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Burger King Corp. fires 2 after blog
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'Heights' heads Tony nominees list with 13 nods |
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Florida Republicans reach out
to Hispanics |
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Ecuador: indÌgenas evalúan relación con
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First Latino to hold major
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 Hispanic
American Village News
By The Associated Press
Burger King Corp. fires 2 after blog controversy
By LAURA WIDES-MUNOZ
AP Hispanic Affairs Writer
May 13 20:13
MIAMI (AP) - Burger King Corp.
announced Tuesday it fired two employees following the disclosure that a
top official secretly posted blogs slamming a farmworker advocacy group.
The Miami-based company did not name
the individuals who were fired. It also said it is discontinuing the use
of a private investigative firm whose president allegedly pretended to
be a student activist to infiltrate the farmworker group and its
supporters.
Burger King is in a public relations
feud with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers over how to improve wages
and working conditions for Florida's tomato pickers.
"Following an investigation, Burger
King Corporation (BKC) has terminated two employees who participated in
unauthorized activity on public Web sites which did not reflect the
company's views and which were in violation of company policy....,'' the
company said in a statement.
The company said Tuesday it had
scheduled a meeting for this week with the Coalition of Immokalee
Workers to find practical ways to ensure decent wages and working
conditions for the region's harvesters.
The Coalition of Immokalee Workers
declined to comment on whether a meeting had been scheduled.
"The steps announced today by Burger
King are welcome and necessary, but there remains a great deal more to
be done to clear the path toward a sincere partnership for more humane
conditions in Burger King's tomato supply chain,'' said Coalition
co-founder Lucas Benitez in a statement. "Having said that, we, like
Burger King, hope that these are the first steps towards the concrete
change that our community has been denied for so long.''
Burger King's announcement comes a
week after The Associated Press confirmed an e-mail it received in
January from an individual purporting to support the coalition appeared
to be sent from the company's server.
In March, an individual using the
same password-protected e-mail account sent a message to a student group
that supports the coalition, according to an AP investigation. That
individual claimed to be a University of Virginia graduate student named
"Kevin'' who wanted to help the coalition boost farmworker wages. The
individual asked to listen in on the group's strategy call regarding
efforts to pressure Burger King to pay more for its Florida tomatoes.
When asked to identify himself
further by the AP and the alliance, the individual did not respond.
Later that month, Cara Schaffer, head
of the private investigative firm Diplomatic Tactical Services, also
posed as a student interested in the coalition's activities, according
to the student group. Her company's Web site says it specializes in
labor relations, including covert and overt surveillance.
Burger King said Tuesday it
"discontinued the services provided by Diplomatic Tactical Services,
Inc. (DTS) for violation of the company's code of conduct.''
The company says it had contracted
the firm to provide general safety advice and security services during
high profile events such as global conventions and shareholders'
meetings.
A local paper identified Web postings
linked to Burger King Vice President Stephen Grover describing the
coalition as "an attack organization lining the leaders (sic) pockets
... They make up issues and collect money from dupes that believe their
story. To (sic) bad the people protesting don't have a clue regarding
the facts. A bunch of fools!'' He used his middle school daughter's
screen name to make the posting.
CEO John Chidsey said he was
distressed to learn of the allegations.
"Neither I nor any of my senior
management team were aware of or condone the unauthorized activities in
question,'' he said in a company statement.
In a speech at Davidson College last
fall, Chidsey said the media has misrepresented the issue of Florida
tomato picker wages and conditions and that the average tomato picker
earns $12.56 an hour. He said farmworkers are paid better than many
Burger King restaurant workers.
The Immokalee coalition has long
disputed Chidsey's assertions, and U.S. lawmakers have called for an
investigation into worker wages and conditions.
The coalition wants Burger King to
join McDonald's and Yum Brands, which have already agreed to pay more
for their Florida tomatoes, so long as growers pass the extra money on
to their workers. Those agreements also call on the companies to work
with the coalition to establish a code of conduct for their suppliers.
But since last fall, those deals have
existed on paper only after the industry group representing Florida
tomato growers refused to allow its members to participate.
