J.Lo & Marc Anthony Dance Around Divorce in Upcoming Reality Show

Hands up: Who became a lot more excited about "¡Q'Viva! The Chosen"--the upcoming Latin American talent-search show helmed by Jennifer Lopez, Marc Anthony, and "American Idol" creator Simon Fuller--once it was revealed that the show would go on despite J.Lo and Marc's divorce? I had previously figured that, since I didn't find J.Lo's softball critiques or Marc's detailed in-ear-monitor tutorials on "Idol" all that fascinating this year, I had no need to tune in to their own reality venture. But I sure as heck plan to set my DVR now, especially now that I've seen the latest trailer.

The Lopez-Anthonys decided to end their seven-year marriage back in July, but shortly thereafter confirmed to Deadline.com via a rep for Fuller's XIX Entertainment that "they're both committed to '¡Q'Viva!'" (if not to each other). The forthcoming series will depict the ex-power couple conducting an international talent search in 21 countries across Latin America with superstar choreographer Jamie King. No word yet on whether it will also depict the meltdown of their marriage, but the two have filmed scenes together since their split. The new trailer above in fact features footage of their recent joint trip to Puerto Rico, including a scene depicting J.Lo dancing with some of the show's contestants while Marc watches from the sidelines. It's a big contrast to that notorious "Idol" finale performance back in May, when Jennifer sexily danced with Marc.

I am sure many viewers, myself included, will be closely scrutinizing any pre-separation footage, already in the can, for signs that Marc and Jennifer's reunion was in trouble. And we'll probably all be watching the post-divorce footage for any "War Of The Roses"-style battles or cameos by Jennifer's new much-younger boyfriend, Caspar Smart. Interestingly, Deadline.com reported earlier this year that the drama surrounding J.Lo and Marc's breakup was to likely help line up distributors for the show, which didn't have a confirmed network at the time. I'm sure it will help line up advertisers and viewers, too. I bet TV conspiracy theorists have already assumed the separation announcement was just a publicity stunt for the show, even. I'm sure it's not...but if it was, it'd be genius.

"¡Q'Viva!" premieres January 28 on the Spanish-language station Univision, just 10 days after the Season 11 "American Idol" premiere; the show's English-language station will be announced in January. Are you more likely to watch "¡Q'Viva! The Chosen" more than you were before?

SOURCE Lyndsey Parker

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Posted in ¡QViva The Chosen , 2012 ¡QViva The Chosen , 2012 jennifer lopez , 2012 marc anthony , famous latinos , J.lo , Latinos , Marc Anthony

Growing Number of Migrants are Leaving US for Latin America

Faced with a battered U.S. economy and dismal job opportunities, Nubia Díaz and her husband Camilo left metropolitan Miami for the tiny town of Pandi in Colombia, where they say their money can take them much farther.

And they are not alone. An increasing number of Latin Americans -- documented and undocumented -- are choosing to return to their native countries, where political climates are stabilizing and their economies are growing.

“We are very comfortable here,” said Nubia, a dual citizen of Colombia and the U.S. “It is good for us. We have many things that we don’t have over there. Here, our house that is fully paid, we don’t have to pay mortgage. All we have to pay are bills.”

When the United States economy tanked after the real estate bubble burst, undocumented immigrants returned in droves to Latin America, especially those who worked in the construction sector, according to a study from the Economic Policy Institute. Since then, the return rate has decreased but is still higher than usual, advocates say, citing anecdotal evidence.

“It’s not as high as you’d think,” concedes Colin Raja, program director of the National Network of Immigration Reform. “But we are definitely seeing an increase in the number of people going back.”

There are 1 million fewer undocumented immigrants in the U.S. since 2007, according to estimates. The Department of Homeland Security and the Pew Hispanic Center both estimate that the number of undocumented immigrants was the same in January 2010 as it was the previous year.

“What we’ve seen from Mexico is that inflow has dropped precipitously and outflow has stayed flat,” said Aaron Terrazas, analyst from the Migration Policy Institute.

One big reason that illegal immigration has slowed into the U.S. is a sharp increase in the cost. There is a heightened fear of being deported amid the passage of tighter immigration bills, say activists with the National Network of Immigration Reform. In addition, these activists say coyotes whom some immigrants pay to bring them across the border have increased their fees from $500 before the real estate boom to as high as $3,000 a person.

