Over the last few years, as immigration has become a heated topic of discussion, there are more and more stories about racist comments and instances of violence against Latinos. And that's reflected in FBI data on hate crimes—a 2018 report showed that personal attacks motivated by bias or prejudice had reached a 16-year high and that hate crimes specifically against Latinos and Latinas were rising. To better understand these trends, on this episode of Latino USA, Maria Hinojosa goes with reporter Angelina Mosher Salazar to Milwaukee, Wisconsin where they dive into one violent attack on a Peruvian immigrant and U.S. citizen.

Latino USA

An Acid Attack In Milwaukee

In January 2019, the Trump administration began enforcing the Migrant Protection Protocols, more widely known as the "Remain in Mexico" policy. It forced an estimated 60,000 people, many of them Central American, to remain in Mexico while U.S. courts decide their fate. While the door has essentially been shut on newly arrived migrants, a few who are deemed "vulnerable" are still being allowed to enter. Mother Jones reporters Fernanda Echavarri and Julia Lurie went to Santa Fe, New Mexico to talk to some of the few people allowed into the U.S. And, in this episode of Latino USA, Fernanda takes us on a ride-along to meet two newly arrived families trying to make a life, while stuck in limbo.

The Few Let In To Wait

The Latino electorate has long been considered a sleeping giant in U.S. politics, but in the 2020 election, that giant is waking up. About 32 million Latinas and Latinos will be eligible to vote this year, the second largest voting bloc in the country. On this episode, Latino USA speaks with Sonja Diaz, Founding Executive Director of the UCLA Latino Policy Initiative, and Julio Ricardo Varela, co-host of the In The Thick podcast, about what we've learned about the Latino vote from the Democratic primaries so far. We talk about Senator Bernie Sanders' campaign strategy in Latino communities, Former Vice President Joe Biden's challenges reaching these voters, and what it all means as his campaign takes the lead in the race for his party's nomination.

Sanders, Biden, And The Latino Vote

On February 27, thousands of Dominicans from around the country gathered for a massive rally in Santo Domingo. That date is normally one filled with carnival festivities to mark Independence Day. But this year—it had a completely different tone. Instead, protestors took to the streets, after the municipal elections were abruptly cancelled. The electoral board cited glitches with voting machines as the reason behind the cancelation, but for the public, this was the last straw in a series of concerns they have with the political party in power. Maria Hinojosa sits down with our Digital Media Editor Amanda Alcántara to talk about how this all got started, and what it means for Dominicans all over the world.

The Election Glitch That Sparked A Dominican Uprising

In 2005, a duo of Puerto Rican artists released their eponymously titled debut album "Calle 13." Their mix of reggaeton and rap took the Latinx music scene by storm and got them three Latin Grammy awards. In 2017, one half of that duo, René Juan Pérez Joglar—better known as Residente—released his first solo album. To find inspiration, he took a genealogical DNA test and traveled to every part of the world that showed up in the test, where he collaborated with local musicians. Now, Residente is working on his second solo album, which involves the brainwaves of worms. Maria Hinojosa sits down with Residente to dig into the mind of the man who has experimented with so many musical genres.

Portrait Of: Residente

There are more than 800 million starving people on the planet, and more than 20,000 people on average continue to die from hunger every day. But the world produces more than enough food to feed the entire human population. Award-winning author and journalist Martín Caparrós traveled the globe to understand why people are still hungry, and wrote the international best-selling book, "Hunger," in the process. The book was recently published in English for the first time. Maria Hinojosa speaks with him about his findings.

The Persistent Problem Of Hunger

The musical genres most people associate with the Dominican Republic are merengue and bachata. Yet, there's another set of rhythms that are essential to the spirit of the country, and that's Afro-Dominican roots music. That's where the band Yasser Tejeda & Palotré come in. They blend some of the country's black roots rhythms like palo, salve and sarandunga, with jazz and rock to bring a new spin to local sounds—and to reimagine what it means to be Dominican. In this segment of "How I Made It," the band's frontman Yasser Tejeda walks us through the inspiration behind their latest album "Kijombo," and the making of the single "Amor Arrayano," which is all about love across the Dominican-Haitian border.

How I Made It: Yasser Tejeda & Palotré

Latino USA continues its coverage of the Democratic field for the presidential nomination. This time, we sit down with the senator from Massachusetts, Elizabeth Warren. Senator Warren is a relative newcomer to politics—she was first elected in 2012. Now, a year after she declared her run for the presidency, primaries have started. Senator Warren has not had a strong start, but she plans to continue to fight for the nomination. Maria Hinojosa speaks with her about her views on immigration, Puerto Rico, and her campaign.

