2627 Discrimination
Date: Wed, 11 Aug 2004 03:56:50 -0400
From: Antonio Cervila Junior <junior@CERVILA.COM>
Subject: Discrimination
Cecilia and dear list:
Discrimination with non-Argentineans dancing tango. Well, I could write a lot about that. I am originally from Brazil and moved to Bs As in =
1992. When tango was not so fashion as today. But I will not talk about me. I am against any kind of discrimination. Been competitive is just a =
way to show that we are insecure of ourselves.
Just to remind a little bit of history: In 1869 where 5 foreigners for each Argentinean. In 1895 there was 667.786 habitants in Bs As. Which =
359.425 where foreigners. (Research that I did to write my book).
70 % where males. That's why so many Horn houses and Cabarets.
It was as painful to the immigrants to deal with the Argentineans' hate as much as for the Argentineans fell their land invaded. That pain and =
sadness gave the flavor that tango has.
Nowadays, the majority of tango performers and teachers are not porteņos. Are from other provincias. It's statistics.
So, Can we call Argentine Tango a dance created by Immigrants from all over the world? Maybe is just to make a difference between it and the =
one that high class danced at France's ballrooms.
Real Argentineans (de ley) are the Indians. Like Americans. Everybody else, if you scratch 2 or 3 generations, are European, African or Asian.
Does the place that you've born or the color of your skin gives you skills to be a good dancer?
I have no answer. I am just brainstorming.
By the way, I bet that I can find a dancer from Greenland that dances better than a porteņo.
Antonio Cervila Junior (El Brazuca)
cervila@hotmail.com<mailto:cervila@hotmail.com>
www.latindancecarnival.com<
Date: Tue, 12 Apr 2005 15:20:43 +0000
From: Sergio Vandekier <sergiovandekier990@HOTMAIL.COM>
Subject: discrimination
Argentina has considered itself a multicultural nation ever since its
beginnings.
The constitution gives the same rights to anyone that "inhabits the
Argentinean territory" disregarding his nationality, religion, race, sexual
preference or any other factor. This means, among many things, that
foreigners study in its Universities for free and that many use its
hospitals for free.
Although there are perhaps 2.5 million illegal immigrants very few were
ever sent back to their countries.
There were/are some practices that if taken to court would be considered
illegal such as charging different prices according to nationality or
socio-economical status.
Due to the present socio-economical crisis there has been a breakdown of
government supervision. This allows for certain things to occur.
Prices should be exhibited for all items to be sold (by law), yet many
stores do not show them.
This allows for discriminatory pricing, not only to foreign tourists but
also to regular Argentines.
It is unfair, discriminatory and illegal to charge different prices
according to nationality yet this happens in hotels and milongas, at CITA,
in many stores and until recently in some Airplane companies (the last ones
argue that the state gives them subsidies paid with Argentine Taxes).
Everyone knows that prices abroad are many fold higher than here, Buenos
Aires is the second cheapest city in the world. The price of meals is only
2-6 dollars, hotels 20-40 (the equivalent of the city tax in New York or the
fee to have your car parked for one day, a cab fare costs less than a bus
ticket abroad, etc, etc.
Argentina even during its worse crises still receives with open arms the
needy and the poor of the world and gives them citizenship while rich
nations like Switzerland denies that right to its millions of immigrants
(women there did not have the right to vote till recently) I know surgeons
in the USA and many hospitals there that discriminate in its fees according
to economical status or nationality (here we are talking thousands and not
1.30 dollar). :)) - All medical care in USA is provided under a
discriminatory pricing practice. A simple aspirin could be billed from
nothing to 15 dollars! depending on your insurance or economical situation
:))).
Summary: It is unfair, unethical, illegal to discriminate by nationality,
sex, race, religion or sexual preference as clearly expressed in the
constitution and felt by most Argentineans.
La Turca should be left to dance by herself not only on the account of
discrimination but also due to poor manners, over booking and leaving you
standing in the middle of nowhere, etc, etc. But like many unjust things in
the world her milongas are very successful.
On 24 August 1994, the Argentine Constitution was amended in several ways
that are relevant to the elimination of racial discrimination. In
correspondence with international human rights instruments, new amendments
prohibit discrimination, provide equal civil rights to nationals and
foreigners, and recognize indigenous communities as previously-extant legal
entities entitled to participation in relevant development issues. Under the
auspices of the Instituto Nacional de Asuntos Indigenas (National Institute
of Indigenous Affairs, INAT), various programmes have been established for
furthering land re-distribution, bilingual education, health programmes, and
rural economic development. Other articles allow for equal access to
education, with protections for cultural identities and diversity, and give
international human rights treaties, including the Convention on the
Elimination of Racial Discrimination, equal standing with the Constitution.
In addition to these constitutional amendments, various laws have been
passed and decrees issued in recent years with the aim of eliminating racial
and other forms of discrimination, documenting the occurrence of
discrimination, and enabling victims to seek redress. These include laws
criminalizing discriminatory acts or omissions based on race, ratifying
International Labour Organization Convention No. 169 concerning the rights
Indigenous and Tribal Peoples in Independent Countries, and establishing the
National Institute to Combat Discrimination, Xenophobia, and Racism
(Instituto Nacional contra la Discriminacion, Xenophobia y Racismo, INADI).
INADI was established by law in 1995 with the objective of elaborating
national policies and concrete measures to combat discrimination, xenophobia
and racism, and with the mandate of initiating and fulfilling actions to
this end. INADI has held anti-discrimination training sessions for
schoolteachers and law enforcement officials, and has launched public
education campaigns. It also has established a mechanism to receive
complaints and take action thereon in the courts. However, with difficult
economic situations, anti- discrimination, government agencies like INADI
and INAI suffer increased budget constraints. INADI faces difficulty in
covering the entire national territory, and does not have funding to track
statistics on racial discrimination and on its responses to the complaints
it receives.
Date: Tue, 12 Apr 2005 18:08:23 -0400
From: Cherie Magnus <MACFroggy@AOL.COM>
Subject: milonga price discrimination
Hola from Buenos Aires!
Since everyone and their uncle is voicing their opinion on this topic on the Tango-L, I'm jumping in too.
I'm a "local" in that I live here, so fine, I can go to La Ideal and pay 6 pesos instead of 10.
But how does that make the stranger from Europe feel who's standing behind me when she has to pay 10? It looks whimsical and discriminatory to have the ticket sellers assume from your looks how much you can pay. Prices based on appearance upset everybody. Especially when it feels sneaky and underhanded.
What is needed is a poster at the door with the prices: men so much, women so much (because generally and historically the milongas do this), locals so much, and foreigners so much. That's all, just honesty and openness and a BIG SIGN. Then everybody knows what's going on. And foreigners will more than likely just quietly fork over the 10 pesos.
Cherie