Economics are the main reason that people leave.

In areas such as New York City, Reverend Hector from Trinity Church in Sunset Park, Brooklyn says his congregation with a large Latino immigrant population has been hit hard by economics. One parishioner, a single mother, who frequents the food pantry, spends $800 a month on rent, $200 on child care and winds up with $200 left over, he says. She has been considering returning to her native Ecuador because she’s not sure that the sacrifices she’s made are worthwhile.

“She has told me at least she can live with dignity in her country,” he said.

The economy has hit Latinos hardest in Providence, Rhode Island and Hartford Connecticut, where they have the highest unemployment rates in the country, according to a recent study by the Economic Policy Institute.

Residents in the area are acutely aware of this fact.

Julio Aragon, president of Mexican Association of Rhode Island, said he knows of families who have left the area for other states before returning to their homeland because times are tough. But for some, leaving is the same as admitting a sort of defeat and is a blow to pride, he explained.

“The last thing is to move to Mexico,” said Aragon. “We are feeling like we are stuck in the middle of nowhere all the (anti-immigrant) declarations from politicians, but we still believe we can do better here than we can at home. We maintain the dream.”

While documented professionals from countries like Mexico, Colombia and Chile, are returning home, they maintaining a US base and migrate between the two countries, said Terrazas.

Diaz and her family will join in the circular migration when they return to the US in a few years. At that time, their son will be old enough to start school. Her husband hopes he will be educated in the US but the family expects their youngest member will be lured back to Colombia with his parents, where they hope the economy continues to strengthen under a stable political climate and there is less pressure to work long hours to maintain a nice lifestyle.

“I know many people that moved back to Colombia,” said Diaz. After an accident, her husband could no longer work and relied on disability checks to pay the bills. “The money that we have every day was less, less, less because everything was higher. We are very, very good with that money and we are very comfortable here.”

Soni Sangha is a freelance writer based in New York City.

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Posted in anti immigrant , Chile , Colombia , illegal deportee , illegal immigrants , Latinos , mexico , National Network of Immigration Reform

The U.S. Hispanic Market Will Soon Be the World's 11th Largest Economy!

At yesterday's Wall Street Summit in New York City, global CEO and corporate director Solomon "Sol" Trujillo gave a landmark, paradigm-shifting keynote speech called "Follow The Money," which put the $1.1 trillion dollar U.S. Hispanic market into a global perspective.

"The U.S. Hispanic market will soon be the 11th largest economy in the world," Trujillo said.  Putting the Hispanic market in the same category as Brazil, Russia, India, and China (the BRIC countries), he pointed out that U.S. Hispanics actually have more per capita purchasing power than the BRIC countries as well as the Group of 20 (G-20) member nations South Africa, Mexico, Argentina, Korea, Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Australia.

How did the G-20 countries earn their seats at the table?  By growing their economies and creating wealth.  U.S. Hispanics have done the same thing.  By delivering economic growth and driving wealth creation, Hispanics have earned a seat at the table and deserve recognition for contributing to America’s competitiveness and America’s seat at the “global table."  Economic power drives political power, not the other way around – and American Hispanics are amassing political influence by earning it through wealth creation.

Source: Fox News Latino

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Posted in Hispani market , hispanic economy , latin , latino , Latinos , salsacircuit , worlds 11th largest economy

New York Latinos parade down Fifth Avenue

New York, Oct 10, 2011 (EFE via COMTEX) -- Latin American countries celebrated the 519th anniversary of the discovery of America with the 47th annual Hispanic Day Parade down New York's Fifth Avenue, displaying with pride their festive music and dance, colorful costumes and age-old traditions.

Spanish music, cumbias, merengue, salsa, not forgetting reggaeton, were heard all along the avenue, where families from different Latin countries came waving their national flags to enjoy the event in which 9,000 people marched, according to organizer Edgardo Alonzo.

Spain - as the country that discovered the New World - presides every year over the parade, which in Sunday's march included for the first time representatives of the Spanish Civil Guard.

"We were surprised by such an emotional reception. It's an honor for Spain to preside" over this event, Civil Guard officer Jose Martin told Efe.

