Daily Headlines: September 23, 2016

* United States: A new report estimated that one million Latinos are expected to be diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease by 2030, which could lead to a cash crunch for families who “are among the least resourced to deal with the financial demand Alzheimer's places on households and on family caregivers.”

* Brazil: Brazilian officials unveiled a controversial education reform that would ironically drop physical education as an obligatory subject in high school despite the national fervor caused by the recent Olympics and Paralympics competitions in Rio de Janeiro.

* Nicaragua: The Nicaraguan government strongly rejected a proposal being considered by the United States (US) Congress that would prevent the Central American country from receiving international loans unless political reforms are made.

* Cuba: Several Latin American leaders at the United Nations General Assembly including the business-friendly presidents of Mexico and Peru called for the elimination of the US trade embargo. 

YouTube Source – National Council of La Raza

Online Sources – NBC News, Xinhua, Retuers, The Miami Herald

Daily Headlines: August 12, 2016

* South America: The presidents of Colombia and Venezuela agreed to a gradual and partial reopening of their shared border one year after Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro ordered the shutdown of several crossings.

* United States: A new poll of Latino voters found two-thirds of respondents prefer Hillary Clinton as the next president while 82% view Republican rival Donald Trump unfavorably.

* Haiti: A nationwide doctor’s strike that has entered its fourth month has exacerbated a public health crisis that has included a cholera epidemic and the spread of the Zika virus.

* Brazil: Brazilian energy giant Petrobras recorded its first quarterly profit in nearly a year though it was nearly one-third less than earnings in the second trimester of 2015.

YouTube Source – BBC News (From July 2016: “Colombian officials say 35,000 Venezuelans have crossed the border into their country over 12 hours to shop for basic supplies. Venezuela is suffering a severe economic crisis which has caused mass food shortages.”)
 
Online Sources – Bloomberg, Reuters, Fox News Latino, Humanosphere

Daily Headlines: March 25, 2016

* Brazil: Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff once again claimed she would not resign despite an impeachment process against her and a deepening political crisis stemming from the “Lava Jato” corruption probe.

* Vatican: Pope Francis is the world’s most popular leader according to a new survey, while the Argentine-born pontiff washed the feet of twelve refugees as par of a traditional Holy Thursday gesture.

* U.S.: Why is the spike in HIV and AIDS cases in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas “a warning sign for the U.S. healthcare community as well as Latino neighborhoods across” the nation?

* Latin America: Researchers believe the Zika virus that has spread across the Americas arrived in South America sometime in 2013 and not during sporting events held in Brazil two years ago such as the World Cup.

YouTube Source – Ruptly TV (“Anti-government protesters demonstrated through Sao Paulo, (on March 20th), as Brazil’s lower house continues to discuss Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff's potential impeachment”.)
 
Online Sources – Xinhua, Catholic Herald, The Huffington Post, BBC News, Latina

Daily Headlines: March 14, 2016

* Cuba: The Cuban Tourism Ministry said that some one million foreign visitors traveled to the country in the first three months of 2016, which represents a 14.6% increase compared to the same period last year.

* Puerto Rico: Puerto Rico’s “brain drain” of skilled workers leaving the island has hit the health care sector hard as an average of one doctor immigrates away from the commonwealth each day.

* Peru: A new poll showed greater support for Keiko Fujimori ahead of next month’s presidential election but not enough to avoid a runoff.

* Uruguay: “There could be an elephant out there,” claimed an optimistic executive at French company Total regarding exploration of what could be a very promising Uruguayan offshore oil field.

YouTube Source – AJ+

Online Sources – Xinhua, NPR, Reuters, MercoPress

Daily Headlines: January 6, 2016

* Venezuela: President Nicolas Maduro will likely reshuffle his cabinet and announce new economic measures following the tense takeover of congress by the opposition.

* Latin America: The Zika virus, a deadly mosquito-borne disease that particularly affects newborn children, has spread throughout Latin America and reached Puerto Rico this week.

* Mexico: Edgar Valdez Villarreal, alias “La Barbie,” is expected to plead guilty in a U.S. court today on charges related to drug trafficking for Mexican cartels.

* Brazil: The number of HPV and pneumonia vaccines administered by the Brazilian public health care system will be cut reportedly due to the government’s austerity plans.

