-
RAYMOND RUIZ EGMN
By AUDRIS PONCE (UH)
Media responds to Cleveland rape coverage Journalism standards
came under fire after a New York Times article published on March 8
created an upheaval of complaints stating that the story lacked
balance toward an alleged child rape victim in Cleveland, Texas. We
live in a society that continues to blame and shame vic-tims of
sexual assault, said Kelly Boros, communications manager of the
Houston Area Womens Center. It is disheartening but not surpris-ing
to see rape myths perpetuated in the news; sometimes subtly and
sometimes blatantly. An 11-year-old girl was allegedly raped by 18
men from 15 to 27 years of age in Cleveland, a small East Texas
town. The case began when photos and videos taken by the men during
the young girls sexual assault went viral at
her school. One of the girls peers recognized her and some of
the men in a video and notified school officials. Readers accused
the ar-ticles author, James C. McKinley Jr., as taking a one-sided
stance that was geared against the young girl and her family. The
article quoted Cleve-land residents as saying the girl dressed
older than her age, wear-ing makeup and fashions more ap-propriate
to a woman in her 20s and asking what was her mother thinking by
letting her spend time in the Quarters, the same area in which the
incident took place. Boros greatest fear is that negative
portrayals of alleged rape survivors in the media will prevent
others from coming forward and getting help.
Communications coordi-nator for HAWC, Frida Villalobos, said she
was disgusted after reading McKinleys piece. I was upset be-cause
theyre placing the blame on the wrong person, she said. (The men)
knew exactly what they were doing was wrong. She also comments on
the arguments about the girls image depicted in the article. There
is no need to say the girl dressed provocatively or that she looked
older, Villalobos said. That doesnt make her the person responsible
for what hap-pened to her. The article does not hold a single item
referencing any resi-dent or professional in defense of
By NORMA VASQUEZ (UH)
see MEDIA, page 4
Behind the Curtain Karina Gonzlez,a new addition to the Houston
Ballet, recalls her first performance, past roles and the
challenges she faces. --Page 6 see GRILL, page 8
Cleveland, TX was thrown into the national spotlight after 18
sus-pects allegedly raped a 11-year-old girl. Media coverage by the
New York Times and Houston Chronicle has come under scrutiny for
vic-tim blaming.
Inside: News- 2 Sports- 3 Op/ Ed- 4 Life & Entertainment- 6
El Pulso- 7 Comics- 8
The Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo was originally started in
January 1931 by seven Houstonians that met for lunch at the Texas
State Hotel. The first show, named The Hous-ton Fat Stock Show, was
held at Democratic Convention Hall.
Rodeo Time!
Photo coutersey of Amitava SakarKarina Gonzlez rehearses for her
role in Marie Antoinette.
The smell of brisket, chicken and ribs helps fulfill the hunger
that drives award-winner Ernest Ramirez to grill. Growing up in a
farm in Southern Texas, Ramirez discov-ered his passion. The 70s
were about real cowboys, going out with the cow-boys and staying
out there with them, said Ramirez. That in-spired me; seeing all
that made me want to grill. Upon moving to Victoria, Ramirez became
involved with the Knights of Columbus and began cooking chicken.
Ramirez later moved to Houston and began par-ticipating in
cook-offs. I came to Houston and started barbecuing with a barrel
pit because thats all I had, Ramirez said. Eventually I did a
cook-off in New Caney and bought a smoker pit. I won the whole
competition and was like Wow! Thats cool! Grilling with a small
grill is unethical in the world of bar-beque, which is why Ramirez
be-gan building his own through his experience of being a welder.
The one I built took me
around 4 years. Its an 8-foot rotating pit with a 20-foot
trailer. I had no blue prints so I looked on the Internet, Ramirez
said. Participating in his first major competition in 2000, his
team Drillen and Grillen came in second place out of 400 teams
competing in the reserve ribs. Ramirez con-tinued competing and was
named Grand Champion of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo Cook
Off in 2010. When they called out the name it didnt sink in. When I
saw my wife thats when it really did and a big load came off of me.
Its an experience thats wow. You want to feel it again so thats
where the hunger comes from - its the feeling of accomplishment,
Ramirez said. The win in 2010 did not only create the hunger but
also qualified his team to head off to the Jack Daniels World
Championship Invitational Barbecue. It was a prestige to win
something at the Jack Daniels, Ramirez said. Its real hard for
a
Cook-off champ feeds hunger
2011 NCAA Final Four Reliant Stadium April 2 & 4, 2011
-
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2 The Ventureuhelgato.com
NEWS
El Gato Media Network UH-Central * UH-D * UH-Clear Lake *
HCC
Executive Director Photo Editor
Faculty Advisor
Opinion Editor
Sports Editor
Copy Editor
Entertainment Editor
News Editor
Raymond Ruizd[email protected]
Anna [email protected]
Edgar [email protected]
Darlene [email protected]
Norma [email protected]
Ivan [email protected]
Jesus [email protected]
Dr. Fred [email protected]
Diabetes is rampant across the United States. A 2011 National
Diabetes Fact Sheet released by the American Diabetes Association
(ADA) states that almost 26 million Americans have Type II
Diabetes. Among Latinos, the presence of diabetes among adults over
the age of 20 is around 12 percent, compared to 7 percent among non
Hispanic whites. Why is diabetes so high for Hispanic people? In
this case, the thrifty gene may be causing the problem. The thrifty
gene is found in the DNA composition of Native Americans. This gene
causes the body to store extra amounts of fat and sugars. 500 years
ago during the days of hunting-gathering and horticulture, famine
was a regular visitor among Native Americans. In order to survive,
the thrifty gene developed so their bodies could have fat to hold
onto during these famines. But, with the arrival of Spanish
conquistadors in the 16th century, the thrifty gene then passed
from Native Americans to Hispanics, thus making modern day Latinos
struggle with fat storage that can lead to being overweight or
obese, a large risk factor for developing diabetes. In this thrifty
gene, you find this capability of storing sugars in modern times
when there is not a need for it, so therefore theres an
accumulation of it in the body which is a pathway into diabetes,
said Dr. Andrew Gordon, professor of anthropology at UH-Main. The
Pima tribe of Arizona has the highest rate in the entire world at
more than 50 percent, making it more common to be a diabetic than a
non-diabetic. On chromosome one,
weve identified a region that contains a diabetes susceptibility
gene in the Pimas and this has been confirmed in many other
populations around the world, said Dr. Clifton Bogardus of Phoenix
Epidemiology in an interview with USA Today. And on chromosome 11,
we have a region that harbors an obesity susceptibility gene. With
the introduction of pre-packaged food for a cheap price in grocery
stores, hunting-gathering and horticulture lifestyles were
abandoned. Hunting-gathering and horticulture required physical
strength, so the extra fat stored was easily burned off and also,
food that is not treated with chemicals is better for ones body.
