e-culture: Labor Issues, Nicaraguan Poet of Social Change, Get Involved
April 20, 2004

IN THIS ISSUE The Ludlow Massacre More on the Labor Issue The Texas City Disaster Remembering César Chávez A Poet of Social Change More Great Events Become an Important Volunteer

An unobtrusive monument on a windy Colorado prairie reminds us of the historic struggle of laborers in the course of building the American empire.

Several miles from Interstate 25, along a gravel road that leads to the Rocky Mountain front range, the Ludlow Massacre memorial preserves the names of men, women and children, who were killed on April 20, 1914. The mostly Hispanic and Eastern European coal miners were on strike against John D. Rockefeller's Colorado Fuel and Iron Company. For seven months, they protested low wages, poor working conditions and the company-owned camps and stores they were indebted to, and called for union recognition.

Rockefeller's Colorado Fuel and Iron Company feared the demand for higher wages would keep it from achieving its highest profits in the company's history. As many of the miners celebrated Greek Easter, their temporary encampment was attacked by Baldwin Felts Detective Agency militia men, who were sent to suppress the strike by harassing and intimidating striking miners and their families.

With machine guns and an armored vehicle, the militia opened fire, and even torched the striking workers' temporary encampment. Of the 20 killed, 11 were children (10 were under 10 years old). On April 21, 1914, The New York Times reported, "The Ludlow Camp is a mass of charred debris, and buried beneath it is a story of horror unparalleled in the history of industrial warfare."

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More on the Labor Issue

As we have seen in the European colonization of the Americas, the quest for cheap labor is a significant part of the globalization process. Much of our cultural-historical global experience has been based on the search for resources combined with human productivity to garner the highest profit: Indian labor served Spanish mines; Canary Islanders in San Antonio produced crops for Spanish armies; The lucrative African slave trade fueled a growing plantation agriculture economy and trade worldwide.

In the American South, Eastern European immigrants and prison farm laborers replaced slavery when the institution was unseated by the Civil War. While freed slaves usually moved north, some, along with many of the European immigrants, moved west with the opening of railroads and the increase in mining operations. Along with many Asians, Hispanics and Anglos desperately looking for opportunity, the American West in the late Nineteenth Century was effectively much more globalized and contentious than we often recognize today.

The issues of immigration and labor conditions still exist today, but more than a century later, many Americans still have a limited understanding of the greater forces of wealth and poverty that drive them. Two upcoming events offer the opportunity to explore these issues further.

There will be a free showing of the film, "The New Rulers of the World," a John Pilger documentary, which studies the issue of global economy and labor in Indonesia (labor used to produce American brand name products), along with the film "Thirst," about water resources and privatization issues.

Wednesday, April 21, 2004, 7:30pm
Rice Media Center, Rice University
University Blvd. Entrance 8

For more information, please see:
http://www.houstonculture.org/film


On Saturday, April 24, University of Houston history professor, John Hart, an expert on Mexico's social and economic history, will offer a luncheon address about the U.S.- Mexico relationship as the laboratory of economic globalization strategies.

The keynote speaker for the conference, "Winners and Losers: The Impact of Globalization," will be Kevin Danaher, who has authored eleven books on global economics.

There will be a series of workshops on globalization issues, including militarization, immigration, international debt, localism, jobs, water privatization, environment, and corporate responsibility. Presenters will include: George Reiter, UH Department of Physics; Janice Harper, UH Department of Anthropology; Lilian Care, Women Against Global Trafficking; Jennifer Katial, YMCA International Services; Joan Denkler, Globalization Forum; and many more.

At the conference, Houston Institute for Culture will offer a workshop on the "Case for Localism in Media, Business, Culture and Economy." The workshop presents a historical and cultural perspective on globalization to help participants understand how the base of local ownership impacts independence and self-determination in the community. Participants will consider the positive impact of support for local business: support for neighborhoods and the city; better quality of life for families; wider base of ownership; diversity of interests and cultures; and, as counter balance to the worldwide spread of limited ownership and homogenization of cultures/narrowing of interests.

The morning session will distinguish between political and cultural models of globalization, and weigh the relationship of media to culture, as well as rethink measures of economy. The afternoon session will consider the prospects for Mexico and indigenous peoples of the U.S., as self-determination and cultural identity in local communities is increasingly threatened.

Saturday, April 24, 2004, 8:30 am to 5:00 pm
First Unitarian Universalist Church, 5200 Fannin St., Houston, Texas

Registration is $20 (includes lunch); $10 for students and anyone who requests a reduced fee. Advanced registration is preferred. Call (713) 522-9850.

