RETHINKING WHO WE ARE

Entertainment /

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.

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“LOVE IS A BATTLEFIELD”

Food & Culture /

“LOVE IS A BATTLEFIELD” Wow! February! Lovey dove time for couples to share flowers, chocolates, dinner, special gifts, and of course, intimacy! But let me blow your mind with some facts. Until 450 BC, this was originally the last month of the year and still marks the beginning of the Chinese Lunar New Year. It celebrates Canada’s national flag day, President Lincolns birthday, and initiates African American History Month. But what I found interesting was FEBRUALIA; the Roman Empire’s month-long community festival, an orgy celebrating purification and atonement. Can you imagine that still happening today? The Roman festival involved drunk young men running through the streets naked, women being smeared in animal blood, and unusual fertility rites.  Men literally hit on women by whipping them with the hides of the animals they had just sacrificed. Women willingly participated believing this would make them fertile. After having their names drawn from a jar, couples would lie together during the festival with hopes to conceive. Thus, the dating phrase of women “being hit on?” Although much of the marriage and fertility traditions from the old ways persisted, when the Roman Empire became “Christianized,” the festival (renamed Lupercalia), came to eventually honor Valentinus, a priest martyred into sainthood for defying Emperor Claudius II (soldiers were prohibited to marry). It being a way to spare young men from war, Valentinus secretly married couples until imprisoned, tortured, and beheaded. Legend has it that before his end, he befriended, healed, and signed a letter to his jailer’s daughter Julia; “From your Valentine.” It’s also said that the jailer’s family members and servants came to believe in Jesus and were baptized; that because Valentine wore a purple amethyst ring (hinting he may have been a bishop), it became February’s birthstone; that Julia, the jailer’s daughter, planted a pink-blossomed almond tree near his grave. Today, the almond tree remains a symbol of abiding love and friendship. Around the 6th century, the church designated February to celebrate the “Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary” (in Jerusalem) and later associated it with the “Presentation of Jesus at the Temple.” But it wasn’t until the 14th and 15th centuries that Valentine’s Day was romanticized.  The Parliament of Fowls (1382) honored the engagement of England’s 15-year-old King Richard II to Anne of Bohemia in a dream vision portraying birds (doves) choosing their mates. It became an annual community celebration when Charles VI of France introduced The Charter of the Court of Love: Lavish festivities where members of the royal court enjoyed amorous song and poetry competitions, jousting and dancing. Amid these festivities, the attending ladies would hear and settle disputes between lovers: Marriage Counseling? Today, Valentine’s Day is a major, worldwide, source of economic activity. In 2020, Americans alone, generated an estimated revenue of $50 billion. But consider Tina Turner’s song: “What’s Love Got to Do With It?” For many, surviving the remaining 364 days should make Pat Benatar’s song a reality: “Love Is a Battlefield.” So don’t celebrate this day without sharing the many victories you overcame along the way: TOGETHER. Continue to read all my columns, by visiting: https://2bspoken.blogspot.com/ Read More From This Writer All Post Food Government Health Interviews Lower West Side Business & Economic Development Peace People “LOVE IS A BATTLEFIELD” February 17, 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 FOR WHAT’S ANOTHER NEW YEAR January 17, 2022/No Comments FOR WHAT’S ANOTHER NEW YEAR The New Year is a worldwide celebration mainly full of parties, costumes, drinking and resolutions Read More OH NOEL! December 17, 2021/No Comments OH NOEL! Oh Noel!   I’ll “Not Tell” of; I’ll “Not Dwell” on past spells of discouragement and disappoints. This Read More Load More End of Content. Meet Our Columnists / Writers

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WNY Peace Center – Interfaith Peace NetworkUN MOMENTO JUSTO POR LA PAZ

Peace /

Feliz Cumpleaños, TPNW! – Happy Birthday, Treaty for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons! Que importante este tratado!! It’s now one year since the 1/22/21 activation date for this important treaty! So – yes, nuclear weapons are now illegal worldwide, due to the TPNW, signed by 122 countries and activated on 1/22/21 upon 50 countries have ratified it (now 59). However, we must still work to put TPNW into effect!! Among the signers are Brazil, Chile, Costa Rica, Cuba, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, and Venezuela – Latin American countries represent 26% of the signatories! Nuclear weapons couldn’t be less undemocratic. You may have no desire for nuclear weapons, but you will live with their threat anyway. That goes for every country that doesn’t have nuclear weapons (every country but the US, Russia, China, France, UK, Pakistan, India, Israel, and North Korea). None of the Latin American countries have nuclear weapons (neither do any African countries). Yet they all have the threat of nuclear war hanging over their heads – imposed by the above list. Likewise, most citizens in countries with nuclear weapons – such as here in the US – have not to be asked, nor have we been given a vote on whether we want our country to have nuclear weapons (or nuclear power for that matter). Nuclear materials are also with us for the longest time – the most potent nuclear material needs “safe storage” (whatever that means – difficult to impossible) for one million years. Nuclear waste is stored at the West Valley Nuclear Site, on unstable ground. It has been leaking into Cattaraugus Creek, which leads to Lake Erie, Buffalo, our water filtration facilities, and 20% of the world’s freshwater supply. The West Valley clean-up is inching forward but neither covered nor adequately monitored. We also have nuclear waste in Niagara Falls and on the Tuscarora Reservation; transported on our highways, and liquid nuclear waste coming over the Peace Bridge (WNYPC vigil Fridays 2-3pm at Vermont & Busti). Please go to Nuclear Information and Resource Service (NIRS.org) for more info, especially on this local issue. Nuclear weapons take resources away from humanity and the planet’s other needs (from health, education, infrastructure, and basic human needs; to the costs of changing to renewable energy to mitigate climate catastrophe). The planned cost of a new generation of US nuclear weapons is $100,000 per minute for the next ten years. That would cover a college education for all qualified students over 16 years! For more info, see the Talking Peace session on this issue at WNY Peace Center’s Youtube channel; and/or go to PeaceAction.org; BackFromtheBrink (preventnuclearwar.org), or ICAN.org. Time’s up!! To help abolish nuclear weapons, including working together locally, please contact me at victoryross9@gmail.com. Think globally, act locally – this issue, again, is too big not to tackle. For #PeopleAndPlanet, Juntos – Si, se puede!! Read More From This Writer All Post Art Books & Poems Business Community Education Entertainment español Food & Culture Health Interviews Military & Veterans Peace People Politics A TRAGEDY July 4, 2023/No Comments LEADING TO AN ANTI-BULLYING CAMPAIGN (a Community Responders Pilot and a Peace Ship for a Nuclear-Free Future) Hola, mis Amigos!!  Read More CAMP PEACEPRINTS 2023: HEALTHY LIVES MATTER June 4, 2023/No Comments ¡Hola, Amigos! Pronto sera el tiempo por los ninos para ir a campamentos de verano. We are excited to present Read More EMBRACING BUFFALO / HEALING MOMENTS May 10, 2023/No Comments EMBRACING BUFFALO / HEALING MOMENTS “No podemos dejar que la gente abra brechas entre nosotros… porque solo hay una raza Read More Load More End of Content.

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