Myths of Mexico/Columbia Journalism Review/Nov.-Dec. 2009 In 1891, my great-great-uncle, Catarino Garza, attempted to overthrow the Mexican dictator, Porfirio Díaz, by launching an armed revolution from my family’s south Texas ranch. One year into his campaign, Garza agreed to an interview with The New York Times to explain the reasons behind his insurrection. “The impression […]
All stories were reported in the New York City area and appeared in The Washington Post. Links are to pdf versions of the reports. NYC_Latinos_CAFTA For some Latinos with financial and familial connections in CAFTA countries, the trade agreement inspires optimism that open markets will create business opportunities and jobs, and reduce the need for immigration to […]
Below is a sample of some of the trials that grew out of the Sept 11 2001 attacks on New York City. All reports were published in The Washington Post. The case of Sheik Mohammed Ali Hassan Moayad drew particular attention after Attorney General John Ashcroft labeled him Osama Bin Laden’s “spiritual advisor.” It emerged […]
To access piece on Sojourners site, click here. ON A FLIGHT from New York City to Guatemala some years back, I met a woman from Oklahoma on her way to visit her soon-to-be internationally adopted daughter. “I just found them, the Guatemalan children, on the internet and thought they were so beautiful,” she said. She […]
There’s a bottle of Jimador brand tequila, half full, in the kitchen, the remains of a conversation about the Mexican student movement. But I didn’t buy it. The bottle of J&B holds just one swig and I never touched. It landed in my kitchen after a book party I didn’t attend, brought over by someone […]
‘Against Mexico’ Documentary Explores Texas Secession Battle | PBS NewsHour Posted on Newshour May 2012 At first blush, a group reenactment of Texas’ 1836 battle to secede from Mexico has little to do with today’s political environment. But the notion of what it means to be an American is an issue that continues to stir […]
The Pope laid it all on the deadly sin of greed. Greed was behind the 50,000 deaths in Mexico, behind the terror, loss and pain. Young people sick with greed, he said, have caused tremendous ‘human suffering’ across the country. It was a simple phrase but the synopsis of the message Pope Benedict XVI intended […]
