Tuesday, October 13, 2026
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Focusing on Financial Health: Chart the Path Toward Your Next Milestone

By Avianca Verdugo

Bay Area Market Director for JPMorgan Chase

Sponsored content from JPMorgan Chase & Co

When was the last time you looked at your bank account balance? According to a recent study, over 60 percent of Americans check their balance at least once week[1]. This is a habit, if practiced the right way, that can put you on the path to achieving your financial goals.

Whether you’re looking to become financially independent, planning for a long awaited vacation, or saving for a down payment to buy your first home,  we want you to be aware of some of the tools and skills to help make your financial journey as smooth as possible.

But let’s talk about the basics first. Managing your money can be overwhelming but it doesn’t need to be. Understanding things like budgeting, saving, paying your bills, and even building your credit score are skills that can help you at any stage of your life. Even in these difficult times with the pandemic when so many of us are facing greater uncertainty around our finances and job security, it is these types of moments where understanding core financial skills can be the difference maker.

The past year has impacted families, friends, colleagues and our community. Since the start of the pandemic, 61% of Latino households Americans have said that either they or someone in their family has experienced a job or wage loss due to COVID.[2] In these situations, especially, it is critical to know how to manage your finances to stay or get back on track.

If you’re unsure of where to begin, how to start making progress, or simply looking to refresh your knowledge, consider the following as you chart a successful path forward and take control of your financial future.

Advice and Tools

Our financial goals hub is a great place to start. Start by picking a goal – save, budget, or build credit – and explore advice, offerings and tools that more simply allow you to control your financial future. Our Grow Your Savings page, for example, offers an interactive calculator that maps out a timeline to reach savings goals and highlights how the Autosave tool can help you manage a regular savings schedule to stay on track and meet your goals. Other resources are also available, such as budget worksheets to monitor and track monthly spending, guidance on using the Credit Journey tool to build and protect credit, as well as background on low-cost checking accounts designed to provide access for anyone who has had trouble getting or keeping an account in the past.

Reserved Capital for Business Owners

Education, reliable support and resources are fundamental first steps to financial literacy, but equal access to capital is just as critical. With 32% of Latino-owned businesses shuttering since this time last year[3], COVID-19 has only worsened the disparities and inequities that demand an intentional reprioritization of capital. Through our Entrepreneurs of Color Fund, we’re working to provide more access to capital to future entrepreneurs, existing business owners and communities who have historically and unfairly struggled to secure it. JPMorgan Chase also recently announced it is setting aside funds specifically for Latino and Black business owners – stop into your local branch and talk with a Chase For Business representative to see if you qualify.

Equitable Home Lending

Home equity is also a major contributor to families’ wealth, making it imperative that we increase property ownership among Latino communities. One way we hope to do this is through our Chase DreaMaker mortgage, which makes applying for your first mortgage or refinancing a current one more attainable with a smaller down payment, and by offering reduced mortgage insurance, more flexibility around your credit score, potential assistance grants and homebuyer education courses.

No matter where you are financially, budgeting and saving are two key habits that can help all of us bounce back from life’s unexpected moments or keep on track to ensure you meet your goals. That is why we are here to help everyone have open conversations about what it means to become financially healthy and provide support, tools and advice to get there. Financial health is a journey, and we can help you think about a plan for now and the future.

For more resources, information and access to tools that can help you achieve your financial goals and milestones, visit chase.com/personal/financial-goals

 

[1] https://www.theladders.com/career-advice/survey-36-of-americans-look-at-their-bank-account-daily

[2] https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2020/05/05/financial-and-health-impacts-of-covid-19-vary-widely-by-race-and-ethnicity/

[3] https://www.nber.org/system/files/working_papers/w27309/w27309.pdf

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Guest worker COVID protections abandoned – a taste of things to come

BELLINGHAM, WA - 4AUGUST19 - Farm workers and their supporters march to protest the H2-A guestworker program and the death of Honesto Silva, on the anniversary of his death twho years earlier. They also protested recent federal regulations making it more difficult to protect the rights of H-2A and resident farm workers. The march was organized by Community2Community and the new union for Washington farm workers, Familias Unidas por la Justicia. Copyright David Bacon

by David Bacon

 

Growers are just beginning to bring this year’s wave of contracted laborers into Washington State for the coming season to pick apples, cherries and other fruit. The laborers are arriving to just-relaxed COVID-19 health and safety requirements for farmworkers, courtesy of a Superior Court judge in Yakima County, the heart of the state’s apple country.

