To Whom It May Concern:
My name is Amy Diaz and I am Harvard student working for fluenz.org, an early stage non-profit organization looking to create a survival English program for low-income Spanish speaking immigrants and refugees in the US. Right now, we are in the research phase of our project, looking for the best way to serve this population. I was hoping to conduct informational interviews with members of your group who have experience teaching ESL classes to these populations. Your help will be greatly appreciated!

Thank you in advance for your time.
Amy Diaz / gro.zneulfobfsctd-fa2dd@yma
fluenz.org

Faculty from nine universities and colleges will hold the largest ever conference on black and Latina/o sexuality on April 11-12 at the University of Illinois at Chicago. “Race, Sex, Power: New Movements in Black and Latina/o Sexualities,” the culmination of [Read more…] about CFP: 4/11 New Movements in Black and Latina/o Sexualities

Preliminary schedule now available, along with info about plenary speakers, convenient air-conditioned dorm rooms (still available 7/6), registration forms, local lodging & transportation info, open mic night 8/4, and much more…. go to the summer institute blog by clicking here, or click on the beautiful new Summer Institute poster in the right column

From: Comunidad De Sacramento [mailto:sacracomunidad@gmail.com]

Dear friends,
I write this letter with great sadness to inform you that our beloved teacher Ricardo Favela died on Sunday, July 15, 2007 in Dinuba, California of a heart attack. Favela was a great person, a great father and a great teacher and friend. Favela was a humble man that fought for civil rights with his artwork and community activism.

Estimados amigos/as,
Escribo esta carta con una gran tristeza para informarles que nuestro querido maestro Ricardo Favela falleció el domingo, 15 de Julio del 2007 en Dinuba, California de un paro cardiaco. Favela fue una gran persona, un gran padre de familia y un gran maestro y amigo. Favela siempre fue una persona humilde que luchó por los derechos de La Raza a través de su arte y de su activismo comunitario.

See below for mass and memorial….
[Read more…] about Ricardo Favela passes

The deadline for the Essay Writing Workshop has been extended. Manuscripts must be RECEIVED by July 16, 2007. Plenty of spaces open.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE DETAILS [Read more…] about Deadline for Essay Writing Workshop Extended

18-Year Old Victim Had Testified in April for Passage of Matthew Shepard Act

Take action with Equality Now to help pass the Matt Shephard Act

Austin, TX (July 2, 2007) – Equality Texas today mourns the death of David Ritcheson, the 18-year-old Spring, Texas teenager who had survived an April, 2006 brutal hate crime. On April 22, 2006, Ritcheson was beaten nearly to death by self-professed Skinheads, who cut him, burned him, poured bleach over him, sodomized him with an outdoor umbrella pole and yelled anti-Hispanic slurs.

Last November and December, Ritcheson sat in a courtroom in Harris County, Texas and faced his attackers for the first time as they went through their respective trials. Ritcheson’s attackers eventually were convicted of aggravated sexual assault; one was given a life sentence, the other 90 years.

[On Sunday, July 1, 2007, David Ritcheson apparently jumped to his death from the upper deck of a cruise ship in the Gulf of Mexico

Less than three months ago, on April 17, 2007, David Ritcheson went to Washington, D.C. and testified before the House Judiciary Committee urging passage of the “Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2007”, also known as the Matthew Shepard Act.
Ritcheson’s testimony included:

“I appear before you as a survivor of one of the most despicable, shocking, and heinous acts of hate violence this country has seen in decades. Nearly one year ago on April 22, 2006, I was viciously attacked by two individuals because of my heritage as a Mexican-American.”

[Read more…] about Mourning the death of David Ritcheson