Friday, January 29, 2010

El Rincón Borinqueña (3) Mi Patria

Marc Anthony "Preciosa"

Lyrics in Spanish to: Preciosa

yo se lo que son los encantos
de mi borinquera hermosa

por eso la quiero yo tanto
por siempre la llamare precioooosa

yo se de sus hembras trigueñas
se del olor de sus rosas

por eso a mi tierra riqueña
por siempre la llamare preciooosa

isla del caribe , (isla del cariibe)
borinque,

preciosa te llaman
las olas del mar que te bañan

preciosa por ser un encanto,
por ser un eden,

y tienes la noble
galia de la madre españa

y el fiero cantio , del indio bravio
lo tienes tambien,

preciosa te llaman
los barlos que cantan tu historia,

no importa el tirano te trate
con negra maldad

preciosa seras sin bandera, sin lauros, ni gloria
preciosa, preciosa te llaman los hijos de la libertad..

preciosa te llaman los barrios que cantan tu historia
no importa el tirano te trate con negra maldad

preciosa seras sin bandera, sin lauros, ni gloria oohh
preciosa , preciosa te llaman los hijooos dee la libeeertaaaad..

coro
preciosa te llevo dentro
muy dentro de mi corazon

y mientras mas pasa el tiempo
en ti se vuelca mi amor

porque ahora es que comprendo,
porque ahooora es que comprendo

que aunque pase lo que pase
yo sere puertoriqueño"yo sere puertoriqueño"

por donde quiera que ande oooohh oohhh
porque lo llevo en la sangre, por herencia de mis padre

y con urgullo repito "yo te quiero puerto rico
yo te quiero puerto riicooooooo...

y por eso es que me nace hoy
dedicarle este canto a ese noble jibarito rafael

y mi isla del encanto
yo te quiero puerto riico ,
yo te quiero puerto riiiiiicooooooooooooooou

The Lyrics to Preciosa was written in 1937 by Rafael Hernandez who was born in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico.
To contact: miriammedina@earthlink.net or thehistorybox.com

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Monday, January 25, 2010

East Harlem Reunion

Hi Gang....Got an urgent message from Bobby Maida, that there is a big event coming up on April 23, at Villa Barone in the Bronx. Guess who's going to perform that night: "The Bronx Wanderers." Wow! Since East Harlem was my old neighborhood, known then during my younger years as "Italian Harlem" , anything going on there today gets top priority on my blog. So read the poster and start putting aside the bucks, cause by the looks of it there will be alot of Mangia, Mangia and of course the open bar to drown it down. Salute.......

East Harlem Family and Friends

The Annual East Harlem reunion will be on Friday evening...April 23rd at Villa Barone in the Bronx..

Food is great along with good music and a ballroom full of East Harlemites. What more can you want?

Photos of last years reunion can be seen at: Bobby Maida's website.

Tickets are $90 per person which includes all night open bar and more appetizers entrees and desserts (pastry, cake, ice cream ,etc) you can possibly eat.

FOR MORE INFO CALL ANNA:
(347) 723-2660

Bob Maida (914) 787 0692
Promotions Manager/Webmaster
Giglio Society of East Harlem
www.eastharlemgiglio.com

Brief Financial Notes Based on 1875-1907 (2)

1882
An unprecedented surplus has accumulated in the Treasury of the United States. It exists because taxes and tariffs inaugurated to meet the nation's enormous need for funds during the Civil War have been imposed during the 17 years since the war. As a consequence, Government borrowing, which can be an important outlet for private investments, has been reduced, and idle resources and rising unemployment threaten the economy. In his message to Congress on Dec. 4, President Arthur states that "either the surplus must lie idle in the (Federal) Treasury or the Government will be forced to buy at market rates its bonds not then redeemable, and which under such circumstances cannot fail to command an enormous premium, or the swollen revenues will be devoted to extravagant expenditures, which, as experience has taught, is ever the bane of an overflowing treasury."

The President's fears are realized; swollen Federal funds begin to be tapped for "pork-barrel" bills, providing funds for wasteful and often useless projects. The surplus leads to increasing demands for a reduction in tariffs. The President appoints a commission to study the tariffs. Opposition to President Arthur's no-spending, tariff-reduction policies become loud and persistent. President Arthur also attempts to lessen the magnitude of the spoils system, but encounters stiff opposition from his own party. The Democrats gain control of the House of Representatives in the midterm elections.

1883-1884
The severe reaction of 1883 was followed by the panic of May, 1884 in which half a dozen Stock Exchange Houses failed and two important banks were compelled to close its doors.

1886-1888
The period from 1886-1888 inclusive was chiefly marked by the large issues of securities to provide funds for the very extensive railway building then in progress. There were several excited markets on the Stock Exchange, though the tendency at the close of the period was toward depression of values, largely because of the enormous creation of new securities.

1890-1893
The year 1890 was again marked by great activity and rising prices on the Stock Exchange. This "boom" was checked by the Baring panic of November,1890, in London, which was reflected by a prompt recall of English capital from the United States, and by a New York Stock Exchange panic, in the course of which two or three broker houses failed. From then until the outbreak of the more serious panic of 1893 a shrinkage in business was the chief characteristic of the New York Stock Exchange's history.

1893-1897
The panic of 1893 was in many respects one of the most dramatic episodes in the Stock Exchange history. There was at one time, during July of that year, talk of repeating the expedient of 1873 and closing the Exchange. This turned out to be unnecessary, as foreign capital came to the market's relief in the moment of emergency. The following year, 1894 was a period of great depression, when the volume of Stock Exchange business fell to the lowest point since 1878. Recovery followed in 1895, when foreign capital was again commanded in connection with the international syndicate to float the United States Government's bond issue and protect the Treasury gold reserve. A panic of smaller proportions swept over the Stock Exchange at the close of this year, in connection with the collapse of the protective operations and the international clash between America and Great Britain over Venezuela. The two ensuing years were chiefly characterized by the reorganization of the great number of important railways which had failed during 1893 and 1894, and whose new securities, largely increased in quantity, were placed through the medium of the Stock Exchange in 1896 and 1897.

1897-1901
The financial revival which began at the close of the last-named year introduced a new epoch in the history of the New York Stock Exchange-an epoch in all respects the most remarkable of its history. Supply of American capital available for investment purposes seemed suddenly to have become unlimited-largely because of the country's immensely profitable harvests at a time of European famine, but also on account of a wholly unprecedented increase in our general export trade, in manufactures as well as in agricultural products, which gave to our markets a command over foreign capital which they had never before possessed. This increase in capital was made use of by promoters of all kinds of enterprises, and their shares found active reception on the Stock Exchange. A highly excited movement for the rise at the opening of 1899 converged chiefly on shares of industrial companies organized to buy up independent plants. Checked by the excess of the speculators and by an industrial reaction during the Presidential contest of 1900, this movement was renewed with immense force at the opening of 1901.

Source: " A Compilation of the Messages and Papers of the Presidents 1789-1897" By: James D. Richardson....A Representative from the State of Tennessee. Publisher: by Authority of Congress..1899. Ten Volumes total. Copyright: 1897 by James D. Richardson; New International Encyclopedia, Dodd, Mead and Co.-NY, Copyright: 1902-1905 21 Volumes; The Bicentennial Almanac, Thomas Nelson, Inc. publishers, New York. Copyright 1975. The History of New York State, Lewis Publishing Co.- New York, 1927.

