After 20 years with PBS, Gras has started her own producation company. Photo by: Anisworth Duvernay

The Venture spent some time with Patricia Gras, a true inspiration to Latinas. Gras is a TV host and producer of Living Smart with Patricia Gras at Houston PBS and although she is no longer a staff member with PBS, the show will continue airing this year.

She now owns her own independent production company. Patricia has also won multiple Emmys and is a cancer surivor.

Felipe Campos: For those who don’t know, what is Living Smart?

Patricia Gras: “It’s a show about life skills such as finances, health issues, spirituality and well-being. Living Smart is shown nationally on over 200 channels. Really, it’s a show about getting the most of life.”

FC: Patricia, tell us about winning an Emmy, how did you feel about that?

PG: To me, winning six Emmys means a lot to the television industry. I have won them with a team of great professionals for the documentaries I did over Romania, AIDS and civil rights issues. We have also won another 170 broadcasting awards in addition to that, but I enjoy the work more than the awards themselves, although I am very thankful for them.

Gras has been with Houston Public Broadcasting System- Houston’s Channel 8 for twenty-two years. She started September 1990 as a contract hire, but in November 1991 she became full staff. Gras is no longer with PBS.

PG: “I still believe in the PBS mission to educate and inform; a network of values and truth.”

FC: What have been some of your contributions as a humanitarian?

PG: Always participate in the community to achieve better race relations and to empower women in the workplace. I have worked with environmental groups, received an award from the African American Chamber of Commerce, Interfaith Ministries and every ethnic group in the community. Although, I was born in the United States, my parents and grandparents were from other parts of the world so I see myself as a universal, multiethnic person. My company, Gras Productions, is about reconnecting the world, because I believe we truly are interconnected.

FC: Mrs. Gras, how is the entertainment business different than other industries?

PG: Entertainment is a creative business, but a fast-moving business. TV is exciting but very competitive and ego driven. With that comes lots of envy, talented people tend to lose themselves because they are not grounded. Take a look at Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston, both very talented who reached the pinnacle of success but also really fell hard. I call that being in “Una Montan~a Rusa” (a roller coaster ride).”

FC: You are a spiritual person, correct? What has been your spiritual journey throughout your life and career?

PG: I’ve always felt a connection to a higher divine power. I was raised Catholic but don’t consider myself religious. I am more spiritual. I believe in a higher power, divine love and a path to higher consciousness. It is something that has helped me deal with the entertainment world.

FC: As a role model, what advice do you have for Latinas in the entertainment industry?

PG: To my Latinas in the entertainment industry or anywhere, keep your priorities straight and understand relationships with yourself and others. Take steps to achieve goals, not just educated goals, but emotional, psychological and spiritual ones. Drugs and alcohol will only help you lose yourself. Have good manners, something crucial in life. Years back people were more family-oriented and valued the importance of manners which builds respect. To succeed, work harder, be more dedicated, and never lose opportunities to be the best you can be.

You can visit her website at Patriciagras.net

 
The detention of 200 child immigrants in temporary housing at Lackland Air Force Base last week was shocking and unsettling.

It put a youthful face on the problem of U.S. immigration. Here the “illegal alien” is a child from Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador or Honduras crossing the South Texas desert or border port with no parent, seeking refuge from poverty, abuse, child sex trafficking, or just looking to reunite with their parents.

The problem is not new, but it is growing. The Office of Refugee Resettlement reports that during the past four months, 5,252 kids landed in U.S. custody without a parent or guardian. This is almost double what it was from the same period a year ago. Last month alone, 1,390 youths arrived.

The cause of the surge baffles even the experts. In part it may be due to tougher border security, making it more difficult for parents working in the U.S. to return for their children. The size of the Border Patrol has doubled in the past few years.

These child refugees are collateral damage of the inability of the Congress and the President to reach agreement in the past four years on comprehensive immigration reform in a politically polarized environment.

