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CSRC Newsletter December 2007Volume 6, Number 3 |
Director's MessageWow. I’m not often dumbfounded, but this one was a double whammy. Julie Myers, head of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), hosted (according to CNN) a Halloween fundraising party last month and served as one of the judges for the best costume award. Her choice? Someone dressed as a prisoner with dreadlocks and dark makeup. Myers cited this costume for its “originality” because—as we all know—stereotypes are so new and innovative. (Incidentally, the man with a large sombrero, serape, and dark makeup was not mentioned, but there is a photograph on the web.) An ICE spokesperson attempted to reassure the public by stating that the award-winning costumed person, an employee of the Department of Homeland Security, was not in blackface, but rather merely in makeup that was darker than his skin. As in, brownface. Apparently, brownface is okay in the Department of Homeland Security. In any case, the photograph of the winner and Myers was somehow destroyed. Myers, a recess appointee, has apologized, and Democratic Senator Claire McCaskill has placed a hold on her confirmation, pending further investigation. Now here’s the real shocker. I learned about this incident from Lalo Alcaraz’s LA Cucaracha comic strip in the Los Angeles Times (November 15), but the news story itself was never run in the newspaper. Not so long ago, the Los Angeles Times tried to drop LA Cucaracha—the only comic strip with Latino characters in a city where Latinos make up half the population. It seems we would have lost more than just a few good laughs. Chon A. Noriega Director and Professor Immigrants’ Use of Healthcare Services Lower than Expected In a study released in the November 26 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine, UCLA professor Alex Ortega and co-authors reported that that “illegal immigrants from Mexico and other Latin American countries are 50% less likely than U.S.-born Latinos to use hospital emergency rooms in California.” Professor Ortega stated for the Los Angeles Times that “the current policy discourse that undocumented immigrants are a burden on the public because they overuse public resources is not borne out with data, for either primary care or emergency department care.” The study, titled “Health Care Access, Use of Services, and Experiences Among Undocumented Mexicans and Other Latinos,” was conducted with support from the CSRC. To read the coverage in the Los Angeles Times, go to the Times website. Open House The CSRC’s annual Open House on November 7 drew over 100 visitors. Tribute was given to the artists who created Chicano History, one of the first Chicano murals at a university. The Open House featured a display of artwork by three of the mural artists: Ramses Noriega, Sergio Hernandez, and the late Saul Solache, whose family attended this special event. The mural, painted on panels and installed in the former CSRC offices in Campbell Hall, has been in storage and is now undergoing restoration. Veronica Flores, Field Deputy for the 34th District, presented the CSRC with a certificate from Congresswoman Lucille Roybal-Allard in commemoration of the Center’s thirty-eighth anniversary. TRÁNSITOry PÚBLICO | PUBLIC TRANSITorio A series of public discussions, workshops, and performances with interventionist performance art groups, militant research and activist collectives, artists, and educators drew hundreds of participants at UCLA and other sites across Los Angeles from November 13 through 20. Highlights included a seminar aboard a train traveling from Los Angeles to San Diego and presentations at MOCA by members of the Internacional Errorista (founders of the errorist movement), BijaRi (an interventionist design+performance+VJ collective from São Paulo), and the Journal of Aesthetics and Protest (an L.A. collective). CSRC was a co-sponsor of the event, which featured a number of Chicana/o art groups and artists.
CSRC Events CSRC Library & ArchiveMALCS Orientation Acquisitions and Online Access The CSRC is in discussions with the Garcia family to acquire the papers of Roy Garcia, also known as “Chicano Roy.” Roy Garcia made two contributions to custom motorcycle design: he developed the idea of molding shapes and designs from the frame to the gas tank, and he designed the first pop-off gas tank, a significant improvement for safety and repair. An online finding aid for The Joe Ortiz Papers will soon be available. Joe Ortiz was the first Chicano to host an English-language talk show on a commercial radio station, which was broadcast on KABC from 1970 through 1977. After more than twenty years in radio and television, he launched a career as a public relations consultant. Born in Indio, California, Mr. Ortiz also worked as a cook, joined the Air Force, and taught at Ramona High School after obtaining his GED. He has worked with the East L.A. Housing Task Force, the Mexican American Research Association, and the Mexican American Youth Organization. Now semi-retired, he writes columns for several local and national periodicals. The Joe Ortiz collection contains correspondence, news clippings, announcements, photos, newsletters, articles, tape recordings of his radio show, and papers pertaining to his work in public relations.
CSRC PressNew Report on Latino Workforce
Opportunities2008–09 Postdoctoral/Visiting Scholar Fellowship The CSRC and the Institute of American Cultures (IAC) offer a fellowship to a postdoctoral/visiting scholar to support research on Chicana/os. The fellowship includes a stipend (which can be used as a sabbatical supplement) that ranges from $33,000 to $35,000, research support up to $4,000, and health benefits. The appointment is for a nine-month period beginning October 1, 2008. UCLA faculty, staff, and currently enrolled students are not eligible to apply. All applications are due by 5:00 p.m., Friday, January 11, 2008, in the CSRC office, 193 Haines Hall. Address applications to CSRC Assistant Director Carlos Haro. For more information on applying, or to access the application form, go to the IAC website.
2008–09 Graduate and Predoctoral Fellowship The CSRC and the Institute of American Cultures (IAC) offer a fellowship to a graduate/predoctoral or a postdoctoral/visiting scholar to support research on Chicana/os. The fellowship stipend of $18,500 per year, plus all in-state fees, will be awarded on a competitive basis to a current UCLA graduate student with demonstrated interest in the field of Chicano studies; the fellowship must aid the completion of a thesis or dissertation. All applications are due by 5:00 p.m., Friday, January 11, 2008, in the CSRC office, 193 Haines Hall. Address applications to CSRC Assistant Director Carlos Haro. For more information on applying, or to access the application form, go to the IAC website.
2008–09 Research Grants The CSRC and the Institute of American Cultures (IAC) provide research grants to UCLA faculty, staff, graduate students, and IAC postdoctoral fellows to support research on Chicana/os in a variety of disciplines. The CSRC is also working with the IAC and the University of California Committee on Latino Research (UCCLR) to offer research grants in Latino policy studies. To apply for a Latino policy studies grant, check both the Chicano studies and the Latino policy studies boxes on the grant application. The grant period is from July 1, 2008, through May 31, 2009. All applications are due by 5:00 p.m., Friday, April 25, 2008, in the CSRC office, 193 Haines Hall. Address applications to CSRC Assistant Director Carlos Haro. For more information on applying, or to access the application form, go to the IAC website.
ContactsTo learn more about us, visit our website or email us at csrcinfo@chicano.ucla.edu. Trouble reading this? Please visit the web version. Unsubscribe and manage your subscription here. UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center • 193 Haines Hall • Box 951544 • Los Angeles, CA 90095-1544 Campus Mail Code: 154403 • Tel: (310) 825-2363 • Fax: (310) 206-1784 © 2007 The Regents of the University of California. All rights reserved. |