According to Dr. Andrew Gordon, meat contained 400 times more
protein than modern meat from the supermarket during the times of
hunting-gathering. In addition, many Hispanics and Native Americans
are poor, working class people. Healthier food is more
expensive, while foods that are high in fat, sugars, and salt
are more affordable. In 2008, the US Census Bureau reported that 23
percent of Hispanics live below the poverty line. The use of
exercise in ones everyday life is not to just to come home and sit
down and watch the television and to eat and drink beer, but to get
out and exercise as part of ones daily routine, Dr. Gordon said.
Due to their genetic composition, Hispanics have a higher tendency
to develop Type II Diabetes, but can lower their risk by eating
right and exercising regularly. For a detailed mini-documentary on
the thrifty gene, watch Nothing Nifty about Thrifty on
uhelgato.com.
From fighting famine to diabetesBy DARLENE CAMPOS (UH)
DARLENE CAMPOS EGMNThe thrifty gene composition is prevalent in
Native Americans.
One year ago I was brand-ed sports editor for El Gato Media
Network, back then it was simply called El Gato, and in that year
the organization has grown by leaps and bounds. It has attained
accolades from many prominent organiza-tions such as the National
Asso-ciation of Hispanic Journalists, the Houston Association of
Hispanic Media Professionals and was a fi-nalist for the Associated
Collegiate Press Pacemaker Award for best Online Newspaper. It has
reached these accolades thanks in large part to its members, both
past and pres-ent. There is a sense of pride that flows within my
veins as I think back to the first issue of the Venture and how the
group came together to achieve the goal of re-leasing the first
ever Latino-run col-legiate newspaper at the University of Houston.
It was exactly one year ago when our director challenged us to put
together a newspaper by
Letter from the sports editor
the semesters end. It took the en-tire El Gato staff to
accomplish this goal and, in a way, thats how it has always been.
Over the course of this past year, I have had the pleasure of
working asides some of the greatest young and up-and-coming
Hispan-ic journalists the city has to offer. Their work ethic and
journalistic integrity has made this newspaper a must read. El Gato
Media Network is an organization looking to estab-lish a Hispanic
voice in the media, and in some ways it is more than that. El Gato
is a family, not a fraternity or sorority. When one of our members
graduates we dont forget about them. They remain in the loop for as
long as they like and are encouraged to continue work within the
organization. Once a gato, always a gato.
By JESUS ACEVEDO (UH)
[email protected]
March - April 2011
Follow UsSearch UH El Gato to friend us on facebook.
Follow us on twitter UHELGATO
[email protected]
-
The Venture 3 SPORTSuhelgato.com
March - April 2011
Id like to be a basket ball player because thats my favorite
sport. I would be Dwight Howard, because he has a positive
personality, and he always plays and has fun.-Hamza HallalUH
Who would you be in the world of sports?
I would love to be a pitcher. Id like to pitch for UCLA
softball, that was my dream when I was little.-Gloria
CervantesUH
Michael Jordan wont be a bad choice, because he helps
communities.-Christina Perez UHD
David Beckham, because he has the talent and the looks.-Will
Orellana UHD
*undecided*Cricket and Basketball but I love all
sports.-Mohammad Salahudin UHD
Wii and Kinect: The rise of pseudo-sportsBy CHRISTINA REYES
(UH)
With technology infiltrat-ing almost every aspect of our lives
its no surprise to find AA batteries replace a baseball bat, a
bowling ball or a boxing glove. Not too long ago people actually
went outside to get in shape and have fun oh, the horror! Nowadays,
more and more fall captive to the glitz and glamour that is a high
score on our preferred game console. Never mind the skill and merit
that an ac-tual sports competition embodies; no, beating your big
brothers or sisters score on the Nintendo Wii is just as rewarding.
The innovative idea of bringing outside games inside was just mind
blowing to both avid ath-letes and gamers. It had never been
possible to bring such different at-tributes together. It had never
been possible to swing a bat or throw a punch without the
inevitable break-ing of a family heirloom, but the Wii did it all.
