The Isaías González-Soto Branch Library (formerly Niagara Branch) is a member of the Buffalo & Erie County Public Library System

4 Comments / Community /

When the Hispanic Heritage Council (HHC) moved to rename the Niagara Branch Library several years ago, with the support of the lone Puerto Rican Niagara District Councilman, it was done in haste, and without any real community participation; when the resolution was approved by the City Council, very few community organizations were present to participate or rejoice in the making of this important event on the lower west side.  While the Council gives the impression that it represents the participation of a wide number of community members and organizations, officially it is a non-profit organization and not a “Council.” We don’t know how and why they named the library after a community leader who passed away over two decades ago, but they did not give much thought and planning to the library. They renamed it, with no serious consideration about what the library should look like.   No provisions were made to add a section for Puerto Rican/Latino literature. It would’ve been nice to include the work of local writers and artists. In addition, no plans were made to utilize the library for community meetings and events, like the Frank E. Merriweather Jr.  Library on Jefferson (Utica Street, East Side) which is kept busy with students, visitors, and community organizations always using its facilities.  In the new year of 2023, we urge all Puerto Rican/Latino community organizations to make use of the library, and we strongly recommend that HHC use their leadership to work with the Buffalo & Erie County Library to turn the Niagara Branch Library into a real “Isaias Gonzalez-Soto” Branch Library, a library he would’ve been proud of, with a large section of Puerto Rican/Latino Literature, locally, Statewide, National, and the World: Literature, Art, History, Science, Music, Political Science, Latin America Countries, etc. As a people, we have so much to be proud of our contributions – and the library should reflect that and make our Latino children and teens proud of who they are, having an immediate cultural impact the minute they step foot into the Isaias Gonzalez-Soto Branch Library.   Let’s assemble a committee or team of local Puerto Rican/Latino educators and get the job done. Reach out to local colleges and universities to assist in this endeavor.  We have many Latino educators and Professors. Let’s utilize them. And last but the least, we salute HHC for always taking the lead in the potential growth of our community, but they cannot do it alone. As of September, the Library closed its doors to renovate and upgrade the building to better serve the community. The Branch is expected to re-open in mid-winter. — End About Gonzalez: The Puerto Rican-born González-Soto, a World War II veteran, advocated for bilingual education in Buffalo, promoted higher education in the Latino community, and organized against discrimination. González-Soto became a restaurant and bar owner on the lower West Side, and he was a radio host on radio station WXRL, providing Spanish music and news from Puerto Rico. The Hispanic Heritage Council of Western New York selected González-Soto, who died in January 2006, after a nomination. Isaias Gonzalez-Soto Branch Library 280 Porter Ave. Buffalo, NY 14201 716-882-1537 / Fax: 716-882-1537 Located on the corner of Porter Avenue and Prospect Avenue . Read More From This Writer All Post Art Books Business Community Education Entertainment Food & Culture Health Interviews Military & Veterans Peace People Politics LATINO COLLEGE STUDENTS FACE INEQUALITY AND CULTURAL ISOLATION AT THE STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK at BUFFALO March 25, 2023/No Comments LACK OF COLLEGE SERVICES FOR LATINO STUDENTS: This is in response to a story by UB Spectrum reporter, Kayla Estrada, Read More “GETTING VERY LITTLE FOR THE WHOLE,  BUT GETTING A LOT FOR THE FEW” WHAT TO LOOK FOR IN 2023 January 25, 2023/No Comments While I might appear to be biased and selective, I strongly feel the four people in the photo are the Read More The Isaías González-Soto Branch Library (formerly Niagara Branch) is a member of the Buffalo & Erie County Public Library System December 25, 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

