Latest posts by Firuzeh Shokooh Valle
Unveiling the Many Mysteries of the Monthly Energy Bill in Puerto Rico
The non-profit think tank Center for the New Economy (CNE), based in Puerto Rico, has launched the innovative and creative online campaign “The Mysteries of Your Energy Bill” [es] in which they explain the unexplainable: Where do all those increases in the energy bill come from? What do those formulas and...
Teaser of Collaboration Between Calle 13 and Wikileaks’ Julian Assange
The expected single titled “Multi_Viral,” a collaboration between Puerto Rican hip hop group Calle 13 and Wikileaks’ Julian Assange, will be released next November 13, 2013 (yes, all 13s). Last June, René Pérez, the group's frontman, visited Assange in the Ecuadorian embassy in London. Using the hashtag #JulianAssangeCalle13 they asked...
“And Draw Until I Die,” Eight Questions for the Illustrator Lorraine Rodriguez
"Once you discover what you like, what brings you satisfaction, what you know how to do, what you're passionate about more than anything else, then there's no turning back."
The Walls Can Talk in Puerto Rico and New York City
The alternative music venue La Respuesta, in Santurce, Puerto Rico, presents “Los Muros Hablan NYC” (The Walls Talk NYC), the New York edition of the urban art festival that has put the zone of Santurce on the map of graffiti artists worldwide. The artistic project aims to strengthen bonds between...
Puerto Rico a Hub for Spying on Latin America
The Center of Investigative Journalism of Puerto Rico reported that in a series of classified documents leaked by Edward Snowden, it appears that the U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) were using a naval base on the island as the center of operations to spy...
René Pérez of Calle 13 Writes Song with Julian Assange
Puerto Rican hip hop star René Pérez (@Calle13Oficial) of the band Calle 13 announced today [es] through Twitter that he is with Wikileaks founder Julian Assange at the Ecuadorian Embassy in London, where Assange was given refuge after being accused of a sexual crime in Sweden. Pérez will be live on...
Campaign to Liberate Oscar López Rivera
The campaign for the liberation of Puerto Rican independence fighter Oscar López Rivera has intensified. During 32 years López Rivera has been imprisoned in the United States charged with “seditious conspiracy” and “conspiracy to escape” for which he received a 70 year sentence. He is now 70 years old. The...
Domestic Violence Protection for Everyone
Blogger and feminist lawyer Verónica Rivera Torres writes [es] about the piece of legislations that seeks to extend the Law Against Domestic Violence (Law 54) in Puerto Rico to same sex couples: Since our Supreme Court ruled that the Law of the Prevention and Intervention in Domestic Violence, known as Law...
“I Am a Director”
Alternative blog Puerto Rico Indie reviews [es] the recent Puerto Rican film “I Am a Director,” which was partially financed through Kickstarter: The film, made in the ‘mockumentary’ style or fictitious documentary, follows the steps of Carlos (Carlos Marchand), first-time filmmaker who longs to make a Hollywood-style film, but in Puerto...
“Mom, I Am in Love With a Woman”
On occasion of the celebration of Mother's Day, tomorrow Sunday May 12, feminist activist Amárilis Pagán writes about the experience [es] of telling her mother she was in love with another woman: The day I told my mom I was in love with a woman, she delivered a long and heartbreaking...
Mapping the Cuban Blogosphere
Blogger Yasmín S. Portales comments on the challenges of mapping the Cuban blogosphere, including everything and anything written in blogs. This is her most recent project: A directory is a map: you have the swamps of glorious battles swamps and the mountains of infamy. You include it all, or it's...
VI Conference Against Homophobia in Cuba
Cuban blogger and LGBT activist Francisco Rodríguez announces the events [es] of the VI Cuban Conference Against Homophobia to be held during the month of May in the island.
Open Letter to Blogger Yoani Sánchez
Journalist and Global Voices author, Leila Nachawati, writes an open letter [es] to Cuban blogger Yoani Sánchez, who has been touring the United States, Latin America and Europe talking about Cuban technopolitics. Sánchez has been embraced by some, and criticized by others during her voyage. In her open letter, the Spanish-Syrian...
Boston Bombings Opens Debate on Rights
After the explosions at the Boston Marathon on Monday April 15, Twitter became a primary source of breaking news, and also of misinformation. Conversations were curated around the hashtags #bostonmarathon and #bostonexplosions the first days. On Thursday night, one of the suspects, Tamerlan Tsarnaev, 26, was killed during a police persecution...
Omar Banuchi Finds His Niche in the Puerto Rican Web (Part III)
Banuchi's career path can be seen in the transformation that his illustrations have had in the last five years. The technique has been refined, and the topics point towards an increased maturity. Here is the third, and final, part of the interview with Puerto Rican digital artist Omar Banuchi.
Omar Banuchi Finds His Niche in the Puerto Rican Web (Part II)
Omar Banuchi, a quiet, introverted boy that didn't leave the family appartment much, could easily connect with the stories of superheros capabale of supporting the weight of the world on their shoulders and achieving great super-human deeds. Here we see the second interview with the Puerto Rican digital artist.
Ted Henken's Review of Cuban Blogosphere
The academic and blogger Ted Henken offers his year in review of the Cuban blogosphere.
Online Petition for Oscar López
The online petition asking for the pardon of Puerto Rican political prisoner Oscar López Rivera is rapidly getting close to its objective of 3,000 signatures. López was arrested in 1981 and sentenced to 70 years in jail for “seditious conspiracy” for participating in acts in favor of the independence of...
Debating Journalism and Censorship
In recent days, journalists Sandra Rodríguez Cotto and Wilda Rodríguez [es] have a had an interesting debate on journalism, objectivity, and censorship following the boycott of Puerto Rico's popular TV show “La Comay.”
The Best 12 of 2012
The music blog Puerto Rico Indie offers its traditional summary of the best albums of the year in Puerto Rico. Enjoy!
Puerto Rico Votes Today
The website of the State Elections Commission of Puerto Rico (Comisión Estatal de Elecciones-CEE) will be constantly offering updates on today's elections in the Island.