YouTube Source – Reuters

Online Sources – ABC News, Reuters, Quartz, CNN

Daily Headlines: December 2, 2015

* Colombia: Colombia’s traditional vallenato music was selected by UNESCO as a “Cultural Patrimony for Mankind” but the agency warned that the genre is in danger of disappearing.

* Cuba: Cuban authorities have reinstated restrictions against medical professionals seeking to work in foreign countries in order to halt a “brain drain” of doctors leaving the island.

* Puerto Rico: Puerto Rico paid $354 million on its debt to prevent defaulting but officials warned that they might not be able to pay $1 billion due on New Year’s Day.

* Argentina: A former Argentine political prisoner was reunited with his son that was the 119th offspring identified by the Grandmothers of Plaza de Mayo as having been illegally adopted during military rule from 1973 to 1990.

YouTube Source – Discos Fuentes Edimusica

Online Sources – USA TODAY, BBC News, Fusion, teleSUR English 

Daily Headlines: November 6, 2015 (Updated)

* Brazil: At least one person is dead and fifteen others are missing after a dam holding mine waste burst in Brazil’s Minas Gerais state.

Update (October 8): Minas Gerais Gov. Fernando Pimentel claimed that the 28 people missing after the dam burst are unlikely to be found alive.

* Central America: A program introduced last December to curtail the influx of unaccompanied Central American children in 2014 has yet to accept a single minor according to a report originally published in The New York Times.

* Puerto Rico: Thousands of demonstrators took to the streets of San Juan to demonstrate against U.S. government cuts to federal health programs.

* Chile: The Chilean government called that it was “possible and highly probable” that acclaimed poet Pablo Neruda was killed days after a 1973 military coup.

YouTube Source – ODN

Online Sources including Update – Business Insider, ABC News, Latin American Herald Tribune, Flavorwire

Daily Headlines: August 17, 2015 (Update)

* Brazil: Hundreds of thousands of protesters marched throughout in Brazil to call for the impeachment of President Dilma Rousseff though the odds of her actually quitting are slim to none.

Update: A Brazilian central bank survey of economists published the day after the protests found that the country's economy is expected to contract in 2016.

* Cuba: The Defense Department is allegedly considering moving some inmates from the Guantanamo Bay prison in Cuba to correctional facilities in the U.S.

* U.S.: A recent study found that TV ads for junk foods like sugary drinks and candy are disproportionately targeted at African-American and Latino youth.

* Venezuela: Representatives with the Pan American Health Organization are worried over shortages of medicines to treat cancer in Venezuela.

YouTube Source – euronews (“Brazil's third "major demonstration"…of the year drew tens of thousands to Rio de Janeiro's Copacabana beach to call for the impeachment of President Dilma Rousseff.”)

Online Sources including Update – Reuters, Los Angeles Times, Voice of America, The Huffington Post

Daily Headlines: July 24, 2014

* Venezuela: Proceedings began yesterday in the trial against leading opposition member Leopoldo Lopez who has been accused of inciting violence during anti-government demonstrations earlier this year.

* U.S.: According to a new report from the American Heart Association, the risks of cardiovascular disease vary among the different subpopulations within the Latino community.

* Colombia: Colombian defense officials declared that thirteen guerillas belonging to the ELN were killed in a series of military operations on Tuesday.

* Mexico: According to “preliminary” data, the 22,732 recorded homicides in Mexico last year was less than the peak of 27,213 in 2011 though homicide rates in several states have “increased markedly”.

Video Source – euronews via YouTube (Venezuelan opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez handed himself over to police in February and faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison if convicted).
 
Online Sources – Yahoo News; BBC News; The Latin Americanist; GlobalPost; Newsweek

Daily Headlines: April 2, 2014

* Chile: At least five people died and more than 900,000 residents of Chile’s coastal area were evacuated due to a magnitude-8.2 earthquake that occurred Tuesday night near the northern part of the country.

* U.S.: The White House claimed that over seven million people signed on for health insurance under the Affordable Care Act though it has yet to be revealed how many of them were Latinos.

* Puerto Rico: The acting head of Puerto Rico’s beleaguered police department resigned reportedly so that he can attend to personal issues.

* Mexico: Remittances to Mexico, which serve as the country’s second-largest source of foreign exchange, increased by 7.15% in January and February of this year compared to the same period in 2013.

Video Source – euronews via YouTube (Chilean President Michelle Bachelet declared a state of emergency for the Tarapaca, Arica and Parinacota regions following last night's tremor that was also felt in Peru and Bolivia.)