A Conversation With Elizabeth Warren

In 2001, Nickelodeon started airing "Taina," a show about a Latina teen who attends a performing arts high school in NYC and daydreams of being a star. While the show only lasted two seasons, "Taina" is seared into the memories of many who grew up watching it, because at the time it was rare to see an authentic portrayal of what it was like to be a Nuyorican teen in the early 2000s. In this episode from our vault, Maria Hinojosa talks to the show's award-winning creator Maria Perez-Brown, who is Nuyorican herself, about jumping into the world of children's television after being a tax lawyer, and the surprisingly long legacy of "Taina."

Portrait Of: 'Taina' And The Love Of Nostalgia TV

This Valentine's Day, Maria Hinojosa and Yesika Salgado talk about love, lust, and being a hopeless romantic. Yesika grew up in Los Angeles in a Salvadoran family, and she calls herself a fat, fly poet—her most recent book of poems "Hermosa" came out last fall. Yesika and Maria start this episode with a trip to the world's largest wholesale produce market, where they go on a quest to find the sexiest fruit. Then, they sit down to talk about how love has changed Yesika's relationship with her body and how her literary success has shaped what she wants out of love.

Yesika Salgado On Love, Lust, And Being A Hopeless Romantic

Every holiday season, you can't help but sing along to the infectious melody of José Feliciano's 1970 mega single, "Feliz Navidad." But aside from the holiday hit, the Puerto Rican singer boasts an almost 60-year musical career and one of his specialties is recording covers like "California Dreamin'" and "La Copa Rota"—blending them with his own sound of blues, folk, soul and Latin. In this conversation with Maria Hinojosa, José Feliciano opens up about why he keeps the 70s alive and about one of his favorite relationships: the one he has with his guitar.

Portrait Of: José Feliciano

For seventeen years, Ornella Pedrozo thought of her mom's detainment by ICE as her deepest, darkest secret. When she was four years old, her mother Violeta, who had fled the armed conflict in Peru, was abruptly detained by ICE. That separation, which lasted seven months, was something that Ornella didn't really talk about, until recently. In this episode, you'll hear fragments of a letter Ornella wrote about her complicated feelings back then, and she also sits down with Violeta to talk — at length for the first time — about how those seven months left a permanent mark.

Ornella & Violeta

Known by many as "La Reina del Rock," the queen of Latin American rock, Alejandra Guzmán has built a legacy for herself through her soulful performances and scandalous lyrics. Her famous Mexican parents, rocker Enrique Guzmán and actress Silvia Pinal, introduced her to the industry, but it's Alejandra's fierce stage presence and ambition that have sold over 12 million records over three decades. In this episode, Alejandra talks to Maria Hinojosa about her rebellious roots and what the rock 'n' roll lifestyle looks like with hip replacements.

La Reina Del Rock: Alejandra Guzmán

Recently, a local blogger broadcast his discovery of a warehouse full of aid supplies in Ponce, Puerto Rico, through Facebook Live — reportedly from disaster relief after Hurricane María in 2017. The public outrage was immediate. Thousands of people in the south of the island have been displaced by an earthquake swarm that's been going on for weeks, and government response has been slow. As protests break out to denounce corruption and ineptitude in the Puerto Rican government, there's also a pernicious narrative from the federal government: that the island is too corrupt to trust, and cannot manage federal aid.

Puerto Rico Demands Answers

The novel <em>American Dirt</em> by Jeanine Cummins was released this January with much anticipation. Oprah selected it to be part of her book club, writer Don Winslow called it, "a Grapes of Wrath for our times" and celebrated Latina author Sandra Cisneros called it "the great novel of las Americas." But its release was met with a large backlash. Many Latinx writers felt the book furthered a stereotypical view of migrants from Mexico and Central America. For this episode, Maria Hinojosa engages in dialogue with voices central to the controversy: Myriam Gurba, Sandra Cisneros, Luis Alberto Urrea and Jeanine Cummins.

The novel American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins was released this January with much anticipation. Oprah selected it to be part of her book club, writer Don Winslow called it, "a Grapes of Wrath for our times" and celebrated Latina author Sandra Cisneros called it "the great novel of las Americas." But its release was met with a large backlash. Many Latinx writers felt the book furthered a stereotypical view of migrants from Mexico and Central America. For this episode, Maria Hinojosa engages in dialogue with voices central to the controversy: Myriam Gurba, Sandra Cisneros, Luis Alberto Urrea and Jeanine Cummins.

Digging Into 'American Dirt'

Latino USA, the radio journal of news and culture, is the only national, English-language radio program produced from a Latino perspective.

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