Meanwhile a vote nears in the U.S. Senate that would lead to the massive expansion of the H2-A guest worker program, used by growers across the country to recruit these laborers.

In 2020, despite the pandemic, growers and labor contractors brought 28,959 workers, almost all from Mexico, to work in Washington’s fields and orchards, a 10 percent increase over the previous year.  Nationally the number of H2-A workers brought to the U.S. annually has mushroomed from 79,011 to 275,430 in a decade.

COVID-19 outbreaks struck Washington’s guest worker barracks in April, starting with 36 laborers in a Stemilt Growers housing unit in East Wenatchee. Within months eight other clusters were found, and by mid-May rural Yakima County had 2,186 cases – 122 were reported on May 15 alone – and 73 people were dead

With 455 infections per 100,000 residents, the county had the highest COVID-19 rate on the West Coast. Then Juan Carlos Santiago Rincon, a Mexican H2-A worker, died in a Gebbers Farms barracks in July. A second death followed a week later – a 63-year old Jamaican farmer, Earl Edwards, who had been coming to Washington State as an H2-A worker for several years.

State health authorities only found out about Santiago’s death from anonymous phone calls from workers. Ernesto Dimas, another Gebbers worker, told the Spokane Spokesman-Review that the company sent workers into the orchards even when they showed symptoms of illness. “You could hear people coughing everywhere,” he said.  Sick workers were sent to an isolation camp, but one infected worker, Juan Celin Guerrero Camacho, said, “I got scared seeing what happened – that workers were not getting medical attention.”

The barracks for H-2A workers leave them vulnerable to infections. They are divided into rooms around a common living and kitchen area. Four workers live in each room, sleeping in two bunk beds, making it impossible for them to maintain the required six feet of distance to help avoid contagion. Stemilt Growers says that it has 90 such dormitory units in central Washington, with 1,677 beds, half of which are bunks. It adds up to a “unique risk,” according to a court declaration given last May by University of Washington epidemiologists Drs. Anjum Hajat and Catherine Karr.

Familias Unidas por la Justicia, the state’s new farmworker union, Columbia Legal Services and other advocates sued the state a year ago in March, demanding better safety measures. Although they didn’t win a ban on the bunk beds, they did win other protections, including twice-daily medical checks for workers with COVID-19 symptoms, quick access to emergency services, and allowing community advocates to contact workers on the farms.

But those victories were invalidated by Yakima County Superior Court Judge Blaine Gibson’s April 21 decision.

In a news release, John Stuhlmiller, chief executive officer of the Washington Farm Bureau, called it a “common sense ruling” and “science-based adjustments.” He called for “repeal or modification” of other requirements, including any limits on bunk beds or other distancing measures, which he had previously labeled “crippling business restrictions.

Washington State was hardly a fierce enforcer of the regulations. Even before the ruling, the state Department of Health said the monitoring requirements weren’t feasible, and the Department of Labor and Industries said it would not enforce them. State communicable disease epidemiologist Scott Lindquist said in an April 13 court declaration that a daily phone call to a sick worker, from an unspecified source, could take the place of medical visits.

But Edgar Franks, political director for Families Unidas por la Justicia, said such a measure “wouldn’t have helped the workers who died at Gebbers, since there was no phone service because they couldn’t get a good signal in that rural area.”

Meanwhile, Congressman Dan Newhouse, a grower from the Yakima Valley, has pushed the Farm Workforce Modernization Act through the U.S. House of Representatives, and it now awaits a vote in the Senate.

“The Farm Workforce Modernization Act is the dream of the industry,” said Franks, “because it lets them do what they want with workers, including paying them low wages, and blacklisting and deporting them if they protest. The judge’s recent ruling just gives us a taste of what’s coming down the line. Even the minimal gains we’ve fought for can be taken away, just like that.”

The bill contains a complex and restrictive legalization program for some of the country’s 1.2 million undocumented farmworkers, along with enforcement provisions that would prevent undocumented people from working in agriculture at all in the future.

The bill’s main impact, however, is the relaxation of restrictions on the use of the H2-A visa program, which would likely lead to enormous increases in the number of workers brought to the U.S. by growers and labor contractors.

Dan Fazio, director of the country’s second-largest labor contractor for H2-A workers, the Washington Farm Labor Association, told Capital Press, “The program works, and we don’t have an alternative.”

Even though unemployment skyrocketed during the pandemic, growers claim they couldn’t find local workers willing to pick Washington’s fruit. “We don’t see any effect from the unemployment rate for U.S. workers,” Fazio claimed.

