One fallacy of the illegal immigration debate is that undocumented immigrants don't want to learn English.

Across the country there are stories of how undocumented immigrants are so desperate to learn English that they will work all night, get off in the early morning and either head home to check on their families and then go straight to English as a Second Language class.

Some business owners, seeing this desire on behalf of their non-English speaking employees have made special arrangements with local junior colleges to televise special English classes to their employees either during lunch breaks or at special times during the day, taught by the professors.

Well, the city of Boston is taking English classes for non-natives a step farther — they are posting English classes on their website to help their residents virtually sit in on an English as a Second Language class.

The classes, part of a 28-episode series, address different workplace scenarios such as talking on the phone, reading a medicine label, interacting with store clerks, etc.

The internet-vised programs are of a real English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) class taught by the director of education at Boston's Asian American Civic Association, who was named Teacher of the Year in 2002 and has taught ESOL for 15 years.

The classes, which are also televised on the city's public cable system, is a part of the citywide initiative called English Works Campaign which aims to make English classes more available to immigrants. Currently, the state registers a 14,000-name waiting list to get into their English classes.

While Latina Lista applauds the idea of making these English classes available 24/7 on their web site, we feel that the classes are hard to follow given that the instructor is having to interact with his class and cannot always directly address the "virtual student."

Since the English Works Campaign is already calling on investments by local businesses to help with the funding for more English classes, the campaign should go ahead and create a lively series that directly address virtual students and includes them in learning English.

After all, English is for everyone!

What happens when video cameras are put into the hands of teenagers and they are instructed to create films about the American Dream, community violence and immigration?

Three powerful documentaries, one which was selected to be screened earlier this month at the Human Rights Watch Film Festival in New York City.

Elly from Fighting Community Violence
(Source: mediaartscenter.org)

The films were made by teenagers participating in the Teen Producers Project of the Media Arts Center San Diego. The students come from various San Diego neighborhoods and the films were an exploration of these three issues and their impact on the people in their communities.

The young filmmakers worked with media arts instructors from the Center and learned the whole process of how to put a documentary together, from research and interviews to filming and editing.

The three films, "Perspectives of the American Dream," "I Want My Parents Back," and "Fighting Community Violence," present three different stories with a common thread — each issue has a profound impact on its community.

In "Perspectives of the American Dream," teens compare and contrast the experiences of individuals from two specific San Diego communities, East African Refugees and Latinos, in order to examine the opportunities and obstacles these two communities face as they attempt to establish a life for themselves in a new city and country.

"I Want My Parents Back" focuses on the issue of immigration by highlighting the story of a local San Diego family, the Muñoz family. Teens explore the ways the current immigration policy in their community affects the lives of its residents. This film was screened at the Human Rights Watch Film Festival.

"Fighting Community Violence" has teen producers documenting the effects gang violence has on former gang members, emphasizing the consequences of joining a gang as well as providing positive alternatives to participating in gang activity.

If you happen to live in the San Diego area, you'll be able to see a free screening of each of these films, and the world premiere of "Perspectives of the American Dream" on Friday, June 27. However, if you don't live near San Diego, some of the films are available to watch online, as well as, past film projects.

If these films are any indication, this generation is finally learning how to use the power of words and images and that's a potent weapon when combined.

Are people's civil rights being violated today?

It's a question that crops up with every protest march, discrimination (pay, gender, ethnicity) lawsuit and public rally. Some feel that at the height of the civil rights movement, the fight of the 1960s, never really got resolved. Others think that today we have a new set of civil rights that need to be protected.

A new video contest by The National Campaign to Restore Civil Rights wants to explore the question of what the next generation is doing to protect civil rights. The Civil Rights 2.0 Video Contest is open to students between the ages of 16-25.

All that's required is to upload a 2-minute video to YouTube, tag it "civilrights2.0," fill out the registration form and make sure all of this is done before July 31, 2008.

