Diciembre | December 2011

“Occupy Wall Street”

The Uproar of the Outraged
The multihued colors of fall are here and the changing of the leaves on the trees are as evident as the change in the conscience of this country. Those who are outraged by the movement Occupy Wall Street, which began on September 17 (Constitution Day in the U.S.), set up their multicolored tents in Manhattan’s Zucotti Park, right at the heart of the financial center in New York, to protest against corporate greed and the scandalous concentration of wealth occupied by 1 percent of the population.
The surprising actions of the 99 percent that they say they represent, was copied in the nation’s major cities and dozens of towns, showing images that seem like they were taken right out of the nostalgic times of the sixties and seventies, when the youth rose up against the war; armed with long hair, hippie clothes, flowers, guitars and peace signs.
About a month after Wall Street’s overtaking, on October 15th, the furious uproar was heard in thousands of cities throughout 83 countries, where people went out into the streets, showing their solidarity with the protesting New Yorkers and ratifying the incredible communication power of today’s social networks.
Ever since the eighties when deceased President Ronald Reagan incorporated the concept that multimillionaires were owed economic advantages in order to create jobs, the gap between the “haves” and the “have nots” has continued to grow. Simultaneously, large companies have gradually taken their factories and jobs further away, to foreign lands and not even within Latin America, the neighboring ‘backyard’.
The economic crisis that the country has been experiencing in the last years, due to prolonged foreign wars and the mortgage disaster has had a big impact on the people, who saw how the government provided millions of dollars to save the banks, while money dwindled from the pockets of the poorest people. With an unemployment rate of approximately 9 percent, it was pretty obvious that someone would protest. Now, two months after the start of the movement Occupy Wall Street, those involved are being evicted from their territories, but their message of defiance and discontent lives on.
The message lives because a definitive stop was put to large banks charging account holders fees for debit cards. It lives because the current administration’s job creation and infrastructure repair initiatives is and should be supported. It lives because it is not possible that the most powerful nation on Earth cannot guarantee a universal health care service that is affordable for everyone. It lives because it would be disastrous to give the country up to the extremist Tea Party members, who, with their folkloric wigs and outfits from the war of independence, try to emulate a false patriotism topped with intolerance, even for the most defenseless, the undocumented immigrants.
It is true that among those who are outraged, some anarchists have gotten involved with the upheaval, but even so the movement Occupy Wall Street continues to provide the awareness that the country needs. The United States is a wonderful country that offers a better level of life than the majority of the countries throughout the rest of the world. The governmental and economic systems have made it a superpower. It is precisely because of that responsibility that those who are in charge, those who “have” owe an answer to the petitions of the other 99 percent.

Dove Street Lights: An Island Tradition Gone but never Forgotten  by: Woody Stevens

When I was 6 or 7 years old my grandmother took me down to Dove Street for the first time to see the Christmas decorations and I was in awe. I can remember my disbelief and amazement at the detail put into the decorations. That was fifteen years ago and every year since then the holiday lights have become better and better. For the past twenty years the residents of Dove Street have brightened the Christmas season with their hard work and holiday spirit. However, this year is different. For the first time the decorations on Dove Street will not be illuminating houses, placed in front yards, or hung from tree to tree.
While the Dove Street residents have been kind enough to put on the light display for the last two decades, the expenses have become too much for them to continue. The purchasing of decorations and the astronomic light bill associated with powering 80,000 plus bulbs for a month pushed costs too high. Following last holiday’s celebration a search began to find a new venue to host the event. Plans for the light show to take place at Crossings Parks were debated, but unfortunately the funds were unable to come together to continue one of Hilton Head’s best traditions.
During the holiday season, Dove Street provided more than just a festive atmosphere. Last year alone more than $12,000 for the Deep Well Project were raised. The partnership between Deep Well and the Dove Street association began when visitors to the street offered money to help pay for the light bills. Instead of keeping the money themselves, the residents decided to donate the money to Deep Well. One of the volunteers who helped hang lights, Donald Gaal remembers the lights on Dove Street as being more than just a holiday event, “I would say what started as a celebration turned into a cause that helped the island”.
Around this time the Deep Well begins its annual Empty Well campaign to increase support during the holiday season. Every year Dove Street helped contributed to make the lives of many local families little bit easier during the month of December. During the Holiday Season we here at La Isla encourage all of our readers to donate what they can such a great organization. Last year Deep Well provided 60 thousand meals, 863 Christmas dinners and gifts, emergency shelter and home repairs and many other services to those in need. This is not possible without donations and volunteers. Also, remember this great Island tradition and hopefully it will return next year. As Gaal says “Whether you donated or not, Dove Street was something that could make you smile”.