According to Washington State Tree Fruit Association President Jon DeVaney, unemployed people don’t want to work because “they are collecting state and federal unemployment benefits.”

Rep. Newhouse was successful in winning grower support for the bill, but only 30 Republicans voted for it. The bill’s cosponsor is Silicon Valley Democratic Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren, and every Democrat in the House – except Maine’s Jared Golden – voted for it, even the party’s leftist representatives.

“There’s a real disconnect among policy makers from the reality on the ground,” Franks charged. “They’re preserving a system that is putting workers at risk. With this judge’s decision community organizations and unions are now denied access to these workers, while growers have them in a stranglehold.”

Nevertheless, Stuhlmiller asserted, “We all share the same goal: protecting farm worker health while keeping our farmers in business.”

Within days of the judge’s decision, Gov. Jay Inslee warned, “we now are seeing the beginnings of a fourth [coronavirus] surge in the state of Washington.”

Affected guest workers will no doubt receive a phone number they can call when they get sick.

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US has given $29 millions to Mexican NGOs in the past three years

Figure more than double entire 2021 budget of Mexico’s Interior Ministry

 

by Mexico News Daily

 

President López Obrador has been railing against the United States’ funding of what he says are political groups opposed to his administration, accusing the U.S. government of meddling in Mexico’s internal affairs.

Now, more details have emerged about the quantity of money the U.S. government has sent south of the border since AMLO, as the president is commonly known, took office in late 2018 and who has received it.

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) have provided approximately US $29 million to organizations operating in Mexico, according to documents reviewed by the newspaper Milenio.

That figure — made up of the amounts the two agencies sent to Mexico in 2019, 2020 and the first five months of this year — is more than double the entire 2021 budget of Mexico’s Interior Ministry, Milenio said.

The newspaper said that the USAID and NED money goes to projects led by Mexican organizations, projects led by United States organizations that are active in Mexico and to municipal, state and federal governments.

“It’s used to help strengthen civil society organizations, improve public initiatives like the National Anti-Corruption System, protect human rights, combat drug trafficking, look for missing people, eradicate violence against women, promote democratic ideals, support the media and promote the use of renewable energy sources, among other projects,” Milenio said.

Among the organizations that have received funding from USAID since AMLO assumed the presidency are the Mexican Institute of Human Rights and Democracy, the Institute for Security and Democracy, the Mexican Institute for Competitiveness and the National Social Communication Center.

Freedom House, a United States-based NGO that conducts research and advocacy on democracy, political freedom and human rights, is one example of an American organization that has received USAID funding for its work in Mexico.

USAID has also provided funding for a range of government projects. This year, it will provide $90 million in funding to municipal, state and federal governments. That figure is set to increase in 2022.

The NED, an agency founded in 1983 to promote democracy abroad at a time when the United States and the Soviet Union were Cold War foes, has provided funding to Mexicans Against Corruption and Impunity (MCCI), México Evalúa — a public policy think tank — the news website Animal Político and a range of other organizations, Milenio said. It has also provided funding to events such as Mexico City’s International Documentary Film Festival.

The United States’ funding of MCCI, which has exposed corruption in the current and previous federal governments, has particularly roiled AMLO. The federal government sent a diplomatic note to its U.S. counterpart in May to ask it to explain why it has provided funding to the group. The government has also asked the U.S. to stop funding opposition groups, but López Obrador said Monday that there has been no response to that request.

Last August, AMLO accused civil society organizations and Animal Político of using funding they received from the NED and private U.S. foundations to oppose the federal government’s Maya Train project. But the NGOs and the news site rejected the accusation.

López Obrador said Monday that his government would continue asking the United States to stop funding groups such as MCCI and the press freedom organization Article 19, which has also criticized him.

 

Source: Milenio (sp).

 

In other non-related news:

 

Researchers find cancer-fighting agent in pulque, drink of the gods

An acid in the drink can prevent the proliferation of colon cancer cells by up to 40 percent

 

Pulque, an alcoholic drink from fermented agave, contains a cancer-inhibiting probiotic, researchers have found.

The finding indicates that a lactic-acid-bacteria found in the drink called Lactobacillus brevis prevents the proliferation of colon cancer cells by up to 40 percent.

Mexican and French scientists made the discovery in a joint study of Mexican fermented beverages by the National Polytechnic Institute (IPN) and France’s National Institute for Agricultural Research (INRAE).

Researchers isolated 20 strains of Lactobacillus brevis from pulque sediment to test their ability to block the proliferation of tumorous cells, and found that the strain which is endemic to Nanacamilpa, Tlaxcala, to be most effective.