'Heights' heads Tony nominees list with 13 nods
By MICHAEL KUCHWARA
AP Drama Writer
May 13 19:24
NEW YORK (AP) - "In the Heights,''
the little barrio musical that brought a fresh salsa and hip-hop beat to
Broadway, dominated the 2008 Tony Award nominations Tuesday, picking up
13, more than any other show.
But it was a day of other new faces,
too, particularly in the best-musical category, where "Heights'' will
compete against diverse, high-spirited shows such as "Passing Strange,''
"Cry-Baby'' and "Xanadu.''
For Lin-Manuel Miranda, the star and
composer of "In the Heights,'' the nominations were a double treat. He
received two (actor-musical and score) nominations for "Heights,'' a
slice of life look at the Latino residents of Upper Manhattan. The
musical began last year off-Broadway before moving to the big time.
"It's so much fun just doing the show
-- eight times a week,'' Miranda said. "I'm doing what I love every day.
So this is all just icing, gravy, whatever you put on the cake.''
Yet Stew, author and star of "Passing
Strange,'' the story of one man's journey through sex, drugs and rock
'n' roll, did Miranda two better. He received four nominations for the
same show -- actor, score, book and orchestrations of a musical. It's
the first time that's happened since Elizabeth Swados received four
nominations in 1978 for "Runaways.''
"I would have been happy with
whatever they gave us because this whole experience has been so
unprecedented for us as rock musicians,'' said Stew, who is making his
Broadway debut in "Passing Strange.'' "So we're just surprised that we
actually walk to work every day and the show's still standing there.
We're surprised anytime we go on stage.''
Tradition was served by Lincoln
Center Theater's elegant revival of "South Pacific.'' The Rodgers and
Hammerstein classic, first seen on Broadway nearly 60 years ago,
received 11 nominations, including one for musical revival where its
competition is "Gypsy,'' "Sunday in the Park With George'' and
"Grease.''
As expected, "August: Osage County,''
already a winner of the Pulitzer Prize and the New York Drama Critics'
Circle Award, received a best-play nomination -- and six others. The
play by Tulsa-born Tracy Letts about a dysfunctional Oklahoma family
faces "The 39 Steps,'' Patrick Barlow's spoof of the Alfred Hitchcock
film favorite; Conor McPherson's "The Seafarer,'' a Yuletide tale of a
devilish poker game; and Tom Stoppard's "Rock 'n' Roll,'' a look at
recent Czech history interspersed with a cavalcade of pop music.
There were a few starry names in the
acting categories, most notably Patrick Stewart, Laurence Fishburne and
S. Epatha Merkerson.
"There's never been an actor who has
had greater, brilliant support than I do from our other 17 actors,''
said a jubilant Stewart, who plays the title character in "Macbeth,''
imported from England's Chichester Festival. "So in ... this
fantastically creative environment, (director) Rupert (Goold) just set
me free to explore this poor, sad, murderous madman and have as much fun
with it as possible.''
Said Fishburne, now playing Supreme
Court Justice Thurgood Marshall in the one-man show "Thurgood'': "I am
totally, completely shocked and amazed by all of this. More than that, I
am grateful and truly blessed that every night I get to play one of the
most compelling and extraordinary men from the 20th century.''
Their competition for the actor-play
prize include Ben Daniels, a scheming nobleman in "Les Liaisons
Dangereuses''; Mark Rylance, a mild-mannered visitor to Paris in
"Boeing-Boeing''; and Rufus Sewell, an accidental Czech dissident in
"Rock 'n' Roll.''
"I started in the theater, so it's a
real honor for me to get the recognition from the theater community
because it's really where my roots are,'' said Merkerson of her
portrayal of a lonely housewife in a revival of William Inge's "Come
Back, Little Sheba.''
Merkerson faces Eve Best, the
sexually provocative wife in "The Homecoming''; Kate Fleetwood,
Stewart's bloody helpmate in "Macbeth''; and two women from "August:
Osage County,'' Deanna Dunagan and Amy Morton, who play a combative
mother and daughter.
Patti LuPone as a ferocious stage
mother in "Gypsy'' heads the list of nominees for the actress-musical
prize. Others nominated include Kelli O'Hara as the sunny Nellie Forbush
of "South Pacific''; Faith Prince, the unhappily married mother in "A
Catered Affair''; Jenna Russell, the artist's lover in "Sunday in the
Park With George''; and Kerry Butler, a roller-skating Greek muse in "Xanadu.''