I admit, I also fell in love with how air conditioner-friendly the
Wii is during Houstons bipolar weather. Sometimes its just nice to
feel like youre exercising without having to go the extra mile. For
those days when every little thing is just making you feel like
staying home, the Wii is a perfect alterna-tive. It sure beats
breaking your New Years resolution com-pletely. All perks aside
though, the Wii has nonetheless fallen into
the bottomless pit that all games dive into: the cheats. Not to
say you can do much with a practically codeless game that the Wii
Sports is, but if you angle the controller a certain way, if you
twist your wrist just right - Voila! Youve just hit a
record-breaking home run while sitting down on the sofa. The
mak-ing of a future all-star player? I sure hope not. Its laughable
to believe that gamers would not have found loopholes in the game.
Isnt that what differentiates an amateur from an expert - to find
every glitch and anomaly in a video game and exploit it to feed our
crazy, com-petitive desires? I daresay, the second someone found it
easier to hit a curveball or a birdie sitting down, the Wiis
purpose was defeated. In the Xboxs Kinect however, we find a breath
of fresh air after getting rid of the Wiis controller, which was
much too similar to our old, sloth-like days of gaming. With
Kinect, technology evaporates, letting the natural mag-ic in all of
us shine. Oh, well thats great! You see, I thought we didnt need a
$400 machine to show us our natural side. Even though the Kinect
does a splendid job in obliterating the need for a controller, the
threat of pseudo-sports does not decline.
Homero Blanca is the only athlete of Mexican-American descent to
be inducted into the UH Athletics Hall of Honor. Blanca played golf
at UH from 19581962 and was inducted in 1978.
The first live cougar, Shasta I, was a 75-pound 15-month-old
Mexican puma. She was purchased by Alpha Phi Omega (APO) in 1947
from wild-animal rancher Manuel King.
Seven former UH Latin-American students have participated in the
Olympics: Rolando Ferreira (basketball) 1988-92 Brazil, David Diaz
(basketball) 1992 Columbia, Carl Herrera (basketball) 1992
Venezuela, Azul Almazan (Diving) 2000 Mexico, Patty Kohlmann
(free-style swimming) 1984-88 Mexico, Sigrid Niehaus (freestyle
swimming) 1988 Costa Rica, and Theresa Rivera (freestyle swimming)
1984 Mexico.
Only about 26 out of 417 student athletes at UH are of
Hispanic/Latino descent.
Photo Tour of UH Hall of Fame
[email protected]
Disability Leadership Network of Houston leadership Resource
Fair
Adults with disabilities and parents who have children with
disabilities.
Presentations will be in Spanish only(Childcare & Lunch will
be provided)
April 9th, 20119:00 am 2:00 pm
United Way of Greater Houston50 Waugh, Houston
By ORPHA PALOMARES (UH)XPOZURE PHOTOGRAPHY
Facts: Hispanics and UH AthleticsBy ARIANNA MARTINEZ (UH)
Xpozures Photo of the Month
By MEGAN OTIS www.xpozurephoto.com
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4 The Ventureuhelgato.com
March - April 2011OP/ED
Eventually we have to turn from our academic mental-ity and
switch to hands-on experience.
Post graduation identity By ERIKA ANDRADE (UH) The break between
grad-uation and finding that higher-paying job has allowed me to
sow buttons, rearrange my room, prac-tice my photography, socialize
with friends, take a road trip, cook for myself, rediscover the
iron, lose the dark circles under my eyes, laugh at Mexican soap
operas but also frown in utter confusion at my fu-ture. My biggest
mistake prior to graduation was not having a plan after the
ceremony. I set a goal to graduate within four years or I would be
an utter failure to my-self how, why, dont ask. I only changed my
ma-jor oncefrom print journalism to creative writingin my
transi-tion from San Jacinto College to UH. You may imagine my
anxiety at possibly delaying graduation to find myself. I always
enjoyed writing, and I realized that to be a journalist you must be
a reporter first, which (dont tell potential employers) I am not.
However, to my surprise, making up people is also a chal-lenge,
though much less intimidat-ing than talking to real aggressive
ones. So I am currently in the limbo of being stuck between fiction
and reality. Maybe it was a rash de-cision only to finish on time,
but I can honestly say my last two years of undergraduate study
were by far more enjoyable and less draining than my initial two. I
figured out what I was doing the last semes-ter of college, and by
then it was time to jump into the work force
as a professional - another pe-riod of identity crisis I hope to
de-cipher soon (though it would sadly eliminate 50 percent of my
writing prompts). I had my suppressed suspicions which I am
confirming presently and should emphasize - a liberal arts degree
will not land you a job right out of college. No par-ticular degree
will actually, and that is the reason why your job search should be
aimed at your interests
and skills rather than your degree, though they usually are
related. You are mostly likely to persuade employers to hire you
and be moti-vated to start working if you are in-terested in the
position rather than pointing at your degree to justify why you
applied. I was one to visit the Uni-versity Career Services
counselors both when changing my major and job searching. Both
instances have been helpful, so if you are confused or job hunting,
you should defi-nitely pay them a visit at www.ca-reer.uh.edu and
then in person. The counselors made it clear that you should not
feel constrained when choosing a major or a job, since you are
unlikely to stick with the same interests for the rest of your
life. Being in limbo between practical and imaginative is a good
[email protected]
thing because employers in many areas look for people who can
func-tion in both realms, which most of us are capable of doing,
though we lean one-sidedly. The trap I fell into while job browsing
was comparing quali-fications and responsibilities with my writing
experience in the class-room. Eventually we have to turn from our
academic mentality and switch to hands-on experience. Beware about
the time you take to relax after graduation; lack of productive
activity can lead to lack of motivation. If that dream job seems to
still be in the fantastic world, get your hands muddy with some
internship experience while earning money from a part-time job.