To contact: miriammedina@earthlink.net
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Brief Financial Notes Based on 1875-1907 (1)

The crisis of 1873 was felt in its full force on the New York Stock Exchange, which was obliged to close for two days at the height of the panic in order to stem the tide of liquidation in securities.

The economy is in fact over-expanded, particularly in railroad construction, and the weak link turns out to be the banking house of Jay Cooke and Company, which helped the U.S.Government finance the Civil War and also underwrote the construction of the Northern Pacific Railroad.

1874
The depression that began last year begins to abate, but jobs and food are still scarce. Early in the year a grasshopper invasion in the Middle West and a potato-bug blight in the East destroy most of grain, corn, and potato crops, forcing farmers to leave their homesteads in search of work. Frustrated by the inability of the political and industrial leaders to remedy their economic plight, some Americans turn to new forms of political and economic organizations for help. On June 20, Congress passes a currency act fixing the maximum amount of greenbacks in circulation at $382,000,000.

1875
On January 14, 1875 Congress passes the Specie Resumption Act, reducing the value of greenbacks in circulation from $382,000,000 to $300,000,000 and allowing the resumption of specie payment by January 1, 1879. The bill, twice before recommended by President Grant, is an attempt to balance the inflation desired in the West with the "sound money" policy desired in the East. Business slowly recovering from the depression of 1873, begins to form pools (the pre-cursor of the trust) to fix and maintain prices.

1878
The grasshoppers which had ravaged the crops in the West are now under control, and settlers begin to farm their lands again. Industry is emerging from the depression that began in 1873. Employment increases. The strikes of the previous year spur many workers to join labor unions emphasizing higher wages and shorter working hours. On February 28, The Bland-Allison Act, requiring the Government to buy between $2,000,000 and $4,000,000 of silver each month to be coined into silver dollars, is passed by Congress over President Hayes's veto. This bill is a compromise with Western farmers and silver miners who had been lobbying for the free and unlimited coinage of silver since large deposits of the metal were discovered in the West in 1876.

1879
Freedom of competition gives way to "big-business economy." As competition in industry and transportation grow, businessmen begin to fear the effect of competition on their profits, and devise ways of limiting it. The most successful device within the law is the " Trust," a form of organized business in which corporations entrust their stocks to a board of trustees, who are authorized to act for the component corporations. This device, which several businesses adopt, circumvents many state laws that greatly restrict interstate corporations. The largest and most efficient trust is that organized by John D. Rockefeller, head of the Standard Oil Trust, comprised of the major corporations engaged in refining and transporting petroleum.

The Hepburn Committee, set up by the New York State legislature, reveals that the Rockefeller interests totally dominate the oil industry, freezing out all competition throughout the entire world. The committee also reports on the chaotic situation in the railroads, revealing extensive price discrimination in different parts of the country. Small merchants and farmers begin to demand greater government regulation of private enterprise. On January 1, The Government resumes specie payments authorized by the Specie Resumption Act of 1875. Despite the fact that greenbacks are now worth their equivalent in gold, Secretary of the Treasury John Sherman, with a gold reserve of over $200,000,000, expresses doubt that there will be a rush to redeem the greenbacks.

1879-1882
With the great trade revival which followed the resumption of specie payments and the profitable grain harvests of 1879 the New York Stock Exchange entered upon a period of renewed activity. During the year 1880, which marked the climax of the "boom" of that period, trading on the Exchange reached an enormous volume, and the value of seats in the Stock Exchange rose to an unprecedented figure. In 1881, when a reaction in the tide of prosperity began, the New York Stock Exchange reflected the change by a contraction in the volume of business done and by an extensive fall in prices. Speculation by the general public was again rife in 1882, but was checked with great violence by the sudden fall in railway and industrial profits at the close of the year.

To be continued: Brief Financial Notes Based on 1875-1907 (2)

To contact: miriammedina@earthlink.net
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Sunday, January 24, 2010

El Rincón Borinqueña : Puerto Rican Humor




Topic: Cell-Phone Conversation A Lo Puerto Rican Style by Miriam Medina

Ring....ring....

Petra: halo? quien habla?

Nelda: "Oye Petra, soy yo, Nelda, tengo un cacho de bochinche to tell you....

Petra: donde tu sta? esperate, que este nene no me deja hablar...Mire muchacho que te voy a meter un tronconazo si no sta quieto...

Petra: aha...Nelda....dime, que pasa....

Nelda: You know que Gloria...Doña Ju Ja's grandaughter, metió la pata, y está preñá.

Petra: Wow! No me diga...she's only quince años...ella parece a little chiflada right?..y quien fue el caripelao que estaba fuleando con ella?.

Nelda: Dicen que fue el rubio alto , you know the one con las bembas grande from a hun twelve....

Petra: Ah! Yo se quien es.... Ahora recuerdo que siempre vi el tipo ese hangeando por allí. Perate, que tengo la estufa puesta y se me quema los beans.

Petra: Aha! aqui estoy de nuevo. Cuenteme...Does Doña Ju Ja know?

Nelda: Por supuesto, que si.... acaba de regresar de Puerto Rico cuando le plantearon la bomba. She was the one quien me lo dijo." I feel so bad for her, La pobre, se pasa llorando como si somebody died. Imaginate the problema que Zoraida has encima. Primero her husband la dejó con 3 kids. Ahora ella está trabajando 2 jobs. Oh, antes de que se me olvide, otro bochinche....Doña Ju Ja told me que vió de lejos Zoraida's husband, y que estaba de brazo con una gordiflona, Ave Maria purisima, que los chichones se le estaban hangeando.

Petra:Que barbaridad, Zoraida que es tan cute y dulce la deja para esa porquería. Hay! Esperate, no cuelgue, que jodienda...Alguien sta tocando la puerta.

Nelda: quien fue?

Petra: es el nene de cruzar la calle, estaba looking for papo.

Nelda: bueno dejeme terminar el chisme, que estoy apurada y se me esta muriendo la bateria. Tu sabes con quien me encontre the other day?

Petra: Quien?

Nelda:Magaly....

Petra: Huy....hace tiempo que yo no la veo. Oye nena, tu sta llena de chisme hoy! Quentame ma. Esto se sta poniendo bueno, a mi que me encanta el chisme.

Nelda: Coming back to Magaly, she said que se casó con un viudo rico y está en buen pompa. Esta de show-off. Se pintó el pelo de rubia, y se ve lo mas chevere. Dice que es un viejo bueno, le lleva 25 anos y maneja un jaguar. Ave Maria purissima, que suerte, some people have. Yo no tengo ni donde ponerlo ni donde tirarlo. Ese marido mio, is lazy. Hay Virgen, se me pasó la hora bembetiando. Tengo que ir chopin a la marqueta, antes de que enrique comes home, so me voy. You know how Enrique gets, cuando la comida no está hecha. Te hablo later okey? Besitos. Bye.

Petra: mire, Nelda, la proxima vez, pase por casa, que estoy haciendo unos pastelles ma bueno que te chupe los dedos. Okey? Bye. ...
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To contact: miriammedina@earthlink.net
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Brusciano, Italy News/Events (16)

"Il Sindaco Angelo Antonio Romano in visita alla storica scuola “Dante Alighieri."