Besides Miranda and Stew, the
actor-musical nominees are Paulo Szot, the French plantation owner in
"South Pacific''; Daniel Evans, painter Georges Seurat in "Sunday in the
Park With George''; and Tom Wopat, the resentful husband in "A Catered
Affair.''
Yet some big-name actors were left
out of the Tony mix -- most notably Kevin Kline, Nathan Lane and James
Earl Jones. Snubbed for a coveted best-musical slot were Mel Brooks'
"Young Frankenstein,'' Disney's "The Little Mermaid'' and "A Catered
Affair.'' Left without any nominations at all were the popular revival
of "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof'' and the Mike Nichols-directed production of
"The Country Girl.''
A special lifetime achievement Tony
will go to Stephen Sondheim, with a special Tony awarded posthumously to
orchestrator Robert Russell Bennett, who died in 1981. The regional
theater Tony will go to the Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
The winners in 26 competitive
categories will be announced June 15 in a three-hour CBS telecast from
Radio City Music Hall.
Associated Press writer Erin Carlson
contributed to this report.
On the Net:
http://www.TonyAwards.com
Florida Republicans reach out to Hispanics
By BRENDAN FARRINGTON
AP Political Writer
May 10 18:26
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) - Hispanic voters
will play a crucial role in determining the next president and will be a
key to which party will be in power well beyond November, Republican
leaders said Saturday at a state party conference organized to reach out
to members of the demographic.
"We are going to be more important
than ever. The Hispanic vote of this nation is going to be more
energized, it's going to be more numerous and its going to be more
important than ever before,'' Sen. Mel Martinez said.
While last year's debate over an
immigration bill that eventually failed might have hurt Republicans with
Hispanic voters, Martinez pointed out that likely Republican
presidential nominee Sen. John McCain supported the measure that would
have provided a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants.
"The Republican Party has nominated
the only candidate that could have come through that gauntlet of a
problem and be the very best candidate that we could have representing
our party before all voters, but particularly Hispanic voters,''
Martinez said.
The conference was organized as a way
to reach out to a voting group that is nearly evenly divided in Florida,
and one that Democrats have been more successful at registering over the
past two years.
There are nearly 1.2 million Hispanic
voters in Florida. Of those, 35.5 percent are Democrats, 35.2 percent
are Republicans and more than 29 percent aren't registered with either
party. In the 2006 election, there were more Republican Hispanics than
Democrat Hispanics.
"The Florida GOP's effort today is a
lesson in futility. They're worried. Very worried. After decades of
dominance among Hispanic voters, the Republican Party is in freefall,''
the Florida Democratic Party said in a press release.
Republican Party of Florida Chairman
Jim Greer pointed out that there are more Republican Hispanics from
Florida holding state and federal office than Democrat Hispanics.
"At the end of the day, all the same
issues that apply to any citizen -- the economy, national security --
are part of the Hispanic community too,'' Greer said. "That's why the
Hispanic voter is going to support the Republican Party.''
Hispanic political and business
leaders attending the conference said the Republicans have the same core
values as their communities: faith, family and financial opportunities.
Party leaders were also told issues
important to Hispanic voters are as varied as the countries from which
they come. Cubans place a greater importance on issues of liberty in
their homeland, Mexicans might be concerned more about immigration, and
Puerto Ricans, who are already citizens, might want to hear more about
economic issues.
"We're going to have to recognize
even though we care about the language, and we care about the culture,
not all Hispanics are going to be motivated by the same issues,'' said
John Quinones, an Osceola County Commissioner and former state
representative.
He and others also stressed the need
for elected officials to communicate with Hispanic voters, saying many
new residents aren't aware of the differences between the political
parties.
"We need to go back and have that
personal contact with voters,'' Orlando City Commissioner Tony Ortiz
said. "There's no way we can run a government without hearing the
feedback of the people.''
U.S. Commerce Secretary Commerce
Secretary Carlos Gutierrez addressed the crowd of more than 400 and
criticized Democrats for blocking the Colombia free trade agreement,
accusing House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of using it as a bargaining chip. He
said Pelosi hurt a South American country that's been an ally at a time
when neighboring Venezuela is a threat.
