SOULFUL CHICANAS AND CONSTRUCTION WORKERS TURNED LITERARY ICONS!

Greetings my good-natured and gallant gang of gloriously genteel but generously gracious googlers! Well here’s your Tia Tenopia welcoming you to another wonderful week of Latinopia.

Two great videos this week. In music we listen to the unique sounds Los Angeles-based singer/songwriter Irene Díaz as she jams with some friends at the Boyle Heights “Espacio 1839.”  Don’t be misled, Irene is set to make her mark on the music world and Latinopia is proud to showcase her great talent. Hey she’s already played at the Roxy and House of Blues, pues!

In Literature, we visit again with renowned short story writer and novelist Dagoberto Gilb. For those of you who don’t know who Dago is (shame on you!) and are wondering about what a Gilb is doing on Latinopia , pues The vato is puro ChIcano and proves it in his writings. Beyond that, he’s also one of American leading authors. In this video clip, he recounts what it was like to be a Chicano construction worker while at the same time winning the coveted James D. Phelan literary award! Se avienta este vato!

We have a guest blog this week from Dr. Rudy Acuña. Many of you already know that he is considered the father of Chicano Studies. In this very thoughtful and controversial essay, he laments the overly critical scrutiny of celebrated Chicano leaders. But hey, we’ll let Dr. Acuna speak for himself. Check out  his blog!

And speaking of blogs, our regulars are back. Angela Ortiz graces us with a  new weekly photo, Sergio Hernández has yet another biting cartoon commentary on the world we live in–check out his Homeless Hospitality. Later in the week we’ll be hearing from Sara Inés Calderón with her Thinking Latina blog–always guaranteed to be thoughtful and pesao! And please check out Zombie Mex Diaries, our boy Lazaro is under fire, literally, from the Juan de Oñate zombies determined to conquer humanity and breed humans for zombie food. Can Lazaro save humanity? Can anyone?

Enjoy!

OOX

Tia Tenopia