WGBH Journal; Puerto Rican Week

For today's GBH Journal, a special report on Boston's Puerto Rican community, produced by Sixto Escobar. I'm David Freudberg. Puerto Ricans were living on the United States mainland more than 140 years ago when the island was still a secure part of the Spanish colonial empire. During the 1830s, the founding members of a Spanish Benevolent Society in New York City included several Puerto Rican merchants. By the middle of the 19th century, Puerto Rico was engaged in more commerce with the United States than it was with Spain, and the sea route between San Juan and New York was well traveled. A dozen years after the U.S. takeover of Puerto Rico in 1898, the Bureau of the Census noted fifteen hundred thirteen Puerto Ricans on the mainland but the large scale Puerto Rican migration to the United States is a post-World War Two phenomenon. Boston's historic Southend is home to a large segment of the Puerto Rican community. It is also where Villa Victoria, Victory Village, is located; a housing complex developed through the

efforts of the Puerto Rican community. This is how Danny Soltren, a resident of Boston for 23 years described it to us. "The other day I met this friend of mine, ah, that I knew years ago ah, and I met him at the gym where I work out. And, um, I, see I know this guy and I went over to him. He told me, "Well, yeah, my name's Julio," "yeah, I remember you Danny." Years ago, about 15 years ago. And, um. I said, um, I moved because I thought the area was going to pot. I mean it was just um nothing was going to happen in the south end, it was a ghetto. And I said "well it's not that way any longer and it's going back to that" I brought him down here and he couldn't believe it he said. "Gee", you know it was uhh, like the opening of a whole new world to him. He did not believe that all this was done by the Latinos here, he couldn't believe that all this beautiful housing existed. He couldn't believe that that the culture, you know that it was so rich in culture. Uh, he couldn't believe we had a plaza, he couldn't believe we had a little school for the children there. Uh, he

couldn't believe any of these things was just, for somebody new coming in here. And seeing this type of thing it's like it's like a whole new world. The opening of a whole new world. [Host] Villa Victoria did not come about through the sensitivity and kind heartedness of Boston's re- developers. It was achieved rather through the struggle and unity of its inhabitants. Most had lived on the, in the area for a long time so when they were told back in 1965 that their neighborhood was going to be bulldozed flat, they fought hard for their homes. Villa Victoria is home for 2,000 people occupying 625 units for low and moderate income people and the elderly. Plans are presently ongoing to develop an additional 200 units. Jorge Hernandez has been involved with Villa Victoria for the last five years. At present he is the executive director of the organization responsible for the project. He commented about the group on the sidelines of a volleyball game held during the

recent festival Betances. [Jorge Hernandez] "There is a nonprofit organization which is controlled by the residents of the complex and controlled by the residents of the community from the very beginning. Um, the board members are elected in an open election every year-- [Interviewer] by the residents? [Hernandez] By the residents. And and all board members have to be residents. That nonprofit then, uh, has the power to appoint the members of two of the business corporations that, uh, handle all the business matters for the agency, such as housing management and housing development. The nonprofit organization basically runs community programs: Social Services and the like. [Interviewer] So it's kind of a commune in the sense that it's democratically run and it's nonprofit. [Hernandez] Yes pretty much. And you get the electoral politics and everything else to go with it. [Interviewer] Like what? [Hernandez] Your conflicts over issues every once in a while and how they get translated into collections of people to the board, representation

issues and uh, who's represented and not, etc. So you run a gamut of things and, and uh, you get into some lively public policy discussions every once in a while. [Interviewer] It's a tactful way of describing them sure. What kinds of living issues are there that people face here and that create some conflict? [Jorge Hernandez] Well besides day to day questions such as people's concerns over whether this or that is being taken care of, or things like repairs here and there, etc. [Yelling in background] There are issues such as parking, that's an issue. The use of open spaces. Programming for adolescents is a-- an issue right now. The kinds of programming available to children in the daycare center was another issue. This types of situations generally. [Interviewer] This is kind of unique and a obviously bold kind of effort to start this up in the middle of the city and somehow find a way to pay for it all. How

have you changed over those five years? What assumptions that you maybe bring to this project that didn't hold true? What did you learn? [Jorge Hernandez] That's a tricky question I guess. One of the things that uh, that I've learned from this experience is that There is a level of settlement and, and uh when a hot issue gets settled over time and people begin getting results out of it, they don't feel as active or in a confrontation spirit as they were feeling originally. But at the same time, funnily enough, what you learn from it is that there's a strong community spirit and anytime there's a real big issue and people do come out and issues are still there and its just that people feel more relaxed about the fact that they indeed have a community and

