​The word “minority” is charged with meaning. This is particularly true in postcolonial cultures, where being perceived as one has long meant limited access to opportunities. In responding to a question from a reporter, Javier Bardem seemed to have these reduced prospects in mind when he made the following intervention about the dearth of international cinema roles for actors like him, who were born in Spain.

​It is likely true that international films have more roles for Latin American characters than they do for Spaniards. Even though Spain has a long and rich cinema tradition, this truth means that it is probably difficult for actors from the country to break into international success. There's no doubt that if anyone should know this it is Bardem, who -probably more than any other Spanish actor- has enjoyed success both in his home country and internationally.
 
In fact, the reason Bardem was being interviewed was because he has been nominated for an Oscar. This newest success came thanks to the actor’s performance as Desi Arnaz in the biographical movie Being the Ricardos. Arnaz had been a Cuban actor who found fame after moving to the US in the 1930s and staring in the long-running I Love Lucy television show. Bardem’s depiction of the Cuban has been highly praised. Interestingly, this is not the first time that Bardem has been acclaimed for playing the role of a Cuban. In 2000 he starred in another biographical drama called Antes que anochezca. The film told the story of the life of Cuban poet Reinaldo Arenas. Bardem was also nominated for an Oscar for this role.
 
Indeed, despite being from Spain, Bardem has now twice found success playing the part of a Cuban. Perhaps it was with this in mind that some people in the Americas reacted critically to one of the other things that the actor said in the interview. Specifically, the affirmation “yo sé lo que hablo cuando hablo de minorías” provoked controversy. As I wrote above, this word –minority- is charged with meaning. It is possible that the meaning changes as one moves from country to country and culture to culture. However, in a place delineated by postcolonial tensions, its use is particularly sensitive when the word is spoken by a person who is native to the formerly colonizing country.
 
My suspicion is that Bardem meant what he said and did not understand that his statement would be construed as controversial here in the Americas. It is unsurprising that in the context of international cinema, he sees himself and other actors from Spain as a sort of minority. Indeed, there are not many roles in Hollywood specifically written with a Spaniard in mind. However, what is fascinating for me is the fact that he did not comprehend the offense that his words would cause for many people in the Americas. Claiming minority status in a postcolonial culture is a charged and significant act. This particularly feels strange in the context of a Spaniard doing it after having gained acclaim for playing a Cuban for the second time. Indeed, there appears to be an ocean-sized chasm of misunderstanding between the Spanish and the Latin Americans regarding this issue. At least, this is the anecdotal impression I have after having spoken with family and friends in Spain about this and encountering people who were unable to wrap their heads around how Bardem’s words could be offensive. At the same time, I've discussed this with Costa Ricans, Mexicans, Colombians, Dominicans, and Puerto Ricans and all of them reacted with immediate disdain upon seeing the clip from the interview. This collection of just a few of the tweets that appeared in reaction to Bardem speaking is representative of the reactions that I encountered: 

​If anything, this anecdote points to this misunderstanding, but more importantly demonstrates how here in the Americas sensitivity to issues related to colonialism are not far from the surface. Bardem has done some excellent acting over the years and my hope is that this misunderstanding does not mean a limiting of the roles that he is offered. In fact, ideally it would be great to see more and more roles for Spanish speaking actors, particularly ones where they're able to speak in Spanish. 

It feels like a New Year's tradition for the press to publish lists. It is kind of a drained recipe, but it must entice readers because it is easy to encounter lists about handy technology, the year's best songs, and gifts that we should acquire. There are also a lot of lists about books that we should read.
 
On my mind today, is not so much a list of books that people want me to read, but more the contrary. As charged discussions about how race should be considered newly become central to our political discourse, it felt poignant to see this conversation with Jason Reynolds. He is many things and Stephen Colbert does a better job than I ever could in introducing him. Among his distinctions is the fact two of the books that he has written and co-written hold prominent spaces on the American Library Association's 2020 list of most challenged books.
 
This is a list compiled by the Office for Intellectual Freedom that focuses on documented requests to remove texts from schools or libraries. While the reasons cited for banning books often include references to drugs, violence, and profanity, it also jumps out that many of these texts either deal directly or contextually with minority experience in the United States. When asked about being so conspicuous on this list, Reynolds responded with words that call for reflection:

​Here is the interview, a link to purchase one of the books, and the 2020 list. I'm sure they will soon publish the list for 2021. Considering the tone and subject matter of the last couple of months of racial dialogue in the United States, I have no doubt that the new list will include more books that are being banned for talking about race. 

