THIS WEEK ON LATINOPIA: SAL BALDENEGRO ON FRIENDSHIP IN THE TIME OF CORONAVIRUS, PAUL ESPINOSA ON SINGING OUR WAY TO FREEDOM, ARMANDO VAZQUEZ-RAMOS ON THE DREAMERS AND THE SUPREME COURT AND THE DREAMERS AND BETSY DEVOS.
Hola! This week our regular blogger Sal Baldenegro returns with his Political Salsa y Más column, this time taking a long look at friends and friendship, especially in this time of the coronavirus pandemic. Also this week, we have three Latinopia Pláticas. The first is with acclaimed filmmaker Paul Espinosa. Paul has just released a ninety-minute film Singing Our Way To Freedom. The film chronicles the life and music of the later activist songster Ramón “Chunky” Sanchez. Check out why he decided to do a film on Chunky.
Our other Plática videos are a conversation of Dr. Armando Vazquez-Ramos of the California Mexico Studies Center. In the first Plática, he brings us up to date on the status of dreamers after the DACA program was terminated by President Trump and then later reaffirmed by an appellate court. The matter is not being heard at the Supreme Court and a decision is expected soon. Also facing the troubled Dreamers is a recent ruling by the Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos. It seems that the recently passed CARES Act (Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act) has put aside funding for students at universities and colleges throughout the United States. But Betsy DeVos has arbitrarily determined that those student enrolled in the DACA program cannot qualify for these funds. Check out Armando’s take on all of this.
Enjoy your week on Latinopia and stay safe, wear your mask and keep those six feet apart!
Tia Tenopia