· November, 2011

Stories about Latin America from November, 2011

Peru: Conga Mining Project Suspended in Wake of Public Pressure

  30 November 2011

Protesting residents have managed to temporarily suspend operations of the Conga gold mining project, but protests continue all the same in support of the project's definitive cancellation. At the heart of the conflict is the defense of some 20 lagoons and their ecosystems, which would be seriously degraded by the execution of this mining project.

Bolivia Holds its First ‘PressCamp’

  30 November 2011

The first PressCamp Bolivia [es] will be held on December 3, 2011 in Santa Cruz, Bolivia. With a similar dynamic to BarCamp conferences, participants at PressCamp Bolivia will discuss online journalism, creative commons, and citizen journalism, among other subjects. Hugo Miranda provides more information in his blog [es].

Chile: Mapuche Protest Militarization and Project to Build Airport

  30 November 2011

On November 23, Mapuche protested against the militarization of their communities and a project to build an airport south of Temuco, in southern Chile, in a territory they claim as their ancestral land. Montserrat Nicolas, from the blog Curvas Políticas, shares a video [es] with speeches and testimonies by Mapuche...

Colombia: Internally Displaced People Tell Blogger their Stories

  30 November 2011

According to the Consultancy for Human Rights and Displacement (CODHES) Colombia has 5.2 million internally displaced people. Mike Ceaser talked “to several of the displaced people who've been demonstrating daily in Plaza Bolivar [in Bogota], demanding that the government give them land and other benefits.” Read some of their stories...

Cuba: Under “Survey-lance”

  30 November 2011

“As far as many Cubans here are concerned, it is not necessary to have survey results to verify the high levels of discontent and uncertainty we live under”: Without Evasion explains why she's sceptical of surveys.

Puerto Rico: Blogger Exposes Misleading Commercial

  30 November 2011

Puerto Rican blogger Ed Morales gave a first hand account of the shooting of a Fiat commercial that shows actress and singer Jennifer López driving around her old neighborhood in the Bronx, New York. In fact, as Morales demonstrates with photos, López was never there.

El Salvador: ‘Encachimbados’ Lead Occupy Movement

  29 November 2011

Danielle Mackey writes about the Encachimbados (meaning “indignant”), El Salvador's occupy movement: “They call the attention of both the U.S. and Salvadoran governments to the free trade model, regional militarization strategies, and environmental destruction and climate change—all policies that the Encachimbados see as designed by a transnational elite, and which...

Cuba: Mariela's Red Light Comment

  29 November 2011

Ernesto Morales Licea takes issue with Mariela Castro's now infamous statement to Radio Netherlands during her visit to Amsterdam's Red Light District.

Guatemala: Survivors’ Testimonies Help Define Genocide in Online Documentary

  28 November 2011

Mike shares Spanish-language documentary “Our Voice, Our Memory: The genocide in Guatemala,” which is available in full on YouTube. He adds: “The documentary […] uses survivor and expert testimony to explain the concept of genocide, demonstrating how the atrocities committed by the Guatemalan military against indigenous Maya communities satisfy the...

Venezuela's Slow Internet

  28 November 2011

Luis Carlos Díaz blogs [es] about Venezuela's slow internet broadband, reporting that Venezuela ranks 163 out of 174 countries in download speed. Luis Carlos argues that Venezuelan netizens are settling for too little, and that anyone who aspires to the presidency for the 2012 elections should add this issue to...

Venezuela: World Meeting of Body Art Takes Over Caracas

  28 November 2011

This year, Caracas hosted The World Meeting of Body Art and some of its most striking expressions were shared through citizen media. Among these creations, indigenous peoples of Venezuela were given a special space to showcase their artistic expressions on the human skin.

Cuba: Entrepreneurship & Home Ownership

  28 November 2011

Generation Y wonders whether the country's new wave of entrepreneurs will survive, while Laritza's Laws is concerned that “the housing regulations, recently enacted by the government of Cuba…leave intact regulations that impede the full exercise of the right of ownership.”

Video: Plural+ 2011 Awards Young Filmmakers

  26 November 2011

Youth from around the globe were awarded in New York for their thought-provoking short films showing their proposals for making society more peaceful and multicultural by addressing the topics of diversity, migration and social inclusion.

Ecuador: Preserving and Protecting Natural Medicines

  25 November 2011

Ecuador's indigenous communities hold traditional knowledge of natural medicines and therapeutic use of plants. This documentary by iosphera shows the importance of preserving this knowledge from biopiracy for the future of these communities. (via cinealoido)

About our Latin America coverage

Gabriela Mesones Rojo
Gabriela Mesones Rojo is the Latin America Spanish-language editor. Email her story ideas or volunteer to write.

Fernanda Canofre
Fernanda Canofre is the Brazil editor. Email her story ideas or volunteer to write.