LINEA ABIERTA | THIS WEEK | PREVIOUS PROGRAMS

Linea Abierta Programs for April 2007

Monday, April 2nd

PROGRAM # 5092 - 12:00 PDT
MICHOACAN SIMULCAST – PEMEX. Mexico’s oil industry is owned by the state and has been a source of national pride for decades. While conservative president Felipe Calderón has assured Mexicans he won’t privatize PEMEX, experts insist there is a campaign of foreign and domestic pressure to sell parts of the industry to private investors. Hosted by Ligia Mazariegos from Morelia, this program is a simulcast with the twelve-station network of Radio Michoacán.

Guests: Mario Pérez Morales, director, School of Economics, Universidad Michoacana, Morelia; Profesor Carlos Eduardo Arellano Silva, Advisor and Coordinator, Population and development research area, Michoacan State Council of Population, Morelia.

Tuesday, April 3rd

PROGRAM # 5093 - 12:00 PDT
IMMIGRATION EDITION – NEW BILLS. Host Rosalba Piña interviews a leading immigrant advocate on a campaign hosted a few days ago, where thousands of calls were made to the U.S. Congress asking for immigration reform. Piña also facilitates communication between listeners and the congressional switchboard.

Guest: Juan Carlos Ruíz, organizer, Calls Campaign for a Just Immigration Reform Movement, Center for Community Change, Washington DC.

Wednesday, April 4th

PROGRAM # 5094 - 11:00 PDT
BORDER JEWS. Filmmaker Isaac Artenstein talks about his new project featuring Jewish communities along the border, including enclaves in El Paso, San Diego, Santa Fe and Tucson. A producer of The Day Without a Mexican, Artenstein also comments on the current season of pro immigrant rallies around the U.S. This program is hosted by Samuel Schmidt from El Paso.

Guest: Isaac Artenstein, producer, director, screenwriter, San Diego, CA.

Thursday, April 5th

PROGRAM # 5095- 12:00 PDT
1000 CONVERSATIONS. A national coalition of pro immigrant groups is hosting a campaign this week to hold hundreds of community gatherings for immigration reform. The organizers say the goals is to gather "people across the country together in living rooms, basements, back yards, community centers, schools, and places of worship to talk about immigration reform that restores basic civil liberties and human rights, protects core American values of fairness and justice, and defends due process for everyone".

Guests: Diana Telefson, director, UFW Foundation, Porterville, CA; Maria Rodriguez, coordinator, Florida Immigrant Coalition, Miami, Fla.
Voz Pública’s Martha Elena Ramírez hosts this edition.

Friday, April 6th

PROGRAM # 5096 - 12:00 PDT
MEXICO EDITION. Martha Elena Ramírez hosts this edition of the Voz Pública series from Mexico City. The civic journalist brings news and analysis on Mexican developments.

PROGRAM # 5097 - 12:00 PDT
PUERTO RICO EDITION. In this pre-taped edition from San Juan, PR, WRTU’s Wanda Colón Cortés, brings news and analysis on major developments in the Caribbean basin.

Monday, April 9th

PROGRAM # 5098 - 12:00 PDT
FAIR FOOD CAMPAIGN AT MCDONALD'S HQ. This week, hundreds of farm worker advocates convene at the global headquarters of McDonald’s in Chicago to culminate their Truth Tour – Campaign for Fair Food. Field worker organizers in Florida are urging the fast-food giant to take responsibility in helping improve the working conditions for thousands of tomato pickers that supply produce to the global chain.

Guests: Lucas Benítez, coordinator, Coalition of Immokalee Workers, Chicago, IL. Leonel Perez, tomato picker traveling on "Truth Tour – Campaign for Fair Food", Brigitte Gynther, spokesperson, Interfaith Action Network. A McDonalds representative has been invited.