La Scuola Elementare di Brusciano “Dante Alighieri” che si affaccia su Piazza XI Settembre, Circolo Didattico con il dirigente il professore Luigi Gesuele, per il nuovo anno scolastico, ha ricevuto la visita del Sindaco dott. Angelo Antonio Romano. Venerdì scorso, per i tradizionali auguri istituzionali di inizio anno, al dirigente, ai docenti, agli ausiliari ed agli alunni, il Sindaco Romano si è recato insieme al Consigliere comunale, Delegato alle Politiche Sociali Nicola di Maio e ad Antonio Castaldo, responsabile dell’Ufficio Stampa e Comunicazione presso la storica istituzione scolastica di Brusciano.

La “Dante Alighieri” conta circa 640 alunni distribuiti in 30 classi elementari: 6 Prime; 6 Seconde; 5 Terze ; 7 IV Quarte e 6 Quinte. Il Sindaco Angelo Antonio Romano, guidato dal dirigente prof. Luigi Gesuele, si è intrattenuto simpaticamente con gli alunni e fra il saluto istituzionale, il cordiale richiamo all’impegno scolastico, l’apprezzamento per i docenti, ha colto l’occasione per ricordare a tutti che “la vicina Piazza XI Settembre, oggi in rifacimento, entro la fine dell’anno sarà più bella, più funzionale ed accogliente. Gli atti vandalici che con dispiacere abbiamo dovuto rilevare hanno contribuito ad impoverire ed abbruttire questo importante spazio pubblico. Confidiamo -ha concluso il Sindaco Romano- nell’impegno di tutti, adulti e bambini, per una più attenta utilizzazione e nel caso ci fossero abusi e vandalismi segnalateli con fiducia al servizio di Vigilanza Urbana”. Il dirigente prof. Luigi Gesuele ha sottolineato come la prossimità della Piazza XI Settembre “permette di ospitare alcune iniziative, fra le tante che riusciamo a realizzare nella nostra amata scuola, per il godimento comunitario, dei bambini, delle famiglie della Cittadinanza bruscianesi. E questo è utile anche ai rapporti e agli scambi tra scuola e territorio. Quindi conservarla bella ed accogliente assicurerà anche a noi maggiori soddisfazioni per le nostre manifestazioni pubbliche”. Girando per le aule, in attività didattiche o in pausa, i vispi alunni hanno interagito simpaticamente con il primo cittadino, il dott. Angelo Antonio Romano, il quale si è impegnato a ritornare per gli auguri di Natale ed in questo caso ci saranno anche dei bei regalini. (For more and English Translation)

You can also visit directly the Brusciano, Italy News/Events Information Page at Italian Harlem

To contact: miriammedina@earthlink.net or miriam@thehistorybox.com
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Saturday, January 23, 2010

"El Rincón Borinqueña": Mi Patria (1)

Hello, and Welcome to "El Rincón Borinqueña" which is a new addition to my blog for the benefit of the Puerto Rican people and their descendants.There will be articles in both languages, music and other interesting topics that will be published from time to time.

The Official Anthem of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico established in 1952



La Borinqueña
Lyrics: Manuel Fernández Juncos (1846-1928)

La tierra de Borinquén
donde he nacido yo,
es un jardín florido
de mágico fulgor.

Un cielo siempre nítido
le sirve de dosel
y dan arrullos plácidos
las olas a sus pies.

Cuando a sus playas llegó Colón;
Exclamó lleno de admiración;
"Oh!, oh!, oh!, esta es la linda
tierra que busco yo".

Es Borinquén la hija,
la hija del mar y el sol,
del mar y el sol,
del mar y el sol,
del mar y el sol,
del mar y el sol.


Puerto Ricans have lived in the mainland, United States, since at least the 1830s. During the 1890s, a first small group of Puerto Ricans arrived in East Harlem. The United States took possession of Puerto Rico at the end of the Spanish-American War in 1898 and has retained sovereignty ever since. In 1917 the Jones-Shafroth Act gave the islanders U.S. citizenship along with the obligation of serving in the American armed forces . This newly acquired citizenship allowed them to work and live in the United States as well as travel without the need of a passport between the island and the United States mainland....They did not have to go through the Ellis Island Immigration processing which Europeans and other Latin Americans had to endure.

" Large, corporate-financed sugar plantations transformed Puerto Rico’s agricultural economy and displaced thousands of subsistence farmers from their own land, forcing them into the rural wage labor force. "The unemployment level in Puerto Rico began to rise to crisis proportions. American entry into World War I created labor shortages in many industries on the mainland. The Department of Labor made plans for bringing more than 10,000 Puerto Rican laborers to the U.S. to work on war-related projects. A total of 75,000 unemployed laborers were available for work in the U.S. The War Department agreed to transport workers to labor camps in the United States where they would be housed and fed while working on government construction contracts at defense plants and military bases.

The men who could not find jobs had the option of joining the United States Military. One of the most noted military units at that time was New York's 369th Infantry to which many Puerto Ricans and African-Americans belonged to. Puerto Ricans, in search of a better existence than what they had in Puerto Rico, continued to migrate to the United States, after both World Wars. Not aware that they would be facing a highly racialized labor market which would deny them the opportunities to move into the American mainstream, a large number of Puerto Rican families made New York City's East Harlem, their first mainland destination. Though they lived in dilapidated neighborhoods and old broken-down houses left behind by the previous immigrant residents, they still managed to establish a cultural life of great vitality and gregariousness. The people of "El Barrio "always banned together as a group united in their common interests.

Assimilation to the American culture was not their priority. As long as they lived here, they were going to preserve their heritage through the Spanish language, music, and cultural activities and never completely cut their ties with their homeland. Their only and major anxiety at that time was to find the means of surviving economically. Puerto Ricans by the thousands found employment in the factories as unskilled operators and even as seamstresses in the garment industry. They competed with other ethnic groups for the positions of unskilled labor such as , maids, maintenance, dishwashers, janitors, doormen and laundry workers. Some of the Puerto Rican women would take in boarders or provide childcare for the working mothers in order to supplement their income. Here and there throughout East Harlem religious shops, bodegas, restaurants and other businesses were beginning to sprout.

In New York, the Puerto Ricans also suffered the same hardships and racial discrimination that earlier immigrants such as the Irish, the Italians and the Jewish Community had to endure . Good paying jobs were not available to them due to the lack of the English language and special working skills. They were labeled as minorities suffering widespread discrimination by the hiring practices of businesses.

Though many Puerto Ricans have endured great injustices, inhumanities, and severe hardships they were able to overcome all barriers which crossed their path , becoming respected members of their communities, contributing their talents and knowledge to the city of New York and the United States as a whole in the fields of arts, entertainment, politics, and much more. Their lifestyles have improved as economic opportunities and patterns of development have emerged. It has been an extremely slow uphill climb, for the Puerto Rican community to make their voices heard and their rights respected though attempts to intimidate and stifle that voice are still being made.

