Kennedy and Leadership
August 26, 2009 by Elizabeth Toledo
Senator Ted Kennedy was deeply engaged in civil rights and equal rights. As a man of immense privilege, he uniquely saw the struggles of those whose lives were very different.
Senator Kennedy voted against the nomination of John Roberts as Supreme Court Chief Justice because he was not convinced that Roberts fundamentally understood the role of civil rights and equal rights in this country. Further, he didn’t believe that Roberts would be a leader in this country’s march toward equality. Kennedy’s unfavorable opinion about Roberts was heavily influenced by Robert’s comments about the role of judicial leadership during the Brown v Board of Education decision, when most white Americans were in favor of segregation.
Like Kennedy, last month Senator Graham raised the issue of Brown v Board of Education during a Supreme Court nomination hearing. This time it was Judge Sonia Sotomayor under scrutiny. Senator Graham asked Sotomayor about judicial leadership and the Brown v Board of Education decision. Graham explained to Sotomayor that had he been a Senator at the time of the Brown decision, he probably wouldn’t have been “brave” enough to stand up to segregation like the Justices did. In contrast to Kennedy, Senator Graham expresses a very different view of leadership and its responsibility to civil rights.
Kennedy became a Senator on the heels of the Brown decision and he was a forceful leader in the passage of the 1964 Civil Rights Act. After 11 failed attempts, the civil rights legislation finally passed.
Kennedy was right to judge the qualification for leadership through the prism of civil rights and equal rights. He is missed.
Women’s Equality Day: Barbie, Birth Control and the Media Trends that Matter
August 26, 2009 by ahagelgans
Women’s Equality Day
Barbie, Birth Control and the Media Trends that Matter
On Women’s Equality Day, Camino PR pays tribute to our clients on the forefront of dismantling sexism and bias. At our firm we only promote clients who are sparking the kind of social change that will make our society more just. It’s not the most profitable niche, but it is the best way for us to have rigorous expertise in social change communications.
It hasn’t been an easy year for women’s advocates. In domestic news reporting related to sexual health, the terms “promiscuous” and “shame” got about the same number of media mentions as the terms “dating” and “pleasure.” New author Jordan Christy has just begun her media push for a return to “feminine values,” with an etiquette book for young women with chapters titled “Keep Your Chin Up and Your Skirt Down.”
The fashion industry toasted Barbie’s 50th birthday by making her the first toy to enjoy membership in the Fashion Designers Council of America. Among the Barbie - themed products was a new lip gloss called “Huge Lips Skinny Hips,” which causes lip swelling and the absorption of an appetite suppressor into the blood stream.
That’s why, in this climate where the most vocal are often the least reasonable, we applaud our clients for their dedication to creating true equality for women and girls in the United States and around the world. Here’s a snapshot of some of our clients and the fantastic work they are doing on behalf of women:
· One in four low-income women in the United States who faces an unintended pregnancy would choose abortion but cannot because of lack of funding. Thanks NLIRH for lobbying to end federal restrictions on abortion funding for low-income women. And, a huge thanks for winning a federal court battle this year that expands access to emergency contraception for young women!
· Almost 20% of women in this country are uninsured and many more face absurdly high premiums because insurers treat pregnancy as a disease and Caesarean sections as a pre-existing condition. Thanks Planned Parenthood and the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) for pushing our leaders to enact real health care reform!
· Latinas make up less than 2% of lawyers, and an even smaller fraction of judges in this country. Thanks Planned Parenthood and NLIRH for supporting Justice Sonia Sotomayor’s nomination!
· One in four teenage girls has a sexually transmitted disease. When professors at Georgia State University came under fire by state elected officials for teaching about sexuality, the National Sexuality Resource Center sprang into action and created a national outpouring of support. Thanks NSRC for the awesome leadership!
· Nine out of 10 LGBT students report being harassed at school. Research also shows that many of the students that witness acts of harassment experience feelings of helplessness and powerlessness, and develop poor coping and problem-solving skills. Thanks Ford Foundation for being part of the solution by supporting research that explores sexuality education as it relates to issues of class, race, gender, and sexual orientation!
Camino is proud to be working with such committed organizations that reflect our values and strive daily to achieve equal footing for women.
For additional information contact Andrea Hagelgans at ahagelgans@caminopr.com
Kids on the Border
August 13, 2009 by Elizabeth Toledo
The Arizona Daily Star printed an article today about Project Libertad, a new media project (supported by CPR!) that amplifies the voices of Mexican adolescents living near the Mexico-Arizona border. Pablo created this storytelling initiative to give voice to the kids growing up at the center of border wars and wading through gritty realities like family separation, poverty, violence, discrimination, and under-education.
Pablo translates the unfiltered voices of adolescents into fictional narratives. He first imbeds himself in a community, provides tools for authentic stories to emerge, and turns these stories into a feature film or other digital media product.
His first feature film, Runnin at Midnite, explored the midnight basketball culture of youth in the barrios on the U.S. side of border. In the development phase of this first effort he established a youth educational program in Tucson’s south side. Only kids who had been kicked out of many high schools were eligible to study filmmaking with Pablo, with just one catch: they had to show up everyday to work toward their GED.
The teens who shaped Runnin at Midnite were not the model “at-risk” youth that are the delight of intervention programs. Pablo’s kids were beyond at-risk, they were post-risk. In fact, the Department of Labor had classified this community as one of the nation’s neediest in regard to at-risk youth. Many participants were teen parents, most had a history of drug or alcohol use, most had a criminal record, most lived amidst serious violence, all lived in poverty. These teens were well beyond the No Child Left Behind hype. But a strange thing happened when Pablo handed them a camera and taught them to tell their authentic stories: they re-engaged high school studies. Pablo’s high school graduation rate among these youth was so high that it earned him kudos from the White House.
