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11 de Abril, 2007

PBS and Ken Burns to include Latinos in THE WAR!

Categorized under Historia , Raza | Tags: , , , ,

MIL GRACIAS TO ALL who have sent letters or made calls to PBS or anyone else on the issue of Ken Burns' and his omission of Latinos from his newest documentary on WWII, The War. For those following the story, here is the victory we have been working and waiting for:

Dear Defenders of the Honor,

Great news today: PBS President and CEO Paula Kerger this afternoon sent the Defend the Honor organizers a 3-page letter, announcing that Ken Burns and co-director/producer Lynn Novick "have decided to create additional content that focuses on stories of Latino and Native American veterans of the Second World War. The new narrative will be included in the broadcast of the series, as well as in THE WAR's DVD, Web site and educational outreach materials.

—Defend the Honor Update: PBS Reverses Position [4/11/2007], Email Update


You may read Kerger's entire letter, the Defend the Honor response, and the Defend the Honor press release, at our website, under NEWS/PRESS RELEASES.

In a letter to Kerger, our Defend the Honor core group noted that this development represents a historic moment.:

"We are gratified that PBS has taken our concerns seriously and has made the decision to include, in a substantive manner, the Latino, as well as Native American experiences in The War."

In a news release from the Defend the Honor core group, Angelo Falcon, of the National Institute for Hispanic Politics, noted:

"This result was made possible by the unusually strong collaboration between the many Latino organizations and leaders that came forward to let PBS know that our community must be respected."

The core group will be meeting sometime in the near future with Paula Kerger to nail down details of exactly how the Latino and Native American experiences will be incorporated. We want to make sure that our celebration isn't unfounded.

The Defend the Honor core group looks forward to collaborating closely with the other organizations, including the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, the National Council of La Raza, the American GI Forum, the National Hispanic Media Coalition, the National Hispanic Media Council, individual members of Congress and of both the California and the Texas state legislatures who have also led the charge.

Thank you to the thousands of individuals who have voiced their concerns and propelled this movement forward. There will be other developments in the coming weeks and we will keep you apprised. But just for today, on behalf of Gus Chavez, Angelo Falcon, and Marta Garcia, I hope you will savor the sweet taste of success.

Maggie

—Defend the Honor Update: PBS Reverses Position [4/11/2007], Email Update

¡Victoria!

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Comentarios (8)


leesee dijo:

GRVTR

This is wonderful and I blogged on it today. Very gratifying.


Sylvia dijo:

GRVTR

Yes! :D


little light dijo:

GRVTR

Yes.

Now I just have to wonder whether or not they're including the Philippine Scouts...


Rafael dijo:

GRVTR

Congratulations!


Zaecus dijo:

GRVTR

The link to their website came up mangled for me.

Seems off to me that the letter to PBS thanked them for doing the right thing.


nezua limón xolagrafik-jonez dijo:

GRVTR

thank ya, Z. i fixed the link.


well i hear you on the "they should have done it in the first place" hardline angle. but the fact is, i feel more uplifted because they did a 180º and that is no small thing! power of the people baby! in action. for real. i am as cynical as the rest. but man, that's some shit!


P6 dijo:

GRVTR

Very, very good.


jvigil dijo:

GRVTR

Orale! stand tall