To contact: miriammedina@earthlink.net
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Spanish Harlem-1939 (3)

Cock-fighting, a sport that is legal in Puerto Rico but illegal in New York, goes on now and then in Spanish Harlem. The place and time are carefully guarded; the audience gathers surreptitiously in a basement or empty room, where a small shallow wooden "ring" has been laid with dirt and sand. The cocks' steel-tipped talons are examined carefully by their sponsors. The birds are brushed, caressed, huskily exhorted, and then let loose amid excited betting and low-pitched cheering. Not till one of the cocks lies dead is the fight finished. Then the winner is embraced, washed, and hurried into hiding.

Most of the Latin-Americans in Spanish Harlem are of peasant or peon stock. The majority are American citizens. (All Puerto Ricans are.) They have an intense love of their homelands, and despite an occasional flurry of nationalist jealousy, a warm sense of neighborhood solidarity. Almost all are property less working people. They have their own political clubs, and during the past few years some organizations that were once interested primarily in the politics of the homelands, have become powerful pressure groups fighting for improved conditions in Spanish Harlem. As a result, their influence in city politics has increased. In 1937 this district elected O. Garcia-Rivera, a Puerto Rican lawyer, to the new York State Assembly.

The majority of Spanish Harlemites are Roman Catholics. The neighborhood Catholic churches include St. Francis De Sales, 137 East 96th Street; St. Cecilia, 220 East 106th Street; and Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, 77 St. Nicholas Avenue. The Iglesia Metodista Episcopal, 1664 Madison Avenue, where services are held in Spanish, is an outgrowth of a Methodist mission among Puerto Ricans and other Spanish-speaking people in New York.

The most important holiday observed in Spanish Harlem is DIA DE LA RAZA (Day of the Spanish Race), celebrated on Columbus Day by all Spanish-speaking people. They hold a ceremony in front of the statue of Columbus, a copy of the one in Madrid by Sunol, the Spanish sculptor at the south end of the Central Park mall.

Source: Transcribed from:New York City Guide Random House-New York Publishers.(1939) Copyright by the Guilds' Committee for Federal Writers' Publications, Inc.

To contact: miriammedina@earthlink.net or miriam@thehistorybox.com
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Spanish Harlem-1939 (2)

The women shoppers move about with dignity: fair-skinned Creoles with dark eyes, lean-faced, copper-complexioned Spanish Indians, sensitive-looking West Indian Negroes. Voices are musical, and bargaining is done in a friendly spirit. The first price asked is always more than the Puerto Rican vendor expects to receive: regatear (to bargain) is the custom in his country.

To Spanish Harlemites bargaining is more than a tradition; to save a few pennies is a necessity. Those who succeed in finding employment work as poorly paid domestics or at menial occupations in hotels, laundries, cigar factories, or on Works Progress Administration projects; women and girls earn meager wages in local embroidery shops. Racial discrimination and lack of opportunity to learn skilled trades have kept both sexes from better-paid jobs.

Many Puerto Ricans suffer from malnutrition and are physically so underdeveloped that they are rejected for manual labor. Their diet in New York, except for the addition of a few vegetables, remains much the same as in their native land: a roll and black coffee for breakfast; for the other meals canned tomatoes, white rice, dried fish, and meat about twice a month.

In Spanish Harlem, the death rate from tuberculosis is high compared to the 52 per 100,000 for white persons in New York as a whole: among white Puerto Ricans the rate is 200 per 100,000; for colored groups, 553 per 100,000. The district's infant mortality rate is the highest in New York.

With little money to spend, the residents of this neighborhood have few and simple amusements. They attend the cheap movie houses, and the TEATRO LATINO, at Fifth Avenue and 110th Street, and the TEATRO HISPANO, at Fifth Avenue and 116th Street, which show Spanish-language films, many of them made in South America and Mexico. (The Hispano also presents Spanish vaudeville.) They gather in the evening at each other's homes to talk and entertain themselves over cups of black coffee. The different national groups have their favorites among the inexpensive restaurants and cabarets, where there is much music and festivity on Saturday nights. Several cafes and night clubs, featuring Cuban music, draw their patronage from the Spanish-speaking element and from visitors.

To be continued: Spanish Harlem-1939 (3)

to contact: miriammedina@earthlink.net
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Spanish Harlem-1939 (1)

Though called Spanish Harlem, this district is not the home of Spaniards but of Latin-Americans. European Spaniards have their own small colonies on West Fourteenth Street and in the vicinity of cherry Street. Living in the Harlem quarter side by side are Puerto Ricans, Cubans, American Negroes, West Indian Negroes, South Americans, and Mexicans. Puerto Ricans are in the overwhelming majority, numbering about one hundred thousand persons, or 85 percent of the area's population.

Spanish Harlem first acquired its present character after the World War, when thousands of Puerto Ricans and Latin-Americans came to New York. Poverty, famine, or successive political upheavals in their native countries drove these people to the United States. They settled in Harlem because of the cheap rents and the sympathetic environment. Sixty percent of the residents, however, have not been able to obtain regular employment since their arrival. The section around the 110th Street station of the Lexington Avenue subway, with its clutter of shops, tenements, and dime movie houses, is typical of the community.

The neighborhood's more important business places are on Fifth and Madison Avenues, between 110th and 116th streets, and on 116th Street, east and west of Fifth Avenue. These range from small well-kep0t shops to fairly large and prosperous establishments. Numerous restaurants offer such typically Spanish food as arroz con pollo (rice with chicken) and gazpacho (Andalusian stew). Much of their patronage is drawn from visitors, who have more money to spend than the local residents. Noticeable, too, is the number of music shops with large assortments of mandolins, Spanish guitars, lutes, and bandurrias, phonograph records, and such sheet music as La Violetera (The Violet Seller), La Partida (The Parting), the universally popular La Paloma (The Dove), and other old favorites.

The near-by side streets are crowded with lightly stocked drygoods stores, bodegas (grocery stores) and carnicerias (meat stores) and with blocks of old, broken-down houses, their stoops alive with people.

It is perhaps the PUBLIC MARKET PLACE that expresses most vividly the Latin-American character of the locality. The market, owned by the city, extends along Park Avenue under the New York Central viaduct, from 111th to 116th street. Its block-long, steel-and-glass sheds, replace an old pushcart market. Besides little green limes, tangerines, oranges, bananas, and lemons, many tropical fruits grown in the various home-lands of the inhabitants of Spanish Harlem are in season displayed here. Piled high in the racks are avocados (sometimes called alligator pears), mangoes with their strong flavor of turpentine, guavas from Cuba, and melon-like papayas, the leaves of which the Puerto Rican wraps around tough meat to make it tender. Tamarinds are sold to make a lemonade-like drink called tamarindo; and the long brown roots of the tropical cassava swing overhead.

Garbanzos (chick-peas), red kidney beans, dried peas, and lentils are in open sacks. Strings of fiery red peppers hang above their sweet-flavored kin, the pimientos. From the spice stalls women pick twenty or thirty different varieties which are mixed and stuffed into one bag. Fish of all kinds are on display, including huge tuna sold in slices.

To be continued: Spanish Harlem-1939 (2)

To contact: miriammedina@earthlink.net
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Friday, January 15, 2010

The Stonewall Police Riot: Gay Rights 1969 (2)

(continued from Page 1)

Their arms linked, a row of helmeted policemen stretching across the width of the street made several sweeps up and down Christopher Street between the Avenue of the Americas and Seventh Avenue South. The crowd retreated before them, but many groups fled into the numerous small side streets and re-formed behind the police line. The police were not withdrawn until 4 A.M.

