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"Yo Soy Boricua, Pa'que Tu Lo Sepas!" Amazing Film by
Boricua Rosie Perez..
 o Soy Boricua, Pa'que Tu Lo Sepas! ...explores Rosie Perez's burning question:
why are Puerto Ricans so damn proud? Her journey through Puerto Rico's history
gains inspiration from the vibrant music, dancing and energy of the Puerto
Rican Day Parade, and she uses this starting point to speak to Puerto Rican
people about their identity and culture. We follow Rosie and her collaborators
through New York, Miami and to Puerto Rico to document what it really means to
be "Boricua."
Puerto Ricans live in the United States in a limbo-like status. They are
citizens, but don't vote for President. They've traveled back and forth to the
island freely for a century, but still suffer extreme prejudice and economic
roadblocks. Their ancestral heritage includes Indigenous Taino, Spanish,
African, Irish, Scottish and French, amongst others. Puerto Ricans were the
first Latino group to migrate to the East Coast of the U.S. in large numbers.
In her directorial debut, Rosie Perez ("Do the Right Thing," "White Men Can't
Jump, Fearless") celebrates Puerto Rican pride. Alternately shocking and
humorous, this documentary, which is narrated by Jimmy Smits ("The West Wing,"
"NYPD Blue"), puts the themes of family, language, and racism into a
historical perspective.
The film uncovers the complex and controversial
history between Puerto Rico and the United States: Forced sterilizations and
birth control testing in Puerto Rico; the imprisonment and torture of freedom
fighter Pedro Albizu Campos; Pedro Pietri, the pre-eminent voice for
Nuyoricans; The Young Lords, a group of activists agitating for Puerto Rican
rights in New York City; and the protests against U.S. bombing of Vieques.
Few Americans know about these subjects, which are not to be found in American
history books.
Rosie Perez says...
"Yo Soy Boricua, Pa'que Tu Lo Sepas!" is a
documentary about the political history of Puerto Rico, and its connections
first with Spain, and later the United States. The film explores how the
tenuous relationships between these countries have directly affected Puerto
Ricans: their lives, their culture and their location.
Most importantly, this is a film that celebrates the tenacity of Puerto
Rican people: Through the personal testimonies of Puerto Rican-Americans and
through my own family's journey, I relay how we have maintained our culture
and our stories, in spite of the difficulties we have endured.
I must tell you, I felt vulnerable and shocked to learn and rediscover
events about my family's and my people's struggle to maintain a voice here
in the United States and on the Island; to discover how Spain committed
genocide on the island's indigenous people, the Taino Indians; to find out
that the women of Puerto Rico were used as human guinea pigs for the testing
of birth control pills before they were FDA approved; and to hear that a
U.S. policy requiring sterilization of Puerto Rican women was practiced to
control the impoverished population.
As a character in this film, it was difficult for me to admit that my
Spanish is less than perfect. I share this story with many other children of
Puerto Rican parents, who migrated to America in the early forties as a
result of a U.S. government program called "Operation Bootstrap." My mother,
like other Puerto Rican parents, wanted the best for her child by enforcing
the use of English as my first language and Spanish second. She did not want
me to endure the racism and prejudice that she had experienced. Along with
other characters in this documentary, I explain that even as painful as this
was and how difficult it is for some of us to still master our own language,
we hold no judgment against our parents, because we understand what they
went through to offer us a better life.
The stories presented in "Yo Soy Boricua, Pa'que Tu Lo Sepas!" are
long-overdue and making this film was far more than a labor of love: it was
a necessity for me. When I tried to set up this documentary with one of the
Hollywood studios, I met with a great deal of resistance: they told me that
there was no audience for this film. However, IFC recognized that the story
will resonate, not only with Puerto Ricans and Latinos, but far, far beyond
that, with those who seek to learn not only about our history and culture
but their own history and pride. For this story is not unique to Puerto
Ricans, this story speaks to every nationality and race that has endured
difficulties from the outside world. And I thank them for giving me a voice
and platform. My partners, Liz Garbus and Rory Kennedy, also supported me
from the start: we have all given our hearts and souls to this project. I
hope you enjoy.
- Rosie
Perez
SEE trailer here: (look on the left side for "trailer")
http://www.ifctv.com/ifc/what?CAT1=6967&AID=16309&CLR=black&BCLR=000000#
"Don forget about truth and mercy;
tie them around your neck; write them upon the tablet of your heart; and
you'll find favor and good understanding with both God and man." —Proverbs
3:3-4 (Sponsor) LP Puerto Rican Flag Congas
 Quinto
11", Conga 11.7", Tumba 12.5"
Siam oak shell, 5/16" tuning rods, unique side plates, and Matador Soft Strike
Rims for ease of playing. LP ProCare shell protectors cushion the drum from
bumping and marring its neighbor. The head is natural rawhide. Of course, a
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CLICK
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_____________________ The
Bottom Line ______________________
“Live in such a _way that no one blames the rest of us
nor finds fault with our work.” --(2 Corinthians 6:3)
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Grammy Nominated
"Jibaro Hasta El Hueso" CD"
DVD - "Sights & Sounds of Puerto Rico"
by Fernandez,
Cueto y Mendez
See LOW price
A Taste of Puerto Rico
by Yvonne Ortiz
Hardcover
Cookbook
273 pages
Puerto Rico : A Political and Cultural History
by Arturo Morales Carrion
" I can do all things through Christ who
strengthens me." —Phillipians 4:13
Earth and Spirit:
Medicinal Plants and Healing Lore from Puerto Rico
by Benedetti & Janto
Tito, Eddie Finally
Concord Picante 25th
Anniversary Collection
Less than $25. In 4 CD Boxed set, Mongo, Tito, Eddie and
many others... Thick booklet included. This Concord is a must
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AMAZING photo memoir of our
People to tug one's soul.
ANTI-VIRUS
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