​A few years ago, when Ta-Nehisi Coates received the recognition, I heard him say in more than one interview that the organization prefers to avoid the term “genius grants”. Humorously, the idea has stuck and yesterday one article after another celebrated this year's MacArthur Fellows with the label.
 
NPR Brought attention to radio host and author Daniel Alarcón, whose Spanish-language program Radio Ambulante has accompanied me on many a road trip and many miles of running. The awarding committee expressed his work well by writing that Alarcón explores “the social, cultural, and linguistic ties that connect people across Latin America and Spanish-speaking communities in the Americas”.
 
Another name that jumps off the list are Hanif Abdurraquib, whose writing about music has long been a favorite. Also, Ibram X. Kendi -now living in Boston- and Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor, who spoke relatively recently at my university. 

​Congratulations to all! 

​The world’s inequality regarding covid is well showcased by looking at Latin America. When adjusted for population, it is in fact the region with the most deaths. On June 17, the four countries with the most deaths per million were Paraguay, Argentina, Uruguay and Colombia. Brazil and Peru were next. The comparison of these numbers with the rest of the world can be visualized well with this graph: 

​Colombia’s fight with the virus was profiled recently. The article included many frightening statistics like the following: 

​In contrast to these terrible statistics, Cuba’s official numbers are more mixed and show reasons for hope. While much of the country reports rising numbers, the capital Havana has cut infections by half. This success appears to be thanks to vaccines produced by Cuba’s state-run biotechnology industry. In fact, as one news agency reported, Cuba hopes to use their national vaccine project “to be among the first in the region to have vaccinated its whole population by year end”. 

Uruguay is a country with 3.5 million people. It is bordered by water, Argentina, and Brazil. Considering the neighborhood -including two nations that have had their covid responses widely criticized- the fact that Uruguay saw a pronounced increase in late March in virus infections was unsurprising. Uruguay’s relationships with its two neighbors are important and the borders are sites of frequent trade and movement. As the number of cases rose, the Uruguayan Interdisciplinary Group for Data Analysis characterized the situation as a “very worrying scenario” (“Covid-19”). Frightening indeed, and certainly -be them lines on a map, social, or linguistic- evidence that the virus does not respect the things that we often think separate us.
 
The rise in infections was unsurprising, not just because of Uruguay’s dangerous neighbors, but also because those numbers had nowhere to go but up. Indeed, until recently Uruguay has appeared an outlier in its response to the virus. In September, Luke Taylor pointed to a fast reaction, thorough testing, and a good plan as the main reasons that the Uruguayans were able to keep numbers low while its neighbors’ infections soared. Taylor even went so far as to declare that “Uruguay has a lid on the pandemic” (Taylor 1). A January article in Scientific American profiled Gonzalo Moratorio, a virologist in Montevideo, and credited him with an important role in helping the country largely avoid what others have suffered. In their words, Moratorio “helped Uruguay dodge the worst consequences of the pandemic” (Rodríguez Mega). Indeed, Nature magazine named Moratorio one of the “ten people who helped shape science in 2020” (“Nature’s 10”). It seems that even while numbers might be rising now, it is also possible to point to Uruguay as a pandemic-response success.
 
Covid is not the first time Uruguay has been characterized as a small country bucking a trend. In fact, Uruguay has been punching above its perceived weight in many areas for a long time. The country made waves by creating internal and external policies that altered traditional relationships with loans, debt, and international relations. One reporter praised these moves by comparing Uruguay to a European counterpart: “For the past 10 years, Uruguayans have been conducting a left-leaning experiment in economic and social democracy, turning themselves into a Latin American version of Switzerland in the process” (Meurer). This progress was criticized by some countries, particularly the UK government and its banking industry, where fault was found in the large Uruguayan investments in the public sector. Nevertheless, Uruguay confirmed its faith in these polices through elections and, as the same article argued, putting people before investors might anger the investors, but it made Uruguayans happy: “From the bankers’ perspective, Uruguay is setting a bad example by taking care of their people instead of catering to global financial speculators” (Meurer). International financial politics is not always the most headline grabbing subject, but the popularity of these decisions clearly shows that they have positively impacted the lives of Uruguayan citizens.
 
