On Saturday, June 18, 2011 in the midst of preparation for the Puerto Rican festivities, including the downtown parade and the Puerto Rican People’s Parade, a select group of Puerto Rican leaders where invited by Senator Durbin, through the Puerto Rican Cultural Center, to join him in welcoming Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor to Chicago.
Senator Durbin had extended an invitation to the Justice – the first Puerto Rican and first Latina to serve on the US Supreme Court- to join him for a baseball game between the Chicago Cubs and the New York Yankees.

Among those leaders where Ald. Roberto Maldonado (26th Ward), Marvin García, member of the Board of Trustees Northeastern Illinois University, Verónica Ocasio, Operations Director Bickerdike Corp, Paul Roldán, CEO of Hispanic Housing, José Rodríguez, CEO of Aspira, IL., Mr. & Mrs. Fernando Grillo, President of Board of Director of Aspira of Illinois, Dr. Lizzette Richardson, Associate Chancellor of City Colleges of Chicago, Matthew Rodríguez, Principal Dr. Pedro Albizu Campos H.S., Juan Calderón, Program Director of Vida/SIDA and José E. López Executive Director of the Puerto Rican Cultural Center.

On behalf of the Puerto Rican community José E. López presented the Justice with a gift basket containing artisanry, artifacts, films, and books of Puerto Ricans in Chicago.
The following is an personal account of that historic visit with Justice Sonia Sotomayor, by M. Lizzette Richardson, Associate Vice Chancellor for the City Colleges of Chicago.

Justice Sonia Sotomayor came accompanied by Judge Ann Williams from the federal bench.  Judge Williams and I serve on the board of the Just the Beginning Foundation which seeks to increase access of minority students to law school.

This was the highlight of my summer!  How often do you get the opportunity to meet a Supreme Court Justice and a Puerto Rican at that?  A humbling experience indeed.  She came in, greeted and spoke to each one of us individually, taking her time in a very personal way.  Imagine a Puerto Rican girl from the Bronx, humble beginnings, entering law school, a field dominated by white males, serving with distinction and becoming a Supreme Court Judge?  What an inspiration to all of us!
I took my Constitutional Law book from my days as a law school student hoping that she would sign it.   After she finished talking to each of us, the Puerto Rican Cultural Center presented a gift basket filled with items made by the Puerto Rican community;  she was thrilled.  Then, Senator Durbin indicated that I had brought the Constitutional Law book for her signature.  To my surprise, she signed it graciously!  A gesture and memory that I will forever treasure.

I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the Puerto Rican Cultural Center and Senator Durbin for inviting me to this memorable event.  The memory will live with me forever.

This year’s 33rd annual Puerto Rican People’s Day Parade was dedicated to the greening of Humboldt Park. The theme “Verde Que Te Quiero Verde” drawn from the Spanish poet Federico Garcia Lorca, was intended on calling attention to the efforts of creating a sustainable green greater Humboldt Park community.
Gov. Pat Quinn and New York State Assemblyman José Rivera joined local leaders such as Ald. Roberto Maldonado, Angel “Tito” Medina, Casa Puertorriqueña, State Rep. Antonia “Toni” Berrios and State Rep. Luis Arroyo.
One of the most salient aspects of the parade itself was the paper mache likeness of Puerto Rican Political Prisoner Oscar López Rivera, which hovered over the float of the National Boricua Human Rights Network.

On April 8, 2011 an expanded Institute of Puerto Rican Arts and Culture (IPRAC) celebrated the opening of its new exhibition, “Lo Que Trajo el Barco,” by three, young Puerto Rican artists from three distinct locations but with intersecting narratives. The exhibition, which will be open to the public until June 2011, also served as a tribute to the living master of Puerto Rican art, Antonio Martorell, whose much-anticipated exhibit is scheduled to follow.

The artists, Miguel Luciano, Josué Pellot, and Ramón Miranda, live in places of great distance from one another: New York City, Chicago, and Puerto Rico, respectively. However, what they share in their art is a deep desire to grapple with and understand the Puerto Rican context. For these masters of their craft, Puerto Rico and its multiple socio-cultural and political productions serve as a reference point from which to begin the ever-important dialogue of our identity, but the discourse continues beyond the waters of the Caribbean. The question of who and what we are as a distinct, but disparate people, extend to and incorporate those very places in which we have settled and created community.