there is there a place where they control and they can relax which is I guess what everybody looks for in general terms. [David Freudberg] Along with the housing, residents of Villa Victoria received a host of services ranging from a brand new day care program to a closed circuit television system. Tomas Rivera, responsible for operations of the closed circuit system, had this to say: [Tomas Rivera] Closed circuit television and master antenna television is re- really not regulated by anyone. And we thought that would be a good idea not to put in that type of a system of which we could maximize the capacities of the system so that we could originate programming. So uh, previous previous history and a concern about utilizing technology to its optimum was part of the basic planning consideration." [Interviewer] OK you're utilizing technology, what are you doing with it? How are you serving the people in the

community here? [Rivera] Well right now we're, we're uh locally producing all of our programming right now. We go on the air two days a week Tuesdays and Thursdays. And we provide uh news, consumer education, health education, as well as cultural affairs or profiles on certain people. So basically that's the format of the program. [Interviewer] And it focuses exclusively on the members of this project? [Tomas Rivera] No, the news will concern itself with very localized news certainly but also news that goes on around Greater Boston and we have access to a wire service right now from El Mundo and Channel 7 here in Boston. So we give news from Puerto Rico and South America and Central America and Caribbean and so on. [Interviewer] How do you involve the youth in Villa Victoria in the closed circuit

television? [Tomas Rivera] It's pretty easy. The youth, uh, the youth spend a lot of time in the studio, our studios are a combined studio and office. And it's pretty easy to involve the youth because they spend a lot of time in our space and want to know a little bit more, just like you're asking us why and what for. We have at least a half a dozen youth here in Villa Victoria that could produce um Some shows and be able to deal with the operations of the system at the same time. [Interviewer] I'd like you to fantasize a little bit for me and describe the ideal cable communication system in a communally operated uh project like this. [Tomas Rivera] Well again this is this is really not regulated CATV or cable television but I think, I think the ideal situation here is, what we're trying to do is establish precedence. Precedence not only for the community but for other

communities who have an interest and Might want to do the same thing. I think the ideal situation is if we continue and expand this particular type of demonstration project, And hopefully in the near future be in a position to acquire the cable TV franchise for at least the south end of Boston And run that as an economic development, community development venture of locally owned and controlled communications here in Boston. [Interviewer] Are people watching? [Rivera] Yes they are, uh, we had some parents tune in and see their children doing Various dances in the plaza. Yes the latest dance is now the freak and The parents call and say "gee I didn't know my daughter danced in the plaza or you know was out that night dancing in the plaza". So we have an

audience. [Interviewer] It could be dangerous having an audience sometimes? [Rivera] It could be but we also see that that variable as a healthy factor. We have a harder time in a sense that. We have an excellent Master Antenna system so people get channels from, they get the both channels 10 and 12 from Rhode Island and Channel 9 from New Hampshire. So we have 10 channels to compete against to get an audience. But then again we have the advantage of doing at this time all of our programming in Spanish which is generally not available to the people that can't tune in. We started off on channel 6 because it's ideally situated between 5 and 7, which are two of the prominent local VHF stations, but our audience will develop. [music] [Freudberg] For the Puerto Rican youth growing up around Boston, the problems they face are

many. Roberto Santiago works with young people at a Cambridge residential project. [Roberto Santiago] Yeah I like it. Cuz you know like I know all the kids. [Interviewer] From your neighborhood? [Roberto Santiago] Yeah they're from Columbia Terrace in Cambridge. [Interviewer] Could you tell us how things could be improved in your area? What will be a good situation? [Roberto Santiago] If they put like more recreation in our area, 'cuz there ain't that much recreation in our area, you know basketball courts and everything. [interviewer] Are the kids uh, what are the kids doing since there's no recreation? Is there a lot of drugs or something? [Roberto Santiago] Uh, Yeah there's a lot of drugs around there now that you know like they're starting to clean that out because a lot of people are leaving and everything. Going up to Puerto Rico and everything. There's a lot of Spanish speaking going away. [Interviewer] Why? [Santiago] The drugs man. [Interviewer] You just want to escape the drugs? [Santiago] Yea. [Interviewer] How bad is it? [Santiago] It's bad um,

They, they too much over there. There used to be a lot of guys that used to hang out with drugs and everything. They cleaned that out. Now they're down. [Interviewer] Are we talking about just grass or you mean smack and the hard--? [Roberto Santiago] Yea everything. It's too bad over there because it's the little kids, when they, when they had a bust over there around a year or two, there were some little kids and they took them too. [Interviewer] How little? [Roberto Santiago] 10. [Freudberg] Roberto Santiago of Cambridge. A young woman resident of Villa Victoria gave us these impressions of her life in Boston's South End. [Evelyn Garcia] My name's Evelyn Garcia. [Interviewer] I see you just came from a ball game. Tainas? What are the Tainas? [Evelyn Garcia] The Tainos are a group of Indians from Puerto Rico.