After some frustration, I land-ed an internship with Arte Pblico
Press which I am looking forward to, not only because it will
increase my productivity but expose me to books, authors and the
publishing industry thus increasing my knowl-edge in an area
related to my degree and career goals. While you intern and be-fore
applying for positions, perform informational interviews to ensure
you will love in practice what you do in theory. Take your
bachelors job experience to decide whether your masters will be
related or not. Most importantly, measure success in your personal
terms; you will feel more at ease with your deci-sions.
Can race have an influence in sports?By ARIANNA MARTINEZ (UH)
When it comes to sports, for some reason here in the USA, there has
always been a rivalry be-tween Hispanics and Americans, in soccer
and baseball maybe a little more. Hispanics will not accept that
Americans are better at soccer or baseball, yet in all of the
levels that Ive seen: peewee, high school, college, professional,
the Hispanics always have a hard time beating the Americans. And
the higher the level get the less Hispanics I see. Americans find
it hard to believe or they get mesmerized when they see a Hispanic
playing football or basketball, heck even the same Hispanic
community will question their talent. I mean how can they when in
Mexico theres no professional football league. There are no
cultural boundaries in sports and Hispanics share the same passion
and emo-tions in sports. Both forget about the world when the game
is on and they root for their favorite team unconditionally and
wish for their team to win the championship, they even dream of
playing for their favorite team, and when they play they will pour
their hearts out: Sports unites them. Although they might share the
same feelings and passion for sports, their culture and
aspira-tions in sports run parallel of each other. Carla Loza
Gomez, a psy-
chology graduate from the Univer-sity of Houston, lived in
Mexico City as a child but has raised both of her children, Vanessa
19 and Anibal 16, in Houston Texas and understands very well the
cultural differences of these two, especial-ly when it comes to
children and sports. Americans and the American government, from my
experience, support kids tremen-dously in sports, Gomez said.
Parents are willing to do what-ever it takes and put out whatever
the amount of money their children might need, something that even
the Hispanics living in the US are still lacking to understand.
Gomez said while His-panics have a great passion for sports, they
find it difficult to pay for registration fees or uniforms. She
said sports is not their top pri-ority and opt to spend the money
on other things. Lauren Prewitt, an Eng-lish teacher and soccer
coach at Cypress Woods High School and at Cy-Fair Dynamo has seen
the dif-ferences not only between Ameri-cans and Hispanics, but
also be-tween the low economic Hispanics and the high economic
Hispanics. I have a very excellent player for example who both
par-ents are from Mexico, they are very well off and they put a lot
of pres-sure on her to succeed, Prewitt said. The reason I believe
that is,
the 11-year-old girl. Veronica Villafane, a member and
ex-president of the National Association of Hispan-ic Journalists,
shared the same thought. I think what is missing there is that they
shouldve inter-viewed somebody from a womans support group or a
specialist deal-ing with rape victims to address those types of
comment, Villafane said. They have to put the other side. The
Society of Profes-sional Journalists has an ethics code that they
recommend journal-ists abide by though its adherence is voluntary.
Fred Brown, vice-chair-man of the SPJ ethics committee, believes
the article followed ethical standards and its lurid details hold
importance to the story. If witnesses saw her in
this unsavory area and dressed in a style that struck them as
inappro-priately grown-up, that certainly is a crucial element in
describing the sociological circumstances sur-rounding this crime,
said Brown. Brown believes those al-legations were relevant to the
story and couldnt be ignored. Vanesa Brashier, the edi-tor of the
communitys newspaper the Cleveland Advocate, believes that despite
how easy it is for peo-ple to dissect an article, the only people
who fully understand this case are the people involved. Both
Brashier and Brown agree that as a reporter one of the main
obligations is to reach equi-librium within the story. Everything
has got to be quick while being fair, accurate and balanced, said
Brashier.
MEDIAcont. from page 1
[email protected]
is because they came from a place where they didnt have much
op-portunity and then they came to America and they made something
of themselves so they expect her to do the same. Prewitt said that
a lower economic player might not have the same pressure from the
family; he or she has to go through other obstacles that keep him
or her from dedicating 100% to the sport. Some of my lower
eco-nomic Hispanic players have to miss practice or I have to be
more flexible with them because they have family Prewitt said.
Everyone in this coun-try wants to be number one and the parents
teach their children to com-pete, set goals, and try to achieve
them, something that in my opinion Hispanics lack in, Gomez said.
Hispanics tend to be more relaxed in that perspective. They have
their children join a sports team because they like the sport but
not for a future purpose. Others join a sports team to break out of
the daily routine thats work, work, and work. For Hispanics, mainly
the grownups, there are other things more important than sports. To
them it is just a pas-sion, a recreation, a pass time; sure a lot
wish and dream of becoming the next Pele, the next Fernando
see RACE, page 8
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ADVERTISEMENTMarch - April 2011
Can race have an influence in sports?