Tuesday, April 10th

PROGRAM # 5099 - 12:00 PDT
IMMIGRATION EDITION - ELVIRA ARELLANO. Host Rosalba Piña hears from Elvira Arellano, the activist who resisted a deportation order and found sanctuary in a church in Chicago. Arellano, who is almost in her eight-month anniversary staying in the church, has just gone on hunger strike and has a bill pending in Congress petitioning for her relief. Piña also encourages questions and comments from the listening audience.

Guests: Elvira Arellano, founder, United Latino Family, a group that advocates for undocumented parents of children who are U.S. citizens, Chicago, IL.

ALSO, CHILDREN'S MARCH. The legendary activists Dolores Huerta talks about immigration reform lobbying and a children's march planned for April 29th.

Guest: Dolores Huerta, civil rights leader, founder, Dolores Huerta Foundation, Delano, CA.

ALSO, NEW BILLS. Piña talks with a congressional leader on upcoming bills in Congress, current raids conducted by ICE, and the backlog in immigrant applications.

Guest: Congressman Sam Farr (D-CA), Salinas, California.

Wednesday, April 11th

PROGRAM # 5100 - 11:00 PDT
TEXAS EDITION - ELDER AND DISABLED ABUSE. According to the most recent statistics compiled by the National Center on Elder Abuse, about 1 out of every 10 incidents of elder abuse involves a Latino. Long-Term care, planning for disabilities and other elder and disabled issues are often neglected among minority families. Research suggests that as most Latino families care for their own elderly the issues become more complex. Host Samuel Schmidt speaks to attorneys fighting for the rights of the elderly and the disabled in this edition from El Paso, Texas.

Guests: Stephanie Thownsend-Allala, Elder Law attorney, Hammond Townsend Allala, PLLC, El Paso, Texas.

Thursday, April 12th

PROGRAM # 5101- 12:00 PDT
LIVE FROM NEW ORLEANS - REBUILDING NEW ORLEANS: MIGRANTS HEED THE CALL. Tens of thousands of new migrant workers have arrived at the Gulf Coast region after Hurricane Katrina to help rebuild New Orleans. This is a construction contractor bonanza. Yet, migrants are reported to live in abandoned cars, get poor wages, and under the fear of police or immigration agent detention. This live broadcast from the annual conference of the National Federation of Community Broadcasters in New Orleans bring to the airwaves the voices of reconstruction workers, migrant and union organizers, and Katrina survivors.

Guests: Frank Curiel, organizer, Laborers Union, New Orleans, LA; Daniel Castellanos and Javier Gallardo, organizers, Workers Center for Racial Justice, New Orleans, LA.

PROGRAM # 5102 - 13:00 PDT
LIVE FROM NEW ORLEANS - A HEALTH CARE WALL. Latino migrants who do the dirtiest work and live in substandard conditions while helping rebuild New Orleans face serious threats to their health. There is a wall of distrust and marginalization separating migrants from traditional health safety net agencies. Is there any emergency response service for this growing population? What are doctors and clinics doing to break down the wall? Leaders of New Orleans’ Latino Health Access Network and local health officials will be among the guests. This is a live broadcast from the site of the conference of the National Federation of Community Broadcasters in New Orleans.

Guests: Jennifer Whitney, coordinator, Latino Health Outreach Project, New Orleans, LA; Shaula Lovera, director, Latino Health Access Network. Other invited guests include representatives from the Louisiana Department of Public Health and Latino patients.

Friday, April 13th

PROGRAM # 5103 - 12:00 PDT
MEXICO EDITION. Martha Elena Ramírez hosts this edition of the Voz Pública series from Mexico City. The civic journalist brings news and analysis on Mexican developments.

PROGRAM # 5104 - 12:00 PDT
PUERTO RICO EDITION. In this pre-taped edition from San Juan, PR, WRTU’s Wanda Colón Cortés, brings news and analysis on major developments in the Caribbean basin.