For a case in point, one of the pieces on display, “Machetero Air Force Ones/ Filiberto Ojeda Uptowns” by Miguel Luciano, may seem to be just another pair of fresh, white Nike shoes with spray-painted Puerto Rican flags – a common feature in the ghettos of the U.S. However, the colorful images of an assassinated pro-independence leader that stirred an uproar on the island and in the U.S. provide a compelling commentary on issues of materialism, cultural authenticity, the mass production of art and propaganda, collective memory, the synchronization of culture, and puertorriqueñidad in the Diaspora. It is no coincidence that the title of the exhibition is called “Lo Que Trajo el Barco” – “What was brought by the boat,” taken from a song by “El sonero mayor” Ismael Rivera. Migration not only moved half our people across the ocean, but also challenged our very definition of what it means to be Puerto Rican.

To gain a better understanding of the exhibition, his art, and to explore the themes of identity and history in Puerto Rican art, we interviewed the humble and profound Miguel
Luciano, whose renowned work has been showcased in galleries and museums around the world. From Paris to Moscow, Brooklyn to Slovenia and even on cover of the scholarly Reggaetón: An Anthology, Luciano’s pieces are providing new insights and a playful rendition of our national character.

Where were you born and raised? Where did you study? Why did you decide to become an artist?

I was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico and grew up in the United States from Seattle to Miami and I now live in New York City. I was always interested and had a passion for art and drawing ever since I was a kid. I was also interested in social justice and activism and I knew I could combine these things and make work that could contribute to social change; looking at artwork as a vehicle for social change.

In your presentation at the opening of your collaborative exhibition at IPRAC, you spoke about playing on the readings of Puerto Rican and Caribbean cultural signifiers and layering new mythologies. How do you decide which cultural signifiers are significant enough to present in your work? What is your purpose in using Puerto Rican cultural symbols?

I look at our visual history and how it is taught usually, and I look at the cultural signifiers that are often used to represent Puerto Rican culture and identity. I use these histories and cultural symbols in order to challenge and flip them and do the same to how we see ourselves [as Puerto Ricans].

Also, to re-inscribe them with new meaning and change essentialist ideas, with an attempt to see how we self-identity and how we were identified throughout history.

Why did you choose to present those three particular pieces of your work at IPRAC?

It started with a dialogue with the other artists [Josue Pellot and Ramón Miranda Beltrán] in order to see how our work could relate to each other and to find a common theme. The pieces at IPRAC, I’ve wanted to share with the Chicago audience, especially the Pure Plantanium Pendant and the Machetero  Air Force Ones. I wanted to show them for a while in Humboldt Park, since there is a vibrant youth presence in the community and I thought it would resonate in that context. For the Cosmic Taíno piece, it includes a figure of a Bohique, who was a spiritual sage in the indigenous community. This character is often used in children’s books in Puerto Rico and I use it to play with it and to talk about illumination and consciousness in a spiritual way. It also serves as a good contrast to Josue Pellot’s neon lights, which represents conquest and death, while my piece represents spirituality and life. Also, the title of the exhibit, “Lo Que Trajo el Barco,” speaks to a theme of colonialism.

Do you consider yourself a Puerto Rican artist or an artist that is Puerto Rican? What is the difference, if there is any?

I’m really not too concerned with that. I am Puerto Rican and an artist. My work has engaged Puerto Rican culture, history, and identity. The work also speaks to Latinos in general, but comes from the reference point that is Puerto Rican and that is where I’m from. And, I know who my
audience is and I don’t think of it as limiting. I don’t only show my artwork in the Puerto Rican community, but I’m very proud to show it in the community and that is a
priority for me. It is inspired by community and it makes sense to present it to the community. IPRAC, for example, doesn’t become an exclusive space that excludes the audience that I’m trying to get at, it provides a dialogue with a community.

Any special message you’d like to give to our readers and the Puerto Rican community in Chicago?

Go see the show and it is an honor to show my work in Chicago and in Humboldt Park.

For More Info go to: www.iprac.org

Podrán cortar todas las flores, pero no podrán detener la primavera. Con esta frase del poeta chileno Pablo Neruda el congresista por Chicago, Luis V. Gutiérrez, describió las determinaciones del actual gobierno de Puerto Rico en contra de todo lo que representa puertorriqueñidad y diferencia e intercambio de ideas en una conferencia de prensa ofrecida en el Colegio de Abogados de Puerto Rico (CAPR) el pasado 23 de marzo.