For more information, please see:
http://www.houstonculture.org/forums

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The Texas City Disaster

On April 16, 1947, Texas City experienced a tragic echo of World War II, as the French ship SS Grandchamp, with its payload of the wartime explosive ammonium nitrate, on its way to Texas to be used as fertilizer, exploded at 9:12am. The fire ignited another ship loaded with ammonium nitrate, the SS High Flyer, and it exploded on April 17.

At least 576 died in the explosions and fires, which injured thousands more and destroyed more than 1,000 structures in Texas City. Many dock workers were never identified due to their temporary worker status.

The Texas City tragedy is a reminder of the dangerous conditions industrial workers and their families face.


Another tragic event, the April 19 bombing of the Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, has an ominous echo from the Texas City Disaster -- Timothy McVeigh carried out the attack using the common fertilizer ammonium nitrate.

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Remembering César Chávez

It was on April 23, 1993, when the most recognized advocate of civil rights for migrant laborers in the United States, César Chávez, died in San Luis, Arizona.

To honor the civil rights leader, many Houstonians from diverse backgrounds participated in this year's César Chávez Parade. See photos of the event:
http://www.houstonculture.org/hispanic/parade/index.html

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A Poet of Social Change

ERNESTO CARDENAL, Poetry Reading presented by The Rothko Chapel and Inprint

"Priest and Nicaraguan revolutionary, as well as poet, Cardenal epitomizes what makes literature live in Central America today." -Booklist

Ernesto Cardenal has always considered poetry as a powerful agent for constructive social change, and his poetry gives voice to the voiceless, speaking out against oppression. The author of more than 35 books in Spanish, many have been translated into English, including Marilyn Monroe and Other Poems (1965), The Psalms of Struggle and Liberation (1967), To Live is to Love (1970), In Cuba (1974), Apocalypse and Other Poems (1977), Nicaraguan New Time (1988), Cosmic Canticle (1993), and The Doubtful Strait (1995).

Born on January 20, 1925, in Grenada, Nicaragua, Ernesto Cardenal studied in Mexico, at Columbia University in the U.S., and with Thomas Merton at a Trappist monastery in Kentucky in 1957. Nicaraguan dictator Anastasio Somoza declared Cardenal an outlaw in 1957 for his support of the Sandinista movement. In 1965, he was ordained a priest and founded a Christian commune, Solentiname. During the revolution, Cardenal served as a field chaplain for the FSLN. After the triumph, he served as Minister of Culture from 1979 to 1988 and promoted literary workshops throughout Nicaragua. At present he is the Vice President of Casa de Las Tres Mundos, a literary and cultural organization based in Managua.

The program is free and all are welcome. Seating is limited and on a first come, first served basis. Fr. Cardenal will read his poems in Spanish, and an interpreter will translate them into English.

Tuesday, April 20, 7:30pm
The Rothko Chapel
1409 Sul Ross at Yupon
713-524-9839
http://www.rothkochapel.org

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More Great Events

Oral Histories at the Eldorado Ballroom
The next program in the Eldorado Ballroom series is on Wednesday, April 21, 7:30pm. It will feature the great jazz singer, Jewel Brown, a Third Ward native who began her career singing on teen talent shows at the Eldorado. She eventually assumed the role of female vocalist with Louis Armstrong (for about five years), and has performed with a long list of jazz legends (including Dizzy Gillespie). Roger Wood, author of "Down in Houston: Bayou City Blues," will talk with Jewel Brown about her great stories and memories of o life in music.

Free admission
Wednesday, April 21, 7:30 - 8:30pm
Eldorado Ballroom
2300 Elgin St. (at Dowling)

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Festival International de Louisiane
Lafayette, Louisiana
April 21 - 25, 2004
http://www.festivalinternational.com

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Space City Gamelan will be performing at University of St. Thomas during their International Festival, around 12:00pm (Noon) on Thursday, April 22nd.
http://www.spacecitygamelan.org

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From Asia with Love
The kickoff for Asian Pacific American Heritage Month, featuring music and dance, including Space City Gamelan.
Friday, April 23, 8:00pm
Miller Outdoor Theater
Hermann Park
(713) 284-8352

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India -- A Rainbow of Cultures
Featuring the cultural heritage of many states of India
Presented by Houston Kannada Vrinda
Saturday, April 24, 8:00pm
Miller Outdoor Theater
Hermann Park
(713) 284-8352

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Una Noche de Folklor
Celebrating Ambassadors International Ballet Folklorico's 25th Anniversary
Fundraising gala featuring Jose Feliciano
Friday, April 23, 6:30pm
Hyatt Regency Hotel - Downtown
1200 Louisiana, Houston, Texas
(713) 995-4377
(713) 507-7874 (hotel)

