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You are invited to a special screening of Maria’s Story

J.T.Leave a comment

This January 16th marked 32 years since El Salvador’s 1992 peace treaty, also known as the Chapultepec Peace Accords, which were signed between the Frente Farabundo Martí para la Liberación Nacional (FMLN) and the U.S. backed right-wing government of El Salvador, ending a 12 year war in the Central American Nation which killed at least 75,000 Salvadorans, disappeared 8,000 others, and displaced at least a million more.

By the early 1980s the U.S. had its hands in conflicts across the globe, from the mountains of Afghanistan to the coasts of Nicaragua and the forests of El Salvador; former president Ronald Reagan made his commitment to this modus operandi clear as soon as he was elected in 1980, moving quickly to establish the “Contras,” or counter-revolutionary death squads against the socialist Sandinista government in Nicaragua. The U.S. dollar’s role on these “Cold War” fronts–as is the case now with its support for Israel against Palestine in the “war on terror”–was an open secret.

In 1985 at the White House, Reagan stood alongside then-Salvadoran president Duarte, whom had only been elected in June 1984, and called him “a close friend.” He then went on to claim that “elections, economic reforms and communist guerillas losing ground [in El Salvador] would [not] have been possible without the economic assistance and military training and equipment that [the U.S.] provided.” The U.S. government would send between $4.5 – 6 billion in economic and military aid to El Salvador over the 1980s, though not without loopholes and controversy, including the Iran-Contra affair.

President Reagan’s and President Jose Napoleon Duarte’s of El Salvador Remarks during his Working Visit in the Rose Garden on May 16, 1985. Courtesy of Ronald Reagan Library.

This is all the more reason why it’s stunning that the war in El Salvador outlasted even Reagan’s tenure. In 1987, 37 year old Maria Serrano lost one of her three daughters, Ceci Serrano, to an ambush by the Salvadoran army on her pueblo. While Maria didn’t mention Reagan by name as she discussed “the enemy,” or those responsible for the attack, she did note that losing her daughter in a particularly ruthless and dehumanizing fashion to an army Reagan had so much praise for was a major factor in her decision to become a guerilla fighter and organizer with the FMLN.

Save the date! For next Thursday, January 25th at 7:30 PM in Boyle Heights, Los Angeles.

In Maria’s Story, using solar-powered batteries, film-makers shadow Maria on-the-run” for two months through highlands and waterfalls as she and fellow farmer communities devise a major offensive against the Salvadoran army, an offensive so effective it ultimately spurs both the FMLN and the U.S. backed Salvadoran government to sign the Peace Accords; weaving together the different moments which led Maria into such a precarious position to begin with, the film captures the undeniable humility of a people simply struggling to live free from the grip of empire in the late 20th century.

I’m now honored to present a screening of Maria’s Story at none other than the Re/Arte (medianoche) bookstore in Boyle Heights. Proceeds from the event will go towards supporting my upcoming visit to El Salvador as an Election Observer, and attendees will also get to check out all of the amazing libros–many of which are no longer in print or just anywhere else–at Re/Arte.

Tell a friend, bring your own concha–available nearby on E. Cesar Chavez Ave–and enjoy! It’s going to be an unforgettable time.

J.T.

Rap Heat Coming from a Latino: Music in L.A. with Sal Roses

J.T.2 Comments

“What you give is what you get,
But I only give respect,
Where I really think it’s due,
Tell me who the hell are you?”

Sal Roses is a Salvadoran American writer born and raised in the City of Los Angeles, whose parents hail from the Pueblo of Santa Rosa de Lìma, La Union, El Salvador. As a member of the ‘first’ generation of his family in L.A., Roses’s world was one where a survival & entrepreneurial mentality at home often clashed with the systemic nature of American schools, work and life. Before finding himself as an artist, Roses would navigate through violence and abuse at home and his environment, financial instability, and the process of discovering his voice, eventually learning ‘to turn mud into gold.’ He now seeks to influence the world through music emblazoned with messages of confidence, self-reliance, and determination to turn one’s dreams into reality. 

1. Who are some of your earliest musical influences?

Parents are always first. They introduced me to Latin music, including cumbias, románticas, and all that good stuff. But it wasn’t until my cousins introduced me to hip hop that I saw the most for myself in the music. They introduced me to Chicano gangster rap, and that’s when I really started to visualize what these artists were going through. I could see it going on with my primos.

2. Tell me about Appetizers, Vol 1. What led you to this name for your EP?

It’s just a taste! And you can’t have the entree without a set of appetizers. It’s a build up to the full course of art we intend to supply. At 3 songs it felt like the perfect follow up to Killing Other People’s Beats The Mixtape (KOPB The Mixtape). Appetizers Vol. 1 also gives me creative freedom to drop a snack whenever I feel like the people are hungry for it. Just gotta stay hungry.

3. Tell me about the Spanish verse in Now; why did you choose to include Spanish in your opening song?

It was very important to include Spanish on this first project. Spanish and English have been equally important in shaping me to the point that it would have been wrong to leave out a verse in the latter. Plus, now more than ever, you can feel the strength of the language; it just carries a little more weight these days.

4. What do you make of Latinos in Hip Hop in 2019?

We’ve been consumers of Hip Hop from near the beginning but have gone mostly under-represented for a while. As a market, the Latino culture is being targeted more than ever before in the music, but it also calls for creatives like us to fill in the missing pieces. There are still so many stories to be told, so many thoughts to be brought up for discussion, deep rooted issues that need addressing. Our true contribution is still being formed and that’s the most exciting part about it.

5. And so, what if Adam ate the apple first?

This is my favorite line in the whole project! Imagine a world where, for all intents and purposes, Adam took that bite instead of Eve. Would men feel more inclined to push for gender equality? Would we want women to treat us differently? I say this as someone who considers themselves a feminist, pushing for true gender equality and not gender overcompensation. To me it’s thought-provoking, like a whole different world can be imagined just based on that thought.

Sal Roses; Summer 2019

6. Tell me about the drums in Richard’s Drums.

I was making this beat, and my drums were sucking bad. Every single sound before the drums excited me, but when I got to them, they kicked my ass. So I called Richard over, and in like 2 minutes he laid it down. We named the track after him in that moment.

7. Who else would you like to shout out now that your EP is out?

I’d like to shout out anybody and everybody whose been supporting our movement. So much work has been put in behind the scenes just to get to where we are right now. It’s still so small-scale that having true support from people who believe in what we’re doing has been instrumental in creating not just music, but a movement, a mobilization, a future. Thank you all.

To check out Sal’s Appetizers, Vol. 1, find his album on Spotify HERE.

J.T.