“La primavera llega todos los años, así como los puertorriqueños dicen lo que piensan todos los días y nadie, ni aún el hombre poderoso que duerme en La Fortaleza, podrá hacer algo para detenerlos.”

La conferencia de prensa surge de las reacciones que sucitaron en el pueblo puertorriqueño, unos a favor y otros condenando, las denuncias que hizo ante el Congreso sobre las violaciones a los derechos civiles y humanos por parte del Gobierno de Puerto Rico a la población en general, los pasados 16 de febrero y 2 de marzo de 2011. Gutiérrez asegura que cuando acudió al hemiciclo lo hizo convencido de que la libertad y la democracia en Puerto Rico están amenazadas. Ante esto, el congresista demócrata dice que tenía que denunciar ésto, al ser la única persona en el Congreso de los Estados Unidos capaz de hacerlo.

Sus expresiones surgen debido a la ofensiva de la administración en contra de las instituciones que defiendan o representen la puertorriqueñidad, como es el caso de la Universidad de Puerto Rico y el Colegio de Abogados. El Colegio de Abogados ha sido más que una asociación profesional. Desde 1840, los abogados puertorriqueños han respondido al llamado de tener un fideicomiso público, lo que implica que éstos, además de su práctica privada, están al servicio de la sociedad puertorriqueña. Gutiérrez manifestó que el defender a los trabajadores y a los que no tienen poder a veces molesta a los poderosos, y que por esto el Senado de Puerto Rico (con mayoría del Partido Nuevo Progresista) y la administración de Fortuño lo censuraron. Añadió que a la gente que difiere de esta administración los tratan como a los estudiantes que protestan, los acusan de ser comunistas y agitadores.

Gutiérrez se mostró muy preocupado por el patrón de la actual administración de demonizar a los que difieren de sus propuestas en vez de discutir y comprometerse con el bien del país. “Este gobierno debería pensarlo dos veces antes de proferir sus palabras, y sobre cómo caracteriza a sus oponentes. Las palabras importan.”

Además, manifestó que las reacciones del partido en poder ante lo diferente amenazan al libre intercambio de ideas. A continuación algunas líneas del discurso de Luis Gutiérrez a los puertorriqueños y puertorriqueñas pronunciado en el CAPR:

El día que ustedes dejen de censurarme será el día que habré dejado de preocuparme por la libertad de palabra y por el futuro de Puerto Rico y ese día no llegará hasta  que tome mi último aliento.

Y, les tengo otro consejo: Ni su censura, ni su Fuerza de Choque, ni sus sesiones legislativas en el capitolio cerradas al público, ni acallar a ciertas voces en los medios noticiosos, ni remover los portones de la Universidad, nada de esto va a silenciar a sus oponentes.

Ni al Colegio de Abogados. Ni a los estudiantes. Ó a los reporteros, Ó a los ambientalistas. Ni a los líderes sindicales ó los miembros de los sindicatos. No van a silenciar a ningún puertorriqueño que desee decir lo que piensa.

Esta rabia, esta exigencia de que el partido dominante nunca sea retado, esta intolerancia a las ideas en competencia, este no es el Puerto Rico que yo conozco. Sencillamente, no reconozco a un Puerto Rico donde el Colegio de Abogados pueda ser visto como un enemigo de lo que es bueno, correcto y decente.

No reconozco a un Puerto Rico donde las vibrantes protestas estudiantiles se enfrenten con violencia armada y con palabras llenas de odio.

No reconozco a un Puerto Rico donde los ambientalistas y los líderes sindicales, las estaciones de radio y los periódicos son vistos como enemigos del estado.

No reconozco a un Puerto Rico donde los oficiales electos en posiciones de poder disparan palabras como “cobardes”, “sacarlos a patadas” “crápulas y garrapatas”, como si fueran personajes del “Show de Laura” y no como gente de estatura que deberían establecer el ejemplo.

Y, no reconozco a un Puerto Rico donde a un miembro del Congreso puede dar un discurso breve y que un gobierno de Puerto Rico le diga “siéntate y cállate”.

Ese no es mi Puerto Rico.  Ese no es el lugar de debate y libertad y justicia que yo amo y por el cual voy a luchar dondequiera, en todo momento y por cualquier razón.

Porque, déjenme decirles esto hoy: nadie va decirme que no soy lo suficientemente puertorriqueño para que me importe lo que le está ocurriendo a nuestro pueblo.