A number of people who did not retreat fast enough were pushed and shoved along, and at least two men were clubbed to the ground. Stones and bottles were thrown at the police lines, and the police twice broke ranks and charged into the crowd. Three persons were arrested on charges of harassment and disorderly conduct. The crowd had gathered in the evening across the street from the Stonewall Inn at 53 Christopher Street, where the police staged a raid early Saturday. The police were denounced by last night's crowd for allegedly harassing homo-sexuals. Graffiti on the boarded-up windows of the inn included: "Support gay power" and "Legalize gay bars."

Saturday's raid took place when about 200 people were in the bar. Plainclothes men, with a warrant authorizing a search for illegal sales of alcohol, confiscated cases of liquor and beer. A Melce involving about 400 youths ensued, a partial riot mobilization was ordered by Police Headquarters, and 13 persons were arrested on a number of Charges. Four policemen were injured, one suffering a broken wrist. Among those arrested was Dave Van Ronk, a folk singer.

PLEASE NOTE: For further information on the Stonewall Riot of 1969, and the Gay Rights Movement, I have enclosed the following website links, which are also found in thehistorybox.com.

1."The Stonewall Riot and It's Aftermath": An online edition of Columbia University Library"
2."Milestones In The Gay Rights Movement"
3. Gay and Lesbian Studies at the New York Public Library.
4. The American Gay Rights Movement: A Timeline
5. Lesbian Gay Bisexual & Transgender Project
6. What Makes People Gay?
7. The Best and Worst Things About Being Gay.
8. OutHistory.org is, for the first time, publishing nine pages of NYC Police Department records created early on the morning of the rebellion's start, June 28, 1969. Click Here.
9. The Gay Liberation Movement and How the Coming Out Model Began by Judith Faucette

To contact: miriammedina@earthlink.net or miriam@thehistorybox.com
.

The Stonewall Police Riot: Gay Rights 1969 (1)

Today I have taken from the voluminous pages of New York City's rich and turbulent history, the "Gay Liberation Movement" and the Stonewall Police Riot which occurred in 1969. Stonewall was not only the historical turning point for the gay rights movement but it also marked the start of a new concept of gay identity-Gay Pride versus the closet."

This is the coverage from the New York Times Dated June 30, 1969.

"HUNDREDS OF YOUNG MEN WENT ON A RAMPAGE IN GREENWICH VILLAGE, shortly after 3 A.M. yesterday after a force of plain-clothes men raided a bar that the police said was well known for its homo-sexual clientele.

Thirteen persons were arrested and four policemen injured. The young men threw bricks, bottles, garbage, pennies and a parking meter at the policemen, who had a search warrant authorizing them in investigate reports that liquor was sold illegally at the bar, the Stonewall Inn, 53 Christopher Street, just off Sheridan Square.

Deputy Inspector Seymour Pine said that a large crowd formed in the square after being evicted from the bar. Police reinforcements were sent to the area to hold off the crowd. Plainclothes men and detectives confiscated cases of liquor from the bar, which inspector Pine said was operating without a liquor license.

The police estimated that 200 young men had been expelled from the bar. The crowd grew to close to 400 during the melee, which lasted about 45 minutes, they said. Arrested in the melee, was Dave Van Ronk, 33 years old, of 15 Sheridan Square, a well-known folk singer. He was accused of having thrown a heavy object at a patrolman and later paroled in his own recognizance.

The Raid was one of three held on Village bars in the last two weeks, Inspector Pine said. Charges against the 13 who were arrested ranged from harassment and resisting arrest to disorderly conduct. A patrolman suffered a broken wrist, the police said.

Throngs of young men congregated outside the inn last night, reading aloud condemnations of the police. A sign on the door said, "This is a private club. Members only." Only soft drinks were being served.

Heavy police reinforcements cleared the Sheridan Square area of Greenwich Village again yesterday morning when large crowds of young men, angered by a police raid on an inn frequented by homosexuals, swept through the area. Tactical Patrol Force units assigned to the East Village poured into the area about 2:15 A.M. after units from the Charles Street station house were unable to control a crowd of about 400 youths, some of whom were throwing bottles and lighting small fires.

To be continued: The Stonewall Police Riot: Gay Rights 1969 (2)

To Contact: miriammedina@earthlink.net or miriam@thehistorybox.com
.

Monday, January 11, 2010

Brusciano, Italy News/Events (15)

"A Brusciano una tappa nella “Settimana del Benessere”. Il Sindaco partecipa all’incontro svolto nel “Centro di Psicologia Maben” dell’Associazione “La Casa di Pat”.

Dal 5 al 9 ottobre si svolge la “Settimana del Benessere Psicologico in Campania” per avvicinare la popolazione alle diverse competenze che appartengono alla psicologia e nello stesso tempo promuovere il benessere psicologico come valore fondante ed imprescindibile dell’esistenza e dello stato di salute”, come si legge nella brochure diffusa dall’Associazione Psicologi per la Responsabilità Sociale e Centri Clinici delle Scuole di Psicoterapia.

A Brusciano, sotto la supervisione della psicologa Marilena Bencivenga, si è avuto mercoledì sera lo specifico incontro presso il “Centro di Psicologia Maben” dell’Associazione la “Casa di Pat”. Alla cerimonia di apertura ha partecipato il Sindaco, dott. Angelo Antonio Romano ed il Consigliere comunale delegato alle Politiche Sociali, Nicola Di Maio. L’introduzione e la riflessione finale sono state fatte dalla pedagogista professoressa Maria Tufano stretta collaboratrice del Centro Maben il cui responsabile è lo psicologo Mimmo Maggi. Con il sottofondo delle note di Vivaldi, “Le Quattro Stagioni”, sono stati letti brani di vari autori, occidentali ed orientali, da D’Annunzio a Slavater, da Montale a Gibran ed altri ancora. Le letture si sono susseguite attraverso le voci di Francesca Barone, studentessa di psicologia; Antonio Castaldo, sociologo dell’Istituto Europeo di Scienze Umane e Sociali IESUS; Raffaela Monda, psicologa; Raffaella Bencivenga, operatrice sociale della Casa di Pat; Carmela De Gennaro, docente dell’ICS “Europa Unita” di Afragola; Chiara Sena, Presidente della Casa di Pat; Elvira Anna Moscarella, psicologa; Rossella Di Domenico, psicologa; Chiara Maggi, della scuola primaria di 8 anni. Conclusivamente si è avuta la cerimonia del tè che nei gesti ha ricordato ad ognuno dei partecipanti l’armonia di tempi ed azioni spesso dimenticati e la natura spontanea della vita troppo spesso asservita agli interessi ed agli egoismi umani, sociali e politici. La professoressa Tufano ha ricordato anche la solidarietà personale e quella delle istituzioni nazionali ed internazionali a favore di quei popoli della terra bisognevoli di aiuti. (For more in Italian only)

Or visit directly The Brusciano News/Events Page:

To Contact: miriammedina@earthlink.net or miriam@thehistorybox.com
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Saturday, January 9, 2010

I Followed My Dream: Reflections of a Late Bloomer (Intro)

Hold To That Dream

"Hold to that dream
Don't ever let it go...
For it is your strength and courage
When travelling down life's road.