Monday, April 16th

PROGRAM # 5105 - 12:00 PDT
MEDICINAL MARIJUANA? This month, Gov. Richardson from New Mexico signed into law a bill allowing the use of marijuana for therapeutic purposes. A decade ago, the nation’s first medical marijuana law went into effect in California. Since then, 11 other states have passed laws approving its medical use. This is a debate on the medical benefits touted by proponents. This program is in collaboration with KQED, San Francisco’s public radio.

Tuesday, April 17th

PROGRAM # 5106 - 12:00 PDT
GLOBAL WARMING AND WATER SUPPLY. An international group of scientists warns that by mid-century, global warming will stress water resources around the world. Global warming will change current patterns of rain fall, snow formations and droughts, reducing water availability in some regions and flooding others. These changes will exacerbate competition for over-allocated water resources for residential and agricultural uses. The hardest hit areas will be the poorest and least developed. Experts comment on this issue.

Wednesday, April 18th

PROGRAM # 5107 - 11:00 PDT
TEXAS EDITION - BORDER IDENTITIES.
What does it mean to be a fronterizo, a resident of the U.S.-Mexico borderlands? Is there a common identity that unifies the people living in this region? How is this culture changing with the increased emphasis on border control and the polarized debate on immigration? Samuel Schmidt hosts this program from El Paso, TX.

Guest: Dr. Pablo Vila, professor, Sociology Department, Temple University; author of the books “Crossing Borders”, and “Border Identities”, Philadelphia, PA.

Thursday, April 19th

PROGRAM # 5108- 12:00 PDT
TRANSNATIONAL HEALTH CHALLENGES. Health providers, community organizers and academics gather this week in California to discuss "the challenges of health and health care in an increasingly global economy". The group attempts to help improve transnational prevention and care. Two guest speakers join this program to talk about the “immigrant health paradox” and the challenges faced by migrant health care providers in post-9/11 U.S.

Guests: Dr. Xochitl Castañeda, Medical anthropologist, Director of the California-Mexico Health Initiative, Office of the President, UC Berkeley; Dr. Sylvia Guendelman, professor of Community Health and Human Development, School of Public Health, UC Berkeley, CA.

Friday, April 20th

PROGRAM # 5109 - 12:00 PDT
MEXICO EDITION. Martha Elena Ramírez hosts this edition of the Voz Pública series from Mexico City. The civic journalist brings news and analysis on Mexican developments.

PROGRAM # 5110 - 13:00 PDT
PUERTO RICO EDITION. In this pre-taped edition from San Juan, PR, WRTU’s Wanda Colón Cortés, brings news and analysis on major developments in the Caribbean basin.

Monday, April 23rd

PROGRAM # 5111 - 12:00 PDT
EARTH DAY: APOLLO ALLIANCE. This is a conversation with Anne Thompson, spokesperson for the Apollo Alliance, a coalition of labor unions and
environmental groups that is proposing a program to promote energy efficiency, eliminate the nation’s dependency on imported oil, and combat climate change. She comments on a recent court decision rebuking the Bush administration on the federal government’s inaction to curb greenhouse gases. In addition, Linda Chávez Thompson, executive vice president for the AFL-CIO, comments on the millions of new jobs the new economy based on clean technology would create.

ALSO, GLOBAL WARMING BILLS. Rep. Hilda Solís (D-CA), the first Latina on the committee on energy and commerce, comments on current bills in Congress allowing cap-and-trade programs requiring companies to buy emission permits. She also comments on a bill to honor César Chávez by including in the National Parks system lands associated with the life of the late union leader. In addition, Antonio González, president of the William C. Velazquez Institute, reports on Latino lobbying efforts to get Congress to act on climate change.

Tuesday, April 24th

PROGRAM # 5112 - 12:00 PDT
IMMIGRATION EDITION. Samuel Orozco talks with activist Elvira Arellano, who is on the third week of a hunger strike in a church in Chicago. Orozco also talks with Chicago councilmember Ricardo Muñoz on a city resolution proclaiming April 29 a Day of Family Unity and calling on President Bush to stop raids and deportations. Emma Lozano, director of Centro Sin Fronteras, also joins this program to report on the preparations to join national demonstrations for
immigration reform on May 1.