This year's parade, whose grand marshals were Roberto and Peter Unanue, president and vice president of the Goya food company, marched under the slogan "No to domestic violence!" and had as its sponsor the commissioner of the Mayor's Office to Combat Domestic Violence, Yolanda Jimenez.

"The idea is for the Latino community to say 'enough' to domestic violence and unite to fight against it. So that any victims know that they're not alone, that there is help," Jimenez told Efe.

The parade began at noon on a cool, sunny fall day, with members of the organizing committee and Spanish Consul Fernando Villalonga followed by the rest of the Latin American consuls and, in step with them, the traditional pipers.

"Viva Mexico and all other Latin American countries...Vc Domingo..." shouted the Latinos who gathered all along the avenue, not missing a chance to take photos and videos, or to applaud and cry out as representatives of their respective countries passed by.

"It's important for us to celebrate this event because New York is the biggest show window for displaying the best of the traditions, culture and customs our countries have to offer, and since a lot of people cannot go back to their countries of origin for reasons that we well know, it's a way of bringing them a little of what they left behind," organizer Alonzo told Efe. EFE

Source rh/cd

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Posted in Consul Fernando Villalonga , Fifth Avenue NYC , Hispanic Day Parade , Latinos , New York Latinos , Viva Mexico

Forty Years Since the Birth of Salsa: Does Anyone Really Care?

For the majority of Latinos struggling to provide a better life for their families, Salsa music is of little concern and certainly not at the top of their list of priorities. So what’s so important and why should they care that August 26, 2011 marked the 40th anniversary of the event many consider to be the birth of Salsa?

Why? If for no other reason, it should provide us all with a sense of Pride. Why? Because Salsa is our greatest cultural art form being embraced today by people of all ages and nationalities around the world. I dare say that Salsa is perhaps our greatest contribution to world culture.

Salsa and the 1970s Latino

Cultural Renaissance in New York City

Starting in the late ’60s and into the ’70s, Latinos had a major cultural impact on New York City. It was a new generation of English speaking Puerto Rican baby boomers who created a Renaissance in all the arts and even had their own media voice (Latin NY magazine). They expressed their presence in poetry, their clothes, lifestyles and, of course, their most popular art form — their music!

The new Latino lifestyle started emerging in the 1960s with Latin Soul music (The Boogaloo) in places like the St. George Hotel in Brooklyn. In the 1970s, it was the world famous Cheetah Discotheque that became the showplace of these young Latinos, and they gathered by the tens of thousands every Sunday in Central Park. Their immense presence literally Latinized the park as well as the City itself with a new look and a new sound.

August 26 1971

The Fania All Stars perform at the Cheetah

This was no ordinary performance, it was an explosion of energy no one had ever felt or experienced before. This incredible event was captured on film and released the following year as Our Latin Thing. A few years later, it would have a greater impact than when originally released. Ironically, while many consider this night as the birth of Salsa, there is no mention of the word Salsa in the movie.

In 1973, Latin NY Magazine was launched from the Cheetah. The Fania All Stars’ concert at Yankee Stadium draws 44,000 screaming fans. Later that year, I hosted a TV Show called Salsa!

1975: The Spark that Ignited the Salsa Explosion!

Its fire fanned by the Newyorican fervor, the Salsa scene was bursting at the seams. Like dynamite waiting for a spark to ignite it, Salsa was ready to explode. The spark came in the form of Latin NY’s First Salsa Awards in May 1975.

This event received greater (pre and post) mass media coverage than was ever given to any Latin music event at that time and thus gave Salsa its biggest push and momentum. The coverage by mainstream media such as The New York. Times, created an incredible worldwide avalanche of interest in Salsa. What made the awards (by American media standards) a “newsworthy” event was that we publicized the event and our intense public criticism of NARAS for ignoring 17 years of repeated requests to give Latin music its own separate category in the Grammys.

Though ignored by local Spanish media, the rest of the world took notice. From Europe (Holland, Germany, France, Italy, England, etc.) and as far away as Japan, journalists and TV camera crews came to New York to comment on and document Salsa; what they perceived as a new phenomenon of high energy rhythmic Latino urban music, its dancing and its lifestyles.

