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I’ve spent the bulk of the last year and a half putting together a documentary film that researched Puerto Rican history, culture, and identity. After all this time, I’m finally proud to say that I’ve finally crossed the finish line and completed this project. My film, “Boricua Soy Yo” will screen at UCF (University of Central Florida) Celebrates the Arts here in Orlando, at the famed Dr. Phillips Center for the Arts on April 9th, before I partake in the film festival circuit. To say that I’m breathing a sigh of relief would be an understatement, as producing an independent documentary, solely by oneself (with a little help) on a shoestring budget is a very overwhelming task. In mid-July 2020, as many fellow Americans, I found myself jobless due to the COVID-19 pandemic which at still has its traces in our everyday life. I was working as a Senior Functional Consultant for a Software Consulting Firm, making good money, however, due to the economic slowdown and societal shutdown fears, sales projections were grim and jobs cuts across the board were made. The loss of my job brought other depression, uncertainty, and self-doubt; however, I took that as an opportunity to pour myself into my next film project, and the idea of “Boricua Soy Yo” was born. Over the last year or so, I’ve written about my journey in y completing this film, sharing the experiences I’ve had and people I’ve met along the way. I’d like to publicly say thank you to the following individuals for their help along the way; Beatriz Flores of El Batey, Alberto O.  Cappas of the Buffalo Latino Village, Maritza Vega of the WNY Hispanic Association, artist Aileen Gonzalez Marti, Dr. Luis Martinez-Fernandez, Dr. Fernando Rivera, Rep. Darren Soto, Efrain Burgos, artist Pedro Brull, artist Maria Ramos, artist Jose Sanchez, Comedian and podcaster Casper Martinez, master sculptor Nilda Comas, and Melanie Maldonado Diaz or PROPA. This project could not have been completed without the help of each of these individuals, for taking the time out of their days to sit with me and talk about our history, our culture, and our identity. When producing a feature-length documentary, unfortunately, a lot of footage will be left on the “virtual” cutting room floor, as there is only so much a filmmaker can include within any given film to move the narrative. When putting this film together, I wanted to include the most important pieces of the story. I often tell people; documentary filmmaking is like putting together a jigsaw puzzle without a picture of what the finished film will look like. You can have an idea of what you want it to look like, however, the finished product is found within the interviews and how those come together to structure the story. I’m proud to say that my puzzle is complete and I’m looking forward to sharing it with the world. Read More From This Writer All Post Art Books & Poems Business Community Education Entertainment español Food & Culture Health Interviews Military & Veterans Peace People Politics Sports A BITTERSWEET NIGHT, LISTENING TO THE MUSIC OF “GITANAA July 6, 2023/No Comments On Saturday, June 24th, my wife and I joined a few friends and enjoyed a night of live Latin music Read More MAKING A MARK ON OUR YOUTH June 6, 2023/No Comments During my column last month, I wrote about having the opportunity to visit my childhood school, Herman Badillo Bilingual Academy, Read More IT STARTS WITH A BOOK May 12, 2023/No Comments IT STARTS WITH A BOOK On Friday, April 29th, I will have attended the 13th Annual Dia del Ninos y Read More Load More End of Content.

A Blue Truth (Will) Be Told As I wrap up my documentary film “Boricua Soy Yo,” I’ve been kicking around ideas for my next project. For my day job, I work as a Communications Producer for the Public Information Office in suburban Orlando. As luck would have it, a few weeks ago I was out on a shoot promoting a Parks & Recreation survey, getting soundbites fr senior softball league members and struck up a conversation with one of the softball players who had a very interesting story he was eager to share.  Not many people may have heard of the name Joe Sanchez, however speaking with him and learning about his history as a decorated retired NYPD officer who was falsely arrested and convicted only to be vindicated and expose the “Blue Wall of Silence”, I couldn’t help but marvel at how lucky I was to have had this man’s story fall into my lap. It was truly serendipitous. Mr. Sanchez was born in Santurce, Puerto Rico, but moved to New York City at a young age. He was drafted into the Army at the age of 18 and sent to Vietnam on his twentieth birthday. He was awarded several medals, including the Purple Heart and Army Commendation Medal, after being wounded during combat. Upon leaving the Army, Sanchez moved back to New York City and attempted numerous times to become a police officer.  Sanchez’s career as a police officer with the NYPD was a decorated one, earning a reputation of being an “Arrest Machine” however Sanchezinby his own words also saw many of the dark sides of working in law enforcement. This was during the early 1970s; around the time another NYPD officer, Frank Serpico, brought to light widespread corruption within the NYPD ranks just years prior. As he shared his story of discovering corruption in higher ranks, Sanchez expressed how the “Blue Wall of Silence” kept honest officers in check and made them look the other way due to fears of repercussion.  