With no federal action, last year 42 states and Puerto Rico enacted 197 new laws and 109 new resolutions on immigration. Georgia, Indiana, South Carolina and Utah passed extreme measures modeled after the law in Arizona.

The Supreme Court heard an appeal of the Arizona law last week. If the justices uphold it, the law makes undocumented immigrants criminals of the state and places local law officers in the position of enforcing federal immigration law. It also makes anyone suspect who looks like they might be an immigrant and gives state and local officers the power to detain them until they can produce proper documents.

Don’t count on Congress to act on comprehensive immigration reform prior to the election in November. But you can be sure that the immigration issue will play a huge role in Presidential election politics, given the increase in the size of the Latino voting bloc.

Now some Republicans are having second thoughts about whether it is politically wise to use draconian measures like the Arizona law, so offensive to Latino voters, to deal with undocumented immigrants. Last week, Mitt Romney, an immigration hawk, appeared with U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) in an effort to court the Latino vote.

Rubio has a version of the proposed Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act that is scaled down for Republican Congressional consumption. It is hard to believe that Republicans in Congress have repeatedly rejected something as non-threatening as the DREAM Act, which provides a path to citizenship for young immigrants who have no criminal background and have proven themselves for a period of time as productive residents through college or military service.

Rubio’s version of DREAM would allow them to remain in the country temporarily under new kind of nonimmigrant visa, but it does not lay out a path to permanent residency and citizenship.

The DREAM Act is an easy compromise and would be a start down the path of a more comprehensive immigration package. But it would not put a dent in the mounting problems of immigration reform.

Comprehensive immigration reform would include a guest-worker program with temporary work permits to unauthorized immigrants now in the US, an entry-exit system that tracks immigrants, and permanent residency leading to citizenship for those who have the intent and shown their ability to become productive members of society.

The current federal immigration laws cannot track the flow of immigrants. Keeping undocumented immigrants in the shadows leads to human rights abuses like those experienced by the child refugees.

Robert Brischetto runs Social Research Services in Lakehills, Texas. He was executive director of the Southwest Voter Research Institute from 1982-1995. He can be reached at rbrischetto@wireweb.net.

Opinions expressed in this article are solely that of the author. The article is not intended to represent The Venture editorial policy and do not necessarily reflect the views of our staff, board of directors or supporters.

The new Mustang offers civilized performance enthusiasts and commuters will love. Photo by: Edgar Veliz

Portland-The various new features of the 2013 Ford Mustang offer a new driving experience that starts before you grab the keys.

I drove the 3.7-liter V-6 coupe throughout the streets of Portland and its surrounding suburbs testing the 19/31-MPG claim and it’s new features. The route was selected by Ford and later modified due to the weather but the vehicle was equipped with all-weather tires that stuck to the road superbly.

At first glance the Mustang I drove offered an elegant smile through its grill that was redeveloped for this model. The additional LED strips near the headlight seem unnecessary but that’s an afterthought once you walk around the vehicle.

Cuando prende el automóvil lo primero que nota es el motor que ahora tiene lo mejor de dos mundos, más poder junto con más millas por galón.

The taillights were elegant in use and overall the rear of the vehicle seemed as aggressive as the front. A nifty feature added to this year’s crop is the pony hologram that comes from the bottom of the side mirrors.

The interior surpasses that of any car I used on this trip and the technology was much more user friendly. The interior of the V-6 was comfy and suitable for anyone under 6’5. The rear seats do seem congested but that’s expected from a sports car.

Cualquier aficionado del mustang le va a encantar la nueva tecnología que ayuda mantener los mejores pronósticos del automóvil.

The technology inside was a pleasure to use. The engineers I spoke with were extremely proud of the sound system that at one point surpassed the sound of the 305 horses this car can produce. The key to this system is the clarity it offers at high volume.

The navigation system is user friendly and reduces spelling mistakes by guiding you through the typing process. The voice commands were responsive and helped get us out of a rut towards the end of our trip.

