MIDEAST: Building New Bridges to Latin America
By Baher Kamal

This article published by IPSNews is dated in Madrid at March 29th, and it reports the convergence of an Arab-South American summit in the Qatari capital on March 31st to discuss key political and economic cooperation between the participating regions.

Although the final declaration drafted by both parties talks about increasing trade agreements in the areas of commerce, energy and technology, there is also a political aspect to it: the support of Latin American countries to an independent Palestinian State.

Trade between the two regions increased from 8 billion dollars in 2005 to 21 billion dollars last year, according to the director of the League of Arab States’ Two Americas Department.

According to the Agencia Bolivariana de Noticias, based in Caracas, Venezuela, this is “the first time the Union of South American Countries (Unasur) will participate as a representative organ, formed as a bloc of Latin American countries proposing the integration of the south with the Arab countries.” The agency reports that 34 Arab and Latin American presidents are meeting on the same date to discuss and undersign bilateral agreements.

How is this summit going to affect foreign relationships between Latin America and Israel and also, is this an indirectly forceful position against the US?

STATEMENT BY THE PRESIDENT TO COMMEMORATE CESAR CHAVEZ'S BIRTHDAY

President Barack Obama today made the following statement to commemorate Cesar Chavez's birthday:

"Today, on what would have been his 82nd birthday, Cesar Chavez's legacy as an educator, environmentalist, and as a civil rights leader who struggled for fair treatment and fair wages for America's workers is important for every American to remember.

Having begun as a farmworker, Cesar Chavez eventually co- founded the United Farm Workers and struggled to provide hundreds of thousands of people with better working conditions and the chance to live a better life. The cause of fair treatment and fair wages for America?s workers lives on today through the work of countless others.

Chavez's rallying cry, "Si Se Puede" -- "Yes We Can," was more than a slogan, it was an expression of hope and a rejection of those who said farmworkers could not organize, and could not take on the growers. Through his courage, Cesar Chavez taught us that a single voice could change our country, and that together, we could make America a stronger, more just, and more prosperous nation."

Obama Flinches on Immigration

This editorial published on the New York Times on March 24th reports the withdrawal of the Obama's administration offer to Thomas Saenz, "a highly regarded civil-rights lawyer and counsel to the mayor of Los Angeles, to run the Justice Department’s civil rights division."

Although it might have been a missed opportunity to set some record about the Obama's administration intentions regarding immigration, it seems that a more moderate route was preferred by nominating Thomas Perez, Labor Secretary from Maryland. The decision, according to the article, was caused by pressure from the right-wing anti-immigrant groups. However, I wonder how much the decision was influenced by the Mexican border situation and Thomas relationship with controversial Los Angeles mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. And the main question: Does Obama need to start yet another fire?

A Slippery Place in the U.S. Work Force

This article by Julia Preston published by the New York Times on March 21st describes the unsettling situation of undocumented immigrants due to the economic crisis and the continuing immigration raids in different parts of the country. Read how they are coping with the difficulties and how people react to the situation.

National Immigrant Solidarity Network


4th National Grassroots Immigrant Strategy Conference
& Immigrant Rights Film Festival
April 10-12, 2009 Chicago, IL

About NAHJ's Scholarship Fund

The National Association of Hispanic Journalists (NAHJ) offers several scholarships through our Rubén Salazar Scholarship Fund program. These scholarships are designed to encourage and assist Latino students pursue careers in journalism.

La edición en EE UU busca salida

BARBARA CELIS - Nueva York - 12/01/2009

Otros países observan con sorpresa como las bibliotecas estadounidenses tienen una dinámica poco común en el mundo. Desde Nueva York, este artículo de Barbara Celis cuenta cómo la crisis económica impulsa la adaptación del sector del libro a los esquemas del siglo XXI.