Sanchez attempted to report corruption he saw to Internal Affairs however investigations were shelved. In 1982, Sanchez participated in a drug bust only to be framed by his fellow officers. All charges were subsequently dropped against Sanchez and he continued long-year’s’s legal battle to be reinstated into the NYPD. After leaving law enforcement, Sanchez authored a few books, detailed accounts of his experiences as a member of the NYPD. He also acted as a consultant on Steven Spielberg’s 2021 remake of “West Side Story,” helping to give the film a more accurate account of NYC during the early 1960s. Joe Sanchez’s story is an interesting one, and although I’m still debating on what I will be doing next as far as documentary films are concerned, his stories should be told. “If I were Italian, Hollywood would have been ringing, my phone off the hook for me to tell my story,” Mr. Sanchez said to me. One day, he may not have to look that far. Read More From This Writer All Post Business Culture Entertainment Food Government Health Interviews Lower West Side Business & Economic Development Medical Our Community Peace People Sports A Blue Truth (Will) Be Told March 18, 2022/No Comments POST TITLE (CAPITAL) Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Ut elit tellus, luctus nec ullamcorper mattis, pulvinar dapibus Read More RETHINKING WHO WE ARE February 18, 2022/No Comments RETHINKING WHO WE ARE Recently, I finally sat down and interviewed Arleen Ramirez for my documentary film “Boricua Soy Yo.” Read More DON’T FORGET OUR TRADITIONS January 18, 2022/No Comments DON’T FORGET OUR TRADITIONS With the new year comes expectations for new beginnings, prosperity, losing that little holiday weight and Read More Load More End of Content.

RETHINKING WHO WE ARE Recently, I finally sat down and interviewed Arleen Ramirez for my documentary film “Boricua Soy Yo.” You may remember, in the September issue of the Buffalo Latino Village, I wrote a column and highlighted Ramirez. Arleen Ramirez is a Soprano singer and Ladino Music Artist who is spearheading the BorikenSphared Ladino Music Project, a research project that explores Judeo-Spanish heritage and how that heritage influenced cultural traditions throughout Puerto Rico and the Caribbean.  Arleen is a proud Puerto Rican who was born and raised in Mayaguez and has made a living and career as a Ladino Music recording artist, and through her Music Project, she is trying to educate others on Sephardic heritage in Puerto Rico; a heritage many Puerto Ricans don’t even know existed or failed to acknowledge. Growing up as a Puerto Rican in Buffalo’s lower West Side, we typically have been taught that Puerto Ricans are made up of Tainos, Africa,ns and Spanish conquerors who enslaved and captured the island. As I continue to learn more about the history of the island and the history of the people who have ties to the island, this oversimplification of what makes up a “Boricua” eye-opening. There are far too many layers to our history and heritage, and to simply tie the European or non-Taino and African side of our heritage to “Spain”, hides the complex nature of our diversity as a people and does a disservice by to not truly showing how diverse and culturally rich our island of Puerto Rico is. It never occurred to me that there were Puerto Ricans whose cultural backgrounds may have been different than the Boricua Trinity (Taino, African, Spanish) we’ve always been taught but the more research I do with this film project, I’m uncovering so much that has either been forgotten, hidden, or just gone unexplored. The island of Puerto Rico was settled by people who flocked to it from all areas of the world, and in doing so, the Puerto Rican identity has always been fluidly changing and being reshaped and formed. You see it in our language, customs, ane traditions we practice.  For instance, the phrase““Ojalá”, (which means “hopefully”) comes from the Arabic phrase “inshallah”. You see it in the foods we eat such as Alcapurria which itself has Middle Eastern influences (falafel) to even buñuelos which has a historical connection to Sephardic Jews who settled in Puerto Rico throughout Latin America.   I challenge anyone reading this, whose families have ties to Puerto Rico, to investigate your history, customs, and cultural practices. You may be amazed at what you will   uncover. I don’t intend this to be a paradigm shift, I just want folks to know Puerto Ricans are made up of more than what we’ve been taught. There are many layers to the Puerto Rican onion, and I’ve only begun to uncover but a few. Read More From This Writer All Post Business Culture Food Government Health Interviews Lower West Side Business & Economic Development Medical Music Our Community Peace People Sports RETHINKING WHO WE ARE February 18, 2022/No Comments POST TITLE (CAPITAL) Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Ut elit tellus, luctus nec ullamcorper mattis, pulvinar dapibus Read More DON’T FORGET OUR TRADITIONS January 18, 2022/No Comments DON’T FORGET OUR TRADITIONS With the new year comes expectations for new beginnings, prosperity, losing that little holiday weight and Read More YEAR IN REVIEW: FROM INSURRECTION TO WRITE-IN December 18, 2021/No Comments YEAR IN REVIEW: FROM INSURRECTION TO WRITE-IN As we’re coming to the end of the year 2021, I wanted to Read More Load More End of Content.