillian Rodríguez López to Govt Efficiency Panel

Seeking to “modernize and right-size state government, improve performance, increase accountability and save taxpayers’ money,” Governor Andrew Cuomo unveiled his 21 member Spending and Government Efficiency Commission.

The commission includes 2 prominent New York Latinos: co-chair Antonio M. Pérez, CEO of Kodak in Rochester, and Lillian Rodríguez López, president of the NYC-based Hispanic Federation, an association of 100 Latino service agencies from across the Tri-state region.
See Cuomo announces members of SAGE panel

New York Latino Political Leaders - A Video Short

Here's a terrific 4:00 minute history of the rise of Latino political power in New York by Marlene Peralta for HITNTelevision.

"Latinos started having a political presence in New York dating back to the late 1800s. In the 1930s East Harlem became El Barrio, and the main hub for Puerto Ricans, a community that rapidly became politically active, leadership that later spread to other local Hispanic groups."

BTW: NY's 1st elected Latino was Oscar Garcia Rivera, a native of Puerto Rico who won a seat in the NYS Assembly in 1937 as a Republican. Garcia Rivera was a Social Democrat by philosophy and a strong proponent of labor unions. It was he who drafted NYS' Unemployment Insurance Law and paved the way for minimum wage, right to organize and child labor laws.

The International Poetic Short Film Festival - 10/5-26

My Dear Friends,

It’s been a year since The 1st Latino American Poetic Short Film Festival at the Nuyorican Poets Café. In this our 2nd annual Poetic Film Festival we have opened the doors to the rest of the world. The International poetic Short Film Festival begins tomorrow Monday October 5, 2009. I apologize for my late invitation. It’s been a busy and hectic year for all us. I am sure.

The International Poetic Short Film Festival will be held Mondays October 5, 12, 19 and 26, 2009 at The NUYORICAN Poets Café located at 236 East 3rd Street New York, NY 10009Tickets are $10 at the door.

Visit the IPSFF website for more information.

Vision has no boundaries,

Leandro Goicuria
Executive Director
José Antonio
Curator

Latinos of Amsterdam, NY

Latinos have been residents of the City of Amsterdam, New York since the post-WWII mass migration of Puerto Ricans to the mainland U.S.A. The original settlers arrived as workers in the area's once booming textile industry.

A half hour's drive west of NY's Capital District, Amsterdam sits on a slope rising above the Mohawk River. It's was a major transport point for the movement of goods along New York's famed Erie Canal system. The City's current population of 17,500 (est.) is down 1/3rd from its 1990 count. It serves as the urban hub for Montgomery County (48K pop) and the largely rural Mohawk Valley.

Latinos comprise 20-25% of the city's residents and are about 10% of the county population.

The above photo* is of the Camacho family (1953), Amsterdam, NY.

* Courtesy of NYS Legacies Project

Links:
Amsterdam's Centro Civico marks its 20th year

Zoe Colon New ED of Mamaroneck's Hispanic Resource Center

Zoe M. Colon, MPA, 30, former program manager at the Carver Center in Port Chester, has been appointed executive director of the Hispanic Resource Center (HRC), a 10-year-old immigrant social service agency in Mamaroneck.

Colon received a Bachelor of Arts degree with a double major in urban studies and psychology from Barnard College and a Master of Public Administration degree, specializing in non-profit management and policy, from New York University’s Wagner School of Public Service.

She succeeds Mariana Boneo, who resigned in March after three years as executive director, helping HRC achieve record financial support and a position as one of the leaders in the Mamaroneck/Larchmont social service community.

HRC served more than 1,500 clients in the past year. Its primary activities are traditional social services for individuals and families, educational classes and workshops that are occupationally helpful and aid in immigrant integration in the community, and special services for day laborers.

Cesar Perales & The Latino Struggle

Civil rights leader Cesar Perales recently went to Washington, D.C. to offer his opinion on the woman who may become the next Supreme Court justice. It's the latest chapter in an illustrious career which includes city, state and federal government work, plus helping those who can't help themselves through LatinoJustice, a civil rights agency he founded in the early 1970's.

All Latinos in New York--indeed, in the country--owe a deep measure of gratitude to Cesar Perales, a tireless fighter for Latino rights. Borikua. Americano. Hero.

Cesar Perales On The Latino Struggle:


Link: One On 1: Cesar Perales Discusses The Latino Struggle
TAVIS SMILEY Guest: Cesar Perales PBS

Sonia Sotomayor's Gutsy Start in '78

At the tender age 24, a daring Sonia Sotomayor took on an elite Manhattan law firm -- and won!

So reports the LATimes (At Yale, Sotomayor won apology from law firm - 5/28/09):

While interviewing for jobs during her final year of school, [Sotomayor] accused the firm, then known as Shaw, Pittman, Potts & Trowbridge, of discriminating against her by asking questions about the qualifications of Puerto Ricans and other minorities.

Sotomayor's complaint caused a campus furor. A student-faculty panel found the complaint warranted and ordered Shaw Pittman to write her a letter of apology.