Our journey began in the heart of downtown Portland where we tackled the morning rush. Once we left the city the route took us through a mountain road that brought out the best of this car. Its acceleration can provide a unique neck jerk that my driving partner found to be very pleasant.

The vehicle offers a new dual transmission that enables the driver to completely take over the car. I didn’t take advantage of this but as a passenger it seemed a bit too complex for the casual driver.

El automóvil tiene un sistema de alerta cuando maneja de reversa que calcula los espacios en tres niveles, cada uno se nota con el color en la pantalla.

As I maneuvered around corners the car didn’t require much work. It varied by turn due to the sharpness we encountered but overall the car wasn’t a hassle, the speed bumps were.

On a flat surface this car is at home and at times you forget how fast you’re going. Overall this vehicle can be a charm to drive in the city, out of the city and anywhere in between.

For the Mustang enthusiast looking for an upgrade, this model offers cost-effective apps that help manage and track the vehicles performance. For the driver looking for a flashy commuter this vehicle will not disappoint. Ford is essentially offering a mustang for everyone’s taste, whether it is performance, style or both Ford has an option for you.

Este automóvil es perfecto para el recién graduado o como un automóvil de fin de semana. Con tanta tecnología y un motor más económico esta leyenda del mundo automático supero  mis expectativas.

Before you sign the lease visit the Ford website for additional features. You can select everything from the body paint to the wheel size and prepare yourself for the $26,000 you’re guaranteed to spend on this edition.

Back a long time ago, in a time when Facebook was still a pimply-faced teenager, the annual Great Tejas Warrant Round Up would scare the bejeezus out of me. My love for speed and immaturity usually meant I had at least one outstanding traffic ticket (speeding) that I “forgot” about.

I didn’t need to worry, the brave officers of the Houston Police Department were more than happy to track me down and “remind” me I needed to handle the resulting warrant. To ensure I didn’t forget to pay, they gave me shiny wrist jewelry to wear to the courthouse while the issue was resolved.

I’ve grown up now. At least to the point where the roundup doesn’t send me into paranoid fits like it used to. Of course, my love for speed remains intense, though neglected, like a needy ex-girlfriend.

Every time I slide behind the driver’s seat, mi ojos fixate on the 1-6-0 mph on the speedometer as I crank the car. Memories of my glory days when I was gunslingin’ in the barrios of Houston’s underground street race scene flood my brain, that is, until my wife jumps into the passenger seat and tells me to fasten my seatbelt. Like my baby brother says, “FAIL.”

Why do automakers torture us innocent speed demons?

The 2013 Mustang Boss has 444 horses to unleash. A 65-mph speed limit is just cruel.

Take Ford for example. They recently rolled out the 2013 Mustang Boss 302 at the Houston Auto Show. Maximum speed is electronically limited at 155-mph. This beauty of a car was specifically designed to perform on the legendary Laguna Seca racetrack. Ford knows darn well most people who buy this beast don’t have the cojones to unleash its 444 rabid horses. At least not us law-abiding citizens who feel like 5 o’clock traffic is the perfect cruising speed.

I know what you’re thinking. Car companies should just design a speedometer that reflects the speed limit. Then drivers won’t be tempted.

Answer: You and nobody you know would buy it. In 1979, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration required that speedometers place an emphasis on 55-mph (the national speed limit) and display a maximum speed of 85-mph. Sales of new cars plummeted and officials had to deal with the backlash from the public. Surprise! No American wants to buy a “slow” car. In 1981, the NHTSA eliminated the speedometer rules.

It doesn’t matter if your car’s speedometer says 85 or 160, it’s all about the driver’s perception. Just because your car’s speedometer reads a maximum speed of 160, it doesn’t mean your econobox can actually go that fast, but the American public needs to think they have that option.