Salsa dancing has created a world-wide industry that is booming. Salsa Clubs and dance studios continue to spring up to meet the demands of the 100s of thousands wanting to learn how to dance Salsa. This growing interest has also led to the growth of local Salsa bands throughout European, African and even Asian countries. They sound like and even dress-up to look like 1970s Latinos.

Source Izzy Sanabria

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Posted in dance salsa , Latino urban music , Latinos , salsa circuit , salsa clubs , salsa dance studios , salsa dancing , Salsa Explosion

Secure Communities: Latinos Take Immigration Battle to Obama's Footstep

Latinos in six cities railed against President Obama's immigration policies Wednesday – and threatened to turn their backs on him come Election Day.

The protestors criticized the president for his record on deportations and Secure Communities, the controversial program that requires local law enforcement to share information of people arrested with immigration officials. The Department of Homeland Security said earlier this month that it would expand the program nationwide by 2013.

The coalition of Latino groups simultaneously rallied in the following six cities: Chicago; Houston; Boston; Miami; Atlanta; and Charlotte. Organizers said they delivered petitions signed by tens of thousands of supporters.

Some 200 protestors even went to Obama's campaign office in Chicago to deliver the message, organizers said.

"We are here to try to save the Obama campaign from itself," said Roberto Lovato, one of the organizers. "If he continues with these massive deportations and Secure Communities, he's going to lose the election."

In a lengthy response, the White House said that DHS has for the "first time has prioritized the removal of people who have been convicted of crimes in the United States. It further defended its record of deportations, saying more than half of all removals are people with criminal records.

It said it was proud of Secure Communities, too.

"The Secure Communities Program is a powerful tool to keep the government's immigration enforcement resources where they belong – on those who fit within DHS's highest enforcement priorities, such as those who have committed crimes in the United States," said Cecilia Muñoz, the director of intergovernmental affairs for the White House.

The controversy over the program and its implementation has been criticized by politicians. Governors in New York, Massachusetts and Illinois – not to mention officials in other localities – wanted to withdraw from program.

In Los Angeles, meanwhile, The Associated Press said 200 people – carrying signs that read "Terminate Secure Communities" and waving Mexican and Brazilian flags – attended a public hearing on Secure Communities held by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and called for an end to the program.

"Every day I live the nightmare of this program," Blanca Pérez, 38, who said she was arrested in February for street vending without a permit, told The AP. "Now I am facing deportation for the simple act of selling ice cream in the street."

On Tuesday, the National Day Laborer Organizing Network released a report condemning Secure Communities and calling for its termination.

"This report confirms what immigrant communities have long known. The program called Secure Communities results in the opposite," the National Community Advisory Commission said in a statement.  "Entangling local police in immigration enforcement is not just bad policy as the experts testify.

"Conscripting local police into immigration enforcement has provoked a massive civil rights crisis our country now faces," the statement continued. "The only suitable approach is to end Secure Communities."

The Department of Homeland Security, meanwhile, said in a statement that it has recently developed additional training for local law enforcement along with a new policy to protect domestic violence victims.

It also said it created the task force to make recommendations for other changes, recognizing "that there is room for improvement in the operation of the program."

ICE is currently running the program in 44 states and plans to achieve nationwide coverage in 2013.

Local law enforcement agencies routinely send fingerprints to the FBI for criminal background checks when an individual is arrested. Under Secure Communities, the FBI shares the fingerprints with Homeland Security to look for potentially deportable immigrants.

President Obama, whom the Latino community overwhelmingly supported in the 2008 election, has gotten mixed reviews. In recent months, he has made an effort to woo Hispanics, like visiting Puerto Rico and El Paso, and giving a speech before the National Council of La Raza.

At the Chicago rally, Oscar Chacón, executive director of the National Alliance of Latin American and Caribbean Communities, said the White House has his priorities mixed up.

"Secure Communities doesn't contribute any tangible benefit to anyone, it has to disappear," he said. "What makes the communities unsafe is the bad state of the economy."