We figured most of the girls were Spanish, Puerto Rican so we named the team after them. [Interviewer] What else do you do this summer besides playing volleyball and softball? [Garcia] Well what else, go to the beach, swim. That's about it. Hang out. [Interviewer] Where you hang out? And what do you do when you hang out? [Evelyn Garcia] Usually I hang out at the festivals. This one here, Festival Betances or this other, the other festival, Puerto Rican Festival. Or else I be partying; discotechs, house parties, you name it. [Interviewer] You are member of a social club right? Centro del Cardenal? [Garcia] Yes. [Interviewer] What does the social club do for you? [Evelyn Garcia] What does it do? They counsel you on what steps you should Take in the future. Like if some of the youth are still in school they'll you know, they'll try to keep you straight in school, they'll help you out with your homework, and uh they'll talk to you if you have a problem or anything,

They'll be there so you can lean on. They'll take you On trips you know. Give you some fresh air away from the city. [Interviewer] You mention that they help you with your schoolwork. Are you in school? [Evelyn Garcia] No I graduated this year. [Interviewer] Are you Going to college or you going to go to work? [Garcia] I'm going to go to work now. To work then I'm probably thinking about college and I want to put some money away before I jump into college. [Interviewer] What kind of work are you going to be doing? [Garcia] It's like uh In the state house. As a page. [Interviewer] Do you live here in the project? [Garcia] Yes I do. [Interviewer] So you know this you know this project you've been here a couple years. [Garcia] Yeah yeah. [Interviewer] What uh, How would you describe it for somebody who's never been here? What's it like? How's it set up?

[Evelyn Garcia] Well the way it's set up it's subsidized housing. So Everybody, like, most of the people that live here is poor. Probably on welfare or stuff. Most of the people who have good jobs and live here live in the building, a big building. The elderly tower. What they do is, They help out the people in the community. The people in the community they stick together. They uh, plan things for themselves, usually the community, What they call the community will probably be. West Newton, Rutland, From Rutland street over here to West Dedham St.. This is what they call the community. Yeah. [Interviewer] What would you say is a biggest problem? [Evelyn Garcia] The biggest problem here? The dope addicts. [Interviewer] What do you mean? What kind of dope? [Evelyn Garcia] Heroin, marihuana,

I don't know what else but that's about all I've seen. [Interviewer] Alright let me ask you the other question, what's the best thing about this place? [Garcia] Best thing about Thing about this place? Friendliness! Everybody gets along with everybody. Like if you need any help from somebody you can feel free to go out and ask somebody. They won't, you know, say "well I don't know you" you know. [Interviewer] Why are people so friendly you think? [Garcia] I don't know, most of the people out here know each other. Because they work with each other and everything so most of the people know each other. That's probably it. [Interviewer] You think that the way the housing being not run down has something to do with it? [Evelyn Garcia] Yeah. Yeah. The people also here, they help keep up the community like they'll go out like if they need any help for street cleaning and stuff like that they'll go out and help street cleaning and keeping it. Keeping it up. And most of the

jobs like cleaning up and everything. Most of the jobs are given to the people in the community. So. [Interviewer] That really helps a lot. [Garcia] Yeah. [Interviewer] What would you like for this place to become? [Evelyn Garcia] Oh what would I like for it to become? Larger, more house--, subsidized housing. Uh, more recreation for the kids. And stop this drugs and all this stuff. Well it's called Villa Victoria for the simple reason. Because this is going to build up sooner or later. Not unless people up there, the higher ones with all the money, coming into it and try to take over. [Freudberg] Evelyn Garcia of Villa Victoria. Tino is an aspiring actor facing the challenges of being young, gifted, and Puerto Rican. For him this is how it's been. [Tino] Since I started going to Cathedral High. That's when it really you know started because I'm doing almost everything now

because this Cecilia Bresnahan she got me into the Hispanic Theater Company of Boston directed by Gabriel Garcia and you know we did-- I did a play there you know that was done all over Boston it was called La Conquista. [Interviewer] What does that mean in English? [Tino] The Conquest. We did it and it came out all right. And then after that you know I went to school and from there I started doing plays about 2 or 3 plays I've done. We did it all over Boston. [Interviewer] Now when you say you perform all over the city, what kind of places do you have a chance to perform in and who shows up, what kind of audiences is there? [Tino] Its, you know mostly a great amount of audience comes just to see how the show was like when I was doing The Conquest. You know all sorts of people came around us because we did it out in the open you know

in the street and people just came and stood and watched and you know it was real nice for the La Esquina Caliente you know we would -- we did it at Boston College, Boston State College. You know it wasn't so you know packed so many people right, but we kind of are just like we did it in Lynn for Puerto Ricans and that came out right, just fine because they gave us a party afterwards. It was real nice you know. I liked it. [Interviewer] Do you hope to go into this professionally, do you want to become an actor as your main occupation? [Tino] Yeah. I want to be an actor bad, you know I want to do it. But it is I hear there's a lot of competition you know. So Imma Imma I'm going to have to take a couple of courses to be ready you know. So when my competition come I can you know push em around a little. [Interviewer] You

