ADDITIONS TO THE WEEKLY EMAIL!

[laura taylor]

EVENTS!

Patriots for Peace is screening IRAQ FOR SALE this Thursday, April 24th @ 8:00 in MGC 200.  The film looks closely at who is profitting from the war in Iraq and does investigatory segments on KBR, Halliburton, Blackwater, and more.  There will be free pizza and soda provided by Campus Progress!  Before the film begins, Professor Steven Schooner, the co-director of the Government Procurement Law Program at George Washington University will give a short talk on the current state of private military contractors in Iraq

 

Yes, Thursday is the return of Grey's Anatomy and Lost and Ugly Betty and the Office, but come on... let's culture our knowledge about the War in Iraq instead!  Besides, you can watch them all online later that night!

 

ANNOUNCEMENTS! 

I am a former CASJer working in New Orleans.  One of the projects that we are supporting is the creation of a Citizen Participation Process, this is a mechanism that many cities use to make city government more responsive to neighborhood and resident needs, and it would be extremely helpful for the citizens of New Orleans.  Please vote to support our work, and the work of others around the country. 

Thanks,
Elizabeth

The New Orleans Citizen Participation project has been selected as a finalist in the Case Foundation's Make It Your Own Awards national competition.  Now it is up to citizens and friends of New Orleans to determine if this great project is one of four that will receive $25,000 in funding, as part of a worldwide on-line vote. To cast your vote to fund citizen participation in New Orleans, please follow these steps: 

1.  Go to  www.casefoundation.org/myvote. 2.  Follow the simple voting instructions.  Select the project titled Citizen Participation, Keith Twitchell, New Orleans, and any other three projects.
3.  After you cast your ballot, a new screen will appear.  Please continue to follow the instructions, including entering your email.
4.  Once you have completed the process, you will receive an email from the Case Foundation.  It is very important that you respond to this email to confirm your vote.  Your vote will not count if you do not confirm it via this email.

Only one vote per email address will be allowed, but please send this to everyone you know who loves New Orleans so they can help us fund the Citizen Participation project.  This project will enable citizens to design a permanent mechanism for engagement with city government, and help make sure that the people of New Orleans have a real voice in the future of their neighborhoods and their city.  These funds will help us realize that dream.  Voting ends on April 22, so please act quickly.

The Case Foundation is also giving $2500 to charities selected by the first ten people to vote for the four winning projects, so you have an opportunity to help your other favorite organizations as well.

This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for our city, so please cast your vote today!

On behalf of CBNO/MAC, its partners and the people of New Orleans, we thank you in advance for supporting this project.

 

          Please share information about this new fall undergraduate course in the American Studies Department of CAS.
The Latino Community in the Washington, DC Metropolitan Area   American Studies 341  001             3 credits

This interdisciplinary course explores the growing Latino community of the Washington, DC metropolitan area and its challenges and contributions in a historical context. While the District of Columbia's Latino population numbers about 51,000 according to the 2005 census and is 8-10% of the total population, the region's numbers are much higher, sometimes estimated at close to one-half million. The DC metropolitan area has the second largest concentration of Salvadorans in the country, following Los Angeles.

Teaching and learning methods include readings about historical and contemporary issues, films, community visits and speakers, and interviews.  In addition to classroom experiences, the course uses local Hispanic community-based organizations as a key resource. Students will do hands-on learning about issues such as immigration and legal rights, affordable housing and gentrification, education, youth gangs, health, employment and day laborers, and other concerns at the forefront of local and national Latino life.   Each student will look at one issue in depth and will engage in a service-learning project in an agency with that focus. Major sources of information also include local newspapers--both Spanish-language and English language press, television, and radio stations, the DC government's Office on Latino Affairs (OLA), and reports produced by the Latino Federation of Greater Washington. While the course will have a local emphasis, it will analyze local issues in a broader national and international framework, particularly in light of the current debate around immigration.

For more information, contact the instructor, Marcy Fink Campos, at mfca...@american.edu or by phone (202)885-1551 or go to http://www.american.edu/american/registrar/descriptions_proc.cfm?subj=AMST&crs=341

A great follow-up course offering to this class is "The Sociology of Latino Studies" (Sociology 551), taught by Dr. Salvador Vidal-Ortiz.