Source EFE

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Posted in barack obama , Immigration Law , Latinos , Latinos deportation , National Alliance of Latin American , National Day Laborer Organizing Network , Top best 2011 Immigration Latinos

Latinos Tired of Obama’s Inaction on Immigration Reform

For Emma Lozano, President Barack Obama’s hosting his birthday bash in Chicago’s Aragon Ballroom—the same place, set in a heavily Latino community, where acts like Los Tigres del Norte sing pro-immigrant songs—was “a slap in the face” to Latinos, to whom he’s promised much but come up short. So Lozano and 400 others staged their own bash outside the theater, complete with giant cardboard cake, signs that read “Obama, Don’t Deport My Mama” and “Obama 2010: Most Deportation in US History” and chanting.

“He was celebrating his birthday, but we can’t do that with our families, because he’s separating our families,” said Lozano, co-chair of the pro-immigrant Familia Latina Unida and pastor of the Lincoln United Methodist Church.

The event was hardly the only one showcasing Latinos’ growing disappointment and impatience with Obama when it comes to immigration reform. While speaking at the National Council of La Raza’s annual conference in July, Obama was interrupted by some members of the 2,000-strong audience chanting “Yes You Can!” in response to his statement that he would not act unilaterally on immigration reform by signing an executive order to stop deportations, a move the immigration advocates like Congressman Luis Gutierrez have increasingly called for.

This week, the National Hispanic Leadership Agenda gave Obama a “C” grade on issues important to Hispanics, with chairperson Lillian Rodriguez Lopez telling reporters that "immigration is clearly an area where we say Obama overpromised and under-delivered" and calling the last seven months “disastrous.”

While backlogs for legal immigration have reached an all-time high, deportations have as well—despite several reports saying that the border is more secure than ever, after massive build up of law enforcement forces, and that immigration from Mexico is at an all-time low.

The latest blow to pro-immigrant groups: The Dept. of Homeland Security’s decision to make the Secure Communities Program mandatory last week. The program enables federal authorities to use local and state databases to find and deport illegal immigrants with criminal records. But several states, including Illinois and Connecticut, have said that the program nets too many immigrants with no criminal record.

For Latino leaders like Lozano, recent events mean that Obama has been speaking with a forked tongue: telling Latinos he’s working on comprehensive immigration reform on one hand but failing to do so, as promised on the campaign trail, even when he had a majority in Congress, and then implementing policies and enforcement that hurt immigrants. “It’s like he’s working for Republicans,” Lozano says.

The numbers seem to bear out Latinos growing anger at Obama. A June Gallup poll shows that the President’s approval ratings among Hispanics have dipped from 73 percent in December 2009 to 52 percent.

What alternatives will Latinos have when it comes to electing a president? Come the 2012 elections, will Latinos, two-thirds of whom voted for Obama in 2008, according to the Pew Hispanic Center, defect to the Republican party?

Laura Garza, Texas state director for the Latino conservative group Somos Republicans doesn’t think so, although with Texas Gov. Rick Perry—who Garza says “understands the Latino heart” likely entering the race, he holds out hope. “A month ago, given the choice between a lazy president who said he would help them and those who would round undocumented immigrants up and deport them because the Tea Party rhetoric had dominated the Republican Party, I would have said, they’ll stay with Obama,” Garza says. “Because it would be like jumping from the frying pan into the fire.”

“But with the tea party’s agenda waning,” because of its intransigence during the debt crisis, he added, “the Republican Party may not be quite as repulsive as it was.”

Lozano disagrees. “Latinos feel so betrayed that I think they’ll just stay home,” she says

Source Damarys Ocana

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Posted in barack obama , Gov. Rick Perry , Latin Immigration Reform , Latinos , Laura Garza

EXCLUSIVE: President Obama Tells Latina the Economic Crisis “Has Shaken A Lot of Confidence”

Despite acknowledging that the recent showdown with Congress over raising the debt ceiling “has shaken a lot of confidence” and left “some repair work that needs to be done,” President Obama does not plan to call Congress back from its recess to address the growing economic crisis.  “The issue for Congress isn’t simply being back in town if all they are doing is engaging in the same gridlock that we saw before,” the President told Latina magazine in an exclusive interview from the Oval Office on Wednesday afternoon. “That’s not going to increase people’s confidence.”

