A Taste of Puerto Rico in Cities Across the Land - NYTimes.com

Nothing says the holidays to a Puerto Rican like pasteles! Memories of the kitchen full of people working together to make dozens of pasteles to distribute among the family. A few months ago, I got together with a friend and her mother to make pasteles and there is something in working together to make a meal that reminds me of my childhood. As our parents get older or die, people tend to rely on people who make them for sale.

This article from the NYT highlights one woman who maintains the tradition.


A Taste of Puerto Rico in Cities Across the Land - NYTimes.com

December 1st is World AIDS Day

This Monday, December 1 is World AIDS Day, I joined Bloggers United as a way of spreading the word that AIDS crisis is unfortunately still with us. This is a very personal issue with me since I have lost so many friends to this disease. Having been around before the advent of AIDS, I saw the crisis come into being and have been a witness to the suffering it has caused to those infected and their family and friends. On the other hand, I know a few who have been able to survive and live a full life in spite of their HIV status. We must remember that getting diagnosed as HIV positive is not a death sentence. The advances in medicine are able to keep people healthy for many years.

The important thing is to get tested and take care of yourself. Unfortunately, this is not an option for many people. In many countries, including here in the United States, many people don’t have access to information and health care. There are so many great organizations trying to close the gap but with the economy the way it is, donations to charitable organizations are becoming scarcer everyday. Donations are only one way to help, volunteering and spreading the word are other ways to help.
In preparing this post, I came across an organization based here in New York called Aid for AIDS . They recycle medicine no longer needed and distribute them to people in Latin America and the Caribbean who can’t afford them. This seemed like a weird concept to me but in the United States medicines can’t be shared and for many people with HIV/AIDS they often have to change medicine leaving medicine unused. Unfortunately with Puerto Rico being part of the U.S. they can’t benefit from this program to deal with their crisis.

The video below explains more about the organization. Please support whatever organization you feel does the work that needs to be done. Let’s not forget others especially during this holiday time.

About AID FOR AIDS from Ian Jopson on Vimeo.

Teatro La Tea "Asi Somos" Bi-lingual Playwrights Festival

You can click on the images for a larger view.

The festival runs from December 5th- December 14th. All plays will be performed first in English, then in Spanish. The theater is located at 107 Suffolk St. New York, NY 10002. Tickets can be bought at Smarttix.com

I conducted an interview with one of the playwrights, A.B. Lugo, writer of Geneva. You can listen to the interview here Cumba Media Presents Podcast Episode 1 - A.B. Lugo

In the meantime, support Latino theater!

Who is Albizu Campos Documentary Trailer

As per a request, here is a trailer for a documentary on Puerto Rican Patriot Don Pedro Albizu Campos.

The website for the documentary is www.whoisalbizu.com

Borimix: Puerto Rico Fest 2008

The third Borimix: Puerto Rico Fest, celebrating Puerto Rican heritage, art and culture is currently under way in New York City. With a mixture of events including theater, music, movies and art, it is a great way to see the great contribution of Puerto Ricans to the current art scene.

For more information check out their website www.puertoricofest.org

If you attend and would like to post some reviews, please let me know.

Puerto Rican Art Websites

Here are some of my favorite website on Puerto Rican Art.

http://www.zenstudio.com/pr/index.html

DEFINING IDENTITY: Modern and Contemporary Puerto Rican Painting

This is one of the most comprehensive sites regarding Puerto Rican painting. The site was created by Gabriel Caro and includes a brief overview of Puerto Rican painters as well as bios of some of the more popular painters.

http://boricuaafricanos.blogspot.com/

African Boricuas is a blog by Edmee Cappas Velez where she interviews and showcases some of the contemporary Puerto Rican artists.

http://www.puertoricanposters.com/

Puerto Rico 1952-1985 in Posters

A great online exhibit of posters by some of the great artists from Puerto Rico. 

Viajeroart - The Metamorphosis of PASANDO

One of the great pleasures of having this blog is not only sharing the history of those who came before us but also to expose new artists contributing to our culture. One such artist is Adrian Daniel Roman, aka Viajero. I came upon him while searching the internet for more information on Rafael Tufiño, a great Puerto Rican artist.
You can visit his website http://viajeroart.com/ for more information on this talented artist.

Rita Moreno - Archive Interview Part 1 of 6

An interview with the Archive of American Television with the great Rita Moreno. Despite the stupidity of the interviewers first question, stating that Rita was not born in America (which Rita clears up with annoyance) it's a revealing interview about her professional life.

Pura Belpré -Writer, Editor and Librarian

Born in Cidra, Puerto Rico, circa 1899 and died on July 1, 1982 in New York City. Like many Puerto Rican women of the time, she moved to New York in 1920 and worked in the garment industry. Shortly after that, she became the first Puerto Rican hired by the New York Public Library. She was hired as the Hispanic Assistant in the Harlem branch on 135th St., while working at the library she studied to become a librarian and developed a passion for storytelling. She was transferred to the 115th Street branch in Spanish Harlem, in 1929, and became and advocate for the Spanish-speaking community. She instituted bilingual story hours, bought Spanish books and began programs based around traditional holidays. Her first book Pérez and Martina: a Portorican Folk Tale, based on a traditional children’s story from the Caribbean, was published in 1932. She was one of the first Puerto Ricans to be published by a major publishing company. She went on to write more stories and eventually compiled the first book of Puerto Rican folk tales published in the United States. She became an author, editor and translator, collecting children’s tales from all countries but she her primary concern was the preservation of Puerto Rican folklore.
She lived throughout her life in Harlem participating in cultural and civic organizations. In 1996, the Pura Belpré Award, was established by REFORMA, an American Library Association affiliate. The award is presented to Latino/Latina writers and illustrators whose work portrays and affirms the Latino experience in children’s literature.
The Center for Puerto Rican studies of Hunter College has her papers and archives. For more information on this great Puerto Rican woman, visit the Center’s website. http://www.centropr.org/prwriters/belpre.html

Edgardo Vega Yunqué (1936-2008)

On August 25, 2008, controversial writer Edgardo Vega Yunqué passed away. He was the founder of the Clemente Soto Vélez Cultural Center in the Lower East Side. His obituary can be found here in the Daily News. One of the most honest obituaries I have read.
I have known Ed since the early '80s and it did not surprise me that it took two weeks for the news of his death to be released. He was one person I can truly say made up his own rules in life. He will be missed.
Here is a link to someone who had a recent encounter with Ed.
On a side note, it was approximately two weeks ago that I picked up his last published novel, Blood Fugues. Have not had a chance to read it yet but looking forward to spending some time with the book.