The two research institutions have obtained a patent for the discovery, and detailed information has been shared with experts in the United States, Canada and the European Union.

Dr. María Elena Sánchez Pardo, an IPN researcher, attested to the value of the acid to fight cancer. “Lactobacillus brevis has an effect similar to that of the drug 5-fluorouracil, without causing any adverse effects on healthy cells … This is a very important scientific achievement that opens the possibility of having an innocuous treatment against colon cancer,” she said.

Tests were also carried out on an animal model of colon cancer, which provided further evidence of the anti-cancerous effect.

Dr. Pardo added that the discovery motivated the research team, and that their work would continue to search for other beneficial properties of fermented Mexican drinks.

Pulque is known as the drink of the gods as it was considered sacred in pre-hispanic Mexico. It is a milk-colored drink with a yeast like taste.

Source: Milenio (sp)

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Nicaragua opposition figure Chamorro put under house arrest

by the El Reportero‘s wire services

shared from BBC

 

Police in Nicaragua have placed opposition presidential hopeful Cristiana Chamorro under house arrest.

Prosecutors have accused Chamorro of money laundering, which she denies, and demand she be barred from running in November’s election.

Chamorro is seen by many in the opposition as their best hope of defeating President Daniel Ortega, who is expected to run for a fifth term.

Her mother defeated Ortega in the 1990 presidential poll.

The arrest is the latest in a series of measures which the opposition says are aimed at crushing its chances of defeating the government in the upcoming election.

Who is Cristiana Chamorro?

The 67-year-old journalist comes from one of Nicaragua’s most influential families.

Her father, Pedro Joaquín Chamorro, was the editor of newspaper La Prensa, which opposed the autocratic Somoza family that ruled Nicaragua for decades. He was assassinated in 1978.

Violeta Chamorro, her mother, won the 1990 election to become the first female president in Latin America, putting an end to Daniel Ortega’s first 11 years as president.

Cristiana Chamorro had until recently been leading the Violeta Barrios de Chamorro Foundation, which is focused on press freedom. But she stepped down from the post earlier this year.

On Tuesday, she announced she would seek to become the presidential candidate for the opposition Citizen’s Alliance. The Alliance wants to field one single name in the hope of defeating Ortega.

The president, who has been in power since January 2007, is widely expected to run again, though an official announcement is yet to be made.

How did things get here?

Shortly after Chamorro’s announcement, prosecutors accused her of “abusive management [and] ideological falsehood” during her time at the helm of the foundation.

She has also been charged with “the laundering of money, property and assets, to the detriment of the Nicaraguan State and society”.

The investigation against her was opened in May at the request of the Ortega government. Chamorro says they are trumped up charges to prevent her from challenging the president.

On Wednesday, shortly before Chamorro was due to give a news conference, police raided her home in the capital, Managua, and placed her under house arrest.

What’s the reaction been?

In a statement issued before Chamorro’s arrest, the regional body Organization of American States (OAS), of which Nicaragua is a member, said the country was “heading for the worst possible elections”.

“The use of the prosecutor’s office, injunctions and precautionary measures, the politicized handling of justice and the de facto banning of candidates are in violation of the Inter-American Democratic Charter, the OAS Charter, the instruments on human rights and of international pacts to which Nicaragua is party,” the statement read.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken also condemned the move, saying on Twitter: “Arbitrarily banning opposition leader [Chamorro] reflects Ortega’s fear of free and fair elections. Nicaraguans deserve real democracy.”

Opposition parties in Nicaragua accused the government of “unleashing a witch hunt”, alleging Ortega feared “going to a free, transparent and observed” election.

Meanwhile government-friendly newspapers printed the arrest warrant issued for Chamorro.

What’s the background?

Last December, the legislative, which is dominated by parties allied with the government, passed a law giving the government the power to ban candidates from running for office if they are deemed to be “traitors” to Nicaragua.

The government says the law aims to protect “the independence, the sovereignty and self-determination” of Nicaragua. It claims the country is under threat from imperialist powers in the US and “coup-mongers” within Nicaragua who are determined to overthrow the government.

The opposition alleges that repression has grown since 2018, when anti-government protests swept through the country and were met with a violent police response.

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Esperanza Rising

Screenshot

compiled by the El Reportero‘s

This pre-recorded production was created in compliance with State and County Social Distancing and Health regulations.

It’s 1929. When tragedy strikes 12-year-old Esperanza’s family, she has to leave her life of wealth and privilege in México for a migrant labor camp in California. In this strange new place, Esperanza learns about strength, hope, and perseverance. A classic coming-of-age story brought to life by a cast of 10- to 18-year-olds.