President Barack Obama: "We Define Ourselves as a Nation of Immigrants"

Stressing the need for “a bipartisan approach that not only deals with the short-term challenge with jobs, but also with the long-term challenges with our debt and deficit,” the President said that crafting a successful economic strategy will require “a level of cooperation between the parties in Congress that we have not seen so far, but that I will continue pushing for.”

Obama to Latinos: “Build a Movement, Keep Heat on Me”

The President also downplayed criticisms that he has not asserted enough leadership in his dealings with Congress. “The situation we are going through is not simply a matter of people knowing that their President is concerned,” President Obama said, before laying responsibility for the economic crisis squarely at the feet of Congress, singling out House Republicans for playing “brinkmanship with respect to the debt ceiling.”

Barack Obama Reaches Out to Latinos with Political Telenovela 

The President’s comments came as part of a wide-ranging interview that will appear in the November issue of Latina magazine, and marks the first time a sitting U.S. President has spoken with Latina.

Source Galina Espinoza

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Posted in 2011 President Barack Obama economy crisis , Economic Crisis 2011 , Latinos , President Barack Obama US crisis , Top best USA economic crisis 2011

Shakira, Jennifer Lopez & Selena Gomez Are Among Latinos Using Social Media to Fight Hunger

Some of the biggest Latino names in the world – Shakira, Jennifer Lopez, Selena Gomez, Ricky Martin and Enrique Iglesias, among others – are using their social media influence to try to end hunger in East Africa.

The Hollywood Reporter says that each of the 150 celebs will highlight the campaign on their Twitter and Facebook accounts on Tuesday in the hopes of raising awareness and "a global audience of 700 million."    

The project’s main partner is "Save the Children." It will also feature Bob Marley’s 1973 tune “High Tide or Low Tide” as the theme song.

Other stars participating in the effort are Tego Calderón, Taio Cruz, Bruno Mars, Lady Gaga, Justin Bieber and Britney Spears.

Source Alexandra J. Gratereaux

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Posted in britney spears , bruno mars , Jennifer Lopez , justin bieber , lady gaga , Latinos , Save the Children , selena gomez , shakira , Taio Cruz , Tego Calderón

Our obsession with Latino celebrities

It’s true. Latinos have an obsession with celebrities. And not just any celebrity, but our own. For some odd reason, whenever we see Dra. Ana Maria Polo, Jennifer Lopez or Sofia Vergara in person, we just find a cultural connection and immediately go into “OMG” mode. Why is it so? Just like anything else in our cultural lives, because they are Latino in the U.S. with successful careers, we seem to look at them with a more passionate view as appose to anything else.

Okay sure Justin Bieber is a good performer, but Jennifer Lopez seems to draw a bigger crowd. Not only did she make it “bigger” with the addition to American Idol, but it seems as though Puerto Ricans and other Latinos look at her as inspiration to make it big. With her debut in the movie Selena, it was there where we as Latinos looked at ourselves and said, “She did it. So can we.”

One of my favorite examples of obsession is with Dra. Ana Maria Polo. Out of all the people we look up to it seems as though women find her work the most inspirational. Is it because she helps solve casos de la vida real or because she is a breast cancer survivor? The more real life situations the celebrity has, the more connection we seem to get. I mean it’s not every day when she can talk about how her “people” inspires her right? Like she says, “Por que trabajamos más que nadie.”

It’s true that celebrities are looked at as icons in their own way, but you have to admit nothing is more exciting than meeting someone who has struggled just as you have. Remember that there’s a reason why our parents came to live in the U.S.; to give us an opportunity and it’s that orgullo that keeps us going. When we see an immigrant similar to ourselves make it in the U.S., we immediately draw a bigger connection than to someone who just raps about money.

Even sports cause a huge obsession. The U.S. is one of the few countries where soccer, or futbol, is underappreciated. It’s funny seeing Colombian, Brazilian or other Latin American country players play for MLS teams. We love to yell, hate and love our main players. If they don’t make it to the world cup, all hell breaks loose.

I must admit the only time I would go gaga for anyone would be Shakira. Yes she has good music, but she also cares about the children via her philanthropy Pies Descalzos. I mean really any endorsement involving children gets you extra browning points. So what’s the real difference between our obsession and other cultural obsessions? It will always be our commitment to community and family. We understand struggle, pain and sorrow and at the same time happiness. Our cultural roots to our homeland always brings a smile to our own faces.