Back in the 70-mph reality of your average motorist, to reach break neck speeds safely, a car has to have the right mix of power to weight, specially rated tires and the aerodynamics needed to keep the car stable at high velocities.

Sports cars that can actually reach double and triple the legal speed limit often have their top speeds reduced by a governor installed by the manufacturer. The speedometers may say 155, but the car is capable of going much faster. The govenor is like an electronic leash that regulates the speed should the driver think he’s Danica Patrick at a NASCAR race. If the car hits the preset speed limit, the on-board computer will cut fuel to the engine to slow the car down as in the case of the Mustang Boss.

Buying a car that reads 160 on the speedometer isn’t practical, but neither is the Cupcake ATM recently introduced in Beverly Hills. Go ahead, indulge, this is America. Keep your dreams alive, at least until you see your wife’s baby blue mini-SUV sitting in the driveway. FAIL.

Follow me @EGMNRay

Ride Rumblings is a column dedicated to the musings of an ex-car geek. It comes out every other Monday.

Most of us have birthdays on the same date each year, but others are posed with a birthday problem. The Leap Year occurs once every four years, meaning February ends on the 29^th instead of the 28^th. Well known people with Leap Year birthdays include Italian composer Gioachino Rossini, rapper Ja Rule, former president of El Salvador Carlos Humberto Romero, writer Dee Brown, and Pope Paul III.

The Leap Year was first introduced by the Roman emperor Julius Caesar in 45 BCE, who said any year divisible by four would have an extra day. However, this method led to several unneeded Leap Years. The Julian Calendar was adjusted by the Gregorian Calendar centuries later which declared a year could not be a Leap Year if it was divisible by 100 or 400.

In the world, there are approximately 4 million people with a Leap Year birthday, with about 187,000 of those people living in the United States. The probability of someone being born on February 29^th is just one in 1,500, making it quite rare birthday to have. Jesus Alfredo Luna, a student at Los Angeles Mission College in California, shared his thoughts on having a February 29^th birthday with The Venture.

“I always celebrate my birthday one way or another. But when my real birthday comes, I celebrate to the fullest,” said Luna. “It’s a love and hate kind of situation to have a Leap Year birthday. It’s cool because it’s unique but I hate it because I only have it every four years. I know it has to do with the earth’s rotation, but to me, it makes no sense to have a birthday every four years.”

Luna also shared the downsides of being born on February 29^th.

“First, when we leapers turn 21, we have to wait until March 1^st to buy alcohol, which is a downer. Two, we don’t get a golden birthday, for example, when I turn 29, it won’t be on the 29^th,” said Luna.

Though having a Leap Year birthday can be frustrating, Luna enjoys his once-every-four-years celebration.

“Overall, it’s a cool day to be born on. I like the shock other people get when they find out I’m a leaper. And also, I love when people say, ‘You actually have a birthday this year!’” said Luna. “It’s a bittersweet feeling.”

Whether you are a Leaper celebrating your birthday or just enjoying an extra day in the year, make sure you have a nice February 29^th because you won’t get to have another for the next 1,460 days.

Last week I read a report re-published in The NiLP Network on Latino Issues that stated that Latinos were the most hostile towards Israel, only to be shortly replaced by a press release that Latinos were in fact not the most hostile towards Israel. While initially troubled by the original email, I was beyond disturbed by the follow-up press release.

Beyond the tenor of both pieces, which are intellectually dishonest and framed to support the mission of the sponsoring organization, The Israel Project (TIP), I was disturbed by the massive oversimplification of an extremely complex and complicated issue. I believe these “targeted quantitative efforts” do not comprehensively address Latinos when it comes to the issues of Palestine, including their support, thought and action.

Many Latinos are Jewish or have Jewish ancestral roots. I dare say all recognize and have a deep respect for the history of severe oppression of Jews. But this is precisely not the point I want to make.

