Marches, Menus, Meetings and Maya (Flat)

This family has been very busy this first week of May. On the 1st, Steve and Emilio joined thousands of immigrants and their supporters in a protest march demanding equals rights, respect and citizenship for the thousands of undocumented workers who make life easier for the people of this country everyday.

I know Steve’s post has created some controversy and I’m glad. People should be talking about this issue. To me, the whole issue of the Mexican flag was well explained by Brian: it’s a symbol to show solidarity. When people in Chicago see it, they know what it means. I was very sorry I couldn’t spend time at the March.

I have great respect and affection for demonstrations. I grew up in two countries controlled by dictatorships for too many years (Argentina and Spain) and for people to go out and express their opinions together with others has always struck me as a symbol of courage and hope. You don’t need a single objective or even a clear agenda sometimes; you go out simply because you are sick and tired of injustice and want to express your frustration. Often, it’s true that demonstrations end in chaos or violence and many of us have had to run from cops and agitators. However, being out there,with lots of people who feel and think like you is empowering and sometimes, it is even fun. I can’t remember having more fun than when we walked for hours from Madrid to an American military base outside Madrid to demand that it be closed.

It’s true the organizers of this march asked people to carry the American flag because they thought people should be thankful they are in a country “with so many opportunities.” I respect their opinion, but that reminds me of when my students asked me “why there are so many Mexicans here?” Many of them say they came because there are no jobs in Mexico and they wonder why. How can I explain capitalism and imperialism to them? Or who is responsible for the fact that there are no jobs in Latin America? Or who is responsible for the corruption and the dictatorships there?

On he day of the March, I was presenting at the International Reading Conference. The title of my presentation was "Teaching Reading Using Book Club through Social Justice Issues." Part of the presentation was to give time to the audience to create a lesson plan using multicultural resources. I chose the book Friends From The Other Side, about a Mexican boy and his mother who crossed the river to come to Texas and how they hid from the Immigration Police. Coincidence? Of course not. It's not a coincidence either that I'm reading that book with my students now also.

(Flat) Maya came to visit us this week also and after spending a day in school (that is her in the photo above reading with my students), she flew to California. Thanks for coming! Emilio really liked her: he put her right into his mouth.


Our other visitor this week was my colleague Julie. She hadn't seen Emilio since he was a few weeks old so she was impressed with how much he had grown. Babies can sneak up on you like that, I guess. Emilio seems really sociable (for now at least) and enjoys meeting new people.

On Saturday we attended a fundraiser for Global Explorers Kids. They had a silent auction and we bid on several interesting things. Let's see what we get.

This week Emilio has also continued trying new flavors and so far he has enjoyed everything. Soon, he'll try broccoli and cauliflower for the first time. I wonder when he'll be ready for flounder with orange sauce and peppered steak.

Thank you to Maria Estrada for recommending another great book with menus for babies.