Source Eric Cortes

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Posted in Dra. Ana Maria Polo , Jennifer Lopez , Latin America , Latin Celebrities , Latinos , shakira

The Smithsonian Institute Honors Latin Music with A New Exhibition

The Smithsonian Institute has opened a new exhibition honoring Latin music. The title of this work is American Sabor: Latinos in U.S. Popular Music. The exhibition includes a mix of panels, graphic works, audio material and musical instruments related to the development of Latin music in the United States.

American Sabor: Latinos in U.S. Popular Music takes a look at the contributions that Latin music artists have produced in the US since the 1940s. The exhibition is an opportunity to explore the social conditions that provoked the birth of legendary stars like Tito Puente, Celia Cruz and Selena.

Geographically speaking, this unique cultural event focuses on five cities that have been shape to a large extent by Latinos. The exhibition covers the evolution of Latin music in New York, Los Angeles, Miami, San Francisco and San Antonio.

American Sabor: Latinos in U.S. Popular Music will run between July and October at the Ripley Center in Washington DC. If you like Latin music and have the chance to be in the nation's capital during this time of the year, this exhibition is definitely a nice opportunity to learn more about the sabor (flavor) that has defined Latin music throughout the years.

Source  Carlos Quintana

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Posted in celia cruz , latin music , latino music , Latinos , Salsa , salsa dance , selena , tito puente

Meet The Latinos of ‘So You Think You Can Dance’ Season 8!

Some of the most talented contestants in So You Think You Can Dance history have been Latinos (remember Cuban salsera Janette Manrara and season 5 winner, Jeanine Mason?) — and this season is no different. Meet the five Latinos who will be competing in tonight's top 14 when SYTYCD airs at 8/7c on FOX!

Jordan Casanova, 18

Hometown: Chino Hills, CA

Latin Roots: Colombian

Experience: She's been dancing since she was 8 years old and specializes in Jazz.

Why She Can Win: She has an endearing girl-next-door innocence about her in interviews, but when she's onstage, Jordan transforms into a saucy vixen. The mark of a great dancer is that he or she makes the audience want to dance too, and Jordan definitely achieves that! Of all the Latino contestants this season, we think Jordan has the best shot at winning!

Name: Clarice Ordaz, 19

Hometown: Whittier, CA

Latin Roots: Mexican

Experience: Clarice, who started dancing at the age of 2, trained at Anaheim Ballet for five years and at West Coast School of the Arts for another ten years. She is skilled at Tap, Ballet, Jazz, Musical Theatre, Lyrical, Contemporary, and Hip Hop.

Why She Can Win: Knowing a bunch of different dance styles and genres is something that gives her an advantage.

Name: Ryan Ramirez

Hometown: Morgan Hill, CA

Latin Roots: Mexican

Experience: She's been dancing since she was 4 years old and choreographing since age 11.

Why She Can Win: She's like able and sweet and her technique is something to be admired.

Alexander Fost, 21

Hometown: Alhambra, CA

Latin Roots: Mexican

Experience: Alexander won Mr. Dance USA in 2006 and Mr. Dance International in 2007. A year later, he earned a spot with the Los Angeles Youth American Grand Prix, and went on to dance with the Media City Ballet, San Pedro Ballet and the Festival Ballet Theatre companies.

Why He Can Win: He's limber, flexible and a fast learner. He makes the dances look effortless and there's an artistry to the way he moves. It's almost like he floats when he dances. Plus, he's got plenty of charm, and abs!

Name: Chris Koehl, 21

 Hometown: Garland, TX

Latin Roots: Mexican

Experience: He began teaching himself Hip-Hop at the age of 14. Over the past few years, he has divided his time between training at local studios, in college classes and teaching dance.

Why He Can Win: A talented hip-hop dancer, Chris has plenty of rhythm and he's great at telling a story through dance.


Source Lee Hernandez

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Posted in 2011So You Think You Can Dance’ Season 8 , Cuban salsera Janette Manrara , fox channel , Latinos , mexican , season 5 winner Jeanine Mason , So You Think You Can Dance’ Season 8