Uruguay’s capacity to punch above its weight exists in many sectors but is perhaps best known through soccer. The country won the inaugural World Cup in 1930 in their capital city. Then, they repeated victory in Brazil in 1950 when Uruguay upset the hosts in front an enormous crowd. The same people-focused tendencies that informs today’s banking contributed to these successes. Indeed, the Uruguayan team has long been more racially inclusive than its neighbors and some of their best players would likely have been excluded in other countries: “That early success was thanks in part to enlightened social inclusion policies. While South American neighbours were restricting soccer to a European descendant elite, Uruguay’s star was José Andrade, the son of an African-born slave” (Cawthorne). This general philosophy that has brought soccer success and made banking waves has run through multiple aspects of the country’s daily life: legalization of drugs, accepting prisoners released from Guantanamo Bay, universal healthcare, and free childcare. Many of these policies were criticized from around the globe, but Uruguay has persisted and found successes in the process.
 
In a world where it usually feels that the strongest, the richest, or the most aggressive is the one who wins; the one that enjoys the benefits, Uruguay’s story is heartening. The pandemic has left upside-down and backwards many of the things that we have long taken to be true. Borders, cultures, and languages that we usually see as forces that separate us have been shown to be little more than social constructions that are insignificant when compared to the common human thread that makes us vulnerable to the virus. Yet that same thing that makes us vulnerable -humanity- is exactly what seems to have been at the base of Uruguay’s achievements.  When asked to describe how they find success, one Uruguayan soccer player pointed to an important factor that seems to go far beyond the pitch: “We give our lives for every ball,’ said midfielder Lucas Torreira. ‘This country is very small but it has a huge heart.” (Cawthorne). This response was cliché, no doubt, but applying it to the larger idea of what Uruguay has recently done is interesting. Maybe the pandemic is a chance for other governments to put some more heart -some human focus- in their decisions. If a small country like Uruguay can do it, why can’t others?
 
Works Cited:

Cawthorne, Andrew. “Little Uruguay Punch above Weight - yet Again.” Reuters, 4 July 2018. www.reuters.com, https://www.reuters.com/article/uk-soccer-worldcup-ury-por-idUKKBN1JU0P2.

“Covid-19: Health Situation in Uruguay Worsens amid Successful Vaccination Campaign.” MercoPress, https://en.mercopress.com/2021/03/22/covid-19-health-situation-in-uruguay-worsens-amid-successful-vaccination-campaign. Accessed 28 Mar. 2021.

Meurer, Michael. “Uruguay Punches above Its Weight.” Latin America Bureau, 3 Jan. 2015, https://lab.org.uk/uruguay-punches-above-its-weight/.

“Nature’s 10: Ten People Who Helped Shape Science in 2020.” Nature, https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-020-03435-6. Accessed 2 Apr. 2021.

Rodríguez Mega, Emiliano. “A Virologist Helps Keep Uruguay Safe from COVID with a Homegrown Test.” Scientific American, https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/a-virologist-helps-keep-uruguay-safe-from-covid-with-a-homegrown-test/. Accessed 28 Mar. 2021.

Taylor, Luke. “Uruguay Is Winning against Covid-19. This Is How.” BMJ, vol. 370, British Medical Journal Publishing Group, Sept. 2020, p. m3575. www.bmj.com, doi:10.1136/bmj.m3575.

​For logical reasons, guns are in the news. Some statistics: “Americans own (at least) 42% of the world’s guns. We are 4.4% of the world’s population, but 31% of the world’s mass-shooting victims”. These are simple facts. Just as simply, these facts point to a serious problem. This problem needs to be resolved. Now. People are needlessly dying. This situation has long been out of control and appears to be headed in a bad direction as we come out of covid. Here is the source for these numbers.
 
Between Lula making a sort of come back, covid devastating the country, and fake treatments killing people, Brazil has produced multiple headlines in the last couple of days.
 
The story of a Galileo treatise from 1610 being stolen from the Spanish National Library and taken to Argentina has gotten some attention. Apparently, it is the work where Galileo reported important telescope observations such as mountains on our moon, Jupiter having four of its own moons, and the Milky Way having lots and lots of moons (and other things). 

Happy Tuesday to the world. I am on spring break and, unfortunately, furlough. This means, I suppose, that I have some time to share here the kinds of things that I’m reading:
 
Cuban-Americans and their anti-Communist stance made their presence felt in a new poll that showed a 66% lean against returning to Obama-era policy towards Cuba. Another notable result: Where six years ago only 36% supported the embargo, that number has now risen to 66% wanting to keep it in place.
 