talk about wanting to be an actor and that's what you would like to do. When do you arrive at that conclusion that you wanted to act? [Tino] I arrived at the conclusion when you know I seen so many you know I like it every time I see it on TV you know I say "I want to do this, I want to do that." And you know I arrived the conclusion when I you know when I first got the chance to do it. [Interviewer] Do you think there's special problems for young people who are Latino who seek to become actors as you do? [Tino] The problem is you know not many. The only problem that they have is you know not learning, not talking English very well you know or you know or not speaking the vocabulary as you're supposed to and that's the only problem. You know and get connection because that's really a

problem too. You know if you don't got people that you can go to to be in a play or anything. You're just left out. [music] [steel drum music continues] [Freudberg] The sounds of a steel band recorded recently at a Festival Betances at Villa Victoria in Boston's South End. That Puerto Rican community is not home not only for Puerto Ricans but for others as well. Harry Dow and John Mahoney and Antonia Mahoney characterized it

this way. [Harry Dow] It's real intimate. They could have kind of through a selection process kept out people other than Hispanics, but they really tried to intermingle, to make it a truly honest community as it was in the past. [Freudberg] Have you seen that, John? [John Mahoney] Yeah, I think that's true. See I've been teaching in the public schools most of that time, most of that time, since the '60s and 70s'. And when the Spanish community first came, and it's mostly because of language and also there are other ethnic reasons. You know, they had a tendency to stay together and the children did not play together. That's why Villa Victoria is so beautiful, because here people are placed together and they're playing together and they're in our backyard all the time and it's a beautiful thing that's happened. [Antonia Mahoney] I came here 9 years ago and when I came here I didn't know any English. So it was hard

for me. We met in Puerto Rico and I came here and I saw it was different here. And when I came And when I came here, I hear everyone speaking English I didn't know what they say. I do have headaches and everything. Then every time I met someone Spanish I felt good about it because I wanted to talk my even if I didn't know the people, I hear people speaking Spanish I would say "John they're speaking Spanish over there." they're speaking Spanish over there." And then I started getting involved in EVA [garbled] connection, then the nuns came, Casa del Sol, and started a better school and learning English. He put me in school so I could learn English and get together with people. There was a lot of good people, Americans who were interested in Spanish people and they know a little bit of Spanish, and they try to make friends and help me a lot. We all get along and I like, especially here, it's so good. You walk outside, you walk around and everybody knows you. It's so good, it's like Puerto Rico. [John Mahoney] It's a great strength here. It's unreasonable living in the cities, it's kind of unique, but that's another thing, when you move around

people, you know so many people by name, that helps in safety, and other things too, socially as well, and other things too, socially for them as well. When everybody first moved into these buildings, for example, there was a lot of stick-to-it-ness as far as your own family goes, but not your neighbor. Now, this summer family goes, but not your neighbor. Now, this summer which is the second summer, it's altogether different. Much more commeraderie. There's no, very little closer to spending time in Rio De Janeiro. Very little violence of kind going on. [Harry Dow] Not at all, no violence around here at all. That's, they just create a picture that's very slanderous about the community and crime and that sort of thing, that's not true. It's really a very very fine community and it shouldn't be destroyed by the influx of these luxury housing units and people that are coming into these real estate dealers. [Interviewer] How about your children? [Interviewer] How about your children? Growing

up in a Puerto Rican community, do you think that's important? [John Mahoney] That's a thing that's always been important to me and they have to be reminded often, and we do it in the house a lot. Johnny for example didn't speak English until he was in kindergarten and then he started relating in this, now English is the language of our home but our children understand Spanish, we talk a lot of Spanish to them. They play with children oftentimes that don't speak English. And so they can speak Spanish in fact but they don't try very hard. [Harry Dow] And children when they become mischievous, and you try to stop them, you tell them "I'll tell your father, I'll tell your mother" they stop right away. [John Mahoney] Because we know their parents. [laughter] And those sort of things are important in a community where you can get along together, rather than have youngsters defying you and doing things that are bad and being vandals and that sort

of thing. [John Mahoney] I think too, how many families and how many children are being, if I can use the word salvaged, by living in a stable community in the city where they don't have to move out, they're not going to be pushed out there's no danger. [music] [Freudberg] This is been a GBH Journal special report on the status of Puerto Ricans in the Boston area. Producers for the program were Sixto Escobar and me. I'm David Freudberg. Be sure to tune in Sunday at 2pm on WGBH TV Channel 2 in Boston for live coverage of the Puerto Rican parade in Boston. Special thanks to our engineer Perry Carter. Muchas Gracias. [music]

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