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New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival
April 23 - May 2, 2004
http://www.nojazzfest.com

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Houston International Festival
April 24 - 25, 2004
http://www.ifest.org

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Fiesta San Antonio
San Antonio, Texas
Continues through April 25, 2004
http://www.fiesta-sa.org

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Events in our upcoming e-culture newsletter:
Asian Pacific American Heritage Month
Houston Dragon Boat Races
Cinco de Mayo
International Festival of Muslim Cultures

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Become an Important Volunteer

Each empty seat at a cultural performance represents a volunteer we don't have. Each vacant microphone at an important community forum represents a volunteer we need to help us make a difference. A student's excellent writing stored in an attic is a loss to our entire community.

Whether it's a typo in our newsletter or a failed small business on the corner, volunteers can help us solve problems big and small. Here are a few of the things we need your help with:

Topical Forums
Houston Institute for Culture plans to increase its participation in forums on cultural and social subjects. We are currently presenting: "The Case for Localism in Media, Business, Culture and Economy"; And, we plan to explore more issues, which are important to local cultures: "Is Assimilation the Only Means to Achieve Equality?" and "Wealth Distribution and Consumer Responsibility".

Cultural Arts
We have organized and promoted many cultural arts events in Houston and southeast Texas, and we feature artists on our website. In the Fall 2004, we will embark on a tour of West Texas and New Mexico featuring lecture-demonstrations by Namita Bodaji, a classical Indian dancer from Bombay. We also plan to organize an annual international dance festival in Houston.

Educational Programs
We apply our unique travel themes to many of our educational programs, including "Four Directions, Four Cultures, Four Corners: A Cultural Survey of the Southwest" and our brand new "Listen for Clues" summer kids program on "The Ancient Puebloans and the Modern Navajo." We present programs on regional cultures, like the Creoles of the Cane River, and indigenous people of Mexico, such as the Tarahumara of Copper Canyon. For Black History Month and St. Joseph's Day, in February and March we present "Masking Indian: The Black Indians of New Orleans" in schools and community centers.

Diverse Interests
Through our Internet site, newsletter, calendar and publications, our goals are to: Promote public discourse and development of ideas; Improve cultural literacy; Increase support for cultural arts; And, improve economic stability for small businesses. Writers, editors and volunteer coordinators are always welcome to get involved on a multitude of subjects of importance to the community.

Documentary Projects
From the U.S.-Mexico border to the tierra adentro, we are producing important materials to document changing cultures and values, and build our educational resources. We are implementing new projects from south Louisiana to Houston's east side, and into the Texas settlement region, where libraries of knowledge are quickly being lost. We are most urgently producing videotaped interviews and moving the material in a usable direction for Internet and multimedia productions.

Volunteer Projects
"Bears for Caring" provides teddy bears to ambulance drivers in Houston to offer comfort and brighten sad occassions when they must transport a child to the hospital. We are now preparing to deliver bears and other stuffed animals to medical missions in Mexico being operated by Houston doctors. Projects in the works include a Sims Bayou cleanup in cooperation with the Sims Bayou Nature Center and removal of trash from an archaeological site on Galveston Bay.

Educational Travel
Each year we organize a series of fun adventures with educational themes. Our Western Canyon Adventure explores "The Contradictions of John Wesley Powell," and we are in the midst of offering a series of trips based on the historic journey of Cabeza de Vaca. Traditional events are often central to our educational opportunities, like the Gallup Intertribal Powwow and Smithsonian Folklife Festival.

Educational Media
We are increasing our effort to produce media for classroom use and radio broadcast, in addition to our collection of educational resources. We produced the radio program, "A Legacy of Defiance, A Century of Honor: The Mardi Gras Indians," and an educational CD to accompany our educational tours, "Four Territorial Periods of New Mexico History."

Community Issues
Small businesses and local media sources are important in promoting broad-based economic strengths and diversity of interests. We are launching a campaign, "Vote Early, Vote Often" (Vote Pronto, Vote Seguido) to encourage people to think about the things they support economically on a daily basis, so that they are aware of how their choices impact the community.


To learn more about Houston Institute for Culture, please refer to our 2003 Report to Friends and Volunteers.
http://www.houstonculture.org/report



Thank you for promoting cultural literacy in Houston.

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M  a  r  k @houstonculture.org


Cultural and Community Organization Listings:
http://www.houstonculture.org/listings

2003 Report to Friends and Volunteers:
http://www.houstonculture.org/report

Support Houston Institute for Culture:
http://www.houstonculture.org/giving