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VOTO LATINO:  RUMBO AL 2024

español, Politics /

VOTO LATINO: RUMBO AL 2024 Las recientes elecciones y el resultado del control del senado de los EEUU es en parte del resultado de la mobilizacion del voto latino a traves de la nacion. Tuve la oportunidad de conversar y participar en la mobilizacion, y el registro del padron electoral en varios estados. Para mi fue muy imporante observar la participacion del voto de la tercera generacion y cuidadanos con desafios de communicacion. Cada voto cuenta, el acto sagrado de libre eleccion fue para mi muy significativo al ver a cuidadanos con desafios de salud no dejar que estos le impidieran participar en las contiendas electorales El voto latino llevo a la Victoria a los gobernadores de Michigan y Pennsylvania, Virginia, Nueva York y la Florida. Tambien demostro que no somos monoliticos como grupo. Como dijo el gobernador electo, Josh Shapiro: “me conecte con los votantes en la zona urbana y rural y les hable de las cosas practicas que harian sus vidas mejores.” El voto latino fue crucial en la contienda electoral de el senador electo Fetterman (democrata) en Pennsylvania tambien. Ahora que nuestro voto ha cambiado el rumbo y el panorama politico…me pregunto, como vamos a organizarnos para el 2024. La contienda del 2024 es real. Como prepararemos la nueva generacion para participar en el 2024? La generacion Z llevo al congreso por el distrito 10 al democrata Maxell Frost. Como podemos perfilar nuestra agenda colectiva y crear un mensaje para la contienda nacional que tambien sea viable a las necesidades locales de nuestras comunidades. Cuales son los puntos no negociables en la agenda para el 2024? Y como negociamos el progreso y avance de las necesidades de nuestros distritos locales, de nuestras distritos escolares, de la economia y de la criminalidad que nos agobia. Nueva York pide que el crimen que agobia y roba la calidad de vida sea parte de la agenda inmediata de la gobernadora Hochul. Como participamos activamente y demandamos resultados concretos y efectivos. La votacion paso pero la realidad sigue y la vida continua…el plan de trabajo debe ser real tambien y necesita reflejar la realidad que vivimos a todos los niveles despues de la pandemia del Covid, junto a la pandemia de la violencia domestica y la crisis economica. LLega el 2023 y con el la preparacion al 2024 es una de las grandes prioridades que temenos. Asi que ha trabajar y a recla. Read More From This Writer All Post Art Books Business Culture Education Entertainment Food Government Health Interviews Lower West Side Business & Economic Development Medical Military & Veterans Our Community Peace People Sports Uncategorized Who We Are VOTO LATINO:  RUMBO AL 2024 December 23, 2022/No CommentsRead More CRISIS MIGRANTE EN  NUEVA YORK:UMBRAL DE LA  ESPERANZA November 23, 2022/No Comments CRISIS MIGRANTE EN NUEVA YORK:UMBRAL DE LA ESPERANZA Nueva York. Umbral de la Esperanza de millones de migrantes e inmigrantes Read More REFORMA HUMANITARIA October 23, 2022/No Comments REFORMA HUMANITARIA Los acontecimientos en los ultimos dias acerca de los migrantes y personas en busca de asilo politico quienes Read More Load More End of Content.

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A LOOK BACK INTO  BUFFALO’S HISTORY: THE RIOTS OF 1967

3 Comments / Education /

The sixties were a turbulent decade where our nation   saw many changes and challenges to the American psyche, with the Civil Rights Movement in full force, the war in Vietnam, the assassination of leaders, and many race riots defining the decade. Buffalo was the site of one of these race riots which spread throughout the city for several days in late June and early July of 1967. Although it can be argued that the Riots of 1967 were not an actual race riot, the political landscape present in Buffalo created an environment on the East Side which culminates with the breakout of violence and uproar that summer. The start of the riots can be traced to acts of vandalism pointed at a group of black teenagers who busted car windows and storefronts throughout the William Street and Jefferson Avenue business district on the afternoon of June 27th. Not long after the group of youths started destroying private property, they were joined by other groups of people who continued to destroy whatever they could. As a response to the massive amounts of property damage caused, the Buffalo Police sent in over 150 riot police to quell and put a stop to the disturbance however the presence of so many police officers further enraged and angered the crowds which gathered. After a few hours, through the use of tear gas fired into the rioters, the crowds were quickly dispersed, and three police officers and one fireman were injured. The next morning, the outbreak of violence, arson, and looting would continue as buildings were set ablaze and broken glass covered the landscape. In the book, City on the Lake: The Challenge of Change in Buffalo, New York. Buffalo, NY: Prometheus, 1990, author Mark Goldman describes the riots through the eyes of Floyd Edwards, the Buffalo Police Department’s first black lieutenant. Of what Edwards saw, Goldman wrote, Edwards had been on the East Side his whole life and had seen all the changes, from the mixed neighborhood that it once was to the black ghetto it had become. Edwards knew it inside and out and wasn’t surprised by the outbreak of violence that June. The morning after the riots, Edwards was put back in uniform. With a battalion of police officers under his command, he went back onto the streets. The ghetto was still smoldering. Fires still burned at William and Jefferson, Maple and Carlton, and Peckham and Monroe Streets. Plate glass windows all along Broadway and Sycamore had been smashed, and the streets were sprinkled with glass, empty cartons of shotgun shells, tear gas canisters, broken eyeglasses, and bricks. Many of the store windows were boarded up, covered with large pieces of plywood bearing the glowing red and white lettering of the Macaluso Emergency Enclosure Company. Small groups of black teenage boys clustered on the corners, taunting the passing police cars from a distance. As the day wore on the situation grew worse. Beginning at about 4:30 P.M. buses passing through the neighborhood were stoned. As night fell the gangs grew larger and more menacing, and still more windows were broken (even those store owners, some white, others black, who had written “Soul Brother” on their windows were not spared). — to be continued.   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.

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