Briarcliffe College President Santiago Receives Honors

Dr. George Santiago Jr., president of Briarcliffe College (Long Island City, Bethpage & Patchogue N.Y.) and a prominent advocate of advanced education opportunities within the Hispanic community, received the 2009 Nassau County Hispanic Heritage Award and was named Educator of the Year by the Long Island Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. Alarmed by the underrepresentation of Hispanics in America's colleges, Santiago has committed to reaching out, including financial support through the Briarcliffe College Hispanic Scholarship Program.

Source: The Hispanic Outlook in Higher Education Magazine

East Elmhurst -- 11369

"For a class assignment, I was asked to study one particular zip code. I chose the zip code just north of where I live in Jackson Heights. That zip code is 11369, which coincides with East Elmhurst. I knew nothing about it, except that it is close to where I live. But the more I looked into it, the more interesting I found it." Kristin Graves

Suffolk County Forces Homeless Immigrants into the Cold

Suffolk County in Long Island has a dark tradition of hate crimes and violence against Latino immigrants. The County government has long turned a blind eye, even fostering an atmosphere in which the color of your skin can get you attacked with a baseball bat or BB gun. Now, the town of Huntington has taken another, active step in the abuse, what a New York Times editorial deems "an exercise in needless cruelty": destroying a makeshift camp where homeless immigrants found shelter from the bitter New York cold.

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Vigil for Jose Sucuzhanay - Bushwick, Brooklyn, 11AM, 12.12.2009

Hello Friends and Allies,

We are writing to you to invite you to observe the one year anniversary of Jose Sucuzhanay's death.

In December of last year, Bushwick resident Jose Sucuzhanay was brutally murdered in an anti-immigrant and anti-LGBT attack on Bushwick ave. This unfortunate incident has fortunately given space for a conversation to begin between many communities who are suffering the consequences of hate violence.

Join us for a morning of community healing and to invoke the memory of those family members, friends and community members who have been victims of hate violence and to look at the solutions we have developed with community members in response to the outburst of violence that has hit the LGBT/Latin@/Immigrant communities.

Sincerely,
Diego Sucuzhanay & The Sucuzhanay Family

What: 1 year Anniversary of Jose Sucuzhanay's Death
When: Saturday, December 12, 2009 at 11am
Where: Make the Road NY- Bushwick: 301 Grove Street (between Myrtle ave. and Knickerbocker Ave.) Brooklyn, NY 11237
Directions: Take the L or M train to Myrtle-Wycoff
Who: The Sucuzhanay Family, The Lucero Family, The Price Family (to be confirmed), Office of Councilwoman Diana Reyna, James Garci­a- Director of the Film 'Taught to Hate', Make the Road NY, Latinoamericanos Unidos, International Ecuadorian Alliance, other LGBT community organizations and Bushwick Community Members.

For more information contact Karina Claudio-Betancourt at karina.claudio@maketheroadny.org or at 718-4187690 ext 1278.

Taught to Hate - a film by James Garcia Sotomayor

The Long Island Latino Film Festival is this week -- Nov. 6,7,8 . Coincidently, it opens exactly a year and a short drive from the place and time of Marcelo Lucero's murder by a racist wolf pack. That senseless and evil murder shocked the immigrant communities across Long Island, the United States and even across the world.

It also exposed an ugly, deadly vein of hate typically veiled behind the leafyscapes of American suburbia, a vein mined by nativists politicians like Maricopa County's Joe Arpaio, Hazelton PA's Lou Barletta and Suffolk County's Steve Levy.

Now comes what may be the first of its type, "Taught to Hate,” a 27 fiction film based on the Lucero killing and the American sub-culture shaped by hate. The filmmaker is James Garcia Sotomayor, a local filmmaker and Latino immigrant who funnelled his life savings into making the film. He did so because, "I had to do something."

It's been noted that Marcelo's surname name means 'Shining Light'. The memory of Marcelo Lucero and the works of people like Garcia Sotomayor are our Luceros.

The Long Island Latino International Film Festival Nov. 6-7-8, 2009

The Long Island Latino International Film Festival

Nov. 6-7-8, 2009

This year LILIFF is screening several premiers and world premiers including the film “Stereo Typed” produced on Long Island and features actor Frankie G. who has been in films such as “The Italian Job”, “Manito” and the upcoming film the “Devils Tomb”.Read more

Box Office
Festival Tickets: LILIFF offers 8 Screening Programs throughout the festival. Each program features a group of films for one price.

3-Day Festival Pass Price: $40
Festival passes allow access to ALL Screening Programs.Get your tickets
Individual Programs Price: $10Get your tickets

Nassau County Exec Tom Suozzi on Immigration Policy 11/17/09

"Getting It Right on Immigration: What’s Working, What’s Next"

Nassau County Executive Thomas R. Suozzi and a panel of respected civic leaders will discuss immigration on Long Island and the principles needed to guide the debate on immigration reform.

Tuesday, November 17, 2009
6:00PM - 8:30PM

Marriott Hotel
1350 Old Walt Whitman Rd.
Melville, NY 11747

KEYNOTE SPEAKER
Thomas R. Suozzi
Nassau County Executive

PANELISTS
Roger Clayman, LI Federation of Labor

Matthew T. Crosson, LIA

Chung-Wha Hong, New York Immigration Coalition

Sister Margaret Smyth, Hispanic Apostolate of the North Fork

MODERATED BY
Suman Raghunathan, Immigration Policy Analyst

Admission is free, but space is limited. Please RSVP by email to info@longislandwins.com or by phone to 516-304-5642.

El Diario-La Prensa Endorses Bill Thompson for Mayor

El Diario-La Prensa's endorsement (Bill Thompson for Mayor) tells why all City voters must reject King Bloomies' bid for a 3rd term and instead pull the lever for Bill Thompson. en español

Excerpt 1
After a decade misspent lionizing the rich and their excesses, too many New Yorkers are paying the price for the decisions made in Washington, on Wall Street and in City Hall. What NYC needs is an executive with a balanced perspective...where families most in need are a high priority. This leader is Bill Thompson.

Excerpt 2
Thompson has a sterling record...[and] has won the backing of highly regarded elected officials, including Nydia Velázquez, José Serrano, Rubén Díaz Jr. and Adriano Espaillat...DC37, TWU Local 100 and the Firefighters....

Excerpt 3
[Bloomberg's undemocratic maneuver he pulled on term limits] is not simply slick scheming—it is a gross abuse of power. Even Venezuela's President Hugo Chávez conducted a plebiscite on his extended stay in power.

Excerpt 4
With city government already tipped to favor the executive branch, Bloomberg’s power grab delivers a clear message: the ability of constituents to challenge power and shape decisions at the top is seriously in danger.

Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers' LI Networking Event - 10/15

Thursday, October 15, 2009
6:00 - 9:00 pm
Four Food Studio
515 Broadhollow Road
Melville, New York

Please RSVP at rsvp@shpe-nyc.org

Visit www.shpe-nyc.org for more information.

Bogota Latin Bistro

On par with some of Manhattan's best latin restaurants but located in Park Slope, Brooklyn, Bogota Latin Bistro is a relaxed neighborhood restaurant that mixes latin-inspired cuisine with tropical drinks including mojitos, caipirinhas, and imported latin american wines and beers.

Bogota Bistro features live music on the first 3 Wednesdays of each month and offers a great happy hour All Night Long on Monday, Wednesday & Thursday with reduced prices on the most popular drinks.