Category Archives: news

East WillyB Webseries Needs Your Help

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Hola everyone. Last year I posted a blog entry about East WillyB, a Latino webseries about a group of longtime residents in Bushwick, Brooklyn going through the ups and downs of the gentrification of their neighborhood.  The amazing talent behind this original effort now needs your help to film a few more episodes in hopes of it being picked up by a major network. The episodes are a few minutes long but with additional filming East WillyB will have 90 minutes worth of material to shop around.

This is where you can help. The producers of East WillyB have started a fundraising campaign to raise $50,000 in 50 days. In 15 days they have already raised over $10,000. With your donation of $1, $5, $10 or more dollars you can soon be seeing more Latinos on television and have the wonderful feeling of knowing that you helped make it happen. So let’s make it happen. Donate now!

I thought the series was extremely funny, the acting stellar, the writing incredible, and the production awesome for an independent project. I can see EastWillyB as an HBO series, on any of the major television networks, or on a future Latino-themed cable channel.

So take a moment to help support independent producers and Latino-themed programming by making a pledge now!

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Empanada For A Dream – NYC. Sat, April 21 through Sun, April 29, 2012

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(Photo courtesy of theateronline.com.)

EMPANADA FOR A DREAM, a new play created and performed by Juan Francisco Villa and directed by Alex Levy, will be showing at The Barrow Group Theatre at 312 West 36th Street (between 8th and 9th Ave) in New York City. The limited 6 show engagement starts off on Saturday, April 21st and runs through Sunday, April 29th, 2012. Tickets are just $18!

EMPANADA FOR A DREAM is Juan’s story, a growing up story, downtown on Allen Street, 169 Allen, Lower East Side.

Everybody’s blasting – bacchata, merengue, salsa, hiphop and rap. And everybody’s cooking – and there’s boys playing baseball, football, skullies, johnny on the pony – and this girl – the most beautiful girl – watching from a window.

This is the story of family – Juan’s tios,  his tias,  his abuelita,  his sister, half sister, his mom and dad – all on a bed – little bed – everybody freezing,  everybody laughing.

EMPANADA FOR A DREAM is a poignant and flavorful portrait of a family and a neighborhood – set against the secret that destroys it all. It’s a story about growing up. It’s a story about getting out. And coming back — to one boy’s Lower East Side. — (Source: Empanada for a Dream press material.)

Support Latino artists and independent theatre by attending one of the shows or/and widely promoting the play via your social networks.

Thanks in advance for spreading the word!

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Crime in Puerto Rico

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Photo: armytimes.com

Crime in Puerto Rico has always been a problem. However within the last two decades, the United States territory has seen the highest crime rates ever recorded. Drug trafficking, severe unemployment, and other social issues on the island indicate there may be no end in sight to the increase in troubling crime statistics.

Police data shows there were 110 murders in Puerto Rico for the month of January this year, 34 more than during the same month in 2010. As of February 22, 2011, there were 179 homicides recorded, 40 more than in the same period last year.

Police statistics dating back to 1940 showed the highest number of murders on the island occurred in 1994, when 995 murders were reported. Since then murder rates have gone down, however in recent years the numbers have skyrocketed again.

On December 25, 2010 police data showed there had been 962 reported violent deaths, 72 more than in 2009, making 2010 the second worse year for homicides on the island since it starting keeping such records.

Crime overall has gotten worse in Puerto Rico and the tough economic times may also be a causing factor. In January of this year the unemployment rate of the U.S. commonwealth claimed up to 15.7 percent.

The combine issue of crime and economic hardship has most likely also caused a slight exodus from the island.

Puerto Rico’s population declined by 2.2 percent in the last decade, which makes the commonwealth one of only two U.S. jurisdictions that saw this trend.

Along with all the troubling statistics, some studies highlight the social affect of Puerto Rico’s problem with crime.

A study by the Josephson Institute of Ethics for the Puerto Rican government found that 28 percent of the island’s 10th-12th grade students took a firearm to school at least once during the past year.

Another report revealed that one in every four high school students had stayed away from school on at least one occasion because they did not feel safe.

For more information about crime in Puerto Rico you can read the full article at ElBoricua.com.

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Latinos, African Americans, and Asians are Top Smartphone Owners

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A new study by NeilsenWire finds Latinos, African Americans, and Asians are top smartphone owners. According to NeilsenWire, 31 percent of the U.S. mobile consumers are smartphone users.  Of those, 45 percent are Latinos, 45 percent are Asians, and 33 percent are African American versus only 27 percent of mainstream Americans who own smartphones.

In the last six months, of all mobile phones that were sold only 42 percent of mainstream America bought smartphones compared to a whopping 56 percent of Latinos and 44 percent of African Americans.

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AT&T vs. Verizon iPhone

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Finally. Another national player gets into the iPhone game. I love the iPhone but like most who do, I hate my AT&T plan. I’m struck with it until September 2011, but I will be watching how Verizon handles the iPhone roll out and its pricing plan. Like most smartphone billing plans, the range generally begins at $100-150 a month. My AT&T bill is getting out of hand, though I now use my iPhone to connect to my laptop at home through something called tethering. Great technology, and it helps me get rid of my Internet provider. The new Verizon iPhone may have a hotspot feature which would allow you connect the iPhone up to five other Internet devices. That would be awesome. I’ll definitely will be watching how Verizon unfolds the iPhone and how it takes care of its customer demand and service. I’ll let you know when my contract is up with AT&T. I can’t wait, but with those ridiculous termination fees, I’ll just have to.

Mashable has a great comparison chart of the iPhone: AT&T vs. Verizon. Are you looking forward the Verizon iPhone? Feel free to comment below.

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