My visceral response to the TIP piece comes from what appears to be an attempt to categorize Latino support of Israel in a “we vs. them” framework, which harkens back to similar rhetoric used not too long ago in this country to justify military intervention abroad. This paradigm portrays an entire ethnicity – Latinos – as overwhelmingly supportive of a state by comparing it to the (alleged) underwhelming support of its “enemy”. The problem with acquiescence to this framework is that it ignores the larger context within which many Latinos support Palestine and the Palestinian struggle for recognition of their basic human rights. The analysis is not so one-dimensional and myopic as the targeted poll would have us believe.

Many Latinos in the United States stand in solidarity with – and support the right of – the Palestinian people to live free from violence, ethnic cleansing, forced evictions and evacuations, and from being policed on their land by foreign forces. Latino organizations, groups, coalitions, activists, teachers, students, lawyers and professionals have consistently expressed their solidarity with Palestinians in their struggle for full citizenship in their own homeland.

In fact, Latino activists have long recognized that corporate and imperialist interests in Palestine are driven by the same geopolitical forces and interests that in many Latin American countries have resulted in widespread human rights violations, neoliberal policies and the expansion of the military-industrial complex. Every country in South America, with the exception of Colombia, has recognized the Palestinian state as an independent nation. Five Central American and Caribbean nations recognize Palestine as a nation.

As a continent with a history of fighting for its independence from colonization, Latin American activists, scholars and workers have long recognized the same fight for sovereignty and autonomy that Palestinians are currently undertaking. Many Latinos recognize that the struggles faced by Palestinians – including fighting to maintain their rights to their land and homes, access to drinking water, freedom of movement and association, and freedom from perpetual cycles of violence – are not much different than those currently faced in many Latin American countries, as well as in many communities in the United States where Latinos currently reside. In Latino communities nationwide, resistance to gentrification, the over-policing and racially-influenced policing of certain communities, forced evacuations due to the foreclosure crisis and environmental justice issues are merely the domestic counterpart to the same international struggles abroad, including Palestine.

Latinos’ collaboration on issues of justice with the Palestinian people is not unilateral either. Those standing in solidarity with Palestinians marched in the National Puerto Rican Day Parade, drawing connections between the bombs being tested out in Vieques, Puerto Rico and those being dropped over Palestine. In 2009, 400 Viequenses sent petitions to then President Bush, President-Elect Obama and Governor Luis Fortuño urging them to insist upon the cease-fire in the Gaza strip, which led to hundreds of deaths and a humanitarian crisis. In fact, as a colony of the United States whose land has been used as a testing ground for bombing and biochemical warfare for decades, Viequenses have repeatedly expressed their solidarity for the plight of the Palestinian people.

Many Latinos unquestionably have expressed their views concerning both Israel and Palestine. However, support for the Palestinians must be viewed in terms of the transnational solidarity that extends far beyond the actions of one actor.

Natasha Lycia Ora Bannan is a guest commentator for the National Institute for Latino Policy (NiLP) Network and Co-Chair of the National Lawyers Guild International Committee.

Opinions expressed in this article are solely that of the author. The article is not intended to represent The Venture editorial policy and do not necessarily reflect the views of our staff, board of directors or supporters.

Follow me @EGMNRay

American Muslims barred from returning to U.S.

What if you left the United States for a short trip abroad, but when you tried to come home to your job, family and life in America, your government would not let you on the plane? What if, when you asked when you could fly home, you were told “never”?

For some American Muslims, this is not a hypothetical scenario but a brutal reality that destroys families, finances and careers. A growing number of American Muslims have been placed on the no-fly list while they were traveling overseas, effectively barring their return to the U.S. Others are placed on the list while at home, and suddenly find themselves unable to travel by plane.

The list’s latest targets were two Portland, Oregon area Muslims of Libyan origin who flew to that nation after the fall of Qaddafi, one to visit family and the other to perform humanitarian work on behalf of an Oregon relief agency.

One of these men, Jamal Tarhuni, attempted to fly home in January by way of Tunisia, but was stopped at the airport in Tunis and told U.S. officials were barring him from returning home. FBI agents from the Portland field office flew in to question him. They demanded that Jamal take a lie detector test as a precondition for permission to return to the U.S. He was willing to take the test, but when he refused to sign a waiver of his Miranda rights, the FBI agents told him that the test was irrelevant because they were already convinced of his guilt. His crime? Discussing Sharia, the body of Islam’s religious precepts and customs, with other Muslims. These FBI agents seemed to believe that a Muslim discussing Islam was an indicator of criminal wrongdoing.

Mustafa Elogbi, also from the Portland area, was similarly stopped halfway through his return journey at the behest of U.S. officials. Mustafa was detained in London and jailed for two days. Upon his release, he returned to Libya to try to arrange to go home.

Mustafa and Jamal retained a Portland attorney and asked the Council on American-Islamic Relations for help. Both were finally cleared to fly to the U.S., but were told that neither could fly within 24 hours of the other. After a long ordeal and many setbacks, Mustafa and Jamal are now home.

Earlier this month the Associated Press reported that the number on the no-fly list has jumped from 10,000 to more than 21,000 people who now cannot fly over United States airspace.

Mustafa and Jamal’s cases demonstrate just how the no-fly list ballooned: by eliminating a rational basis in the criteria for placement on the list. The new standards for inclusion on the no-fly list are not even about aviation security anymore. Instead, anyone who is a “broader threat” to national security will be placed on the no-fly list.

The government’s interpretation of this “broader threat” standard has not been publicly articulated. But because CAIR regularly gets calls from American Muslims who find themselves on the no-fly list, we’ve gleaned a few indicators that provide some insight into how the standard is being applied:

Doing humanitarian work for Muslims: A traveler working to aid in humanitarian missions serving Muslim populations may be placed on the no-fly list.
Muslim cultural items: A traveler carrying a typically Muslim food or personal item may be pulled aside for additional screening, questioned about the item, and subsequently placed on the no-fly list.
Personal and professional travel to Muslim countries: Travelers are frequently placed on the no-fly list shortly after going abroad to study Islam, see family members, or at the direction of a legitimate employer.
Social and professional relationships with other Muslims: Simply associating with other Muslims on the no-fly list, whether socially or professionally, can get a traveler placed on the no-fly list. The placement may occur mere days or minutes after association with other Muslims becomes known to the government. In these instances, the timing of one’s placement on the list makes it clear that it is their association with other Muslims that led to their placement.
A unifying principle of the above criteria is that they punish travelers simply for associating with other Muslims. Another common theme is that they punish Muslims for being Muslim—having Muslim family or talking about or studying Islam.

Unfair targeting of Muslims for placement on the no-fly list is nothing new, but the expansion of the list using the above “criteria” suggests growing government brazenness in its compilation. What happened to Jamal Tarhuni and Mustafa Elogbi are but the latest indicators.

The no-fly list has become a means through which the FBI doles out extrajudicial punishment to Muslims for no legitimate security reason. It is well past time for this approach to be revisited and revised.

By Munia Jabbar and Gadeir Abbas. Jabbar and Abbas are staff attorneys with the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil liberties organization.

ISLAM-OPED is a syndication service of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) designed to offer an American Muslim perspective on current political, social and religious issues.

Somos Republicans claims it's the fastest growing Latino Republican organization in the U.S.

Somos Republicans Florida 2012 Primary Election Statement

We were hoping our Cuban American and Puerto Rican brothers would disregard their leadership lead to support anti-immigrant Mitt Romney. The Florida primary results show the total disregard a good majority of Cuban Americans have for conservative Mexican Americans, South Americans, and Central Americans who aspire, like Cuban Americans, to be an integral part of this country.

This vote shows the lack of solidarity with the majority of Latinos, even while Cuban Americans and Puerto Rican serve themselves with the big spoon when it is time to distribute the political and economic/business opportunities/leverage generated by the critical mass of Latinos, mainly Mexican Americans (65%), but also Central Americans and South Americans.