Patience is a virtue,
But hope is far better.
So hold onto that dream
Hold fast to that dream
No matter how old."

.
Miriam Medina


It is truly a worthwhile experience, that I don't think you would want to pass up. So get yourself a hot cup of coffee and a comfortable chair and you will be all set to meet "MIMI".

Setting Goals and making them work......

Miriam Medina also known as "Mimi", writes a brief memoir on how her long awaited childhood desire of singing, acting and dancing, which had laid dormant throughout the years in her sub-consciousness, finally surfaced into reality as an accomplished songwriter/performer in her one-woman show: "Love 'n Things.

Miriam Medina who is Mimi , is a woman with a Positive Mental Attitude who strongly believes that "Almost no goal is impossible of attainment if you can accept it as being within the realms of possibility" (Jack E. Addington. ) You will read how she turned to her advantage a negative situation that started at the beginning of her career, into a positive outcome. She feels that the same way she fulfilled her dream despite all odds, anyone else can do it too. Mimi ends her memoir with words of encouragement on how to go about setting goals and achieving them.From her own personal experience, she states that " In order for you to achieve whatever you set out to do, you must believe in whatever you wish to achieve, accept its possibility and confidently expect it to be realized. "
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MEMOIR of Miriam Medina's years as Songwriter/Performer, Website Administrator and Blogger.
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Chapter I
Songwriter/Performer
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1. Laying the Foundation
2. Approaching the Middle-Age Bracket
3. Following the Long Winding Road
4. Halfway There
5. Performance "Mimi Bloopers"
6. Words of Wisdom
7. Getting Back On Track
8. A Wrench in the Works
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Chapter II
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Website Administrator/Blogger
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Chapter III
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If You Set Goals, Then Make Them Work
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_________________________________________________

Comments:

Well, I loved this! I bet others will too. I would say I'm eager for the conclusion, but there won't really be one to Mimi's story. Congratulations.

Laura Claridge
Author of Norman Rockwell, a Life [Random House]; and "Emily Post: Daughter of the Gilded Age, Mistress of American Manners.
.________________________________________________

To Contact: miriammedina@earthlink.net
.

Friday, January 8, 2010

The Italian Niche: Mangia, Mangia

Hmmmmm.......delizioso. It's the traditional Sunday family get-together and the inviting aromas of freshly made pasta and homemade meatballs and sausages are greeting you from Nonna's kitchen as you park the car. . You can smell it all the way down the street. Its enough to raise the dead. Geez...I hope there's enough Italian bread and pastries to go around! Did anybody remember to bring the bottle of wine? Hey Joey, where's the wine? Madonna mia, Whaddayanutz! Ya didn't bring it? FUGHEDDABOUDID! Nonna sez, go back to Lawnguylund, cuz ya ain't cumin in......

The Nonna, (an italian grandmother) She's a very special person in the lives of her family and boy can she cook. What hands of gold. There's never anything left on the plate, especially after its been wiped clean with the crusty bread.

Italian grandmothers have always devoted their lives to feeding their husbands and children. Everything they cooked was made from scratch, and it didn't matter to them if it took hours or days to prepare and make. They loved every minute of it. Just by sight and taste they could tell when the spices were just right, how dough looked when it was ready for the ravioli's, pasta and the lasagna, creating a variety of delicious Italian dishes that have been made over the decades, enjoyed with a nice bottle of wine. When the (Nonnas) are gone, these important recipes which most have been in their families for generations will vanish, unless their children or grandchildren make a great effort to learn from them.

I have prepared this section for Mangia, Mangia, with a couple of you-tubes to show how it is done. So take notes and enjoy........


Grandma Rosa's Italian Kitchen: How to Make Homemade Raviolis



Grandma Rosa"s Italian Kitchen: Penne Pasta, Lamb, Meatballs & Gravy Pt 1


Grandma Rosa's Italian Kitchen: Part 2 of Meatball gravy



NEXT

To contact: miriammedina@earthlink.net or miriam@thehistorybox.com
.

Sunday, January 3, 2010

El Rincón En Español-Música Latina

La Música es una forma de expresión artística, y permite a los participantes seleccionar la música basada en sus gustos, evocando emociones positivas. Se dice que "Escuchar música puede beneficiar a las personas que sufren de estrés. La música Latina forma parte de la cultura y la herencia del artista quien lo interpreta y para quienes las escuchan la música Latina despierta en la sangre el movimiento de bailar. Como dicen caliéntalo, y menéalo.

Julio Iglesias



COLOMBIA: Jorge Meza-De todos mis amores.



Dominican Republic: Juan Luis Guerra-La Cosquillita



COLOMBIA: Sonora Dinamita-Que Nadie Sepa Mi Sufrir



Cuban/Puerto Rican Music: Celia Cruz and Tito Puente


To Contact: miriammedina@earthlink.net or miriam@thehistorybox.com
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The Italian Niche: In Memory Of

" At no time does solemnity so possess our souls as when we stand deserted at the brink of darkness into which our loved one has gone. And the last place in the world where we would look for comfort at such a time is in the seeming artificiality of etiquette; yet it is in the moment of deepest sorrow that etiquette performs its most vital and real service. It is the time-worn servitor Etiquette who draws the shades, who muffles the bell, who keeps the house quiet, who hushes voices and footsteps of sudden noises, who decrees that the last rites be performed smoothly and with beauty and gravity so the poignancy of grief may in so far as possible be assuaged."

Emily Post. Etiquette. 1922 Chapter XXIV

Luciano Pavarotti

One of the greatest Italian tenors of our time died on September 6, 2007. May his music be forever remembered in our hearts.

Frank Sinatra My Way

NEXT: Mangia, Mangia

To contact: miriammedina@earthlink.net

Brusciano, Italy News/Events #9

Un ricordo del dott. Vincenzo Tridente prematuramente scomparso. La commossa partecipazione dell’Amministrazione Comunale di Brusciano. (Italian Only)

Questa mattina a Napoli, presso la Chiesa della Casa di Riposo San Giuseppe ai Colli Aminei, si sono svolti i funerali del dottor Vincenzo Tridente, prematuramente scomparso, per anni dirigente sanitario biologo dell’Istituto Nazionale Tumori “Pascale” di Napoli, passato recentemente all’Ospedale Monaldi.
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Conosciuto ed amato sia nell’ambito sanitario, sia in quello del volontariato a cui si è dedicato con il massimo impegno e con fervida passione civile per la diffusione dei valori della solidarietà umana. Un aspetto, quest’ultimo, che durante il rito religioso è stato più volte sottolineato dai numerosi sacerdoti concelebranti e pienamente condiviso dalle tante persone, amici e colleghi presenti alla funz
ione.

L’Amministrazione comunale e la Cittadinanza di Brusciano conservano un caro ricordo del dottor Tridente avendolo avuto come relatore in due convegni, il primo sul tema della tossicodipendenza ed il secondo sulla relazione tra alimentazione e salute.

