Latin American New Year's Traditions

With New Year's just days away, most of us have our party plans set. Part of those plans include partaking in traditions with roots in our native countries. Many of us partake of the ritual stemming from madre Spain, eating 12 grapes at the 12 strokes of midnight, making a wish with each uva and ensuring 12 months of good luck. Many South American countries including Ecuador and Colombia burn an effigy of the old year. Others insist in wearing, sometimes inside out, yellow or red underwear. Regardless of how you celebrate the New Year, may all of you have a healthy and happy one.

Feliz 2007!

Links : Yahoo! Answers

Plaza De Mayo Madre Passes On

The Madres of la Plaza de Mayo, protesting with white scarves on their heads in Argentina the disappearances under Argentina's military rule of their children and the children of others have always served as an inspiartion for me and other activists. Sadly one of the founding members passed away.

Nelva Mendez de Falcone, 76, died Monday of an unspecified lung problem for which she had been hospitalized for the last 10 days in La Plata, 30 miles (50 kilometers) southeast of the capital of Buenos Aires, the family said.

Nelva had lost her own daughter, Maria Claudia Falcone, to the 1976-83 dictatorship.

The impact and pressence of the Madres de la Plaza de Mayo has been used an a point of study by other mothers fighting in the name of their children even here in the United States. For example, Latina mothers in New York City who lost their sons to police brutality, met with some of the Plaza de Mayo mothers in the late 1990's.

According to official figures, some 13,000 people disappeared under the dictatorship's "dirty war" against dissidents, though human rights groups put the number at 30,000.

Mendez de Falcone's family said her body would be cremated and some of her ashes scattered in the Plaza de Mayo.

Link : CNN, VivirLatino
Tags : Argentina, Plaza de Mayo

Chile : Colo Colo Wins National Title

Ever since I lived in Chile and thanks to satelite television, I've been a big fan of Chilean futbol's Colo Colo. I and other Colo Colinos are celebrating Colo's recent win of the Clausura Crown.This feels especially good after Colo's loss to Pachuca.

Link : Sporting Life, VivirLatino
Tags : Futbol, Chile, colo colo