Online Sources- GlobalPost; The Guardian; Voice of America; LAHT; NBC News

Daily Headlines: March 27, 2014

* Cuba: According to the Cuba state media, the government is planning to introduce a new foreign investment law aimed at boosting the island’s sagging economy.

* U.S.: Could the latest Obamacare deadline change help Latinos trying to apply for medical coverage before the end of this month?

* El Salvador: The F.B.I. placed on “Ten Most Wanted Fugitives” an MS-13 gang member suspected of murdering two people and who is allegedly in hiding in El Salvador.

* Uruguay: President Jose Mujica of Uruguay said that his any of the five Guantanamo Bay detainees that might be taken in by his country would be considered as refugees and, thus, could freely travel.

Video Source – AFP via YouTube (“Cuba inaugurated its new Mariel "megaport" (last January), in hopes the project will symbolize a more open stance towards commerce and become a regional hub for shipments despite a lack of investment and the US economic embargo”.)
 
Online Sources- Bloomberg; Reuters; CBS News; NBC News; The Huffington Post

Daily Headlines: March 11, 2014

* Chile: Leaders from around the Americas will attend the presidential inauguration of Michelle Bachelet who returns to Chile’s Palacio de la Moneda for a second non-consecutive term.

* Mexico: Mexico's Gallos Blancos de Queretaro first division soccer team could be relegated over suspicions that the squad was used to illegally launder money.

* Bolivia: An Amnesty International report found that victims of human rights abuses during the dictatorship period of 1964-82 in Bolivia were being denied proper access to compensation.

* Venezuela: Medical professionals upset at a shortage of medicines in hospitals and the importing of thousands of doctors from Cuba have become the latest group to protest against the Venezuelan government.
 
Video Source – euronews via YouTube (Michelle Bachelet was reelected as Chile's president in a landslide victory last December.)
 
Online Sources- GlobalPost; BBC News; Mercopress; The Miami Herald

Daily Headlines: February 18, 2014

* Honduras: A United Nations-affiliated report released yesterday found that Honduras continues to have the world’s highest homicide rate even though the rate in murders dropped 6.5% last year.

* U.S.: Is the "fear of deportation" be one of the main reasons behind sagging Latino enrollment in health care programs covered under the Affordable Care Act/Obamacare?

* Mexico: The proposed Keystone XL oil pipeline, expanding free trade and easing travel restrictions are topics likely to be discussed by the heads of the U.S., Canadian and Mexican governments at the  “Three Amigos” summit that starts today.

* Brazil: Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff clamed that her country will become the world’s top producer of soybeans by the end of this year.

Video Source – AFP via YouTube (“In Honduras, the military police is a highly visible presence in the most violent region of Tegucigalpa and the San Pedro Sula, where residents have been plagued by violent gang crime”).

Online Sources- CBC News; Herald Sun; New York Times; Time

Daily Headlines: December 11, 2013

* Uruguay: Legislators in Uruguay approved a landmark proposal that would grant the government authority to regulate marijuana production and distribution.

* Dominican Republic: The Dominican government strongly criticized a report from the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights opposing a recent court decision that could remove the citizenship of thousands of people.
  
* U.S.: The Spanish-language Obamacare/Affordable Care Act enrollment website commenced running this week after a two-month delay.

* Peru: Gastón Acurio, one of Peru’s best-known celebrity chefs, rejected the possibility that he will run for his country’s presidency in 2016.

Video Source – YouTube via euronews

Online Sources- The Guardian; ABC News; The Latin Americanist; Fox News Latino; Peru This Week

Daily Headlines: November 4, 2013

* Brazil: Some 3000 Cuban doctors traveled to Brazil in order to participate in a government program aimed at sending foreign medical professionals to underserved areas.

* Latin America: At least thirteen people died in clashes between drug gangs and the Mexican military in Matamoros while approximately eight people died in an airplane crash in northern Bolivia.
 
* U.S.: Millions of Latino families are expected to be affected by billions of dollars worth of cuts to the federal food stamp program.

* Honduras: In an interview with the Associated Press Honduran police chief Gen. Juan Carlos Bonilla rejected rumors that he led a “social cleansing campaign” several decades ago.