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LIFE & ENTERTAINMENT6 The Ventureuhelgato.com
Which Way Home provides direction about child migrants By ANNA
GALLEGOS (UH) The opening scene sets the tone of the award-winning
documentary Which Way Home. The film starts with the broken body of
a dead illegal migrant being pulled from the Rio Grande along the
Texas-Mexico border; it is the body of a Hispanic male who couldnt
finish the treacherous journey to the U.S. It serves as a warning
to all of those that are trying to cross illegally. This is no easy
journey. Which Way Home follows the 20-day journey from the
southern tip of Mexico to the U.S. border of not just any migrants
but the most vulnerable among them. Thousands of children, ranging
from age 7 to 17, venture through Mexico on top of freight trains,
a practice which is illegal, until they reach the northern states
to walk across the desert and the Rio Grande into the U.S. We hope
to put a human face on migration, said Sascha Weiss, the films
field producer, about the intent of the film. We wanted people to
understand the risks that children are taking to get to the U.S.
and Mexico even. Kids are dying to come here. The film does
exactly
what it set out to do by riding the trains with Kevin and Fito,
both 14 years old boys, and a handful of other children who leave
their families for a better life, more money or the big cities that
they have seen in movies. For some children, they want something
very specific in the U.S. to be adopted and to have enough money to
send back to the mothers and younger siblings that they left
behind. What makes the documentary more heart rending is that most
of the children are not from Mexico but rather from Honduras or
other Central or Southern American countries. By crossing two or
more countries, these children have wide eye optimism about their
potential futures in the U.S. but are blinded about the dangers of
the journey. They can die due to lack of food and water, be
kidnapped by smugglers or crushed by the trains that carry them
north. For some of them this is a badge of honor, said Weiss, that
they survived the journey. All of the children survive the journey
but not all make it to the end. Some of the children willingly turn
back, are captured by Mexican
immigration services or caught by the U.S. Border Patrol.
According to the film, the Border Patrol finds 100,000 + kids
trying to enter the U.S. When found by the U.S., the children are
treated the same adult illegal migrants. Were still not treating
the children differently in the eyes of the law. People feel more
empathetic towards them because they arent seen as the same kind of
risk as taking jobs or any of the type of complaints that Americans
will have about the adult migrants, said Weiss They may have
empathy but its not causing anyone to act. So far there has been no
move to change the laws for child migrants but the film has
garnered an Oscar nomination for best documentary in 2010 and
coverage on HBO. Which Way Home was released on DVD in late January
2011. Go to www.whichwayhome.net for more information.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cgaPU9rzTHQ
March - April 2011
By CHRISTINA REYES (UH)
La Vida y Los Tiempos de Frida Kahlo, written and performed by
Angeles Romero, takes you on a whirlwind of fiery passion and
distress as you follow Frida through her polio-ridden childhood,
more than 30 excruciating operations, and multiple amorous affairs.
A combination of live action and interactive video, the play
artfully links several chaotic scenes as Angeless dynamic voice
brings to life the Frida that we all know and love. Frida begins
the action immediately as she leaps from the wheelchair she was
brought in by La Muerte Paparazzi (Death, the Paparazzi) and paints
the audience a metaphorical representation of her childhood as she,
goddess of war, fights wicked dragons with her trusty sword-cane
and loyal doll, Magdalena. As the scene matures and Fridas
child-like voice deepens, we are witness to her transformation as
she starts a self-portrait on her glass mirror and proclaims: Like
Daphne, I will become a tree: I will grow roots. They will think I
am dead, but as a plant I will forever stay, for I am destined
to
metamorphosis, forever.Now an adult, Frida allows us a closer
look into some of her most intimate moments and personal musings
via crafty innuendos that require much more than a single glance.
However, throughout these fervent and intense scenes Frida
incorporates the audience into the play with the witty humor and
sarcasm that made her one of a kind. Once her lifes progression
finished painting the self-portrait, La Muerte Paparazzi, her
faithful companion throughout the play, wipes the mirror clean with
a rag speckled with the insistent stains that became her continuous
loss and sorrow. Frida then takes her last breaths and is wheeled
away as she came in, followed by the warm, solitary light of
history. La Vida y Los Tiempos de Frida Kahlo is a not a one-genre
play; it aptly represents the complexity that is life by sprinkling
the drama, comedy, and tragedy that saturate everyday life. Romeros
impeccable performance breathes life into the Frida that, until
now, we had only known through painting. Through her own
personal
troubles, Romero embodies Frida in such a way that makes you
feel like you are really in the presence of the Mexican queen of
art. This coveted play is hands down: a must-see. You will leave
with a sense of hope and wonder as in her last musings, Fridas asks
the audience to consider what separates you from being real and
just being another figment of her imagination. If you had the
courage to stand up from your seat when she asked, against the norm
of the others sitting down, then you existed.
Please keep in mind that the strong, adult connotations of this
play are not appropriate for anyone 16 years of age and younger.
English version soon to be announced in April 2011. For more
information visit www.tbhcenter.org or call 713-222-1213 to
purchase tickets.
