· April, 2011

Stories about Latin America from April, 2011

Cuba: Communist Party Ushers in Entrepreneurism and Term Limits

  20 April 2011

For the minority of Cubans who are within it, the blogosphere provides a space to exchange ideas. And there were plenty prompts for discussion this week, with the Castro brothers holding the first Congress of its Communist party since 1997 (it is supposed to be every five years) and announcing term limits for leadership on the island.

Cuba: Women as Soldiers?

  20 April 2011

Octavo Cerco is irritated by a sign which suggests that “we Cuban women form a battalion for the defense of the fatherland”, saying: “It bothers me greatly that the multiple mass organizations which supposedly represent groups of Cubans feel like they have the right to speak for everyone, robbing individuals...

Nicaragua: Holy Week in the Countryside

  19 April 2011

While most Nicaraguans and foreign tourists like to spend their holidays in the beach, Ronald Hill Alvarez in Sueños del Caribe [es] recommends spending the ‘Semana Santa’ (Holy Week) holidays in the countryside. He also describes how people from this region celebrate the religious holiday.

Bolivia: Sharing a Meal with Aymara Women

  19 April 2011

Pablo Andrés Rivero [es] blogs about a “collective, ritual meal of the Andean region” he shared with Aymara women in the Palca municipality, close to La Paz. When he was almost done eating, one of the women asked him “What do they eat in your country?” prompting Andrés to reflect...

Cuba: Reaching the Limit

  19 April 2011

Cuban bloggers weigh in on Raul Castro's recent announcement of term limits for leadership of the country.

Brazil: Satire of Middle Class Problems

  19 April 2011

The satirical blog Classe Média Sofre (Middle Class Suffers) [pt], takes advantage of humour to expose the complaints of Brazilian middle class cybernauts about minor problems via social media. It was inspired by the blog White Whine which features daily updates on “first world problems”.

Brazil/Japan: Bridge Blogging Post-Earthquake News

  19 April 2011

“I read a post from a japanese blogger, I found it truly interesting and I decided to translate part of it”, said [pt] Satou Mihoko, who has decided to bridge japanese news to the portuguese speaking  community, following the earthquake. Brazil is home to the largest Japanese population outside of...

Mexico: Felipe Calderon's Cabinet on Twitter

  19 April 2011

In mid-April, the government headed by Felipe Calderon announced with much fanfare that every member of the cabinet was now registered on Twitter, and prepared to deal more directly with the public via social media. The initiative, however, is shadowed by a concurrent report ranking Mexico just 78th out of 133 countries in terms of its effective use of information technology.

Colombia: Teen Produced Web Series about Gay Youth

  19 April 2011

Nineteen year old Jhoncito Arango's most recent web project has certainly caught the local media's eye in his native Colombia, where his web series Yonkis has had a very good reception considering that it tackles a topic that is still considered highly sensitive in this Catholic country: homosexuality.

Venezuela: Could the opposition benefit from a long primary?

  18 April 2011

Blogging by boz lists 5 ways the opposition (MUD) in Venezuela could benefit from a “long, tough primary”: “It's impossible to say for certain whether the late primary will benefit or harm the MUD until after it happens. But if the MUD ends up winning in 2012, I can guarantee...

Argentina: Judge Recognizes Armenian Genocide

  18 April 2011

An Argentinean judge issued a historic ruling in which he condemned the Turkish state for committing the crime of genocide against the Armenian population. Argentina received an important stream of Armenian immigrants fleeing the genocide, whose descendants maintain their customs and traditions grouped under distinct institutions that form the Armenian Collective.

Cuba: True Democracy

  14 April 2011

“If young gang members are sentenced to several years behind the bars for robbing a gas station, the same should apply to bankers, managers, financiers, or even presidents of countries if they engage in corruption”: Iván García fears that “democracy is stammering.”

Argentina: Cine York, one of ‘Argentina's Hidden Gems’

  14 April 2011

The Argentine Post writes about one of “Argentina's hidden gems,” Cine York in Buenos Aires: “The classy, inviting nature of this little theater couldn’t contrast more with the loud, plastic, cookie-cutter nature of modern shopping centers that have come to dominate the urban landscape of huge swaths of the U.S.”

El Salvador: Economic Well-Being Tied to Support for Democracy

  14 April 2011

Voices from El Salvador's Weblog summarizes a recent AmericasBarometer survey, concluding that “The results of the survey show, for the most part, that economic well-being, whether that of individual families or that of the nation’s government, is one of the strongest factors that affect the public’s support of democracy.”

Brazil: The Biggest Brazilian Newspaper Violates Labour Rights

  14 April 2011

The biggest Brazilian newspaper, Folha de São Paulo, violates labour rights for its journalists, says [pt] Altamiro Borges in his blog. Borges enumerates some of the “failures“: besides not having contracts, journalists are being underpaid or even not paid for working overtime.

Brazil: Reading Habits and Cultural Roots

  14 April 2011

Journalist and blogger Marcos Bahé criticizes [pt] a statement made by Luciano Siqueira, a State Deputy of the Communist Party, who said that Brazilians don't read much because of oral traditions inherited from indigenous and african ancestors. Bahé ironically adds that he thought it was because books are expensive.

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.