Many of these barrio kids can be seen in the acclaimed Runnin at Midnite. In this next film effort, Project Libertad, Pablo heads across the border to Mexico. For the last few years Pablo has been traveling to Mexico to visit with people in the underbelly of border crossing politics: people who wade through sewer tunnels to cross underneath the border, kids living on their own while their families do seasonal work, families living in shacks and whole communities terrorized by cross-border drug wars.
Pablo starts this next film project by teaching border kids in Mexico about the art of storytelling. His workshops are in formation now; more kids in need than he can ever serve are anxiously hoping to participate. If you’ve got any inclination or ability to sponsor some of these kids, please send a donation. Or if you can’t donate, please become a fan of Project Libertad on Facebook. This story will unfold over the next few years and I guarantee you will be fascinated to watch it from the inside.
Camino PR Creative Director Featured in the Arizona Daily Star for Media Arts Work on Social Justice Campaigns
August 13, 2009 by ahagelgans
Camino PR’s creative director, Pablo Toledo, is profiled in today’s Arizona Daily Star for his creative media arts and storytelling on behalf of social justice issues. Pablo founded Project Libertdad, which brings together homeless youth from Mexico and teaches them how to use film and creative media to tell their personal stories. Later this year, Pablo will travel to Mexico to establish a media center and help area youth learn storytelling, drawing and video. Project Libertdad coincides with the upcoming production of his second feature film, Libertdad, a story about a Mexican-American detective who returns to Mexico after his brother is accused of murder. It follows the success of “Runnin’ at Midnight,” a film about inner city teens who shoot hoops at midnight in Tucson. Through digital and graphic arts, Pablo is able to capture the essence of their struggles and connect their needs with a larger audience. Let Camino PR and Pablo tell your story and advance your issues!
Goodbye Ghost Fly
August 12, 2009 by Elizabeth Toledo
Inevitably we would leave the Camino PR starter office.
Our basement office was once a stable for the work-horses that carted baked goods through Manhattan. In the first weeks we hauled out debris and installed large bamboo mats and oversized desks to create a comfortable but frugal workspace. We sanitized everything, but still I was so convinced that rats and roaches would make their appearance that my mother shipped us a diaper-genie type trash can that tightly seals any evidence of food. I was wrong to be afraid, only two living creatures emerged: a horse fly that periodically buzzed through the office like a Blue Angel air show, and a gigantic wasp that spontaneously reproduced and then flew away. I don’t know why the wasp visited, but I believe our supersize fly held the spirit of horse flies past, reminding us to recognize those things upon which we build our future.
Our carriage house was the kind of office where you could sketch on the wall and spill paint on the floor. One day Woody Allen and Larry David showed up and turned the carriage house into a temporary movie set. Many Tuesdays we ended the day with creative hour, when Tomas and Sean would practice guitar and Mary would bring in a bag of sweets from the Donut Pub.
But there were downsides too. It’s the kind of office that makes you worried about getting your nice suit dusty from crumbling pillars. The air was stale and smelled vaguely of horses, despite our abundance of aromatherapy and the constant whir of the air purifier. The original window and door could not be sealed, and on frigid days the narrow stone stairwell created a wind tunnel that swept directly into our meeting area. Cell phones sputtered as if we were in a bunker and every evening we wrapped our computers in colorful silk scarves to prevent them from taking in too much dust.
“We aren’t a typical corporate office” Loretta often says, words I soothe myself with when we are doing other-duties-as-assigned like pouring animal-friendly salt on the icy stone steps. I have known many lovely typical corporate offices but we’ll always be a little quirky, like our carriage house roots. We have moved just two blocks. We now work on the floors above a poster store that houses the largest collection of movie posters in the world. Oversized double doors in our top floor open onto a large wooden deck that gives us a rooftop view of Chelsea.
After working hard underground we are taking in deep breaths of fresh air. I am grateful for our roots and for the friends who give us momentum. Goodbye first Camino home. Thank you and goodbye, ghost fly.
Camino PR client, NLIRH, featured in Sotomayor confirmation media coverage
August 10, 2009 by Admin
Hispanosphere, the prominent Latino current events and politics blog for The Orlando Sentinel, covered NLIRH in its round-up of national expert commentary on Sonia Sotomayor’s confirmation to the U.S. Supreme Court. Featured alongside Tim Kaine of the Democratic National Committee, Congresswoman Karen L. Thurman, Florida Democratic Party Chair, SEIU, the National Partnership for Women & Families, National Council of La Raza, among others, the nation’s leading Latina voice for reproductive health and rights was quoted as saying, “The Senate confirmation of Judge Sonia Sotomayor heralds a new era of diversity in our courts. Judge Sotomayor offers inspiration for Latinas as her confirmation has challenged stereotypes and demonstrated the growing political power of the Latino community,” said Silvia Henriquez, executive director of the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health (NLIRH). Judge Sotomayor will play a pivotal role in promoting the dignity and well being of our families and our communities. Her confirmation signals hope for not only expanded legal access to abortion but also for expanded social access to the full range of reproductive health care, such as health care funding for poor women. Judge Sotomayor’s body of work and judicial philosophy reveals a sophisticated analysis of social issues and the important role of the court in safeguarding human dignities.”
And, in more exciting news, on the week that Judge Sotomayor begins her new role as Supreme Court Justice, NLIRH will host a national ‘Quinceañera’ gala to celebrate the coming-of-age of a new era of Latina empowerment. NLIRH was founded fifteen years after the first Latina was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, and fifteen years later we are ready to toast the first Latina to sit on the nation’s highest court. Camino PR is proud to celebrate this tremendous achievement with NLIRH.