"As a Latin American, as a proud
Hispanic, as a proud Latino, I resent that,'' Gutierrez said. "The
Colombia free trade agreement is a trading issue, a foreign policy
issue, a national security issue and it is a Hispanic-American issue. I
would hope that every single Hispanic American around the country says
'Wait a minute -- don't do that to one of our neighbor countries.'''
Ecuador: indÌgenas eval˙an relaciÛn con presidente Correa...
Source: AP - AP Wire Service
May 13 18:35
Ecuador: indÌgenas evalúan relación con presidente
Correa
QUITO (AP) - Los dirigentes de la
mayor organización indÌgena del país se reunieron el martes para evaluar
si toman distancia del gobierno del presidente Rafael Correa, después
que el mandatario se opusiera a que ese grupo incluya en la nueva
constitución una ley que les permita autorizar o no la explotación de
recursos naturales en sus territorios.
Miguel Guatemal, vicepresidente de la
Confederación de Nacionalidades IndÌgenas (CONAIE), la mayor de su tipo
en el país, señaló que "no estamos para arrodillarnos ante el presidente,
la reacción del paÌs será algún levantamiento o movilización nacional''.
Guatemal declaró en la radio Colón,
que Correa "toma decisiones solo; no est· respetando ni las decisiones
de la Asamblea''.
Auki Tituaña, alcalde y líder
indÌgena de la comunidad de Cotacachi, fue consultado si sería mejor una
ruptura total con el gobierno.
"Creo que sí, porque no representa
las aspiraciones de cambio y transformación que Ecuador necesita'',
respondió.
En tanto, Guatemal dijo que los
dirigentes de la CONAIE han decidido analizar la posición de Correa, que
se opone a que ellos puedan decidir si permiten la explotación de
recursos naturales en sus territorios, donde hay importantes reservas de
petróleo, y de minerales como oro y cobre.
Los indígenas buscan incorporar tal
situación en la nueva carta magna ecuatoriana, que estå en pleno proceso
de elaboración en la Asamblea Constituyente, instalada en noviembre, con
130 miembros, de los cuales 78 son del partido de gobierno Alianza PaÌs.
El fin de semana, en una alocucion
radial, en referencia a los indÌgenas Correa dijo que "levántense (realicen
protestas) no más, compañeros, qué vamos a hacer, levántense y ojalá que
nos boten (derroquen) y nos manden a la casa''.
Correa hacía alusión a la tradicional
forma de protesta de los indígenas, el levantamiento, que se expresa en
el bloqueo de las principales vÌas y carreteras con troncos y piedras. A
través de protestas similares, los indÌgenas fueron determinantes en las
caídas del presidentes Abdalá Bucaram, en 1997 y Jamil Mahuad, el 2000.
El Coordinador Nacional del partido
Movimiento Pachakutik, brazo polÌtico de la CONAIE, Jorge Guamán, en
declaraciones a la red de televisión Teleamazonas, expresó que "queremos
el consentimiento real de la población, la gente tiene que ser copartipe
en las decisiones de todos los temas: mineros, petroleros, en el tema
(de las plantas) hidroeléctricas''.
Destacó que "no queremos ser sujetos
pasivos, queremos ser sujetos activos ... queremos perfeccionar la
constitución, queremos que (Correa) respete a los pueblos y
nacionalidades indígenas del Ecuador, creo que hemos ganado un terreno
importante en Ecuador y en Améica Latina.''
First Latino to hold major post at Chicago Trib is
leaving
The Associated Press
May 14 16:20
CHICAGO (AP) - The Chicago Tribune's
managing editor for news is leaving the newspaper after 30 years.
In a note to the staff Wednesday,
George de Lama says he's had "two lifetimes' worth of adventures''
during his career. But he says he's been wanting to try something new
for a while now.
De Lama has served as a Tribune metro
reporter, national and foreign correspondent, chief of correspondents,
national and foreign editor and deputy managing editor.
He was also the first Latino ever to
appear on the newspaper's masthead.
The paper says Hanke Gratteau will be
succeeding de Lama as managing editor for news. She had been associate
managing editor for metropolitan news until March, when she was promoted
to deputy managing editor for news.
Information from: Chicago Tribune,
http://www.chicagotribune.com
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