That incident speaks volumes for why Sotomayor is the perfect choice to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court. No shrinking violet...Sotomayor had the guts to take on a wrong -- even if it jeopardized her career with the uber powerful Manhattan corporate legal establishment.

Sotomayor's challenge caused the law firm to reconsider its ways. Remarkably, that firm is now recognized as a leader in diversity. Now that's change we can believe in!

How many Supreme wannabes would dare such a thing?

Don't Let Me Drown: A Dominican-Mexican Love Story in Brooklyn by Cruz Angeles

At the center of Cruz Angeles's compelling first feature Don't Let Me Drown are Lalo (E.J. Bonilla) and Stefanie (Gleendylis Inoa), two high-school kids living in Brooklyn.

Lalo comes from a Mexican immigrant family that struggles financially. His father (Damian Alcázar), formerly a janitor at the World Trade Center, now works at Ground Zero cleaning up debris.

Stefanie's family is Dominican and they moved from Manhattan to Brooklyn after her sister was killed in the attacks. While her mother (Gina Torres) tries to hold the family together, her father (Ricardo Antonio Chavira) is overwhelmed by the loss and cannot control his anger.

In the midst of their family turmoil and exactly one month after the WTC attacks, Lalo and Stefanie meet at a birthday party, and although they start off on the wrong foot, the ice melts, and their budding friendship becomes a clandestine romance.

Don't Let Me Drown features an elegantly poignant story, layered characters and standout performances. The textures of the city and the lives of the families are shaded with a wistful sense of struggle but the heart of the film is a refreshing and honest love story.

Links:
Sundance 2009 Review: Cruz Angeles' Don't Let Me Drown

Cruz Angeles, "Don't Let Me Drown": Daydreams, Grief and Hope

DON'T LET ME DROWN—Introductory Remarks and Q&A With Cruz Angeles and Maria Topete

Overcoming Obstacles To Love

Sonia Sotomayor: Supreme Niuyorican!

President Barack Obama has nominated Appellate Court Judge Sonia Sotomayor for the U.S. Supreme Court. If confirmed by the U.S. Senate, Sotomayor will become the first member of Latino heritage to serve on the nation's highest court.

From the AP (Obama picks Sotomayor for high court):

Judge Sonia Sotomayor is a self-described "Niuyorican" who grew up in a Bronx housing project after her parents moved to New York from Puerto Rico. She has dealt with diabetes since age 8 and lost her father at age 9, growing up under the care of her mother in humble surroundings. As a girl, inspired by the Perry Mason television show, she knew she wanted to be a judge.

A graduate of Princeton University and Yale Law School, a former prosecutor and private attorney, Sotomayor became a federal judge for the Southern District of New York in 1992.

As a judge, she has a bipartisan pedigree. She was first appointed by a Republican, President George H.W. Bush, then named an appeals judge by President Bill Clinton in 1997.

NYJets' Mark Sanchez: Franchise Player & Latino Role Model

Viva Mark Sanchez! New Jets QB celebrates his Mexican heritage NY DailyNews

NYJets 2009 NFL Draft pick QB Mark Sanchez:


Jets fans react to selection of Sanchez:


Sanchez' USC '08 highlights & USC fan reaction the draft:


Sanchez on being Latino & a role model:

The Great Recession Hits Latinos Hardest

The Great Recession of 2008 (and beyond) is hurting men more than women. It is hurting homeowners and investors more than renters or retirees who rely on Social Security checks. It is hurting Latinos more than any other ethnic group. A year ago, a greater share of Latinos held jobs than whites. Today, the two have switched places.

Link

Severe & Deeply Rooted Housing Discrimination on Long Island

The advocacy group Education Research Advocacy Support to Eliminate Racism (ERASE Racism)'s latest report, The Racial Equity Report Card: Fair Housing on Long Island (pdf), concludes that African Americans and Latinos are still treated unfairly when searching for homes in Long Island (New York).

The discrimination, the report observes, is severe and deeply rooted in the highly segregated society that is Long Island.

A primary culprit? Real estate professionals.

The report found that some Long Island real estate agents routinely practice housing discrimination, despite efforts to crack down on it, including repeatedly steering African Americans and Latinos to rundown neighborhoods.

Seventy three percent (73%) of all housing race discrimination complaints on Long Island from 2000 to 2007 were filed against real estate professionals.

The report also found that local state and federal government agencies failed to act to stem housing discrimination based on race on Long Island.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development under George W. Bush failed to oversee and monitor New York’s human rights cases.

The state’s Division of Human Rights under George Pataki dismissed most housing discrimination complaints. Between 1999 and 2007, 90 percent of the race-based fair housing complaints from Long Island received a “no probable cause” finding.

And local municipalities failed to take “any significant steps towards drafting and implementing community development plans that address inequities caused by racial segregation.”

Links:
Report: Housing discrimination on LI 'routine practice'
Not so fair housing on LI
Housing Barriers Persist on Long Island: New Study Reveals Housing Discrimination on
Long Island Is Severe and Deeply Rooted - report press release
The Racial Equity Report Card: Fair Housing on Long Island