Soy lo suficientemente puertorriqueño para saber que el debate y la discusión son elementos fundamentales de quiénes somos aquí en Puerto Rico.

Soy lo suficientemente puertorriqueño para saber que los ambientalistas que desean proteger nuestras playas y nuestros bosques, lo verde de nuestra patria, lo que destruiría el gasoducto, no son agitadores, son patriotas.

Soy lo suficientemente puertorriqueño para saber que el Colegio de abogados no está aquí para ser perro faldero de los poderosos, está aquí para ser el salvavidas de los que no tienen poder.

Soy lo suficientemente puertorriqueño para saber que los portones de la Universidad no son barreras para controlar y disciplinar, son símbolos del aprendizaje y del conocimiento.

Amidst the smell of freshly made sofrito, a historical moment was made, a green ribbon was cut, and the door leading to the rooftop greenhouse at Dr. Pedro Albizu Campos Puerto Rican High School (PACHS) was opened. An idea spawned eight (8)  years ago from the minds of the leadership of the Juan Antonio
Corretjer Puerto Rican Cultural Center (PRCC) and reignited by students of the high school five years ago, was finally made a reality on the evening of Thursday, March 3, where over 150 people gathered to share this special victory for the Humboldt Park community.

The evening included PACHS student-led presentations on topics ranging from health issues resulting from a diet insufficient of fresh fruits and vegetables, such as diabetes and obesity, to the ways students are engaged with urban agriculture through classroom curriculum at PACHS.

As part of the ribbon cutting ceremony a group of community leaders addressed the crowd including PACHS Principal Matthew Rodríguez, Executive Director of the PRCC José E. López, Youth Connection Charter Schools Board President Linda Hanah, Alderman Roberto Maldonado, State Representative Cynthia Soto and New Life Pastor Wilfredo De Jesús.

Carlos De Jesús, Director of the Urban Agriculture Program at PACHS, was another one of the speakers that evening. Earlier in the week De Jesus reflected on an earlier memory of the greenhouse journey.

“The idea of building a rooftop greenhouse at the high school was created five years ago, while I was teaching Science class. Humboldt Park was labeled as a food desert and my students began to think of some ways we can make our community healthier,” said De Jesús. “Then we realized that by building our own greenhouse, we could provide residents access to fresh foods.”

Many residents are unaware that the Humboldt Park community is labeled as a “food desert,” or an area that has little to no access to fresh foods needed to maintain a healthy diet. “This area was not always a food desert,” De Jesus noted. “When a majority of the population was white, there were local supermarkets, such as Jewels and Dominick’s, giving the community easy access to fresh foods. As the ethnicity of the population began to switch to more Latinos and Blacks those supermarkets moved out of the area,” said De Jesús.

The community has suffered from this lack of access to healthy foods. Humboldt Park has one of the highest rates of obesity and diabetes in the country. There are a number of solutions in progress that will help improve this crisis. For the past year The 72 Block Humboldt Park Diabetes Initiative has been edúcating residents about diabetes and how to live healthy life-styles. Another community program that is working to improve health issues in Humboldt Park is Muévete, which provides free physical activities such as yoga, bike-riding and Zumba.

The PACHS rooftop greenhouse is the first greenhouse in the community. With the support of local politicians such as Alderman Maldonado and State Representative Cynthia Soto, the scope of community sustainability in Humboldt Park will expand with the construction of 20 more rooftop greenhouses in the near future. In addition PACHS has been granted access to four-tenths of an acre (approximately 18,000 square feet) of land in Humboldt Park, next to the Institute of Puerto Rican Arts and Culture, where plants that begin their development in the greenhouse will be transferred. Planting on this piece of land will begin April 25, said Carlos de Jesús.

The greenhouse opening at PACHS was part of a larger celebration of the anniversary of Juan Antonio Corretjer Puerto Rican Cultural Center. A reception held Thursday afternoon at Batey Urbano featured presentations on different programs of the PRCC including La Voz de Paseo Boricua, Vida/Sida, Batey Urbano, CO-OP Humboldt Park, Barrio Arts, Culture and Communications Academy (BACCA) and Humboldt Park No Se Vende.