Il Sindaco dott. Angelo Antonio Romano ed il Vicesindaco, dott. Vincenzo Cerciello che ha avuto il piacere di conoscere, apprezzare e stimare, professionalmente ed umanamente, il dott. Tridente suo collega presso l’Istituto Nazionale dei Tumori “Pascale” di Napoli, esprimono la loro “vicinanza alla moglie Pina ed alle figlie Rita e Paola in questo momento così doloroso. A loro il cordoglio della Giunta, del Consiglio Comunale e della Comunità di Brusciano”.

Ufficio Stampa E Comunicazione Del Comune Di Brusciano

Responsabile Antonio Castaldo Tel. 081.5218249 e-mail: ufficstampabrusciano@libero.it

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Jurisdiction In Law (2)

By statute in most jurisdictions a judgment, after being docketed, becomes a lien on the real property of the judgment, debtor. It is subject to all valid prior liens existing at the time it was docketed, but takes precedence over all subsequent liens of any character except those for obligations to the municipal, State, or Federal governments, such as taxes and assessments. The public docket gives legal notice of the lien to all persons, just as the record of a mortgage operates, and any intending purchaser who omits to search for judgments against the owner of the property in question does so at his peril, even though he has not actually learned of the judgment, as he is deemed to have constructive notice of all matters of public record. This lien is usually restricted to the jurisdiction of the particular court in which it is rendered, unless a transcript or brief description of the judgment is obtained from the clerk and filed in another jurisdiction in the same State, usually another county, in which case its force is extended to that county. The duration of this lien is usually fixed by statute, otherwise it continues as long as the judgment is in force, unless waived by the judgment creditor. In most States by statute there is a legal presumption that a judgment is satisfied after the expiration of twenty years, but usually it is provided that this may be rebutted by proof to the contrary.

Where a judgment is void or avoidable because of lack of jurisdiction of the court, or because of fraud or some irregularity, it may be opened and set aside on motion of the judgment debtor. Where it is obtained by reason of a default in pleading or appearance, or by mistake of either party, the court may in its discretion vacate it,. direct the proper pleadings to be served or filed, and permit the cause to proceed to trial on the merits. This is usually granted on terms, such as payment of costs.

A judgment may be assigned by an instrument in writing, and the assignee will take all the rights and remedies of the judgment creditor. It will also descend as a part of the assets of a deceased owner. Upon payment of the amount of the judgment and accrued interest, the judgment debtor is entitled to a satisfaction piece. Consult: Black, The Law of Judgments (2d ed., Saint Paul, 1903); Freeman, The Law of Judgments (4th ed., San Francisco, 1892).

Source of Information: From my Collection of Books: The New International Encyclopedia; 1902-1905 Dodd, Mead and Company-New York Total of 21 Volumes

To contact: miriammedina@earthlink.net or miriam@thehistorybox.com
.

Jurisdiction In Law (1)

Judgments are usually termed contracts of record, although the designation is inaccurate. Where it determines some of the rights of the parties, but is intermediate or incomplete because all the questions raised by the issues are not settled or the extent of the relief fixed or defined, it is called interlocutory, as there is something reserved for future determination. For example, if A sues B and the court determines as a matter of law that A is entitled to recover, but the accounts are so complicated that the court directs a reference and an accounting to determine the exact amount due, an interlocutory judgment directing recovery and accounting will be entered, and after the amount due has been reported by the referee, a final judgment for such sum will be entered. Several codes of procedure have abolished the use of the term 'interlocutory judgment,' and designate as an order every direction or determination of the court which is not a final disposition of the action. Under the common-law practice, however, there is a distinction in that an order does not settle any principal question in controversy, but merely some point of practice or some question collateral to the main issue.

A judgment is final when it disposes of or concludes an action so that it is at an end, even though it does not settle all of the rights of the parties. It is usually rendered at the end of the trial of an action, but may be entered upon a default in pleading or as a result of the non-appearance of or abandonment of the action by either party, or on a confession of judgment.

In its more technical sense, the term judgment applies only to the adjudication of a court of law, the term decree being employed to describe the determination of a court of equity. Under most codes of procedure where the former material variances in practice in law and equity have been abolished, the term judgment is now generally used to designate the final determinations of the courts in all cases, both in law and equity; but both courts and attorneys constantly use the term decree as a matter of description in the older and more accurate sense.

Judgments are distinguished from findings of fact or law, in that the latter are only formal expressions of the conclusions of a judge or referee and do not award relief. Judgments are usually entered or docketed in the office of the clerk of the court in which they are rendered. This consists of an entry of a brief description of the judgment, containing the names of the parties, designating the successful party, the date of recovery, the date docketed, and the amount awarded therein. The book in which this entry is made is called the docket of judgments, and is a public record, accessible for examination by any person who cares to examine it. If an execution is issued, the return of the sheriff, whether it be 'satisfied,' meaning collected, or settled, or 'nulla bona' (no goods) or 'unsatisfied,' is entered opposite the description above referred to.

To be continued: Jurisdiction In Law (2)

To contact: miriammedina@earthlink.net or miriam@thehistorybox.com
.

Saturday, January 2, 2010

Table of Contents: Mimi Speaks (11)


Z.) The Italian Niche

Music
1. Topic: Musica Italiana (1)
2. Topic: Ricordando Mama (1)

In Memory Of:
1. Luciano Pavorotti and Frank Sinatra

Mangia, Mangia
1. Grandma Rosa's Italian Kitchen (1)

Arte e Cultura in Italia
1. Forum

Immigration
1. Assimilation: The Early Italian Immigrant's Dilemma (1) (2) (3) (4) (5)

Wonders of Ancient Italy
1. Photo Gallery (1) (2) (3) (4)

Architectural Decorations & Ornaments-Italy
1. Photo Gallery (1) (2)

Castles & Palaces of Italy
1. Photo Gallery (1)

Clothing & Dress of Italy
1. Photo Gallery (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6)

Glass Painting and Staining-Italy
1. Photo Gallery (1)

Rome History (Images only)
1. Photo Gallery (1)

Temples of Italy
1. Photo Gallery (1)

Nobility: Italy
1. Photo Gallery (1) (2)

Sculpture: Italy
1. Photo Gallery (1) (2)

Articles: In English
1. Rome, Italy and the Provinces, First Century B.C. (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7)
2. Columbus Day October 12

Italian Humor
1. Italian Cookies (1)


To contact: miriammedina@earthlink.net
.

The Italian Niche-Musica Italiana (1)

Follow mimispeaksblog on Twitter

Hello, and Welcome to the "Italian Niche "which is a new addition to my blog for the benefit of Italians as well as Italian Americans. My objective is to stimulate interest in the Italian Arts, Culture, Traditions and much more. There will be articles in both languages, music and other interesting topics that will be published from time to time. So I suggest that you find a comfortable chair and serve yourself a steaming cup of espresso coffee or a glass of good wine to sip and enjoy, especially when listening to the music.





Italians are an "Artistic" people. With their skills, crafts, occupations, cuisine, folk dance ensembles, family singing, música paesana, Operatic Tenors, sopranos, popular music and much more have contributed a wide variety of their gifted arts and entertainment to this country as well as the world.

I would like to quote this exerpt from Antonio Mangano's article written in 1904: "The Associated Life of the Italians in New York City" regarding the Italian Community in New York City.