When you reserve tickets, you will receive an email with your unique viewing links and automatically generated passwords.

The links will be good for 72 hours from the time of your reservation.

By Lynne Álvarez, music by Víctor Zupanc. Based on the Book by Pam Muñoz Ryan. Produced by special arrangement with Plays for Young Audiences.

Esperanza Rising is performed in English with Spanish and English closed captions. Questions? Email us at Teatro@TeatroVision.org or call us at (408) 294-6621.

Through June 20, 2021.

Summer Stride 2021 at the SF Library

Summer Stride is the Library’s annual summer learning, reading and exploration program for all ages and abilities.

From June through August, we are promoting:

– Author talks, reading lists and book giveaways

– STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) learning

– Mindful experiences in nature

– Workforce development opportunities for teens

– Meaningful connections for all ages for our diverse community

Challenge yourself and others to read, learn and listen with the Library this summer!

Begin your journey towards 20 hours of summer learning starting in June.

Track your progress virtually on Beanstack. You can register individual participants as well as groups (families, classes).

Or, track your progress on our printable tracker! Color each square for every 20 minutes of participation. (3 squares = 1 hour)

Recommended Summer Reading

Students, Families and Educators, the annual SFUSD Recommended Summer Reading Lists are your source for great, diverse and newly-published reads for Pre-K to Grade 12. All SFUSD students are receiving the Summer Reading List in their home mailboxes this spring.

Pro tip: Visit our Reading Resources for more fun free downloadable activities to enhance your reading experience.

Fantastic Free Programs for All Ages

Every summer, the Library offers a bevy of quality programs for all ages—free of cost. From programs that teach kids about nature, to music performances from award-winning artists, to authors who speak on topics ranging from SF Bay Area history to racial justice, to valuable how-to programs on gardening and cooking, you will find something to love at the Library.

We’re offering one-time programs, as well as exciting series, that will carry you through the whole summer.

We’re building home libraries with free book giveaways for SFUSD PreK to 12th grade students as part of Summer Together.

  • 10 free books for each SFUSD student, grouped by grade levels
  • May 21-24 – Summer Stride reading tracker and book list mailed to each SFUSD student
  • Starting June 14 – Books distributed to students via Summer Together in-person summer camps
  • June 14-Sept. 12 – Books given out at all SFPL To Go, bookmobile and in-person browsing locations. Locations and hours for open libraries
  • By Sept. 12 – Collect your Summer Stride finishing prize at any open library location.
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Puebla artist helps Aztec dancers preserve ancient traditions

Santos Popoca found a calling in rendering Mesoamerican images on costumes

 by Joseph Sorrentino

Coatlicue, the Aztec serpent goddess, slowly comes to life under the steady hand of Santos Popoca Fernández.

He’s leaning over his worktable in his small studio in San Pedro Yancuitlalpan, Puebla, concentrating intently on the drawing he’s making on a dress that will be worn by an Aztec dancer.

Popoca started painting clothing for traditional dancers about four years ago.

“I make them because I want to revive the ancient forms of art,” he said. “The symbols I use are all Azteca. All of the pre-Hispanic cultures used representations of their culture on clothing or on their bodies. Every culture had its own symbols, their own particular identity. Pre-Hispanic groups made clothing with different materials, but they always used clothing with symbols. Depending on who they were, it was to distinguish societies, positions, classes. So a governor wore different clothes than a warrior.”

Many people are familiar with the Aztec dancers who perform in Mexico City’s zocalo, but such groups are found in pueblos all across Mexico, performing their dances during ceremonies and rituals. The dancers are easily recognized, wearing their feather headdresses and brightly colored clothing.

Aztec dances are, in part, a way to show the art and culture of Mexico’s indigenous groups. But they’re also a form of prayer, a way for dancers to communicate with their gods and goddesses, and a way to take the dancers out of their everyday lives.

“We dance to obtain different levels,” said Miguel Antonio Zamora Solís, captain of Grupo San Miguel, an Aztec dance troupe in Xochimilco, Mexico City.

Many Aztec dance troupes incorporate Catholic imagery in some way into their ceremonies. Often, flags or paintings bearing the image of the Virgin of Guadalupe will be carried. Cleansing ceremonies will be done in front of Catholic altars. Crucifixes will be adorned with flowers.

Clothing with paintings of the Virgin of Guadalupe are often worn during ceremonies.

