"Helping Communities Grow!"
Issue # 6, Volume 2
September 2005 Issue
[ Volume 2 - Issue No. 1 | Issue No. 2 | Issue No. 3 | Issue No. 4 | Issue No. 5 | Issue No. 6 |
Issue No. 7 | Issue 8 | Issue No. 9 | Issue No. 10 | Issue No. 11 ]
This Episode Features 
Growing Power
The Healthy Latino Schools Campaign
Self Injury
Peer Pressure in Today’s Youth Pt. 2
Community Mapping
Quotes Column
Express Yourself (Another Statistic)
Clean Air Campaign
Back to School Survival Guide
Addicted to Energy
Graffiti Around the Neighborhood
Discrimination in The Military
Super Facts and Random Thoughts
Newsletter Quote of the Month:
“ The sun, the moon and the stars would have disappeared long ago
...had they happened to be within the reach of predatory human hands.”
- Havelock Ellis, The Dance of Life 1923
- The largest McDonald's is in Beijing, China - measuring 28,000 square feet. It has twenty nine cash registers.
- It takes an average of 144 licks in 9 minutes to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop.
- The phrase "Rule of thumb" is derived from an old English law which stated that you couldn't beat your wife with anything wider than your thumb.
- Each king in a deck of playing cards represents a great king from history. Spades - King David; Clubs - Alexander the Great; Hearts - Charlemagne; and Diamonds - Julius Caesar.
- When the Black Death swept across England one theory was that cats caused the plague. Thousands were slaughtered. Ironically, those that kept their cats were less affected, because they kept their houses clear of the real culprits, rats.
- In Maine, it's illegal for a police officer to tell you to have a nice day after giving you a traffic ticket.
- The Pentagon, in Arlington, Virginia, has twice as many bathrooms as is necessary. When it was built in the 1940s, the state of Virginia still had segregation laws requiring separate toilet facilities for blacks and whites.
- Chicago is closer to Moscow than it is to Rio de Janeiro.
- Beethoven dipped his head in cold water before he composed.
- For every person on earth, there are an estimated 200 million insects.
- The day after President George W. Bush was re-elected, Canada's main immigration website had 115,000 visitors. Before Bush's re-election, this site averaged about 20,000 visitors each day.
- George W. Bush, who presents himself as a man of faith, rarely goes to church. Yet he won nearly two out of three voters who attend church at least once a week.
- Mel Gibson has personally earned almost $400,000,000 from his movie "The Passion of the Christ".
- So far, Congress has authorized $152,600,000,000 for the Iraq war. This is enough to build over 17,500 elementary schools.
Recently I participated in a summer internship program called Growing Power, along with other students across Chicago. Growing Power is an Urban Agriculture Project, located in Grant Park right in front of Buckingham Fountain. Growing Power has taught me to harvest produce that was grown in the garden, for example: tomatoes, cabbage, eggplants, broccoli, cauliflower etc. We learned various techniques of gardening/farming, for example transplanting, crop rotation etc. This program was very helpful in my opinion because it made me think of how real farmers have to be in the scorching sun everyday. The thing I liked the most about this summer was that I got to meet various students from the Chicago area.
By: Allen Govea A>K>A Oreo O___o
If you have any questions or concerns regarding “Growing Power” please call me at (773) 762-6991
The Healthy Latino Schools Campaign
Learn more about LVEJO’s many campaigns, The Healthy Latinos Schools Campaign. This campaign works with the Latino community to reduce asthma, obesity and to improve health. They work with the students and their parents. They want to increase the daily recess and gym time. They also want to improve the lunches at the school. One of the activities of the program this year was to measure the height and weight of all the students, and, then comparing them to the age and gender of the student. In one year they will go back to the Little Village Academy, where the project of weighing students started, and redo this, and we'll know if the students have been eating better and doing their exercise. The Healthy Latino Schools Campaign biggest accomplishment in the month of July was that they finish twelve to fourteen stores of food surveys. They have also gotten compliments from the parents who say that they have included vegetables in the children's dinners. Youth benefit from this program because it can reduce their weight, high blood pressure, etc. They can also get better grades and learn better if their bodies are healthy. Youth already volunteers in this program . They do food surveys, and they teach parents how to read labels so that they know what is healthy. You can help too.