"In matters of amusement and recreation, the Italian finds boundless pleasure in comparatively simple things. Gathered about a table sipping coffee or wine, listening to some music, a stroll up and down the street, a game of cards in a saloon or in some friend's house—these are the chief amusements of the masses. It is music, however, which appeals most strongly to the Italian character. He is not carried away with our slam-bang- band music, nor do you hear him whistling and humming the so-called popular ' songs of the day." "it is the opera which lifts him to the third heaven. The favorite operas of Verdi, Puccini and Mascagni, always draw large Italian audiences at the Metropolitan, especially so if the leading artists are Italians, and often such is the case. With the love of music is joined a sentiment of patriotism." (Antonio Mangano)

Il napoletano: Enrico Caruso "The Golden Voice of the Century"





Sicillian Music-Vitti na crozza-Roberto Alagna





Adagio Italiano Lara Fabian (She was born to a Flemish father and a Sicilian mother and after she was born in Etterbeek her family moved in Catania, Italy so she spent her first five years of her life there and learned as her first language italian.)


NEXT (SUCCESSIVO)

Per visitare la pagina italiana Harlem

o si può visitare direttamente la Brusciano, Italia News / Eventi Page per il loro archivio di articoli in italiano e inglese.

Per contattare: miriammedina@earthlink.net
.

MAIN BLOG DIRECTORY

.Follow mimispeaksblog on Twitter

Table of Contents (2)
A.) Getting To Know Mimi (B.) N.Y.C. History (C.) East Harlem(D.) Spanish Harlem (E.) Black Harlem (F.) New York State (G.) Urban/Suburban Living Issues.

Table of Contents (3)
(H.) Chit-Chat Over Coffee Swirls

Table of Contents (4)
(I.) Jewish Knowledge (J.) Self-Improvement (K.) Historical Facts On England & United States

Table of Contents (5)
(L.) Miscellaneous (M.) Timetables (N.) Ethnic Groups (O.) Legal Talk(P.) Entertainment: Backward Glances (Q.) Immigration

Table of Contents (6)
(R.) Women__Bio Sketches, Feminine Fancies, Recipes, Kitchen Talk.(S.) Worship

Table of Contents (7)
(T.) A Little Taste of History, (U.) U.S. History-Transportation, (V) U.S. History-Panics, Economic Depressions

Table of Contents (8)
(W) El Rincón En Español (The Spanish Corner: )This section is dedicated to articles of historical facts, poetry, self-improvement, human interest stories etc. written in Spanish.

Table of Contents (9)
(X) So Mr. President, What Did You Do During Your Term in Office....? (The Series)

Table of Contents (10)
(Y) Brusciano, Italy News/Events

Table of Contents (11)
(Z) The Italian Niche

Table of Contents (12)
I) "El Rincón Borinqueña"

Table of Contents (13)
II) Arts and Entertainment

Table of Contents (14)

III) Architecture

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(Feel free to express your comments or ask questions regarding: "TheHistoryBox.com." which will be reviewed before posting. Thank You..

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Friday, January 1, 2010

Brusciano, Italy News/Events (14)

"A Brusciano Suor Maria Crocifissa dell’Istituto “Vittime Espiatirici S. M. C. Brando” compie 102 anni. "

Maria Ruggeri nasce a San Lorenzello in provincia di Benevento il 4 ottobre del 1907 e dal 1935 sta a Brusciano come “Suor Maria Crocifissa delle Vittime Espiatrici”, presso lo storico Istituto intitolato alla fondatrice dell’ordine “Suor Maria Cristina Brando”.

Con la visita odierna, nella gentile ospitalità e calorosa accoglienza della Madre responsabile, Suor Rosetta Nespoli e delle consorelle del Centro Educativo di Viale Europa a Brusciano “S. M. C. Brando” , la delegazione dell’Amministrazione comunale guidata dal Sindaco dott. Angelo Antonio Romano, ha portato gli auguri ed un fascio di fiori per uno speciale festeggiamento. Il Consigliere comunale, delegato alle Politiche Sociali, Nicola Di Maio ed Antonio Castaldo responsabile dell’Ufficio Stampa e Comunicazione del Comune di Brusciano hanno salutato Suor Maria Crocifissa che ha compiuto 102 anni formulando gli auguri a nome del Sindaco A. Antonio Romano, del Presidente del Consiglio comunale, Antonio Di Palma, dei Consiglieri e dei dipendenti comunali e dell’intera Comunità di Brusciano.

La veneranda Suor Maria Crocifissa ogni mattina, dopo le preghiere, si dedica all’arte dell’uncinetto ed ha colto l’occasione dell’incontro con l’omaggio floreale ricordando alcune tappe del suo lungo percorso di vita religiosa. Risale al 1927 il suo ritiro in istituto nella Casa Madre a Casoria e poi nel 1935 giunge a Brusciano con il titolo di maestra acquisito presso la Scuola Magistrale di Marcianise e conservando sempre l’amore per l’arte dell’uncinetto.

Nei decenni Suor Maria, Madre Vicaria dell’Istituto “Brando” ha seguito con l’arte della pedagogia ispirata ai valori cristiani generazioni intere di bruscianesi, uomini e donne, oggi impegnati nello studio, nel lavoro, nelle professioni, nella politica e nella Chiesa. Di coloro che hanno dedicato per intero la loro vita al Signore, come Pastori di anime, ricordiamo, Mons. Francesco Saverio Toppi (1925-2007) O. F. M., Vescovo di Pompei; Mons Luigi Travaglino, Nunzio Apostolico, oggi in Vaticano; Don Antonio Vaia, della Chiesa S. Maria delle Grazie a Brusciano, morto in giovane età; Don Angelo Losco, Rettore della Chiesa di San Sossio a Somma Vesuviana, promotore di progetti di solidarietà nazionali ed extra-nazionali. (For more and English Translation).

You can also visit directly the Brusciano, Italy News/Events Information Page at Italian Harlem

To contact: miriammedina@earthlink.net or miriam@thehistorybox.com
.

A HEALTHY AND SUCCESSFUL NEW YEAR TO ALL 2010

According to the annual tradition of celebrating New Year’s Eve in Times Square since 1907, there were more than a million revelers that flooded the area on December 31st, who seemed to be oblivious to the cold weather during the time they were witnessing the descent of the famous New Year Ball. As the ball began its descent at 11:59 p.m. from the flagpole atop One Times Square, the revelers were united in one voice of counting during the final seconds of that year.

At the stroke of midnight, the New Year was welcomed in with the traditional song of “Auld Lang Syne played amidst the reveler’s joyful and earsplitting shrieks of Happy New Year, horn blowing, hugging, kissing, crying and tossing of tons of confetti. An unforgettable moment of human connection.

The commencement of a new year always brings hope to the minds of the people. Hope for a better and safer existence in the world. Hope for economic improvement as well as a chance to strengthen important relationships with family and friends, to take stock of our lives and change directions if we need to. It is a time for soul-searching, setting goals, as well as focusing on being a more productive person by working hard, using our intellect and daring to be enterprising. But most of all, it is the emergence of wanting to become a better special someone.

THIS IS THE YEAR TO STAY WITH A POSITIVE ATTITUDE IN SETTING GOALS AND MAKING THEM WORK...

To contact: miriammedina@earthlink.net
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