This wouldn't be a contest without prizes — the Grand Prize is a trip to New York City and three runners-up will each receive a new video camera.

The fight for civil rights is such an important component of our nation's democracy that a contest that celebrates it deserves a big shout-out!

Did you know that McDonald's and Latinos go hand-in-hand like, well, a burger and fries?

Jim Delligatti, an early McDonald's franchisee, invented McDonald's Big Mac sandwich in 1967. He poses with the world's largest Big Mac statue (14-feet high and 12-feet wide) during the opening of the Big Mac Museum Restaurant in North Huntingdon, Pa.
(Source: AP Photo/Henny Ray Abrams, McDonald's)

According to a 2006 fact sheet, over 30 percent of the McDonald's workforce was comprised of Latinos/as. Also, the McDonald’s Hispanic Owner’s Association (MHOA) is the largest organization of Hispanic franchisees in the country.

So news of the latest contest sponsored by McDonald's just begs for some Latino talent to enter.

It's called the Big Mac Chant-off and the folks at McDonald's are looking for a new soundtrack to the old hamburger favorite.

In homage to the burger that inspired its own museum — yes, the Big Mac Museum Restaurant, dubbed "the most tasteful museum in the world — the contest's official website, in addition to providing the rules for the contest, also has a downloadable audio kit which contestants can use to "mash-up" their own music or if they're feeling particularly creative, can lay down their own track.

There's only one hitch — the final product has to include the original lyrics: Two all beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions on a sesame seed bun.

The winning soundtrack will not only appear in the next McDonald's Big Mac commercial but also on MTV.

The contest is currently opened and closes on July 16.

Big Mac Chant - Commercial

Something big is happening in Mexico City this weekend.

It is a festival celebrating something that not that long ago people only whispered about, but has grown to be the biggest event of its kind in Latin America.

This Saturday, June 28, is the 30th Anniversary of Mexico City's Gay Pride event. The theme of the march is "Marching for Equality."

Anyone who is a casual observer of Mexico's telenovelas can't help but notice how gay characters have gained acceptance in the country's top entertainment programming. Given the influence telenovelas have over the society-at-large, it makes sense that gays, lesbians and transgenders have felt more at ease in "coming out of the closet."

Maybe for that reason, crowd estimates for Saturday's parade are projected to be half a million people.

The parade activities begin at 11 a.m. near the Angel of Independence monument ending at el Zócalo Capitalino followed for the rest of the afternoon with planned activities.

And while the parade is being touted as an opportunity for the country's gay population to come together to show their mutual support for one another, it is also a time, say parade organizers, to elevate awareness of this demographic and the homophobia and lack of legal rights they face on a daily basis.

All in all, Latina Lista sources tell us that it's one wild time that people of all ages and sexual persuasions enjoy and don't soon forget.

Back during the height of Hillary Clinton's popularity when she was campaigning in South Texas, a 21-year-old Rio Grande Valley singer named Dulce Maria Gonzalez wrote a song just for Hillary — and in the process found herself thrust into the national spotlight in a way she never dreamed would happen.

Dulce Maria Gonzalez

Dulce Maria performed the song "We Need a Woman" at an outdoor Clinton rally. While it was well received by those attending the rally, Obama supporters gave Dulce Maria so much grief over her support of Hillary that before she knew it, this political novice found herself having to fight to stand up for her right to endorse whom she wanted for president.

Maybe it's because Dulce Maria has been singing and been a part of the cutthroat entertainment business since she was 7-years-old that she was tough enough to weather through that hard time.

It was lucky for us that she was.

A visit to her MySpace page shows that this young entertainer is the consummate professional and hasn't let that unfortunate experience spoil her love for entertaining in front of an audience.

In fact, Dulce Maria has made a music video and has recorded several songs for a new CD that, while not available online yet, can be bought through her MySpace page.

Labeling herself as a R&B, jazz and Latin singer, Dulce Maria's throaty delivery makes these songs not just pleasant to hear but have just the right tempo and smoothness that they can calm the most high-strung campaign supporter — something that will really be needed as November nears.

We Need a Woman

And you thought the canned drink Red Bull was only good for a quick boost of energy.

How wrong you are thee with little vision!

It seems that Red Bull, the can, not the drink, has much more potential than to be clasped by sleep deprived or hung over caffeine addicts.

A Red Bull-carrying Statue of Liberty

For the fourth year in a row, artists from all disciplines have entered into the Red Bull Art of Can exhibit. The 47-piece collection which can be seen online, as well as, in the launch city of Houston at the Houston Galleria from July 12-25, is a mix of the whimsical and the proud — as in state, ethnic and even political pride.

From an entry entitled "The Big Ass Boot" (pretty self-explanatory) to a mythical female Spanish sea goddess dubbed "Alteza" to an aluminum portrait of a smiling Barack Obama, the collection is as diverse and imaginative as the artists who recycled (read — drank alot) the distinctive colored can.

However, if you're not going to be able to make it to Houston to see this unique exhibit, fear not. It's available online where the high-tech site lets you see each piece from every angle and read the background of each artist and the inspiration for her/his creation.

Mythical Spanish sea goddess Alteza created by Red Bull cans.

While the pieces have already been judged and the top three been granted the grand, first and second prizes, organizers of the event want the public to vote for the "People's Choice Award."

To do that, voting can either be done at the Houston exhibit or online.

At any rate, it's a safe bet that after seeing the exhibit a can of Red Bull will never look the same to you again — or it could be because you're just delirious from lack of sleep.

We've all heard about the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure and for some of us, it's about the only time we join with friends and strangers to lace up and sweat for a good cause.

Well, now there's another reason to do it and, at the same time, participate in an awesome global event.

On August 31, 2008, in 25 cities around the world (Austin, Bogota, Buenos Aires, Caracas, Chicago, Istanbul, Lima, London, Los Angeles, Madrid, Melbourne, Mexico City, Munich, New York City, Paris, Quito, Rome, Sao Paulo, Seoul, Shanghai, Singapore, Taipei, Vancouver, Warsaw), one million runners will participate in the Nike+Human Race 10K event.

In these cities, the global race is officially recognized with a designated route, registration ($35 fee), distribution of bib numbers and timing chips, as well as, post-race entertainment for everyone.

Nike is trying to create the world’s largest running event, with the goal of helping humanity in the process through givebacks to global charities. The designated charities for the event are Lance Armstrong's Foundation Live Strong, the NineMillion.org and the WWF.

Runners/walkers help these charities either through getting pledges or by the miles they run. For every mile that is clocked, a determination will be made as to how much to give to each charity.

As an added bonus, in each of the official 25 racing cities, there will be a post-race concert by a top musical artist. In Los Angeles, Kanye West is the performer.

In London, runners will be treated to an exclusive performance by world-renowned American DJ, songwriter, musician and singer Moby in the city's famed Wembley Stadium. Other all-star artists confirmed to play at the Nike+ Human Race include chart-topping rock band All-American Rejects in NY; hometown favorite Fall Out Boy in Chicago; R&B songstress Kelly Rowland in Paris; dance-electro-pop duo The Pinker Tones in Madrid, Turkish pop sensation Kenan Dogulu in Istanbul; the Fantastic Four in Munich; Beijing-based singing duo Yu Quan in Shanghai and American rock band Boy Likes Girl in Singapore

However, if you're nowhere near one of the designated 25 official sites for the race, you can still participate. There's an option on the Nike website to sign up and create your own race — complete with participating in the charity-give.

Registration is only available at the Nike website and there will be no race-day registrations.

What's cool about this race is that if you don't feel like racing in familiar territory, you have 24 other locales to race in.

At the end of the day (or end of the race), it's all about everyone coming together to make the world a better place.

Who can forget about the outrage that veteran PBS documentarian Ken Burns created when he left out mention of Latino contributions in his epic World War II film?

If it had not been for the organized protest from the Defend the Honor who alerted Latinos far and wide to the outrageous insult, Burns would not have been forced to include the measly snippets recognizing Latino accomplishments.

To say it was done grudgingly would probably be an understatement.

Well, in the process, it seems PBS honchos got the message that Latinos were not going to take such an insult without making a lot of noise. In these times when public television is more dependent than ever before on public contributions, it's a bad business decision to alienate such a large demographic who is increasing in influence and buying power.

So, it shouldn't be too much of a surprise that PBS has suddenly seen the luz and has announced that it is providing preliminary funding for a two-hour doc examining the Latino experience throughout the years while serving in the U.S. armed forces.

The film will be titled "The War Within" and will be written by San Antonio Express-News columnist Carlos Guerra with documentarian filmmaker Hector Galan. The film is tentatively scheduled for broadcast on PBS in September 2010.

Galan was the documentarian that PBS hired to provide footage to amend Burns' original piece. As a result, the final 14.5-hour Burns' film featured interviews with two Mexican American veterans and one Native American veteran.

Burns' omission of mentioning the proud and many accomplishments of Latino and Native American veterans in his film underscored the urgency to fight for inclusion. Otherwise, history would not be accurate and generations to come would grow up thinking that not everyone takes pride in being an American — which is as far from the truth as saying that no people of color served in the military.

What do you get when an Indian woman known the world over as the "Hugging Saint" who lives a life of peace and love meets a group of mostly Latino hotel workers protesting their employer's refusal to enact a living wage law?

An interesting showdown!

Amma, the Hugging Saint

Amma has traveled the world over giving hugs to people to pass along the love she feels is so lacking in the world. For her efforts, this 54-year-old woman has been recognized by global peace organizations.

Many consider her a great spiritualist who is able to touch, and at times, heal the hearts of those caught up in the dog-eat-dog world of what society is today. She does this primarily through hugs. At one sitting, she is said to have hugged 50,000 people in 20 hours.

The hugging is an integral element to her ministry. She travels the world just to hug people and alleviate their sufferings.

That's why it strikes some people odd that this week Amma's hug tour brings her to a hotel in Los Angeles that has been embroiled in a bitter fight between the workers and the owners. The Hilton LAX refuses to pay its workers a fair wage and so for the past three years the workers have been protesting outside, urging everyone to boycott the hotel.

For Amma to conduct her hug ministry, she's going to have to cross the picket line — and she seems to have no problem doing that.

A recent email exchange between one of the protest organizers and an event coordinator working with Amma highlights the Indian spiritualist's feelings:

Dear Jessica,

I appreciate your personal care and concern for your issues. One thing I have learned from Amma, is, that she knows FAR more than we do. We are not in a position to judge her actions. Perhaps there was some fatal accident due to happen at the hotel, and she knew that her powerful spiritual presence would prevent it and save the lives of thousands of people. We do not know.

I urge you to have faith, and open your heart to more faith. Thank you so much for your concerns, I think it wonderful you care, yet, I urge you not to presume you know better than Amma.

Love,
Ganga

Maybe it is because Amma can see the bigger picture or maybe it's because the contract has already been signed with the Hilton LAX, either way there's no doubt that Amma is holding her hug fest at the hotel this week.

In response, some community members and clergy held their own gathering outside the hotel. Until 4 p.m. today, the group will have spent 30 hours outside the hotel to show solidarity with the workers.

No doubt it's troubling that a woman renown for extolling the virtues of peace to her followers would decide to side with an employer who refuses to grant its own workers the peace of mind that they are seeking. Yet, Amma's own words may provide some insight as to why she is crossing the picket line:

“Contentment is natural wealth,” she said and added, “Live your life the same way, but have God in your heart. Work in society until the end of your breath. Be a real sage inside. Do not bow to ego or selfishness.”

“Burn your karma during this lifetime through spiritual practices and the art of giving,” she concluded.

Conducting warrantless and aggressive work site and home raids, detaining raid victims without granting them access to legal counsel or allowing contact with their family members by phone, property seizures for construction of the border wall, building detention facilities, detaining families in these facilities, ignoring the health needs of detainees, racial profiling…the list goes on as to the numerous acts the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has been accused of in undertaking their objectives to achieve an agenda for ensuring national security.

In the process, the DHS has become regarded as an instrument in violating the civil and human rights of both citizens and non-citizens in the country. Yet, the most disturbing fact is that DHS receives very little oversight for its actions nor has it been held accountable — until now.

The grassroots organization, The Rights Working Group, wants Americans to hold the DHS accountable for their actions feeling that everyone's freedoms are endangered by such policies. So on June 19, they are spearheading a national campaign called "Night of 1,000 Conversations."

The hope is that people will assemble together in churches, homes, offices, coffee shops, etc. to discuss how civil liberties and human rights have been impacted by the aggressive tactics of the DHS. In turn, the campaign wants to send DHS the message of how important the preservation of these liberties and rights are by asking DHS to:

1) End immigration raids that lock up people without due process. 2) Ensure humane detention conditions and access to a trial. 3) Provide fair and efficient mechanisms to end the backlog in processing citizenship applications by September 2008.

At the same time, the campaign wants to raise awareness and educate people about what is happening in communities across the country, engage people to speak out for democratic principles and create a grassroots momentum that could impel changes in DHS policies.

Anyone or group can participate in the Night of 1,000 Conversations by visiting the website and downloading the toolkit available in both English and Spanish. There is also a petition available for download to have participants sign and send to the DHS asking for a change in policy.

This campaign is not just democracy in action but it's about enforcing American patriotism as well.

It's one thing for the government to be responsible in securing national security but we should all protect the rights and liberties that still make the US the envy of other countries and for which we've always staunchly defended.

During the run-off between Obama and Clinton, YouTube became music party headquarters. Every music video, from mariachi to hip hop, singing the praises of their particular candidate could be seen — and they were.

Some of these videos registered over 10,000 views.

Well, some folks want to recreate this kind of American creative talent when it comes to singing the support of the two party's official presidential candidates.

A contest called Ballads for Ballots, sponsored by Mediacurves.com, is looking for music videos supporting both Obama and McCain. The first 100 qualified submissions receive $25 for all the work and are then entered into the pool where the top Democrat and Republican video will be chosen.

Kind of a unique twist on a contest — actually pay contestants to enter and then pay them more if they win!

According to the guidelines:

Participants will submit 45 to 90-second original music videos or song
parodies to the mediacurves.com web site. The music videos will
support the Democratic or Republican parties or their presidential
candidates. The videos can be inspirational, fun and humorous.

Viewers will evaluate the music videos on mediacurves.com, the Tribune
Company's, The Swamp web site, and other national media outlets. The
top 15 videos for each party will be judged by a panel of noted
political personalities, who will select the top 3 videos for each
party.

The top 3 videos for each party will be studied by mediacurves.com
panelists (a large national panel of opt in consumers) and two grand
prize winners will be selected -- one for each party. Each winner
will receive a $5,000 cash award.

The contest starts June 15 and runs till July 25. Visit the mediacurves website to register.

For most of us, it's not a hard sell to eat tortillas and beans, especially if those tortillas are homemade.

Hmmm, nothing like a warm corn tortilla just off the griddle oozing with melted butter.

But the idea that tortillas and beans are also good fertility foods sheds a whole new light on the staple combo on the table of many Latino families.

Super skinny Victoria Beckham

But it must be so because the "skinny" on US-based Spice Girl, Victoria Beckham, is that she is now eating tortillas and beans so she can get pregnant again.

In an article in Mexico's El Universal, it seems Beckham and her soccer star hubby want another baby, a girl if they could choose. So, since her current weight isn't healthy enough to support a pregnancy, she is fattening herself up — on tortillas and beans.

In fact, it's reported that her new favorite dish is cheese enchiladas made with corn tortillas. She feels this new regimen will get her pregnant a lot quicker.

Seeing that we Mexican Americans do hold the record for having the most children per family, there probably should be a warning label attached to this new appreciation of our cuisine — be careful what you wish for.

Sometime in our lives, we will have to speak before a group of people. For most of us, the idea of trying to sound intelligent while hundreds of eyes are sizing us up and down can be a little intimidating.

Yet, a group in Los Angeles has created their own branch of the famous Toastmasters International program and are helping Latinos gain confidence in creating intelligent speeches. But most importantly, the group helps one another deliver those speeches with polish and ease, and in turn, is helping to create articulate community leaders.

The group, Voces Latinas Toastmasters, provides a support group for los hombres y las mujeres who want to improve their communication skills to achieve bigger things in life and/or their communities.

According to the group's officers, it's the S-A-B-O-R of the group that makes it so special and the recipient of several awards, most notably the President's Distinguished Club award.

The good news is that this group can be replicated anywhere.

According to Laura De Anda, Voces Latinas President, "Voces Latinas Toastmasters concept can be duplicated across the nation, across the world. This can be done with a minimum of 20 interested people in a company and/or a community."

Voces Latinas has garnered a lot of recognition for its efforts and has seen several of its members achieve their personal goals.

To help more communities achieve the same, De Anda recommends checking out the Toastmasters International web site for instructions on how to start your own Latina Voces group.

As we've seen in this media-driven mundo, the better you are at expressing yourself with intelligence and polish, the clearer the message.

For advocates of undocumented immigrants, CNN's Lou Dobbs stands as the barrier between rational thinking and hysterical rhetoric.

That he has such a public platform to push his perspective and bullies any guests who disagree with him has long been a sore spot for those of us who know that the only road to real immigration reform is through the sharing of factual information and compromise to reach real solutions.

Unfortunately, a week doesn't go by that Dobbs' remarks don't inflame the debate more. However, what surprises advocates the most is how CNN has not reigned in their star anchor — and that may be the problem.

Well, some Hispanic advocates are tired of waiting for the day that will never come when CNN realizes that Dobbs' remarks insult a large demographic of their viewers. So, one group has decided to take matters into their own hands.

The Hispanic Institute has declared a boycott of CNN until management takes a critical look at the content Dobbs is delivering each night on his show.

“We’re taking this step after years of CNN management’s failure to rein in Mr. Dobbs’s irresponsible assertions about immigrants and their impact on our country and its institutions,” said Gus West, THI board chair.

The boycott was announced on June 3 and will stay active until CNN addresses the concerns of the boycott.

So far, newspapers in the southwest, Latino organizations and Hispanic radio stations have joined with the Hispanic Institute in supporting the boycott.

And we would like to announce that Latina Lista supports this boycott of CNN as well.

How many times have you thought, while leisurely surfing the internet, that you should be doing something more constructive with your online experience?

Well, there's a way to actually help out your favorite nonprofit without doing anything more than what you're already doing while surfing online.

It's called GoodSearch and it's a search engine powered by YAHOO! that with each time you use it to search for information or a site on the internet, it will donate half its advertising revenue to a school or nonprofit of your choice.

So far, 60,000 nonprofits have joined and it has already paid off for some of them.

It's the most painless way to support a good cause!

For filmmaker Chris Burgard, the issue of undocumented immigrants didn't hit home until he worked alongside a group of them one summer and heard firsthand their terrifying stories of crossing illegally into the United States.

The issue didn't hit home with him that this was a real problem that should have the attention of all citizens until he saw his first "rape tree" along the border. A tree whose branches are adorned with the panties of immigrant women who had been raped by the very coyotes who had been paid to bring them over.