Alexander Hernández and Marisol Rodríguez

“When they want to set boundaries they do so strategically. Fortuño just signed a bill providing funds to the Puerto Rican film industry to attract more Hollywood films. They are investing millions and, who do they bring to sign this law? Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony. They lay claim to the Diaspora when Obama named Sonia Sotomayor. The Diaspora works for some things and not others, “explains Dr. Aparicio. She adds that recognizing the legitimacy of the subject in the Diaspora is still very difficult in the case of Puerto Ricans. However, she emphasized, that the voices of the Diaspora must be legitimate because the Diaspora is involved in political struggles and conflicts of ideology.

In the wake of recent  comments by the Resident Commissioner, Pedro Pierluisi, questioning the Puerto Rican identity of Congressman Luis Gutiérrez and his credibility  to denounce anti-democratic events in Puerto Rico, La Voz del Paseo Boricua interviewed Dr. Frances Aparicio, director of the Latino Studies Program at Northwestern University, and Dr. Maura Toro Morn, a professor in the Latino Studies  Department at the State University of Illinois. Both academics agreed that the Puerto Rican identity is shared by eight million people, four million in Puerto Rico and four million out of Puerto Rico, but with close family, social and cultural ties on the island, plus a historical thread that binds them. The points raised by the Congress and the Resident Commissioner have promoted interesting debates on migration and transmigration. For Dr. Toro, Pierluisi has as much right, say and desire to set out his political ideas as does Gutiérrez. “To silence groups because they live in the Diaspora does not strengthen political dialogue, moreover, it separates, makes a dividing line. It seems a rather limited perspective when we really are all in the same political situation. “

For her part, Dr. Aparicio believes that Gutiérrez is the only person who would be willing to condemn the administration. “It’s not about who is allowed to. If the government is abusing its power it must be condemned. The current administration is an accomplice and agent of this violence. Pierluisi will not denounce the violence because it goes against his interests,” she explained.

Professor Toro argued that Puerto Rican society is very diverse and a politician can not claim to represent the voice of the Puerto Rican people, both on the island and in the Diaspora, and therefore, a leader can not be sufficiently comprehensive.

“A political leader who wants to be the only voice of the people of Puerto Rico is very narrow minded because the voice of the Puerto Rican people can not distilled into a single political voice. It seems a bit arrogant to want to silence a voice of the Puerto Rican community in the U.S. who has worked for the Puerto Rican people, both here and there. Any person who represents Puerto Rico has to understand the dynamics of the community in the Diaspora.

“ The nation has a geographical and political boundary established in Puerto Rico. Upon Puerto Ricans leaving, the nation as an ideology goes with them. Puerto Ricans in the U.S. (going on now for  a third generation) have never ceased to be Puerto Ricans. The nation can not be framed in the Island. The nation lives in the Diaspora.

Among the allegations that Gutiérrez made on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives last February 16th and March 2nd , appear the unethical and politicized determinations of the Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Puerto Rico, José A. Fusté, imposing a gag order in a lawsuit against the Bar Association of Puerto Rico, which led to the imprisonment of the President of the Association, Osvaldo Toledo, due to his attempts to keep the members of the association informed. Gutiérrez also denounced the complicity of the New Progressive Party (PNP) administration in the violation the civil and human rights by the police of Puerto Rico against students and demonstrators at recent protests on the island. The violation of these rights have been characterized by the use of excessive force, including kicking, pepper spray, rubber bullets, sexual harassment by police officers, use of the Tactical Operations Division against unarmed demonstrators, violations of freedom of expression and association, among others.

Vanesa Baerga

Los estudiantes en huelga del Recinto de Río Piedras de la Universidad de Puerto Rico que realizan actos de desobediencia civil sintieron la pasada semana cómo la Policía de Puerto Rico ha intensificado las técnicas de tortura que utiliza para arrestarlos.

Información relacionada y más fotos en páginas centrales Vídeos en www.claridadpuertorico.com

Rodillas sobre la cabeza de los detenidos para presionarlos sobre el pavimento, dejarle caer con fuerza las rodillas sobre sus espaldas, presión intensa en la nuca, debajo de las orejas, en la sien y en la garganta, dobladuras de brazos y manos, entre otras, han sido modalidades de abusos que ha implementado los efectivos de la división de Arrestos Especiales y de la Fuerza de Choque aún cuando los arrestados ya están esposados. Luego arrastran por el piso a los que se niegan a caminar hasta el vehículo que los transportará a los cuarteles, en incluos se ha visto a algunos policías agredir sexualmente a las jóvenes arrestadas que se encolerizan y comienzan a gritar, tocando sus partes íntimas.