A Spanglish Christmas
By Maria del Mar Tovar
Adaptation is a big part of the transition process for many Latinos that come to the U.S. This is true with the language, the lifestyle, and with countless of other aspects. As the holidays get nearer this cultural embracing becomes even more prominent.
It can sometimes be difficult to balance different customs in a new country, our old and rich traditions with a new American style of celebration. However, this balance is necessary in order to be in sync with our surroundings, and to facilitate the transition process.
Christmas is the most special time of year. This conclusion is shared by millions of people across the world, and though celebrated in various ways, it always revolves around the family unit. Here in the Lowcountry, Latinos look forward to the holidays and although far from their countries, they find new ways to celebrate and at the same time hold on to their customs.
The Salas family from Durango, Mexico does exactly that. Joel and Maru Salas have lived in the U.S. for 11 years and have two girls, Valeria and Natalia, ages 9 and 5. To the Salas, Christmas is the perfect time to relive their customs and share them with their kids to ensure they don’t get lost in the cultural exchange. They have invited us to learn how they celebrate this special day and how they do their best to keep their Mexican roots alive.
In Mexico, the Salas family celebrated with a big family dinner."In the morning they prepared the Christmas Eve dinner, and depending on what time the mass began, they had dinner either before or after mass. At midnight we did what we call "the hug" and we would sit around to chat and just enjoy each other’s company until it was time to head home.”
The Salas continue to celebrate in a similar manner, accompanied by family, a big Christmas dinner and of course the posadas, which is a Mexican custom that re-enacts Mary and Joseph’s journey from Nazareth to Bethlehem and their search for
shelter along the way. "We always did posadas in Mexico, a few years ago here
at the church they’ve begun
to organize posadas, so we participate in those. It’s quite enjoyable."
Because much Maru’s family resides here, but not Joel’s, some things have changed, "Now we have dinner at my sister’s house, when we get home the girls run to the tree to see if Santa Claus and baby Jesus have brought them gifts. The girls also make sure to check if Santa Claus has eaten the cookies and milk they leave out for him."
When you have children it is important to consider incorporating Santa Claus, as he is a huge Christmas figure. The Salas share how they have done so. "We definitely have included Santa Claus, he is everywhere, however baby Jesus, to us is the central figure in Christmas. We make sure we teach our girl’s that, as Catholics, Christmas is the birth of Jesus in our lives.
They use this holiday season to teach their children their traditions, so they don’t become lost. "We cling to our customs, and do not stop teaching our girls how important it is to know one’s own culture, so they can too, instill these traditions in their children."
In a typically American place as the Lowcountry, it is interesting to see how many Latinos have managed keep their dishes authentic, but if you are Mexican like the Salas, you do not have to go very far to find those typical ingredients that are available at the local Latino markets.
“Christmas is the only time where we don’t’ stray from our traditional food, and maintain our typical Mexican dishes, my mother in law helps us from a distance by sending us care packages with sweets, fruits, and Mexican spices. One of my favorite dishes to make is the pork with almonds. "
Maru shares with us that although the food is an essential part of their celebration, nothing can replace the family, friends and loved ones whom they have not seen in many years and especially miss around this time.
"What I miss most is the feeling of warmth that is given by family and old friends, but we deal with nostalgia by telling funny anecdotes and laughing as we remember the good times we shared back home."

Congressman Luis Gutierrez;

Fight SB20 with the Memorandum of Discretion for Deportations
by: Rafael Prieto
In an atmosphere charged with energy, five hundred people welcomed federal Congressman Luis Gutierrez, Sunday November 20, in the main hall of International Longshoreman’s Association building in downtown Charleston.
Attendees chanted "Gutierrez, friend, the people are with you" and "Obama listen, we are in the fight" during the meeting in which the house representative from Chicago enchanted the audience with his charisma, words and arguments. "We are all immigrants," Gutierrez said, delighting the young people present with the statement: "the first Latino president of the United States could be in this room."
Gutierrez urged the Hispanic community to unite to fight state law SB20, a copycat of the Arizona law SB1070, which requires police to question the immigration status of those the police “suspect” of being undocumented.
"This legislation encourages racial profiling and is un-American. We must fight together and do whatever it takes to do because the government cannot continue separating families," said Gutierrez
The congressman compared the current circumstances being lived by undocumented immigrants to those faced by African Americans during the civil rights struggle of the sixties.
He encouraged Hispanics in South Carolina to learn how to use the memorandum of discretion, issued by President Barack Obama’s administration on August 18, to prevent further deportations. "People have to understand how it works and that is a tool that can be used. I challenge you to choose one case, take it to court and fight it using this (memorandum) as a tool and you will probably win. This will show other immigrants that it can be done," said the Puerto Rican politician while taking questions from the media.
Gutierrez explained the characteristics of the memorandum and emphasized that police and state authorities must comply with the law. In mid-November The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) began reviewing, case by case, legal proceedings to deport 300,000 illegal immigrants in order to concentrate on those who pose a danger to the nation. The guideline is expected to prioritize the deportation of offenders but suspended the expulsion from the country of students, people over 65 and those who are immediate relatives of U.S. citizens.
During the rally Gutierrez heard examples of how Latinos are being indiscriminately arrested by authorities for their immigration status. Among those who presented cases were Latinos living as far away as Ridgeland, SC and a female American citizen married to a Mexican national who shared an emotional account of how she and her husband have suffered harassment by North Charleston police repeatedly.
"Legislators here say they need laws like SB20 because the federal government is not doing its job, but yet those same legislators keep impeding the government’s ability to do this work by continually blocking any attempts at comprehensive immigration reform," said Luiz Gutierrez considered the champion of the undocumented, said.
Prior to speaking at the ILA Hall, the Congressman attended a luncheon with local Hispanic community leaders and members including those who gave their testimonies at the rally.