LALO ALCARAZ

Lalo Alcaraz is Jefe-in-Chief of POCHO.

Government shutdown halts Hispanic Heritage Month in mid-month

by

sadted(PNS reporting from WASHINGTON, DC) Effective immediately, all Hispanic Heritage Month observations have been halted due to the current Federal Government shutdown.

HHM activities have been classified as “non-essential” and Washington has issued guidelines on toning down loud festivities and colorful displays as the U.S. Treasury runs out of funding.

As of midnight, October 15, all functions relating to Hispanic Heritage Month ceased, according to Felix Zaragosa of the General Services Administration.

“More than 2,900 Federal Mariachi Administration inspectors were initially furloughed, putting an end to inspections of mariachi uniforms and instruments. The FMA asked 800 employees to return to work last week,” he said.

Mas…Government shutdown halts Hispanic Heritage Month in mid-month

California immigrants hail Jerry Brown’s veto of jury duty bill

by

jurydutylatino(PNS reporting from SACRAMENTO) Gov. Jerry Brown vetoed legislation Monday that would have made California the first state in the nation to allow legal immigrants who are not citizens to serve on juries.

The governor has recently approved bills expanding the rights of immigrants, including legislation allowing those in the country without documents to apply for driver’s licenses and practice law. Democrat Brown said serving on a jury, however, was a civic duty that should be exclusive to citizens.

Ronaldo Santa Flojeraz (photo), 36, a client of the of  Los Angeles Immigrant Rights Labor Center, welcomed Brown’s decision. “Thank you, Governor Brown, for vetoing that bill,” he told PNS. “I was not looking forward to having to avoid the jury duty summons mailers sent by the local courts. I got better things to do.”

Mas…California immigrants hail Jerry Brown’s veto of jury duty bill

It’s National Taco Day! Eat ’em if you got ’em

by

streettacosAccording to either the National Taco Industry Council, or some drunk person who also just made this up, today is National Taco Day in the United Estates.

And it says so, on to the online hub of this holiday, NationalTacoDay.com:

In 2012, Americans ate 4.5 billion tacos! 
That’s 490,000 miles of tacos, which could take you to the moon and back or, if you prefer, could, at 775-million pounds, equal the weight of two Empire State Buildings.

Damn, that just makes me feel fat. Also on their site, they state oddly that:

Mas…It’s National Taco Day! Eat ’em if you got ’em

La Cucaracha: Voting — it’s not just for white people anymore (toon)

by

cucavotingFifty years ago yesterday, four little girls were killed when white racists dynamited the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, AL. The African-American congregation had been active in the push for civil and voting rights in the segregated South.

But now that a misguided Supreme Court has overturned key provisions of the Voting Rights Act — a law prompted by the nation’s disgust at the Birmingham bombing and the arrests, demonstrations, riots, and murders that followed — the struggle for the right to vote continues.

Sarah Silverman explained the issue last year, when Republicans began their campaign to pass bogus “voter ID”  laws:

Mas…La Cucaracha: Voting — it’s not just for white people anymore (toon)

Califas will issue driver’s licenses to the undocumented

by

cdlFox Latino, which puts “undocumented” in their headline but “illegal” in their story, reports:

California, home to the nation’s largest immigrant population, would become the 11th state to grant immigrants who are in the country illegally [sic] the right to a driver’s license under a bill that passed the Legislature late Thursday and that Gov. Jerry Brown supports.

The success of the legislation comes after years of setbacks for Democratic lawmakers and Latino activists.

The state Assembly approved the bill on a 55-19 vote late in the evening, hours after the Senate passed it on a 28-8 vote. The Democratic governor issued a statement indicating he would sign it into law.

+ Load More Posts