“With the dance, it is a union of the two religions: Catholic and indigenous,” Zamora said. “It is a mix of Catholic and indigenous, and they are equal in importance.”

But not all Aztec dancers do this.

“There are dancers who still conserve the most original cosmovision [view of the universe] of the Mexicas [Aztecs],” Popoca said. “They do not integrate anything from Catholic ideology.”

Popoca doesn’t use any Catholic images in his work.

“… I want to conserve and revive what’s authentic about our cultures,” he explained.

The symbols he does paint on the clothing worn by dancers have special meanings.

“Every dancer, every person will have their particular symbol, symbols that are unique to them,” Popoca said. “Shamans and priests have special symbols and numbers that are only for them. All of the symbols and characteristics give a person power or knowledge.”

Coatlicue, the goddess that Popoca is painting on the dress, is the Aztec’s earth-mother goddess, the goddess of, among other things, childbirth, warfare and agriculture.

“She has a necklace with hands, hearts and a skull,” he told me as he drew. “These are symbols that are very typical for this goddess.” She’s usually portrayed with snakes draped on either side of her. “The snake is a symbol of transformation,” he continued. “It sheds its skin. The oldest symbol of her is a statue of a snake, no human face.”

The images he paints aren’t always exactly what an actual symbol or a figure looks like.

“The symbols I paint are a fusion of what I find in books, the figures I see and my own ideas,” Popoca said. “They are really something new.”

When Popoca’s ready to paint an image on a dress, he’ll first make a drawing on onion skin, a thin, transparent paper. He will then either place the drawing under the cloth and trace it or draw it freehand.

“It is a very slow process because it is very detailed,” he said. Once the drawing is done, he’ll color it in with spray paints and oil paints.

Although often portrayed as an old woman, Popoca said he’ll portray Coatlicue on different sides of the dress as both an old and young woman.

“All of the symbols transform, have different forms, different ages, too. According to our ancestral beliefs, everything that exists is moving, metamorphizing,” he said. “Land moves, people move, as does water, our heart. The idea [here] is to show the evolution, the transformation.”

Popoca estimates that he paints between five and 10 dresses a year. He’ll work eight hours a day for four days on a simple one and charge about 3,000 pesos (US $150). The most complicated dresses take him 15 days and cost a dancer 7,000 pesos. Most of the clothing he paints will be worn by women, but he also paints clothing for men.

There’s been a lot of debate lately about whether it’s appropriate for non-indigenous people to wear clothing or use symbols from indigenous cultures, symbols that often have religious significance. Popoca’s painted clothing is beautiful, and it’s easy to imagine that someone who’s not an Aztec dancer would want to buy one of his dresses.

“Anyone can wear them,” he admitted, “but they’re not a fashion. It would be difficult for me to sell it as a fashion. It’s not typical to do that. They are not for daily use, only for ceremonies and dances.”

In addition, Popoca views his work as more than just painting beautiful images on clothing.

“It is important to preserve these images and the culture,” he continued, “because everything is related to — and organized by — our ancestral roots. This is ancient knowledge. It is to understand your place in the world and your objectives. If one does not understand the past, one cannot understand the present or future.”

Joseph Sorrentino, a writer, photographer and author of the book San Gregorio Atlapulco: Cosmvisiones and of Stinky Island Tales: Some Stories from an Italian-American Childhood, is a regular contributor to Mexico News Daily. More examples of his photographs and links to other articles may be found at www.sorrentinophotography.com  He currently lives in Chipilo, Puebla.

 

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Noni leaf extract puts chemotherapy to shame, study reveals

By Tonie Benally /

05/28/2021 – The concept of “cancer treatment” may bring up unpleasant thoughts of chemotherapy and its many nasty side effects. But there may be a medicinal plant that’s better than chemo at fighting cancer – the noni tree (Morinda citrifolia).

Native to Southeast Asia and Australasia, the noni tree is a small tropical tree often found in volcanic soil. Historically, many parts of the noni tree have been used on their own or alongside other herbs in traditional medicine.

A study by a team from Universiti Putra Malaysia shows that extracts from the leaves of the noni plant may be an ideal functional food or complementary therapy in managing or even preventing lung cancer.

Noni leaf extract fights cancer

Lung cancer ranks among the deadliest of all cancers, taking around 1.4 million lives every year. Nearly 80 percent of these cancers are classified as non-small-cell lung cancers (NSCLC), a type of cancer that is notoriously hard to treat with chemotherapy.

