By Cindy Y. Rodriguez
The Story Behind YouTube Sensation Sensation Jorge Narvaez
In 2010, Jorge Narvaez picked up his guitar and sang a song with his then 6-year-old daughter, Alexa, and shared their cover of Edward Sharpe and The Magnetic Zero’s “Home” with the world on YouTube.
Three weeks later, they had millions of views and became the new kind of famous only found on the internet. What you see is a loving father singing with his daughter — what you don’t know are all the struggles that Jorge, now 25, faced to get where he is today.
By Cindy Y. Rodriguez
Victor Cruz Memoir Hope To Inspire Teens
Famous for his post-touchdown salsa moves, New York Giant Victor Cruz took a few minutes out of his busy schedule to talk to us about why he wrote his memoir, what it is was like to grow up in New Jersey, and how he hopes to pass on traditions to his daughter, Kennedy.
It’s no secret that Cruz came from humble beginnings, but the steps he took to get to where he is today may surprise some of his fans. Did you know Victor Cruz played the flute as a child? Or that he has a black belt in Taekwondo? Or did you know he had to overcome many obstacles before finishing college at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst?
By Cindy Y. Rodriguez
9-Year-Old Boy Builds His Own Cardboard Arcade
Meet Caine Monroy. He is nine years old and he spent his summer break last year meticulously building a makeshift arcade—appropriately named “Caine’s Arcade”— made out of cardboard boxes in his dad’s auto part store.
Smart Parts Aftermarket is located in an industrial part of East Los Angeles, and is predominantly a Hispanic neighborhood, according to the Census. The auto store doesn’t get much foot traffic; in fact, Caine never had a customer until filmmaker Nirvan Mullick showed up.
By Cindy Y. Rodriguez
Researcher Documents Belongings Left Behind While Crossing The Border
Worn sneakers, dirty backpacks and empty water bottles fill the Sonoran desert. Each object tells a story of struggle, hope and determination and it wasn’t until recently that they were collected for anthropologists hoping to study the science behind migration phenomenon.
“This is not garbage” said Jason De Leon, Assistant Professor of Anthropology at the University of Michigan, “The goal of the project is to rigorously and systematically collect data on the social phenomenon of border crossing using the lens of anthropology to provide insight into the realities of this process.”
By Cindy Y. Rodriguez
Children Of Immigrants Ask For Halt To Deportation That Splits Families
Some children didn’t write to Santa with their most heartfelt wish this holiday season. Instead, more than 5,000 sent letters to the nation’s political leaders, asking them to stop a wave of deportations that is tearing immigrant families apart.
On Thursday, dozens of children brought the letters to President Barack Obama and Congress as part of the “A Wish for the Holidays“ campaign, organized by the coalition We Belong Together.
By Cindy Y. Rodriguez
How Mexico Feels About America’s Cinco De Mayo
Before you buy your plane ticket to Mexico to get the real Cinco de Mayo experience, make sure you don’t go looking for an American-style Mexican St. Patrick’s Day, full of cerveza, bar hopping and, yes, sombreros.
Like visiting Germany for Oktoberfest, traveling to Mexico to celebrate Cinco de Mayo may be a way to heighten or enrich one’s experience.