Esas han sido las imágenes que la Fuerza de Choque ha intentado que no se documenten, parándose frente a los lentes de los fotoperiodistas y periodistas que buscando el ángulo para ver cómo se realizan los arrestos para luego describirlos, han sido agredidos. Es así es como se han formado los policías en las fuertes confrontaciones con estudiante, llegando incluso a agredir a los trabajadores de la prensa.

La evidente intención de la Policía de causar dolor desproporcionado a los arrestados es lo que exacerba los ánimos de los estudiantes que piquetean frente a sus compañeros desobedientes civiles y presencian el abuso policial.En los actos de desobediencia civil que realizaron los estudiantes el pasado jueves 27 de enero frente al Capitolio, se vio cómo la Policía ha incrementado el uso de técnicas de tortura sometiendo a los estudiantes a varias de ellas a la vez y por varios policías. Hubo el caso de una joven que tras apretarle tan fuerte debajo de las orejas se desmayó y la Policía la esposó aún sin haber recobrado el conocimiento.

Ese día, los huelguistas habían llegado a eso de las 12:30 de la tarde de hasta la Legislatura donde encontraron cerradas las puertas de la entrada principal y policías que se fueron colocando frente a ellos. Al menos 30 estudiantes se sentaron al inicio de las escalinatas del Capitolio para realizar desobediencia civil. Portaron cartelones, algunos que leían “los chavos están en OGP”, o “esto es por mí, esto es por ti, esto es por tu país”. La líder estudiantil Xiomara Caro explicó que los estudiantes fueron a presentar a los legisladores un proyecto de ley por petición que consistía en que los $50 millones sobrantes del Fondo de Estabilización Fiscal (FEF) se asignara al presupuesto de la UPR para así evitar la cuota de $800 y el problema de la accesibilidad a la Universidad, dos de las razones del conflicto universitario. Solicitaban que algún legislador tomara el proyecto “y lo aprueben” como se ha hecho con otros tantos que se han aprobado de la noche a la mañana o fines de semana. Sólo el representante por el Partido Popular Dencrático, Luis Vega Ramos, se acercó a ellos y se comprometió a estudiar el proyecto y presentarlo. Mientras tanto, los desobedientes esperaban por una delegación del Comité de Representación Estudiantil (CRE) que había entrado temprano en la mañana al Capitolio con intenciones de explicar a los legisladores su proyecto. El CRE insiste a su vez en que además de los $50 millones del FEF, la legislatura destine al presupuesto de la UPR los $30 millones en becas legislativas en lugar de a estudiantes individuales, porque así no se incrementarán los costos de estudio. Con esas dos propuestas estudiantiles la UPR recibiría $80 millones, el doble de lo que la administración universitaria espera recibir de la cuota de $800 por estudiante, según ha dicho.

Cerca de las 2:15 pm los estudiantes, que ya habían advertido estar dispuestos a que se les arrestara, movieron su acto de desobediencia civil a la Avenida Constitución, al lado sur del Capitolio, no sin antes escuchar a Caro decir que se retiraban del lugar pero que en la medida en que no había oídos para una solución al conflicto “las manifestaciones y la huelga continuarán”. Otros se sentaron en el Paseo Covadonga, bloqueando el tránsito de todos los carriles en ambos lados. A eso de las 3:00 PM comenzaron a producirse los arrestos en la Avenida Constitución por órdenes del capitán González. Empleados del Capitolio salieron a gritar a los estudiantes “paguen la cuota”, lo que por poco provoca otro motín adicional. Por otro lado, un policía de apellido Cortés, placa 24619, que se encontraba al otro lado de la calle, le quitó el seguro a su arma e hizo amague de desenfundarla contra uno de los estudiantes. Pero un grupo de estudiantes lo siguió hasta que se alejó. Otro policía, de apellido Clemente, placa 30944, le dio con la macana en la mano a una estudiante que le enseñó el proyecto de ley que los estudiantes habían llevado al Capitolio.
A las 3:50 pm la Fuerza de Choque se atravesó en la Ave. Constitución empujando a los estudiantes hacia el Paseo Covadonga donde se encontraba el otro grupo de desobedientes civiles. A las 4:30 PM y tras éstos no ser arrestados, se movieron nuevamente a la Avenida Constitución evadiendo el bloqueo policial. La Fuerza de Choque la emprendió contra ellos con gas pimienta directamente rociada a la cara de los estudiantes. Luego los empujaron con sus escudos y lanzando los gases lacrimógenos. Los estudiantes intentaron evadirlos y les devolvieron con los pies las bombas de humo. También les tiraron algunas botellas de agua y piedras y comenzaron a correr. La Fuerza de Choque, dividida en varias escuadras, atravesó la calle de lado a lado para perseguirlos. Según llegaban más efectivos de la Fuerza de Choque continuaban formándose a todo lo ancho de la calle dejando un amplio espacio entre cada escuadra, penetrando algunos las calles aledañas, lo que se convirtió en un despliegue abarcador. Entonces se colocaron máscaras antigases y se fueron disparando indiscriminadamente con escopetas lanza gases y de balas de goma, mientras a su paso viraban zafacones y rompían bolsas de basura. Los residentes comenzaron a salir a la calle. La directora de un colegio y una égida en esa avenida que se identificó como “hermana Rose Marie González”, cuestionó de frente a la Fuerza de Choque por sus acciones. “Parece que estamos viviendo una dictadura”, les decía mientras explicaba que los estudiantes del Colegio se encontraban en la cancha al momento de los disparos y tuvieron que ser movidos al interior del colegio para tranquilizarlos. Igual reclamó respeto para los residentes de la égida. “Cualquiera diría que estamos en una guerra”, añadió.