The study, published in Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry, took a look at erlotinib, one of the more common drugs used for chemotherapy treatments for NSCLC. They compared this drug with noni leaf extract, testing both against lung cancer cells from both mice and humans.

In both cases, noni leaf extract worked better at inducing apoptosis – programmed cell death – in NSCLC cells. It also did not cause any side effects commonly observed in patients taking erlotinib.

More importantly, noni leaf extract exhibited no toxicity towards normal lung cells. The study noted that this is something that chemotherapy is notoriously incapable of producing.

As amazing as the results of the study are, this isn’t the first one to identify noni leaf extract’s possible effectiveness against cancer.

A previous animal study also made similar observations about noni leaf extract. Here noni leaf extract was also found to be more effective than erlotinib in suppressing lung tumor growth in mice.

Other healthy benefits of noni

It’s not just the leaves of the noni tree that can provide you with health benefits. Many of the other parts of this amazing plant can also help keep you healthy. Here are some of the benefits that the noni can give you.

Helps alleviate pain

Noni has been used in traditional folk medicine for its pain-relieving effects. Studies have shown that taking noni juice can significantly lower the amount of pain felt by people with arthritis.

Supports immune health

One of the most abundant nutrients in noni juice is vitamin C. This is an antioxidant that helps your immune system by protecting your cells from damage from free radicals and environmental toxins.

Gives you more endurance

Pacific Islanders believed that eating noni fruit strengthened the body during long fishing trips and voyages. Studies show that there is some truth behind this belief.

In one such study, long-distance runners who drank 3.4 ounces (100 ml) of noni juice twice daily experienced a 21 percent increase in the time before they became fatigued.

Scientists speculate that noni is able to do this due to its high antioxidant content. These may reduce the damage that your muscles usually incur when you exercise.

The noni tree truly is a wonderful medicinal plant that can provide you with a lot of benefits for your health. If you interested in these benefits, consult with your healthcare professional to know how you can benefit from noni.

 

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OSHA suspends requirement for employers to report vaccine injuries

by Nation World News Desk

 

In order to encourage U.S. workers to be vaccinated, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has suspended the legal requirement for employers to report work-related injuries as a result of vaccinations aimed at combating the CCP virus that causes COVID-19 disease.

This suspension of the law by OSHA does not change the fact that employers can be held liable under the workers’ compensation laws or under the personal injury laws, according to the nonprofit group Liberty Counsel.

Earlier this month, the website of OSHA, an agency within the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), said that employers can be held liable if they require employees to receive COVID-19 injections as a condition of service and that employees then experience. adverse reactions.

A section on FAQs on OSHA’s website states: ‘If you have to be vaccinated against your employees as a condition of employment (ie for work-related reasons), then any negative reaction to the COVID-19 vaccine work related. The adverse reaction is recordable if it is a new case under 29 CFR 1904.6 and meets one or more of the general admission criteria in 29 CFR 1904.7, according to Liberty Counsel.

But visitors to the same site FAQ section now see another message, which reads:

‘DOL and OSHA, as well as other federal agencies, are working diligently to encourage COVID-19 vaccinations. OSHA does not want to discourage workers from receiving COVID-19 vaccination, nor does it want to discourage employers’ vaccination efforts. As a result, OSHA will not apply 29 CFR 1904 survey requirements to require employers to record COVID-19 vaccination side effects by May 2022. We will reevaluate the position of the agency at that time to determine the best way forward.”

Liberty Counsel inferred from the amended guidance that the White House had an influence on the decision to suspend the application of the one-year reporting requirement.

‘Undoubtedly received the pressure from the Biden administration, but OSHA suspended the enforcement requirement to record adverse injuries or death due to COVID shots until May 2022 to print the COVID shots. This politically motivated change by OSHA is unprecedented, ”the group said in a press release.

Liberty Counsel Founder and Chairman Mat Staver in a Press release criticized the decision to change the OSHA leadership.

“Employers who expect employees to take a COVID survey can be held liable for adverse injuries and death. The fact that OSHA will not apply the survey requirements does not change the legal liability of employers requiring, forcing or encouraging employees to take COVID surveys.

‘OSHA’s suspension of the survey requirement not to discourage experimental COVID shots shows that the Biden government can pay less attention to the collateral damage caused by the COVID shots. The people can see this biased agenda. They are not stupid.”

None of the available COVID-19 shots have been approved or licensed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Liberty Counsel noted. They come under the introduction of an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA), which means that their use is not necessary.

