Produced by Juan Carlos Dávila, the investigative series debuts November 2 with episodes on energy, environment, displacement, economic precarity, and impact of natural disasters
On Wednesday, November 2, The Center for Puerto Rican Studies at Hunter College will premiere Season 5 of Puerto Rican Voices at the Silberman School of Social Work at Hunter College. In its new iteration, Puerto Rican Voices has been reimagined as an investigative docu-series about the ongoing effects and responses to colonialism in Puerto Rico. This five-part series will explore Puerto Rico’s energy crisis, environmental destruction, displacement, and economic precarity, resulting from a decade-long recession, and the aftershocks of several natural disasters. It also explores how Puerto Rican residents are responding to these challenges through community organizing and cultural resistance.
The series, produced by CENTRO, include the works of five independent filmmakers: Ana María García, Sonia Fritz, Ismael “Kike” Cubero, Noelia Quintero and Juan Carlos Dávila, who is also the Series Producer. Beginning in November, the series will be aired through CUNY TV and through CENTRO’s YouTube Channel. Each episode will have a discussion guide, supporting documentation and references available for free on CENTRO’s website to promote the discussion and understanding of the issues that affect the Puerto Rican community.
Each episode will have a discussion guide, and educational supplement available free of charge on the CENTRO website. The goal is for the series to serve as a catalyst for discussion and understanding of the issues affecting the Puerto Rican community.
“For this new season of Puerto Rican Voices, we worked not just with filmmakers but also with two incredible young Puerto Rican musicians who wrote the original theme song: Andrea Cruz an independent songwriter from Aibonito, Puerto Rico, and with cuatrist Fabiola Méndez from Boston, MA, who is the first student to graduate from Berklee College of Music with a specialty in the Puerto Rican cuatro. With this theme song we aimed to build bridges of solidarity among our communities in the archipelago and the diaspora,” said Angel Antonio Ruiz, Associate Director of Arts and Culture at CENTRO.
The series premiere will feature a panel discussion with filmmaker Noelia Quintero, Series Producer Juan C. Dávila and CENTRO Directora Yarimar Bonilla, with Xavier Santiago, director of the International Puerto Rican Heritage Film Festival, moderating the conversation. The event will take place at the Silberman School of Social Work on November 2nd at 5 PM EST. This event will also feature a performance of the theme song of Puerto Rican Voices by singers Andrea Cruz y Fabiola Méndez. After the presentation, we will have a reception.
You can RSVP by visiting the events section on CENTRO’s website. https://buff.ly/3Nb1k0j