(If interested in helping, call our office at (773) 762-6991 and ask for Jovita Flores).
By: Queli Tellez
Graffiti Around The Neighborhood
Submitted in by: Jose Monarrez A.K.A. Googles
Discrimination in the Military
Students Against the Militarization of our Youth is a group of students (SAMY), faculty, and community residents of the College of DuPage District 502 against recruitment being promoted in college campus. They claim that the information the military gives is misleading and unsupported by statistical reports.
SAMY also claims that the Armed Forces discriminates based on race, gender, and sexual preference. People of color populate 33% of the Armed Forces and only 16% are commissioned officers. In 2003, more than 1,000 female soldiers reported being raped by male peers. Female soldiers hold officer commissions at a lower rate than males. Women cannot serve in key combat positions. The military is a extremely corrupt not only because they discriminate but they also lie to the people they recruit. If you are against Militarization then you should learn more about SAMY and other organizations that are helping to prevent militarization in their schools visit the following website: http://militaryoffcampus.org
“Today the real test of power is not the capacity to make war but the capacity to prevent it”
-Anne O’Hare McCormick
By: Marisol aka Mini-sol
“Self-Injury”
By: Rocio Linarese
Many people wonder and ask why people cut themselves? Is it some type of new trend or are the people just plain crazy? The truth is that cutting also called self-injury (S.I.), which is rare amongst youth but those who actually perform this act, it’s not because they are crazy. It’s a way of dealing with strong emotions that one has bottled up and can’t seem to express them in any other way then inflicting self pain. That’s why many people who cut themselves hide these scars. These people might feel that they don’t fit in or they have strong emotions like frustration, anger, hurt, shame or depression. “Experts” say that cutting is do to these people not having control over their emotions and know no other way to express their feelings. They have some sort of feeling of emptiness but what do experts really know how a person feels?
Those who could more clearly answer why they cut themselves is only that person alone. There might be studies of depression being involved with cutting but there are more reasons why people cut themselves beyond the field of humane studies. To clearly understand why people do this would be to talk to them and try to see why they inflict pain upon themselves. One of my closest best friends used to be a cutter and she told me she enjoyed cutting herself. She really had no reason to cut herself and she said she just did it for no reason at all. Though I had a feeling that she might be having some problems with her family and friends. Everyone has problems but cutting isn’t the answer because you are hurting yourself both physically and emotionally.
Through time scars heal but emotional scars take longer to heal. All that is needed is time and patience, and knowing that your not alone in the world, and that people around you are willing to listen to you; only if you allow yourself to open up to others. Trust.
Laterz,
e Rosi
Have you ever noticed that your life revolves around some form of energy? Have you ever thought what we use to produce all that energy? What if whatever we use to create all this energy runs out? This might seem like an unrealistic future, but it may soon become a reality.
Some observers of the oil industry think that during the first decade of the 21 st century the world’s oil production will peak and begin to decline. How can a society that has depended on oil for so long adapt to life without? Some experts say we might be facing gas prices of $5.00 a gallon in the near future. Some things that might happen; economies that revolve around the oil production might suffer greatly and nations who depend on oil production might enter a financial crisis, and people will have trouble finding alternatives for transportation and energy in general.
So the next logical questions we ask ourselves, what are some alternatives for oil? Immediately some of you may say hydrogen is an alternative, but we are wrong!!! The use of hydrogen would be more expensive than oil, it would contaminate more than oil, and it’s dangerous to our ecosystem. Petroleum combustion destroys oxygen in the atmosphere, but using hydrogen would only make that situation worse. Hydrogen removes more oxygen from the atmosphere than gasoline does. So if the use of hydrogen were to be generalized life on Earth would extinguish itself in a couple of months.
An alternative that I have been researching on is Magnegas. This gas is produced from a Hadronic Reactor. The Magnegas can be made out of crude oil, the residues of airplane de-icing agents, human and animal wastes or used oil from cars. How cool would this be? We would clean our pollution and produce energy. The Magnegas can be produced anywhere, releases no nuclear radiation, and will enrich the atmosphere because it releases oxygen. But why isn’t it being promoted?