Mahira Khan UH Business Student
Freshman
Dress to impress
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Frida Kahlo: Reincarnated through theatre
Behind the Curtain: The Successes of a Houston Ballet Dancer
Everyone watched. Her tutu bounced to the rhythm of her tip-toed
dance. She could not hear the music over her own heart-pounding but
carried on the performance because she had memorized the steps. She
could not make out her family in the crowd, but she knew they were
present. She let go within herself and danced. Karina Gonzlez,
soloist dancer for the Houston Ballet started her career at 7 years
old when her first performance in front of an audience confirmed
her calling. I loved the feeling of being onstage, she said, and
from that moment she has continued to develop and excel in her
career. Gonzlez latest debut was in Marie Antoinette which she
performed for the first time since joining the Houston Ballet in
2010. She related her experience with this performance. Almost all
the dancers know and feel familiar with the ballet, so as a new
member it was challenging to learn and try to fit in with them, she
said. Despite the technical setbacks, she enjoyed watching how the
principal character develops her role, she said. It is very
artistically demanding so I feel lucky to be next to such great
artists. Gonzlez was born in Caracas, Venezuela. Prior to her move
to Houston, she trained at
the Gustavo Franklin Ballet School in Caracas, dancing
professionally with Ballet National of Caracas and Tulsa Ballet
Theater in Oklahoma, where she reached the rank of principalthe
highest position within a professional dance companyin 2007. She is
a silver medal winner of the New York International Ballet
Competition. Gonzlez has danced principal roles in Ben Stevensons
Cinderella, Andre Prokovsys The Great Gatsby, as well as Swan Lake,
Don Quixote, and The Sleeping Beauty. Gonzlez favorite role has
been Juliet in Romeo and Juliet because she could relate to the
character and transferred the feelings to the audience in her
performance. The most challenging aspect for me is to get a role
that feels natural and makes the audience feel what I am feeling at
that moment, she said about leading a career in dance. Heavily
technical roles are also a challenge. Her role as Odette/Odile in
Swan Lake, for example. The role is one of the most technically
demanding classical ballets; you need to be vulnerable and
evilTechnically it is difficult from beginning to end, so I think
it would be one of the most difficult roles that I have done, she
said.
By ERIKA ANDRADE (UH)
[email protected]
see BALLET, page 8
-
The Venture 7March - April 2011 EL PULSO
Jugadores del NFL demandan mejor tratoPor ROBERTO GUERRERO (UH)
El NFL es la liga ms popular de los Estados Unidos. El Sper Tazn
XVIV fue el programa televisado ms visto en la historia del sistema
de Nielson. Todas las cadenas nacionales como NBC, CBS, Fox y ESPN
tambin repor-taron nmeros altos en rating comparado al ao pasado.
La liga reporto ganancias de 79 billones de dlares en el ao fiscal
2010. Lo nico que podra derivar el poder del la NFL sera la liga
mimsa, y eso es lo que parece que harn. Este tres de marzo a la
11:59 pm expira el contrato entra la unin de jugadores de la NFL
(NFL players Union) y el NFL. Al expirar el contrato los jugadores
irn a huelga y habr peligro de que no haya temporada en el 2011. La
unin de jugadores y los dueos no pueden llegar a trminos aceptables
para ambos lados para un nuevo contrato laboral. Los dos grupos se
juntaron antes y despus del Su-per Bowl en Dallas. Pero tantas
fueron sus diferencias que pararon todas las negociaciones y no se
re-unieron otra vez.
Los puntos de conflictos son:1. Cmo repartir las gananciasLos
jugadores saben cules son las ganancias de la NFL y ellos sienten
que no estn recibiendo una parte justa de esos 9 billones. Y quizs
tengan razn, ellos son los que se juegan su salud y su vida semana
tras semana. Pero los dueos qui-eren quedarse con lo ms que pu-eden
de los ingresos.2. Una temporada de 18 juegos A los dueos les
gustara ver ms
ingresos y quieren agregar dos juegos a la temporada, de 16 a
18. El plan de los dueos es eliminar dos juegos de pretemporada y
hac-erlos juegos de temporada. Los ju-gadores solo van a llegar a
este tr-mino si son pagados ms por estos juegos, adems se preocupan
por su salud ya que la temporada de 16 juegos deja muchos jugadores
con lesiones y un desgaste fsico may-or. Los dueos no quieren pagar
porque dicen que lo nico que cam-biara sera que dos juegos cuenten
como temporada regular, pero los jugadores dicen que el nivel de
juego es ms alto y peligroso en
uhelgato.com
[email protected]
juegos que cuentan para playoffs.3. Establecer una escala de
salar-ios para los jugadores ingresantes del la liga colegial. Este
punto no ser el ms difcil de llegar a trminos satisfac-torios. Los
jugadores no creen que sea justo que un jugador que no ha jugado un
partido en la liga pueda ganar millones de dlares garan-tizados,
pero un veterano probado en la liga gana miles de dlares que no son
garantizados.4.Beneficios y ayuda para los ju-gadores retirados.
Los jugadores quieren un plan mdico y ayuda financiera para los
jugadores retirados. Muchos ex ju-
...Al expirar el contrato los jugadores irn a huelga y habr
peligro de que no haya temporada en el 2011...
gadores desarrollan enfermedades serias por el desgaste fsico
que requiere el Ftbol Americano. Los problemas mentales estn entre
las mayores causas de muerte en ex jugadores. Los dueos quisieran
quedarse con los ms posibles in-gresos pero entienden lo que da un
jugador en la temporada para hacer esos ingresos. La liga ha tomado
pasos para proteger a los jugadores de lesiones graves y se
estipula que un programa mdico ser creado. En el Da del Amor y la
Amistad los dos grupos llegaron al acuerdo de resumir negociaciones
con un mediador del gobierno. El Comisionado y el Presidente de la
Unin tambin llegaron al acuerdo de que no se comunicar al pblico
sobre las negociaciones. Al trmino de las negociaciones el
intermedi-ario dijo que las plticas entre los dos grupos fueron
positivas y que hubo progreso, pero que todava hay ms diferencias
que acuerdos. No parece que los dos la-dos tendrn un nuevo acuerdo
antes de que tengan que empezar prcti-cas en mayo. Muchos analistas
ya se estn haciendo a la idea de que habr una temporada reducida de
un mximo de 12 juegos, mientras otros piensan que no habr
tem-porada. Los que tienen ms que perder en esta pelea entre
millon-arios y billonarios son la aficin que podra perderse todo un
ao de ftbol profesional.