Not being able to keep silent about everything he learned, Burgard created a film called The Border. It doesn't take either side of the border issue but tries to honestly look at both sides of the issue and what are the best solutions. The film went on to win several film festival awards but for Burgard that's not enough.

He wants immigration policy to change and so he's created a web site offering his movie on DVD for sale ($24.95), along with, a whole action page for people to tap into different ways that they can make a difference with this important issue.

As Burgard states in one of his goals for the film: "Chris's personal wish is that people don't need to think like him. They just need to think."

In a Q&A from The Border website:

QUESTION: Why is your film important for understanding the true stakes on the border?

It is the human factor that makes these stakes so high. These are people that are being affected...not some abstract policy. If the American people knew how out of control our borders are, if they knew the horrible things that are happening down there everyday, I don't believe that they would stand for it. To see how bad it is on the border is to know that for twenty years our elected officials have not been doing their jobs.

This documentary is unlike any other. It gives the audience a front row seat to the border and all the players.

I believe that if America became aware of the atrocities on our Southern border, we would be in for an electoral revolution in this country, the likes of which have never been seen before

QUESTION: This issue pits “open border” advocates against “secure the border” advocates. What side does your documentary take?

We don't take a side. If we did, we would have had much wider distribution. I had been asked by a very successful Hollywood film representative to re edit the film to make it either more liberal or more conservative so that it would be an easier sell. I refused. It is what it is. You see what we saw.

We end the film with the words: Pay Attention. Participate. I don't need people to think like me. I just want them to think. We have not had an informed national debate on this issue in this country, because up to now the American people have been kept ignorant of the facts of the situation by very powerful special interests. I have great faith in the decency and wisdom of the American people and what they can accomplish when provided with the truth.

Personally I don't believe that there is the kind of divide among people as the media would portray. I think that on this issue the spin has been brilliantly maneuvered to keep the American people from seeing the man behind the curtain. Most people don't want to see American ranchers losing their homes or Mexican women being raped and abused on an institutional level. The schism that the government and main stream media have put forth seems to disappear across the board when decent people are confronted with the facts and reality of the current situation. I have traveled across the country and played this film to thousands of people. It has been my experience that with so many atrocities happening on the border that it affords numerous opportunities for Americans to stand together as decent caring human beings and say "No Mas!"

QUESTION: What are some of your solutions for this polarizing issue?

These are my personal thoughts...again, I don't need everyone to think like me....just think:
1) Bring law and order to the border. Save the ranchers. Stop the rapes and abuse.
2) Adapt a program similar to Reverend Hoover's where honest people looking for work come through the door legally. We know who they are. We know they don't have TB. Instead of paying $2,000 to a coyote they put that money up as a bond at the border. Part of their pay check goes back to that bond, so that when their visa time is up they pick up that money and go home when they are supposed to. If they don't, that money is forfeited to law enforcement and we will have visa compliance, something that is totally lacking in our current immigration system.
3) While the country struggles to address the tens of millions of people that are already here, I say we start billing Mexico for their own citizens. Americans are decent people. They aren't going to take someone off of life support or deny a kid an opportunity to read...but why should they be taxed to pay for foreign nationals? Mexico is one of our top suppliers of natural gas and oil. We may not all agree on what to do with people already in our country, but while we debate and figure it out, we all need to put gasoline in our vehicles. Mexico can help with that. How about for every day that a Mexican national sits in an American prison, that would be a barrel of oil? For every day that we educate a Mexican citizen, that would be a barrel of oil. For every day that a person from Mexico is receiving health care in one of our hospitals, that would be two barrels of oil.

This may sound exotic at first, but it is merely a simple, proven, business practice applied with common sense and human decency.

Again...just my two cents. Watch the movie. Tell me what you think we should do.......or more importantly tell your elected officials.

Did you know that 54 percent of the culinary workforce is Latino?

Yet, the number of Latino executive chefs stands at less than 20 percent. How can that be?