Increasingly, the pandemic news moves away from minorities having the highest numbers of Covid-19 cases and instead we now read more and more about those same minorities having the lowest numbers of vaccine access. Locally, for example, “[m]ore than 80 percent of the population in Lawrence is Latino, but only 2 percent of Latinos there have received at least one dose of a vaccine”. At the same time, “nearly half of Lawrence’s white resident have received at least one dose, although they account for just 12 percent of the city’s population”. The story both around here and in the whole country seems to be that when we are talking about minorities, the numbers are high for getting sick, but low for getting protection.
 
It is not difficult to find news stories that talk about immigrants and, particularly, young immigrants coming to the US border. In some cases, you can see words like “flood” and “crisis”. However, the Washington Post examined this ongoing story from a rhetorical point of view, including a headline that describes the Chicken Little rhetoric: “Migrants are not overrunning US border towns, despite the political rhetoric”.
 
Lastly, Haitian protests have made the news for a couple of weeks. In general terms, the unrest seems focused on insecurity, particularly in terms of gang violence and kidnapping. Last Friday police had a violent confrontation with gangs that resulted in several deaths. 

​In a trickle, it seems that the Trump administration’s horrible actions at the border are being revealed. The Fuller Project and the Guardian newspaper published a report today that documented at least eleven cases of migrant women giving birth in the US and being “removed” to Mexican border towns before they could attain birth certificates for their US-citizen babies. The report described the consequences of this complex immigration situation like this:  

​While this practice was indeed initiated by the Trump administration and Biden has made some efforts to alter his predecessor’s policies, the ACLU recently emphasized that the slow speed of this change was unacceptable: 

​How will tourism destinations recover from the pandemic? Cuba announced a unique answer to this question. The country has developed its own vaccine, which as of March will be entering a new phase of testing. That new phase involves injecting the vaccine into humans. Cuba stated that not only will they be offering the vaccine to Cubans, but also any foreigner who visits the island and wants it. In other words, they proposed the idea of getting vaccinated as part of your vacation. Criticizing the profit motives of pharmaceutical companies and emphasizing the state-centered health system, one Cuban specialist was quoted in this article stating:

​Will this make Cuba a more popular destination for tourism? Will its economy benefit from a rush of vaccine-starved vacationers?  

​As the pandemic continues to have greater impacts on minority communities, in the Boston area Spanish speakers are finding vaccine access to be difficult. This article reports that: 

​Meanwhile, there are accounts from Brazil that the healthcare service in parts of the country is no longer able to deliver care. This video from Manaus presents a frighteningly overwhelmed system.
 
The saga of the Goya food brand continues as the company’s board “voted to muzzle” CEO Robert Unanue after multiple comments that he made supporting Donald Trump and his efforts to overturn the election. It is fascinating to see a company have this much power over its own CEO.
 
Lastly, Cheech Marin has apparently been collecting Mexican-American art since he became famous in the 1980s. Now with a collection of more than 700 pieces, he has decided to contribute to a California public library, providing a home where the public will be able to access and enjoy the work. 

Happy Friday to the world. At Salem State today ended the first partial week of the spring semester. The wonders of 21st century communication enabled the school to celebrate by having Dr. Angela Davis speak at this year’s Dr. Martin Luther King Celebration. Hopefully the university will make the full recording available soon. As a language professor, though, it was wonderful to hear her advocacy for reaching out beyond the US and being in contact with people around the world: “We need to increase our internationalist dimension”.
 
Some news in the Spanish-speaking world:

• In the wake of Argentina legalizing abortion last month, the Honduran government looks to solidify itself as one of the four countries in Latin America that prohibit abortions in all circumstances. The Guardian reports that “Legislators in Honduras are pushing a constitutional reform through Congress that would make it virtually impossible to legalise abortion in the country – now or in the future”.
• As Biden makes immigration a priority, the US’s gaze turns to El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras. InSight Crime takes a more detailed look at how Biden’s approach is “an about-face from that of Donald Trump”. They highlight three focuses: “An exodus from the Northern Triangle,” “Narco-politics in Honduras,” and “Anti-Corruption”.
• Lastly, the Goya company has a special place in dinner tables across the US. However, their CEO’s support of Trump called for boycotts. Latino USA takes us into the company’s history, explaining how it became such an important part of US Latino identity while also updating us on the boycott today.