El uso del espanglish, un amalgamiento del idioma ingls con el
espaol, ha crecido sustan-cialmente con el incremento de la
poblacion latina en los Estados Unidos. Los orgenes del espang-lish
se remontan a 1848, cuando Mxico cedi parte de su territo-rio a
EE.UU. de acuerdo al tratado Guadalupe-Hidalgo. Desde ese en-tonces
ha surgido un idioma hibrido con el que la gente latino-americana
se comunica cotidianamente. Adems con el gran cre-cimiento de
migracin de hispano-hablantes provenientes de America del Sur y el
Caribe, se adquiere no solo un sinfn de nuevas palabras que son
ajenas a la cultura mexi-cana, sino modismos que son pro-pios de
pases latinos como Gua-temala, Honduras, El Salvador, Argentina,
Uruguay y Puerto Rico por mencionar algunos. Con ms de 35 millones
de latinos, los EE.UU es uno de los puntos ms importantes para la
poblacin hispana en el mundo. Por ejemplo, segn la Oficina del
Censo de los EE.UU. en el 2010, la poblacin latina en Houston era
de 37.4%. Con una poblacin que crece da a da, no es extrao que el
espanglish sea una herramienta indispensable de comunicacin. La
proliferacin del es-panglish ha tambien adquirido una gran
importancia en el mbito cultural en general de los EE.UU. Tanto as
que artistas, comerciantes
y hasta polticos hacen uso de esta lengua para llegar a las
masas hispanas. Y por qu no? si se ha estimado que la comunidad
hispana en los Estados Unidos ser de ms de 47 millones de personas
hacia el ao 2020. Esto constituira el 15 por ciento de la poblacin
total segn informa Arnulfo Ramrez en su artculo El espaol y los
his-panos en los Estados Unidos de Norteamrica. Se habla espanglish
ahora ms que nunca; sin duda, es una lengua relativamente joven que
se niega a morir. Se estan creando nuevas formas para mantener el
es-panglish en los EE.UU. Este idioma coloquial ha tomado tanta
fuerza en las comunidades hispanas en EE.UU. que se prepara ya un
dic-cionario de espanglish, tal y como lo indica Patricia Kolesnico
en su artculo publicado en la pgina de Internet www.elclarn.com. El
espanglish ha surgido en el corazn de una comunidad con la
necesidad de comunicarse en un idioma propio, ya que se encuentra
en una zona fronteriza cultural y geogrfica: viviendo en un pas
mayoritariamente anglo-hablante que colinda con la tierra de su
historia y cultura ancestral. Al no ser ni de aqu ni de alla este
fenomeno ha servido como vinculo de comunicacin entre generacio-nes
a lo largo de su existencia.
El espanglishPor VICTOR MARTINEZ (UH-D)
[email protected]
Imag
es:
Bo
nsai
3
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La seguridad fronteriza ha sido uno de los temas ms dis-cutidos
en la poltica de los Estados Unidos. Constantemente vemos las
distintas propuestas de ley que dife-rentes legisladores han
realizado. La seguridad en la fron-tera ha sido uno de los temas ms
conflictivos en los debates en-tre polticos de Estados Unidos y
Mxico. La violencia en Mxico contina incrementadose, 33,000
asesinatos se han registrado desde que el Presidente Felipe Caldern
declar la guerra contra el narcotr-fico en el 2006. El Gobernador
Rick Perry ha mostrado preocupacin por el aumento de la violencia
en el veci-no pas del sur y es por esto mismo que se han tratado de
proponer leyes que combatan esta lucha con-stante del colindante
pas. Legisladores de los Esta-dos Unidos han debatido el prob-lema
y el efecto que podra traer a los Estados Unidos la constante
violencia en Mxico. Mientras que el presidente Felipe Caldern ha
criticado el consumo de drogas y el trfico de armas, el presidente
Barack Obama ha tratado de com-batir la alta demanda de drogas que
existe en el pas. Perry ha criticado constantemente el poco
desem-peo que ha realizado Obama en cuestin de proteccin a la
frontera. En una conferencia en Washington en el mes de febrero,
Perry critic la falta de proteccin a lo largo de las 1,200 millas
de la frontera con Mxico, donde ex-tern su preocupacin por la
ausen-cia de la Guardia Nacional donde ha pedido que se desplieguen
mil
tropas para la seguridad. El 15 de febrero fue un impacto para
los Estados Unidos cuando dos agentes de ICE fueron atacados por
personas armadas, dndole muerte a Jaime Zapata y dejando herido de
bala a Vc-tor vila. Este hecho presion al gobierno de Obama a tomar
ac-cin. Das despus se implement la operacin Bombardier donde se
realizaron redadas en diferentes puntos de la nacin dando como
re-sultado el arresto de 676 personas relacionadas con los carteles
de la droga en Mxico. Se decomisaron 12 millones de dlares en
efectivo, 467 kilos de cocana, 21 libras de herona, 40 mil libras
de marigua-na, 282 armas de fuego y 94 ve-hculos. Los proyectos de
ley con-tinuarn a lo largo de este perodo. Muchos analistas
polticos dijeron que la relacin Mxico-Estados Unidos se podra ver
afectada por el ataque contra los agentes de ICE. La realidad fue
otra ya que tres semanas despus Caldern visit a Obama para tratar
de hablar sobre temas que afectan a los dos pases, resaltando el
tema del narcotrfico. Pero esas fueron solo plticas, las acciones
se llevarn a cabo en cu-anto transcurra el tiempo. Por lo pronto,
solo nos podemos quedar con los hechos y esperar que se haga lo que
plantean los dos gobiernos. Todava que-dan muchas dudas en el aire
sobre cules sern las acciones despus de todo lo acontecido.