In an effort to help those Latinos who just don't want to work in the kitchen but be responsible for running it and creating the dishes, the fourth annual Chef Splendido Contest may be the secret ingredient to achieve that dream.

Sponsored by McNeil Nutritionals, LLC, the global marketer of SPLENDA Sweenteners, the contest consists of a national search for aspiring Spanish-speaking and bilingual culinary students who are either in culinary school or who have graduated from one in the last three years. McNeil has partnered with The Spanish Speaking Chef's Association of America, an organization dedicated to supporting young Latinos who are pursuing culinary careers.

To enter the contest, aspiring chefs need to create a Latino-inspired dessert using SPLENDA Sweeteners. The chosen dessert wins $5,000 in cash and the chance to be mentored by a nationally recognized Latino chef member of the Spanish-speaking Chef's Association. The contest ends July 14, 2008. Afterwards, four finalists will be chosen to fly to Miami next fall and participate in the final round of judging where the next Chef Splendido will be crowned.

The application and contest rules are at Splenda's Spanish site.

Throughout our lives, we are bound to know someone afflicted with cancer. The very word can strike fear into those who are diagnosed with it and for their families who suddenly realize that one's mortality is really such a short time.

Yet, everyone deals with the news differently in their own courageous, or scared, way. To give recognition to all the different ways people deal with a cancer diagnosis, an interesting art competition highlighting these different reactions is underway.

Started by the pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly, the 2008 Lilly Oncology on Canvas: Expressions of a Cancer Journey Art Competition and Exhibition, is the third biennial competition for U.S. and Puerto Rico residents who have been diagnosed with cancer, their health care providers, family members, friends and caregivers who want to share their cancer journey through art.

In the 2006 competition, entries ranged from an oil work depicting a bandana-covered woman boxing a punching bag entitled cancer and a simple photo of a woman enjoying the simple pleasure of floating on water.

Work can be submitted in one of several categories such as watercolor, photography, oil, acrylic, pastel or mixed media. Prizes are monetary donations to a cancer charity of the winners' choice.

The winning entries, after being announced in New York City in the fall, will embark on a national tour to cancer centers and medical associations for display.

Deadline is June 30, 2008.

Today, Chile may enjoy the leadership of one of the few women Presidents in the world, Michelle Bachelet, but the country's sad history of terror and torture under the watch of General Augusto Pinochet when more than 3,000 people were killed and 1,000 of those were listed as "disappeared," still haunts the survivors of that time.

Many of those killed, Chilean activists, were murdered right in front of their own children. These children ended up coming to the United States to live in exile but always carried the horrendous memories of what happened to their parents in their young subconscious.

Dramatizing one of those stories, director Mabel Valdiviezo, has written and produced the film "Soledad is Gone Forever."

Soledad receives word that the remains of her father have been found in a mass grave in Chile.
(Source: "Soledad is Gone Forever")

Based on real accounts, this film presents an intimate portrait of a young immigrant photographer living in San Francisco, Soledad Gonzales, who learns her father’s remains have been found in a mass grave in Chile. Soledad’s recurring visions of chilling childhood images shatter her life, making her discover that these are real memories that have been repressed for twenty years.

Torn by her aunt Delia's advice to forget the past but faced by the implications of her father's death, Soledad must make a crucial decision.
Does she have the courage to pursue the truth and will this realization finally bring peace to her tortured soul?

The film has been getting good buzz and now finds itself competing in the From Here to Awesome Film Festival.

Yet, because this festival is all about WOM (word of mouth), Valdiviezo is asking for help. At its end, the film festival will showcase in theaters worldwide the 10 films that got the highest reviews and comments — by viewers!

To help this film gain traction in the competition, it's asked that people go to YouTube to view a 3-minute interview/trailer, rate the video and write a comment. (All these links are to the YouTube interview/trailer.)

And hopefully Soledad will be discovered as a tool to shed a global light on a dark moment in Chile's history — while giving a voice to all those children who had no say about their parents' disappearances.