These latter don’t have the same opportunities of citizenship that Cuban Americans and Puerto Ricans enjoy, and thus, in general, Cuban American put aside the priorities of the majority of Latinos. For a long time we have put the Latino agenda in the hands of Cuban Americans, and look where we are. It has been a tremendous disaster; we could not be more despised and disadvantaged in this country, in spite of our numbers and great contributions.

The overwhelming vote of Cuban Americans and Puerto Ricans for anti-Latino immigrant Mitt Romney should open the eyes of conservative Latino Republicans not belonging to the Cuban and Puerto Rican communities, to the fact that we do not count on their support for our political, economic/business agenda, and thus, they should not count on us, except on a previously negotiated basis on which we, Mexican Americans, hold our votes and power in the hands of our own leadership.

For this, we must accelerate the pace to build this Mexican American leadership that this major ethnic group needs to hold to represent the interests of its constituency within the Republican party. No more leaving our issues in the hands of other “Latinos”. If the Republican Party wants the votes of the largest Latino Group, Mexican Americans, and its brothers Central and South Americans, they will need to negotiate with us, not with Cuban or Puerto Rican Americans.

In Light of the Cuban American leadership support for anti Latino immigrant Mitt Romney (“illegal immigrant” is a code word for Latino immigrants, and Cuban Americans fool themselves if they think the Latino haters do not put us all in the same basket – as a small sample, you just had to hear the expressions of disgust within the Georgia Republican party when Mel Martinez was head of the RNC; Latino students at GA state reported that a professor coming from Florida said in class, in front of all the students, that Miami was a third world country infested with Cubans).

We welcome the friendship and brotherhood of those few Cubans and Puerto Ricans who embrace us, and who will accept our rightful leadership role. The Republican Party should know, and we will make it evident through our organization and future coalitions, that we will not align with Cuban Americans and Puerto Ricans any longer, except when there are clear mutual interests, and that Mexican Americans no longer consider themselves represented within the party by Cuban Americans and Puerto Ricans.

If the Republican Party wants the Mexican American community’s support, the by far largest Latino group, they need to have one of us, Mexican American.

A member of Somos Republicans registers a Latina to vote.

Republicans must acknowledge that if Mexican Americans are marginalized, we will not fulfill our potential as a key pillar to America’s economic and political future in the world. America will be poor if Mexican Americans are poor and powerless. We will not allow this. To the innuendo and racist rhetoric through the construction of code-alkaloid language such as “illegals” and “Anchor babies”, we will respond with harder work, greater love for this country, and greater organization.

We will not give up the Republican Party because these are our values, but we will support only those who embrace us. We will identify and clearly explain to Republicans that they have substituted Republican values for hate, and that the “hate coalition” which has taken over the party uses hate to hide and distract from the fact that they are big spenders, big government, big brother policy. They use a minor civil violation to dehumanize “some” immigrants.

Those who call themselves Reaganites do not belong in the immigrant hate coalition. We Mexican Americans are more than willing to work hard to contribute to build the bright future of this country, and warmly embrace all of those who embrace us. Likewise, we will be well aware of those who do not.

For more information on Somos Repubicans visit their website:

One year ago this month (February 15, 2011) Oscar Lopez Rivera, a Puerto Rican Patriot imprisoned now for over 30 years by the U.S. was denied parole.

He is 68 year old. Oscar Lopez was given an additional 15 years to return to the parole board for “consideration for parole” in some future beyond that. If Oscar was to be granted parole 14 years from now, and the “ÏF”is a big one, he would be 83 years old.

What was done by the parole board was to issue him a death sentence.

Twelve years ago, when President Clinton released the last group of political prisoners, Oscar was offered a release 10 years after their release. Oscar refused the offer because two other patriots, Carlos Alberto Torres and Haydee Beltran Torres had not been offered a release date. Since 1999 Haydee and Carlos Alberto have both won their release, and Oscar remains in a U.S. Federal prison.