Proteccin en lafronteraPor JOSE SANTOS (UH)
[email protected]
-
8 The Venture
Final Four 2011
Pepe by Felipe Campos
March - April 2011
Confused Chicano by Raymond Ruiz
Ruths BoothTop 10 most watched sports By RUTH MONTANEZ
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Find the word
1. Futbol (Soccer)- 3.5 billion fans and 715.1 mil-lion people
watched the Worlds Cup 2010 final.2. Cricket- the 2011 Cricket
world cup will be broadcasted in 220 countries.3. Basketball-2
billion spectators worldwide with viewership of 15 million per
season.4. Tennis- 10 million viewers per match.5. Motor Racing-
461,000 viewers per race, 10 mil-lion per year. 6. Horse Racing-
2010 s most popular race had 10.74 million viewers. 7. Baseball-
19.1 million viewers for 2009 World Series.8. Athletics- 8 to 9
million viewers in the Mens 100 metre.9. Golf-3.6 million viewers
last year10. Boxing- viewership of over 2 million fanatics
GRILL
[email protected]
BALLET
[email protected]
cont. from page 1
cont. from page 6
DANIEL MENDEZ EGMNErnest Ramirez gets ready to impress the
judges.
Gonzlez prepares and gets into her roles through rehearsal,
coaching and effort. The same elements contribute to her success,
plus a little bit of luck. I will say what got me here today is
working hard, the teachers and coaches that believed in me, giving
me many opportunities along the way, and being in the right place
at the right time, she said. To relax after rehearsals and
performances, Gonzlez likes
team that doesnt cook that style barbeque and place second by
chicken at the Jack Daniels. It was great, even though I thought it
was good just to compete with interna-tional teams. Ramirez, along
with Grillen and Drillen, recently par-ticipated in the 2011
Houston Live-stock Show and Rodeo Cook Off but did not place. We
got to keep going because we have a bigger competi-tion coming up
with Sams Club, Ramirez said. We gave it our all. Despite
competing, grill-ing, doing charity work and work-ing as a pipe
fitter, Ramirez still manages to have his number one priority
beside him - his family. You have to have family support; they have
to be 100 percent behind you, said Ramirez. Since the beginning,
theyve helped me out. Ramirezs accomplish-ments are not left unseen
in his family. Motivation is huge in my family, and to see my
relatives pur-suing their dreams no matter their age or obstacles
is very inspiring, said niece Ashley Gomez. We all help each other;
we are a hands-on family.
While motivating his niece, Ramirez also has his wifes support.
Anna Ramirez believes that not just anyone can barbeque. Im his
behind-the-scenes, said Anna. We have a good time, and he loves it.
You have to love it because its a lot of hard work. Its a passion -
its his passion. For instance, he prepares mentally...you wouldnt
notice if hes stressed because he enjoys it. Im the one who gets
stressed. Other than competitions, Ramirez has an ultimate dream
that he has yet to fulfill. He wants to open a bar-beque
restaurant, Anna said. An actual guy who opens a restaurant
Hey bro, wanna go play some flag football later?
F u t b o l ? ! Sure!
Im ready to score a gooaall!!!
Whats with the flag? How about you score a touchdown instead so
we can win. What kind of soccer
ball was that? NO hands in footie!!!
and is a competitor is going to put all of his heart into it.
Having his heart in it has allowed opportunities. Once youre
recognized, everything starts opening; people start helping you,
Ramirez said. They accepted me onto the real barbeque business
world. Remaining with the hun-ger and passion, Ramirez awaits whats
in store for him while stay-ing true to himself. Its kind of
celebrity sta-tus, Ramirez said. You have to stay humble.
to sleep, talk to her family back home, listen to Spanish music,
watch TV and go to the movie theater. As a dancer who has performed
abroad, Gonzlez does not feel a difference in spectators response.
I really believe that if you do your best and give a good show the
audience will enjoy it wherever you are, she said. Pink At the
Brown, March 24Raising the Barre, March 28thwww.houstonballet.org
for ticket info.
Visita www.uhelgato.com para leer el artculo de El Pulso.
Frida Kahlo Regresa a La Vida
Por CHRISTINA REYES
Wanted: Spanish comics
&Editorial cartoons
[email protected]
Comics
Soccer? Oh. Sorry my Mexican friend. In FOOTBALL the only player
that kicks the
ball also collects the jock straps!
RACEcont. from page 4
[email protected]
Valenzuela, Mark Sanchez, or Edu-ardo Najera but can it be
possible with the cultural mindset, the back-ground, and the
responsibilities that Hispanics have to deal with in the USA? Sure
it can. Could the culture differ-ences: the discipline, the
priorities, the mentality, the way each culture views sports the
reason why Amer-icans succeed in sports more than Hispanics? You
tell me.
