Annotations for Communities: Colombians

This is Maria Hinojosa. In February of 1991, a hard-hitting newspaper reporter and radio commentator was assassinated in New York City. Many theories have since surfaced as to who had reasons to kill Manuel de Dios Unanue. The combative journalist had written about corruption in Puerto Rico and angered anti-Castro groups by advocating better relations between the US and Cuba. Now, as Mandalit del Barco reports from New York, law authorities are linking the De Dios's murder to a Colombian cocaine cartel.

And finally, to get a poet's perspective on this year's National Association of Hispanic Journalist Conference, we turned to José Burciaga. He watched and listened as journalists mingled. Burciaga found a feisty network of Latino media professionals and evidence in the form of a fruit that there is still much more work to be done in consciousness raising.

It was a study of appreciation and diversity. Latino journalists could not take each other at face value. Blonde, blue-eyed, or African-American journalists could have easily been of Mexicano, Puerto Rican, or Colombian descent. The presence of women was strong, beginning with association president, Diane Alverio, who did express a lack of diversity in news media management. Only 3% of Latino journalists are managers.

At a noontime luncheon, Leonard Downie, executive editor of "The Washington Post," lamented the lack of training among all journalists. Despite the diversity of the term "all," he was taken to task for something Latinos hear a little too often: "You are ill prepared."

There was networking, interviewing for new jobs, old jobs, and workshops on everything from covering the Supreme Court to how to write a book. The conference was dedicated to the memory of Cesar Chavez with United Farm Worker Vice President Dolores Huerta giving a plenary session speech. Organizers had made sure no grapes would be served at the hotel, this to honor the United Farm Worker grape boycott. Nevertheless, an evening reception hosted by the "Chicago Tribune" featured the typical hors d'oeuvre fare crowned with a pineapple surrounded by two luscious mounds of forbidden grapes. Bothered by the hypocrisy and insensitivity, I placed the grapes on a silver tray, covered them with a napkin, laid the tray on the floor, and applied gentle foot pressure on the plump, juicy grapes. With a boycott sign over the squashed grapes, I placed the tray at the floor entrance, but this was not the end.

The word spread, and grapes were spotted at another reception on the terrace of the Freedom Forum office building. Hispanic Link News Service publisher Charlie Ericksen, carefully dumped them over the side of the 25th-floor terrace. No grapes were reported to have survived. And still, this was not the end. At another reception given by the Organization of American States, grapes were again served. This time I gave them a gentle warning, and the grapes were removed.

The OAS reception and grape boycott were a fitting end to the NAHJ conference. As I looked across the Grand Halls bedecked with the many colorful flags representing our mother countries, we invoked the memory of Cesar Chavez.

Poet José Antonio Burciaga lives, writes, and paints in the San Francisco Bay Area.