Sobre 30 estudiantes fueron arrestados esa tarde, sumándose a los sobre 100 que fueron arrestados la semana anterior por negarse a rendir sus reclamos de que la Policía salga de la Universidad y por una educación superior pública al menor costo posible.

Perla Franco/ CLARIDAD

The spreading of exaggerations, distortions and outright falsehoods is a commonplace tactic of those in power. In the past several weeks, the international freedom campaign for Puerto Rican political prisoner Oscar López Rivera has suffered numerous attacks from the mainstream press and conservative pundits. López Rivera has been incarcerated since 1981 for his involvement in the Puerto Rican independence movement, a cause legitimated by international law and the United Nations protocol on decolonization. Before his imprisonment, he served as a community activist and founder of numerous grassroots community and educational organizations in Chicago. Though López Rivera counts on widespread support within the Puerto Rican/Latino community and progressive sectors around the globe, recent attacks by the Right have attempted to sabotage his appearance before the U.S. Parole Commission.

Using various media outlets, the opposition has tried to shift the debate through sensationalistic articles and opt-eds. The most recent article, published in the Sun Times, represents another propaganda piece masquerading as journalism. In the article, “Gutierrez pushes for release of imprisoned former Chicago FALN leader,” author Dave Mckinney advances unsubstantiated and ideologically-motivated claims, which virtually – and this I suspect is no coincidence – the official line of the F.B.I. and broader ‘intelligence’ community. This most recent article, just as those that preceded it, have displaced the facts, drawn convenient connections without evidence, and constructed an ‘objective’ narrative devoid of journalist integrity. This, of course, is not surprising and to be expected. Notwithstanding, it is important to set these falsifications straight and maintain the legitimacy and humanity of the campaign to free Oscar López Rivera.

One of the consistent threads in opposition articles is the fallacious attribution of a host of actions to López Rivera. For instance, he is accused of planning and executing the 1974 bombing of Fraunces Traven. To be clear, there is no evidence tying López Rivera to this event. But conservative commentators will not be deterred by something as troublesome as ‘evidence.’ In their eyes, López Rivera is guilty; no matter what the evidence supports or what his conviction is based on. They obviously hold in contempt the old adage: innocent until proven guilty. What they want is for López Rivera to remain in jail for virtually the duration of his life regardless of the facts of the case. The opposition operates by a different code: guilt by suspected association. Though they have tried to muddle the truth, I should firmly stress that López Rivera was not convicted of harming anyone or causing bloodshed.

Right wing attacks against López Rivera’s campaign ignore the fact that he was convicted of “seditious conspiracy” and related charges. It is important to note that in the 20th century, this highly-political charge was almost exclusively used against Puerto Ricans advocating for Puerto Rican independence and other progressive, liberatory movements. One of the immense and tragic ironies of the case is the fact that Oscar López Rivera was convicted of the exact same charge as Nelson Mandela. While the U.S. government (now) hails Mandela as a symbol of freedom, López Rivera is depicted as an “unrepentant separatist” bent on violence. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Thus contrary to the claims of U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald, López Rivera is not a fanatical endorser of violence. In fact, he and all of the now freed Puerto Rican political prisoners have – on numerous occasions – renounced violence and have expressed a deep commitment to resolving Puerto Rico’s colonial status through civic means. Former President Clinton, who released 11 Puerto Ricans incarcerated for “seditious conspiracy” and offered to release López Rivera after an additional 10 years, affirmed publically that these individuals posed no threat to civil society. In contrast to the false allusions circulating the internet, López Rivera did not reject Clinton’s offer due to a commitment to violence. The truth of the matter is simply he did

not want to accept an offer not extended to all his co-defendants.

