Dead Guatemalan women are being dumped in alleyways, dropped by the roadside, and deserted in parks, bodies bound by trash bags, plastic blankets, or left bare for the world to see, abandoned by the wayside like discarded trash.
Latin Grammy-winning and Guatemalan-born musician Gaby Moreno — known for her smooth blends of blues, jazz, soul and R&B and classic sound — made history when she won the Grand Prize at the John Lennon Songwriting Contest with her song "Escondidos." It marked the first time that a Spanish song won in the Latin category or overall.
Drugs and poverty have heightened violence and crime in various Central American nations. Though Venezuelan cities, for example, have seen a rise in crime over the last couple of years, the bloodiest cities are found in five Central American nations. Guatemala is one of them, and recent events add to that nation's hardships.
San Valentín, in Latin America, is a day reserved for passion, sensual love, expectations, and the material exchange of tokens of affection, all to show devotion and commitment. Valentine’s Day in many Latin American countries also promotes “acts of appreciation” for friends, applauding non-romantic love.
Last week, the public saw Pope Francis like they have never seen him before, and he was sweeter than ever -literally- as he was presented with a life-sized, chocolate replica of himself.
Mexican writer/director Alfonso Cuarón's Gravity is representing Latinos in film worldwide by leading the pack for this year's Oscars nods -- with 10 Oscar nominations. But fellow Latino, Guatemala-born actor Oscar Isaac who stars in Inside Llewyn Davis isn't quite feeling the Oscar love that he and the Coen brothers deserve, according to many fans of the film.
Every year on the night of December 7th Guatemalans gather around a bonfire to burn the devils in a ritual to kick off the Christmas season. The tradition is a symbol of purification and has been practiced in the Central American country since the arrival of Spanish conquistadors in the 16th century.
Los Angeles-based Colombian and Irish-American filmmaker Kimberly Bautista is a crusader against the violent killing of women, or what she calls "femicide" in Juarez, Mexico, Guatemala and throughout Central America.
That's why it's incomprehensible to learn that Bautista, a voice for those who have been silenced or abused, was held hostage and raped during the culmination of her four-year-journey making the award-winning documentary, Justice For My Sister.