THERE IS HOWEVER one problem with all these great ideas. Alternatives for oil aren’t being promoted as they should be. I think we should start being aware that things aren’t going to last forever. The best thing we can do right now is find ways of being less pollutant. Be the change you want to see in the world. Let’s try to be environmental friendly.
Here Is Something To Think About: Since our nation’s economy revolves around the oil production, what will happen when oil production decreases? Imagine if in the near future we may be experiencing another Great Depression like the one from 1929-1941?
By: Daniel A.K.A SiCkO
P.S. If you have any comments about this article, please send your opinion or response to el_cilantro@sbcglobal.net.
Research was done at: Michaelmoore.com
Freeenergynews.com/Directory/Hydrogen/notthe_answer.htm
Back To School Survival Guide (Well Sort Of)
Check this out guys! I got this e-mail from my co-worker and it had some pretty good information on CPS Policies. It was easy to relate to because I just graduated elementary school and while in elementary school I saw a lot of things that weren’t right. I knew things weren’t right but I never realized they were doing things that were against CPS policies. So now I know what to do if I’m ever in that situation. I think no person should have to go through those things without it being their fault. Take five minutes to read this article and learn your rights! Go back to school and be prepared for a change.
- Basic Right
Every enrolled high school aged student is entitled to a free public
education until the end of their 21st year or until they graduate, whichever
comes first.
- Basic Responsibility
Students must attend school regularly until they are 17 years old.
In February 2004, CPS amended its policy on truancy and absenteeism with the goal of reducing the number of students dropping out.
* The school cannot drop a student due to attendance problems and excessive absences.
* Students are not to be sent home, refused admission to school, or given out-of-school suspension due to tardiness.
School administrators must document all voluntary withdraws of H.S
students over 17yrs old with a written Consent to Withdraw form. The parent
must sign if the student is under 18yrs old.
* The Consent to Withdraw form must remind students that they have
the right to re-enroll and finish their high school education.
No School or District can exclude your child/student, permanently, except in
the following circumstances: (You may or may not be able to get back in if…)
You are expelled for serious violations of the discipline code, and only
after a full hearing on your case.
OR...
If the school can prove that the student that has dropped out, is 19yrs or over and does not have the credits to graduate by his/her 21st birthday. (That you can’t possibly graduate on time.)
OR...
If the student is 17yrs old or over and failing or not attending for two semesters in a row they can be excluded for one semester only, and only after they have received a written warning, a support plan and an option to receive a hearing for their case. (If you are failing and not attending for two semesters they can exclude you for one semester only.)
For more info: www.gwtp.org Or www.cps.k12.il.us Or you can Contact Sonia Muños at (312) 432-1300 x. 113
Written By: Daniel AKA SiCkO With help from Sonia Muños.
Do you have something cool that you think
the rest of the world needs to See?
It could be a poem, a drawing, a music review, a sports review, An article, or an opinion.
Send it to “el Cilantro”
Peer Pressure in Today’s Youth - Part 2
Hey I’m Dani and this is the second part of the article that I wrote for el cilantro about peer pressure in today’s youth and how it has affected us. For this article I have decide to interview my sister Gabriela Velazquez
- Please state you name and age
My name is Gabriela Velazquez and I am 21 years old
- Have you ever been pressured into something that you did not want to do?
Yes, when I was young my friend used to go out and party but when they asked I sometimes did not want to go but they always said “come on Gaby lets go you’ll have fun” but I knew they would be smoking and drinking at those parties.
- Did you ever feel that you had to go?
Sometimes I did feel like they were dragging me
- Have you ever pressured anyone to do anything they did not want to do?
Yes, I think everyone in their lives has pressured someone in their lives it is almost a ritual that must be completed in order to grow up. You either have to pressure someone or get pressured yourself.
- Do you have any advice for teens growing up with pressure from their friends?
Yes, I would tell them not to listen to what others have say. Only follow what your heart is leading you to believe because it is the true thing you should do.