Each of the articles and blogs postings advocating the continued incarceration of López Rivera have unsuccessfully tried to wash away the wide and broad-based support for his release. In the past several months, over 20,000 letters of support have been sent to the Parole Commission. Support is also quite diverse, including community leaders, cultural workers, professors, politicians, family, and the public at large. As seen in the recent McKinney article, supporters of his release, like Congressman Luis Gutiérrez, have begun to be attacked directly in the press. The opposition fails not only to recognize the legitimacy of support, but also the fact that supporters like Gutiérrez are not alone. This freedom campaign counts on the expressed support of Congresspersons José Serrano and Nydia Velázquez (both of NY), Resident Commissioner Pedro Pierluisi, former Puerto Rico governor, Anibal Acevedo Vilá, mayors from across the island of Puerto Rico and elected officials from the following U.S. states: New York, Pennsylvania, Illinois, and Ohio. Moreover, he has received the support of Nobel Peace Prize honoree South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu and religious leaders throughout the U.S. and Puerto Rico.

For the past three decades – twelve of which spent in a sensory depravation unit – Oscar López Rivera has been confined inside prison walls. Though he was never convicted of taking a life or harming anyone, he has received a longer prison sentence typically given for murder, rape, or child molestation. A parole appointed examiner recently recommended that López Rivera serve an additional 15 years. Mind you, he is already 68 years old. In addition to attempting to erase the facts of his case, they have also tried to erase the fact that López Rivera is an accomplished writer, thinker and artist. They willfully ignore his history of community activism, his Bronze Medal of Honor received in Vietnam, and his life work of fighting for a more equitable and humanistic world. His family and the Nation of Puerto Rico desperately await his return to his homeland. His continued incarceration is a human rights violation of the first order. It is time to bring Oscar López Rivera home. Anything less is a grave injustice, motivated not by the facts of his case, but by an ideological agenda opposed to freedom. Free Oscar!

To support and learn more about the
Oscar López Rivera Freedom Campaign
visit: www.boricuahumanrights.org.

Commentary by Michael Rodríguez Muñiz

Hormigueros is a small town located in the western region of the great island of the archipelago, Puerto Rico. It has a population of 16,856 inhabitants of which 5,900 constitute the labor force. Its inhabitants are known by the demonym “hormiguereños”. Its patron saint, according to the Catholic tradition, is the Virgin of the Monserrate and her day is celebrated on the 8 of September.

This colorful town is known by the moniker “the town of the miracle,” due to the alleged appearance of the Virgin; “The cradle of the emancipatory one”, because it was there were Segundo Ruiz Belvis, defender of the independence of Puerto Rico in the days of Spain and fundamental figure in the abolition of slavery was born; and “the heart of the west”, by its location. It was founded on April 1, 1874 and is constituted by six districts: Benavante, Lavadero, Guanajibo, Jagüitas, Hormigueros [Town] and Hormigueros [District].

For the origin of the name two main versions are presented. The first one talks about the great amount of people who would meet to celebrate the festival in honor of the Virgin of the Monserrate on September 8th, “an ‘anthill’ or hormiguero of people.” The second, to the topographic formation of the land that conforms it, made up of many hills that seem like the small knolls that ants form to live. Another version talks about the origin of the name of the town of “oromico” the indigenous word, which means “Gold River.” At present, the town of Hormigueros is directed and administered by the Honorable Mayor Pedro J. Figueroa, great Puerto Rican and defender of culture and native values.

From here, from the mother country of all, the heart of the west, Hormigueros and their honorable mayor invite all the Boricuas and Latin American residents in Chicago and bordering areas as well as to all the members of the Puerto Rican and Latin American diasporas in the United States, so that they meet in the 18th Celebration of the Puerto Rican festival “Bandera a Bandera” in the city of Chicago, on September 5, 2011. That day, the town of Hormigueros will bring to you the “best of our town”.

Carlos Quíles,
La Voz del Paseo Boricua