The FDA acknowledge on its website that it “should ensure that recipients of the vaccine are informed under an EUA, in so far as practicable given the appropriate circumstances … that they have the option to accept or refuse the vaccine, and of any available alternatives to the product. “

EUA authority under section 564 of the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetics Act, allows the FDA to take steps to protect public health from “chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear threats (CBRN), including infectious diseases, by facilitate the availability and use of medical countermeasures (MCMs) required during public health emergencies.”

When the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) declare that an EUA is needed, as it did on On March 27, 2020, regarding the ongoing pandemic, the FDA may authorize other approved medical products or unauthorized use of approved medical products to be used ‘in an emergency to treat serious or life-threatening diseases or conditions caused by CBRN diagnose, treat or prevent. threat agents when certain criteria are met, among which there are no adequate, approved and available alternatives.”

The OSHA sent for for a comment on Memorial Day, but did not receive a response at press time.

 

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Tulsa Burning: The 1921 Race Massacre Trailer | Premieres May 30 at 8/7c | The HISTORY Channel

The HISTORY® Channel sets the premiere date for its new two-hour documentary “Tulsa Burning: The 1921 Race Massacre” on Sunday, May 30 at 8PM ET/PT. Executive produced by NBA super star and philanthropist Russell Westbrook, and directed by Peabody and Emmy-Award winning director Stanley Nelson (“Freedom Riders”) and Peabody and duPont-Award winner Marco Williams (“Two Towns of Jasper”), the documentary commemorates the 100th anniversary of the horrific Tulsa Race Massacre of 1921, one of the worst acts of racial violence in American history, and calls attention to the previously ignored but necessary repair of a town once devastated. The HISTORY® Channel is also partnering with WNYC Studios to launch a new six-part podcast series Blindspot: Tulsa Burning on May 28 as complementary audio content.

Additionally, through its “Save Our History” philanthropic initiative, the network is helping to preserve the Historic Vernon A.M.E. Church, the only standing Black-owned structure from the Historic Greenwood Avenue and Black Wall Street era

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JPMorgan Chase’s Advancing Cities Challenge is back

Communities are invited to apply until June 28th for up to $5 million to support innovative, sustainable solutions that drive wealth creation and economic success of Black and Latina women, which is foundational to building more equitable communities.

 

Based on a history of investments across U.S. cities, JPMorgan Chase understands achieving a more inclusive economy and reversing racial and gender inequities will require bold, collaborative work.

 Sustainable solutions must be as multidimensional as the challenges they seek to address. This means leaders need to work together across sectors in new and innovative ways to address the root causes of today’s challenges and take promising solutions to scale. Collaboration across business, government, philanthropic, nonprofit, anchor institutions, and other community actors is required to confront and dismantle interlocking, systemic barriers to economic mobility. This often means altering policies and practices at the local level.

This year, JPMorgan Chase is evolving its AdvancingCities Challenge to source bold solutions that catalyze recovery and long-term prosperity for Black and Latina women, their families, and local economies. Black and Latina women are the backbone of many of America’s cities – as consumers, homeowners, entrepreneurs, business owners, and essential workers in critical sectors affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. However, longstanding racial and gender wealth gaps, coupled with impacts from COVID-19 have exacerbated disparities for Black and Latina women. 

The AdvancingCities Challenge is an annual competition that sources innovation to drive systemic change in U.S. cities, helping support economic opportunity for more people by leveraging meaningful collaboration among private, public, and nonprofit leaders. Previous AdvancingCities Challenge winners have demonstrated key factors that are essential to working collaboratively for lasting change. These include:

  • Shared priorities and a common understanding of goals to ensure alignment across partners,
  • A powerful vision for the future shaped by deep community engagement,
  • Strong leadership and collaboration among a diverse set of actors with unique authority and resources to drive sustainable change, and
  • Innovative approaches that are data-driven and evidence-based and that move beyond “business as usual” to change the trajectory of communities that are currently being left behind.

Through the AdvancingCities Challenge, JPMorgan Chase has seen how competitions can incentivize collaboration – a foundational element to drive innovative solutions to large social and economic challenges. The most successful local efforts unite around a common vision, set forth innovative approaches, and leverage the unique strengths, skills, and resources of each partner, making the whole stronger than the sum of its parts.

From May 17th through June 28th, JPMorgan Chase is inviting communities to apply for up to $5 million to support innovative, sustainable solutions that drive wealth creation and economic success of Black and Latina women, which is foundational to building more equitable communities. The proposals should address multidimensional, systemic challenges, leverage cross-sector leadership and collaboration, center the voice and lived experience of Black or Latina women, and drive systems change at the local level.

Submit your Application HERE 

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