Video Source – YouTube via Newsy

Online Sources- Huffington Post; BBC News; CSMonitor.com; Reuters; LAHT

Daily Headlines: October 2, 2013

* Haiti: Police in Port-au-Prince clashed with some of the thousands of backers of former president Jean-Bertrand Aristide who protested against the government led by Michel Martelly.

* Colombia: Gen. Flavio Buitrago became the second chief of security for former Colombian President Alvaro Uribe to have been arrested over the past year due to alleged ties to drug traffickers.

* U.S.: Could Latino consumers play a decisive role in the potential success of the Affordable Care Act/Obamacare?

* Argentina: The U.S. Supreme Court opted not to listen to an appeal from the Argentine government to avoid possibly paying the holders of billions of dollars of defaulted bonds.

Video Source – YouTube via euronews
 
Online Sources- LAHT; CNN; The Guardian; Bloomberg; Fox News Latino

Daily Headlines: September 16, 2013

* South America: Public discontent and a summer of protests have contributed to plummeting approval ratings for Peruvian President Ollanta Humala (27%) and Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos (21%).

* Puerto Rico: Health secretary Francisco Joglar resigned after the controversial deaths of ten people at a public hospital due to a bacterial infection.

* Argentina: “Gaucho priest” Jose Gabriel Brochero was beatified in an open air mass on Saturday that was attended by an estimated 150,000 individuals.

* Mexico: At least tweenty-three people have died as a result of landslides, flooding and heavy rains caused by Hurricane Ingrid and Tropical Storm Manuel.

Video Source – YouTube via NTDTV (Video uploaded on August 20, 2013).

Online Sources- NBC News; ABC News; USA TODAY; GlobalPost; france24.com

Daily Headlines: June 6, 2013

* Nicaragua: Will Saudi Arabia and Kuwait accept President Daniel Ortega’s request to help in the construction of a new canal between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans?

* Uruguay: Uruguay beat France 1-0 in an international soccer friendly held days before a “must win” World Cup qualifying match against Venezuela.

* Argentina: Congress passed a law permitting the private and public health care providers to assist the fertility treatments of adults over the age of eighteen.

* U.S.: According to a recently released study by the Immigration Policy Center, “immigration law…contains gender biases that create barriers for many women trying to gain legalization within the current immigration system.”

Video Source – YouTube via Al Jazeera English (Video uploaded in December 2012).

Online Sources- Prensa Latina; Xinhua; ABC News; Huffington Post

Peruvians Improvise Runway Lights to Help Sick Patients

There is an old adage that says, “Necessity is the mother of invention.”  That was certainly the case on Tuesday night in in the Peruvian jungle region.

A 31-year-old woman at the medical clinic in Contamana was going through complications while giving birth while another patient was suffering with symptoms of leptospirosis.  They desperately required medical care at a better-equipped hospital and arrangements were hastily made to fly them out to in nearby Pucalipa. Yet the lone runway at Contamana’s airfield did not have any lighting.  

Faced with the need to transport the infirm patients, a local radio station urged residents to help.  Thirty minutes approximately 300 mototaxis and bikers converged at the airfield and created an impromptu lighting arrangement along the sides of the runway.  As a result of their last-minute heroism, a small plane carrying the three patients was able to take off from Contamana and safely travel to Pucalipa.

As seen in the video below, Melita Murrieta and her newborn baby have been recovering satisfactorily at the Pucalipa hospital:

Today’s Video: One Patient at a Time

On Monday we examined a recent march in Honduras aimed at raising awareness of the dangers of cancer.  Today we continue our commemoration of World Cancer Day with a look at a Latin American country hit very hard by cancer.

A 2012 study from the World Health Organization, (WHO), found that Bolivia has the second-highest cancer death rate in Latin America and this has led to one of the world’s highest mortality rates.

Why such high rates? One reason is lack of proper health care since it is not affordable.  Indeed, the WHO estimated that a whopping 90% of cancer deaths in Bolivia are among those in the lower economic classes. 

The challenge of providing cancer treatment and raising awareness of the disease is seen every da by Dr. Beatriz Salas, one of the few child cancer doctors in Bolivia.  As seen in the video below the page break, Dr. Salas provides care for her mostly impoverished patients including some who travel as far as hundreds of miles to Cochabamba.  Treatment for these patients is difficult to come by due to their poverty as well as a lack of funds to the hospital.  Yet Dr. Salas does not give up and she strives daily to help all of her patients: