Stories about Latin America from August, 2015
‘Las Patronas': Making Mexico’s ‘Train of Death’ a More Humane Place
How a petition on Change.org pushed a family improving the lives of thousands of U.S-bound migrants towards a nomination at the 2015 Princess of Asturias awards.
Bolivian Restaurant Wins Praise for Welcoming Breast-Feeding Moms With Open Arms
Bolivia is reportedly the South American country with the highest proportion of mothers who exclusively breast-feed, but mothers who do so in public don't always find support.
Search Coordinator for Ayotzinapa Students Assasinated
Asesinan en #México a coordinador de búsqueda de 43 normalistas de #Ayotzinapa Miguel Ángel Jiménez Blanco http://t.co/WMgteMU0JM Fue @EPN — PrensaRebelde (@RebeldePrenssa) August 9, 2015 Miguel Ángel Jiménez Blanco, coordinator of the search for the 43 Ayotzinapa teachers’ college students, was assasinated in Mexico. Miguel Ángel Jiménez Blanco, 45, was...
Painting Nails in Bolivia: A Job but Not a Living
There's no bonus or holidays or health insurance. Nail painters in Bolivia live each day at the mercy of God. How much do they earn? Not enough.
This is How Michael Jackson Sounds in Quechua
14 year-old Peruvian Renata Flores Rivera's version of Michael Jackson's "The Way You Make Me Feel" has been viewed more than half a million times on YouTube.
Impunity Is the Tie That Binds the Tlatlaya Massacre, the 43 Missing Students and El Chapo's Escape
Repeatedly officials charged with obeying the law decided instead to flout or ignore it, whether out of greed, inadequacy, fear or revenge.
The ‘Escopetarra': A Killer Instrument
If you believe that nothing good can come from a rifle, then you have to get to know the “escopetarra”—a hybrid that transforms two “lethal” weapons (an AK-47 and a guitar) into an instrument of peace. “Escopetarra” is a Spanish blend that combines the words “escopeta” (shotgun) and “guitarra” (guitar). In his Spanish-language podcast,...
Puerto Rican Chorus Brings a Little Joy to the Skies
Passengers on a flight to Puerto Rico were brought to tears when a chorus that was traveling with them started singing upon landing.
Girls vs. Princesses: The Pink Dictatorship's Days are Numbered
A virtual game made in Bolivia encourages girls not to let sexy dresses, high heels, makeup and Prince's kisses steal their right to decide who they want to be.
The Welsh “Y Wladfa”: A Rare Instance of Peaceful Foreign Settlement in South America
In 1865, 150 Welsh settlers disembarked from the ship chandler Mimosa in the Argentinian Patagonia, and laid the foundations for the American continent's only instance of peaceful colonisation.
Death of Pinochet's Secret Police Chief Uncovers Chile's Unhealed Wounds
Reactions after the death, in Chile, of the second most feared man of Augusto Pinochet's dictatorship show a country still struggling to make peace with its past.
Video: How the Green Iguana Came to Outnumber the Human Population of Puerto Rico
Introduced through the exotic pet trade, green iguanas have flourished in Puerto Rico. Now, they are considered a nuisance, provoking air traffic delays, damage to infrastructure and loss of crops.
An Amazon Tribe's 500-Page Traditional-Medicine Encyclopaedia
The Matsés peoples of Brazil and Peru—have created a 500-page encyclopedia of their traditional medicine! http://t.co/4t9hh6KIQr — Moonching Wu (@SunMoonLake99) July 4, 2015 The Amazon Rainforest supports millions of plants that could be vital ingredients in still-undiscovered medications. For that reason, many pharmaceutical companies and even the US government are currently funding...
Making the Culture and Language of Peru's Nomatsigenga People Accessible and Enduring
The Cultural Archive of the Nomatsigenga Language and Culture promises to be a blueprint for indigenous knowledge preservation in South America.
Canine Passports and the People Making Money Selling Dogs to Brazil from Venezuela
"Many of those selling dogs do not care about their condition […] The majority arrive with falsified documents and have not been certified by a vet."
The Right's New Clothes: How Old Neoliberal Ideas Have Been Charming the Latinamerican Youth
A network of US neoconservative think tanks is financing young Latin Americans to fight the leftist governments in Venezuela and Brazil, defending old flags with new rhetoric.
Puerto Rico Defaults on Its Debt for the First Time in Its History
As the government quickly runs out of cash, the future looks uncertain.
Mexico: “We Are the Problem Because We Disturb the Government and the Narcos”
“How many journalists have been murdered, and what has come of it? How many students, activists, and human rights defenders have been killed, picked up, or disappeared?"
Israel Appoints Former Leader of West Bank Settlers as New Ambassador to Brazil
Dayan publicly opposes the two-state solution and has previously told the press that ‘those who do are either naïve or liars'.
10 Months On, Families March Across Mexico in Search of Missing Ayotzinapa Students
The parents say for the last 10 months they have lived through hell, but thanks to the support of many Mexicans, they have the strength to demand justice.
14 Journalists From Veracruz, Mexico Have Been Murdered During Governor Duarte's Rule
Most of them were critical of Durante, who took office in December 2010.
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