Event: Congreso's ribbon cutting ceremony

Pretty much self-explanatory, this new building is a tremendous opportunity for our community. Congreso de Latinos Unidos' third building will house the Pan American Academy Charter School as well as the Harcum College. The college offers associate degree programs in Law and Justice, Human Services, Leadership and Early Childhood Education.

This week's articles to share

• Labor Day Weekend in Philadelphia - Expecting to see/hear the Made in America concert right outside? Think again. Might as well stay home and burn a CD.
• Llego la Feria del Barrio - In less than two weeks the biggest event of the summer hits 5th and Lehigh. With food, music, dancing, contests and more! What else can you ask for?
• Gangs' Truce Buys El Salvador a Tenuous Peace - Talk about bringing peace to an entire region from inside maximum security. I always found it interesting that some of the biggest gangs are run by people in jail. 
• How well is too well... - Miss you Just Jak!

West Side story in the eyes of an orchestra

West Side Story is clearly one of those classic films that not just Latinos have to watch...but everyone. It's a masterpiece based on two youngsters from rival gangs who fall in love. Sounds like Romeo and Juliet right? It does but the story is more than just two star-crossed lovers; it's about culture. The year is 1960 and Puerto Ricans were beginning to move into New York City. Not everyone was pleased. Mix in a little bit of song and dance and you get a 10 time Oscar award winner.

Coming in October, the Philadelphia Orchestra will play Leonard Bernstein's electrifying score and memorable songs with lyrics by Stephen Sondheim live, while the newly re-mastered filmis shown in glorious high definition on the big screen with the original vocals and dialog intact. For more information visit kimmelcenter.org.

Nominate your Leader of Hope!

AARP has teamed up with holaciudad.com/Philadelphia to find that "leader of hope." The contest asks visitors to nominate someone who is leading the fight against hunger in our community. Nominate them here and they could be the winner of a $ 2,500 donation to a charity that is making the difference in ending hunger. A donation will be made in the name of the winning Leader of Hope in the amount of $2,500 to a qualifying 501(c) 3 charity that will continue the work for the fight against hunger. The Winner and his/her Guest will also attend a Recognition and Award Ceremony, currently scheduled to take place on November 15, 2012. This is a perfect opportunity to recognize those who are not necessarily in the "spotlight" but continue to work for the good of the community.

Xfinity TV partners up with MultiLatino

Comcast, one of the nation's leading providers of entertainment, information and communications products and services, today announced that it has teamed up with Music Choice, the multi-platform video and music network, to bring Xfinity TV MultiLatino customers access to the most extensive collection of Hispanic music videos and original artist content ever On Demand. The collection, available immediately on Xfinity On Demand, with select videos also available on Xfinity.com/LatinoTV, will soon include a total of 500 music videos and feature a wide variety of Spanish music genres and artists, including pop and rock Latino, romance, tropical, regional Mexican and a children's category.

This is one of the many instances of the ever growing Latino population. Adding music on demand is one of a few steps taken to increase sales within Xfinity TV. The addition of these video categories increased Spanish-language videos from four to 12. Comcast is also home to Internet Essentials which provides internet at an extremely low cost to low-income families.

Giving hope to young Latinas

Give a young Latina a camera...give her hope. Las Fotos Project, a project of Community Partners, is a non-profit, community-based photography program whose mission is to bring about positive change for young Latinas facing adversity. Through one-on-one mentoring, photography trainings, and assigned field projects, Las Fotos Project provides a creative outlet for students, encouraging them to express their artistic talents and explore their imagination, while building self-confidence.

Even if these young Latinas don't end up being photographers or videographers, it's so important to expose them to not only their culture, but to technology. Storytelling can be produced in so many ways and by adding technology, it paints a bigger picture. Below you'll find one of many stories. I'll be posting them frequently. Enjoy.

My Niece, The Carefree Four-Year-Old from Las Fotos Project on Vimeo.

That's right...we attend college!

If someone ever asks, "Do Hispanics even attend college," your answer should be a giant, "WEPA! Of course we do." According to a Pew study, for the first time, Hispanic students are the largest minority group on college campuses across the country -- making up 16.5 percent of American college students. Education is so important right now especially during the Arizona controversy. And although the graduation rate is not at the same level as our "other" counterparts, the enrollment is getting there. In 2010, 112,000 Hispanics received an associate degree and 140,000 Hispanics were awarded a bachelor’s degree—both new highs.

So what's keeping us from getting those numbers up even higher? There are numerous factors including retention from the school itself and financial aid. It's so important we tell high school students that (although it's expensive) it is possible. There are numerous loans, grants and scholarships that can get us through 4-years of college. The next step? Graduate school. I'm sure the number of Hispanics enrolled in graduate school are super low, but as we gain in numbers, that will also go up.

Our society's racial divide

What's the first thing you notice when you meet someone? Sex? Race? Clothes? The answer is pretty obvious. The racial divide in our communities obviously still exists. For some reason, human nature has taught us to be prejudice based on what we look like. And it can be everything from hair, eyes, smile, etc. Last night I visited Las Parcelas garden (part of the Norris Square Neighborhood Project) and they presented a good number of short films; some which were about race. The short films were presented by Scribe Video Center's and PNC Arts Alive.

• Clara como el Agua (Clara like Water) by Fernanda Rossi is one of the most powerful pieces presented. Clara como el Agua tells the tales and half-truths that surround the origins of Clara, a light-skinned black girl with kinky, blond hair and gray eyes. Tired of being incessantly teased by her dark-skinned peers, she ventures into the magical waters of the bioluminescent bay to change her skin color and possibly herself. The story sheds light on the differences between the Puerto Rican community and how "white privilege" exists everywhere. 

•  That Which Once Was by Kimi Takesue takes place in the year 2032. Vicente, an 8-year-old Caribbean boy, has been displaced by global warming and fends for himself as an environmental refugee in a hostile Northern metropolis. This story combines race, class, environmental disaster (and more) all in one short film.The future is what we make of it and this film shed light on what can happen if we don't stop. However, it also showcased that when we are at our lowest, we don't judge based on age, sex or race. When we are in need, we will gravitate towards people similar to us in any shape or form.

So is race easy to talk about? Of course not. It's a touchy subject that a larger community (with wealth) can dictate. There's an argument that people with wealth and power are the only community that can be racist. Think about it. What's the difference between a white male CEO and a Puerto Rican grocery store clerk? They both can't be racist. The racial divide will always exists, even when disaster strikes. Thoughts?