So this was my interview with my sister hopefully she taught many that you should follow your own lead and not that your “friends” because if they were truly your friend they would not have to pressure you into anything you did not to do.
<3<3<3Dani<3<3<3
Aka - Whrlwnd
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Campaign Update: We are in the process of setting up a monthly meeting with the Clean Air Coalition to discuss where we are going with this issue. We are currently petitioning the United States Environmental Protection Agency (U.S.E.P.A.) to take over the authorization on the title 5 permits from the Illinois E.P.A. because over the last seven years I.E.P.A. has failed to issue adequate permits. |
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The title 5 permit is a permit program adopted and implemented by the state’s environmental regulatory agency according to a schedule. The permits haven’t been given out legally for a while now.
P.S. I you want to get involved with this issue, contact Kim Wasserman at LVEJO.
The phone number where you can reach her is (773) 762-6991.
By: Daniel A.K.A SiCkO with a lot of help from Kimberly Wasserman.
“There’s so much pollution in the air now that if it weren’t for our lungs there’d be no place to put it all. “
To find out what the community has, and to find out what the community needs. This would be a great tool to show aldermen, senators, and representatives what we need. This project is made by the community and presented by the community.
LVEJO looks for volunteers; we train them and get them ready for all necessary issues. Then we go around the neighborhood surveying each house and keeping a record of housing, commercial, and industrial places that are in Little Village.
PHOTOVOICE: After we are done surveying and taking record in any block we stop and look at what the assets are at that specific block. For example (gardens, graffiti, etc.) then we record it.
By: Allen Govea A>K>A Oreo O___o
Person interviewed: Lorena Lopez
“Believe those who are seeking the truth; doubt those who find it.”
-Andre Gide
“To know when to be generous and when firm—that is wisdom.”
-Elbert Hubbard
“No person is your friend who demands your silence, or denies your right to grow.”
-Alice Walker
“Life is a process of becoming, a combination of states we have to go through. Where people fail is that they wish to elect a state and remain in it. This is a kind of death.”
-Anais Nin
“Because I have loved life, I shall have no sorrow to die.”
-Amelia Burr
“Religion is the human response to being alive and having to die.”
-F. Forrester Church
“Who looks outside, dreams. Who looks inside, awakens.”
-Carl Jung
“I've always said that in politics, your enemies can't hurt you, but your friends will kill you.”
-Ann Richards
“We need not think alike to love alike.”
-Francis David
I don’t want to be another statistic,
Pregnant but too young to learn how to drive,
I don’t wanna be another statistic,
Just out there trying to survive,
Strung out on drugs,
jukin in the club,
get it straight next thing you know you’ve been raped,
I don’t wanna be another statistic.
Suicide just because your life ain’t going right,
I wanna be another statistic,
A statistic of Jesus Christ.
By: Paris D. “Scooby” Brown
- El Cilantro encourages all youth to voice their opinions,
even though the views of some are not that of LVEJO (or El Cilantro).
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Something To Say To Us?
Just contact us at our email: Express Yourself In El Cilantro ! Do you have art, poetry, or cool stuff you want people to see? Maybe you want us to add something you find cool in El Cilantro or you just want to express yourself with other youth? Have us publish your work. Send your work to el_cilantro@sbcglobal.net. You got nothing to lose if you do! So what are you waiting for?
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END! -
el extremo!
[ Volume 2 - Issue No. 1 | Issue No. 2 | Issue No. 3 | Issue No. 4 | Issue No. 5 | Issue No. 6 |
Issue No. 7 | Issue 8 | Issue No. 9 | Issue No. 10 | Issue No. 11 ]
Keep the Douglas L/54th Cermak Train Open to O'Hare Field 24/7
CTA Petition Sheet Spanish (.doc 304 kb) / (pdf 68 kb)
Other important topics
(Download as Adobe pdf):
Healthy Schools In Latino Communities flyer
"Tips on Base Building" from LVEJO Board Member Carlos Fernandez
El Cilantro (Issue 4/Vol. 2) | El Cilantro (Issue 3/Vol. 2) | El Cilantro (Issue 2/Vol. 2) | El Cilantro (Issue 1/Vol. 2)
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