A “possible” window of opportunity to put an end to this travesty is that President Obama orders his release before the end of his presidency. However, no president will take such as step while running for re-election.

One possible scenario is that Obama does not get reelected this coming November. His Presidential term would end in January of 2013. This scenario would provide a very small possible window of opportunity, the two and one half months between the day of the election and his last day in office.

The more likely scenario is that President Obama will be reelected. This would make the possibility of Oscar’s release to occur at some point in Obama’s next presidential term, if we make it an issue so important that he realized the political importance and acts on it.

When President Obama came to Puerto Rico for a few hours in June of 2011, he was twice confronted with the issue of Oscar’s release, the first time immediately upon setting foot on the tarmac by pro-statehood senator Norma Burgos and again later while being interviewed on television. His response was to divert from the issue by pointing to the fact that the issue needed to be petitioned to him by the established process, something that to my understanding has not yet been done.

I believe that the timing of the petition for a presidential pardon coincides with the assessment I described above. When the petition is reviewed it needs to have as much political backing as we can generate. This is the only opportunity that Oscar Lopez Rivera will probably have at living his remaining years en su patria, entre su pueblo. Obtaining the political backing for this effort is the reason that I am writing to you.

We can expect no commitment from President Barak Obama on this issue before the Presidential elections. It would be suicidal for his reelection. Neither should we expect any action on his part if there is no down side to his in-action.

All the members of the Puerto Rican Congressional delegation must be at the forefront of the political support that we generate for the success of this effort. We need to have our Congressional delegation negotiate a commitment from the Obama campaign, in exchange for their support to his campaign objective, his re-election.

With intelligent negotiations on the part of our elected officials it is our belief that Oscar Lopez Rivera will be released at some point during President Obamas tenure and we can make preparations to bring and to receive Oscar home. A sad truth is that the Puerto Rican people have been the only community to win the release of our political prisoners not once, but on two separate occasions.

Two of those Congress members are from NewYyork Bity. We need to get Congresswoman Nydia Velasquez and Congressman Jose Serrano to do what they can do on behalf of obtaining Oscar Lopez Rivera’s release; and the time is NOW!

* We need to set up meetings with both congressperson in order to impress upon them the importance of their acting on this matter. They need to make Oscar’s release a commitment from the Obama campaign in exchange for their active support. Both congressperson supported the efforts to win the release of Oscar’s compañeros during the Clinton administration.

Nydia went further and visited the women political prisoners held in Dublin, California. As I understand it, unlike the credit that has been rightfully given to Chicago Congressman Luis Gutierrez, recognition for Nydia and José’s contributions to those efforts has never been properly given. I raise this because this may be a source of some discontent on their part. It is important that we stress that support for Oscar should not suffer because of any possible missteps by those who headed the campaigns in the past.

* We should ask the Congresspersons to consider organizing a delegation of public officials (together or independently) to visit Oscar in prison

* The congresspersons should be encouraged to participate on a call with Luis Nieves Falcón and Tuto Villanueva, who head the Puerto Rican Human Rights Committee, which is spearheading the campaign in Puerto Rico for Oscar’s release.

* The congressperson should be encouraged to consider making a public statement of support for Oscar’s release at the most advantageous time for this effort, and hopefully in coordination with the campaign..

I hope that you join in this effort. A meeting and/or teleconference needs to take place to organize ourselves for a meeting with our Congressperson. We also need to strategies on other political objectives i.e., organized Labor support, city council resolutions, seeking the support of other elected officials, religious organizations, etc.

This independent effort is being taken as a means of complementing the work that has for years been carried out both in Puerto Rico and within the U.S.

By Vicente “Panama” Alba

Vicente “Panama” Alba is a longtime community and labor activist on Puerto Rican and other progressive issues.