The program also includes a conversation with Gloria Saucedo, Director for Hermandad Mexicana Nacional in Los Angeles, and Daniela and Julie, citizen children who advocate for their undocumented parents.

Wednesday, April 25th

PROGRAM # 5113 - 11:00 PDT
EDITION WITHOUT BORDERS – GUADALAJARA SIMULCAST. Mexican émigrés are expected to send 27 billion dollars in money remittances to their homes in Mexico this year, according to Asociación de Bancos de México. But fees to send remittances continue exacting a high cost on migrant families. Now some banks announce offers to facilitate transfer of remittances free of charge. This is a simulcast with the three-station network of Sistema Jalisciense de Radio y Televisión in Guadalajara.

Guest: Ileana de Silva, Banco del Ahorro Nacional y Servicios Financieros, BANSEFI, Mexico City

ALSO, PAYMENTS FOR BRACEROS. The Mexican Congress has authorized 300 million pesos to compensate veteran Bracero workers who worked in the U.S. under guest-worker contracts in the 40s and 50s. Thousands of beneficiaries anxiously await their compensation. Congressman José Jacques-Medina (PRD-Mexico City) also comments on a bill to modify eligibility requirements and expand the list of potential beneficiaries. He is a member of the congressional commission probing the funds owed to Bracero workers.

Thursday, April 26th

PROGRAM # 5114- 12:00 PDT
COLIBRÍ. On the eve of the Mexican celebration for the Children, Lichi Fuentes and Alisa Peres, Duo Colibrí, release a new CD entitled “Papaloapan, River of the Butterflies”, which includes a repertoire from many countries in the Spanish-speaking world. Fuentes and Peres are music educators and folk musicians who have performed in venues throughout the Americas. www.colibrimusic.com.

ALSO, THE STRIVE ACT. Rep. Hilda Solís, Democrat from Los Angeles, comments on The STRIVE Act and ongoing congressional hearings to discuss a
comprehensive immigration reform bill.

FINALLY, MASS RAID IN CHICAGO. Gail Montenegro, spokesperson for ICE, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency, defends a widely condemned raid that netted 16 arrests in a crowded shopping mall in Chicago’s barrio of Little Village.

Friday, April 27th

PROGRAM # 5115 - 12:00 PDT
MEXICO EDITION.
Martha Elena Ramírez hosts this edition of the Voz Pública series from Mexico City. The civic journalist brings news and analysis on Mexican developments.

PROGRAM # 5116 - 13:00 PDT
PUERTO RICO EDITION.
In this pre-taped edition from San Juan, PR, WRTU’s Wanda Colón Cortés, brings news and analysis on major developments in the Caribbean basin.

Monday, April 30th

PROGRAM # 5117 - 12:00 PDT
AGJOBS. California lawmakers re-introduced in Washington a bill titled AgJobs, which reforms guest worker programs, provides temporary "blue card" visas, and creates a path for the legalization of farm workers. While the legislation is slowly gathering support in Congress, President Bush has called the legalization reforms unacceptable. This is a debate on the prospects for this bill.

Guests: María Echaveste, consultant and lobbyist, United Farm Worker Union, former member of President Clinton’s cabinet, Berkeley, CA; Baldemar Velázquez, founder and president, Farm Labor Organizing Committee, Toledo, OH; José Fuentes, Vice chair, National Hispanic Republican Assembly, Washington, DC.

Funds for Línea Abierta are provided in part by The California Endowment, the Evelyn and Walter Haas Jr. Fund, the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, the Community Technology Foundation of California, and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

To tune in to this news service, check our Affiliate Stations page to find your nearest station. Also, the audio of these news stories will soon be available live in this same website.

LINEA ABIERTA | THIS WEEK | PREVIOUS PROGRAMS