by Andrew Chappelle, Communications Intern

i-squared, the young friends network of the International Institute of St. Louis, is attending a number of films this month that are part of the 17^th Annual St. Louis International Film Festival. The first film, Amal, was shown this past Sunday and I absolutely loved it.

From the Cinema St. Louis website:

In this multilayered portrait of modern India, auto-rickshaw driver Amal is content with the small but vital role he serves: driving customers around New Delhi as quickly and safely as possible. But his simple life is upended when an eccentric, aging billionaire, moved by the driver’s humility, bequeaths Amal his entire estate before passing away. Amal now must cope with an array of challenges, from a young injured beggar girl and a lovely store merchant to the old man’s inheritance-seeking upper-caste friends and siblings.

It was a special treat to be able to hear directly from director Richie Mehta after the screening.

After having such a great experience, I decided to make it a double feature and immediately purchased another $8 student ticket for Sous les Bombes (Under the Bombs). The film was shot entirely in war-torn Lebanon during the 2006 war with Israel and was a vivid, gripping account of a woman’s quest to find her son under the most difficult of circumstances.

The next films in the i-squared film series are:

Wonderful Town, Tuesday November 18^th, 7:15 pm @ Plaza Frontenac. Meet in front of theater at 7:00pm

Ton, a soulful young architect, arrives at a Thai coastal town to supervise the construction of a beach resort adjacent to a site severely ravaged by the 2004 tsunami. When Ton rents a room in a small hotel owned by Na, they slowly fall into a secret love affair. The winner of the prestigious Tiger Award at the Rotterdam Film Festival, “Wonderful Town” recalls the lyrical work of director Apichatpong Weerasethakul (“Tropical Malady”). Salon’s Andrew O’Hehir, who describes the film as “delicate, delightful and nearly note-perfect,” calls Assarad “a patient and a surprising director, alive to the most intimate details of everyday life – folding laundry, changing sheets, drinking coffee – and also to the dreams people hold closest to their hearts, the ones they can barely admit to themselves, let alone their lovers.” Languages: Thai w/ English subtitles

El Baño del Papa (The Pope’s Toilet), Wednesday November 19^th, 7:00pm @ Tivoli. Meet in lobby at 6:45

It’s 1988, and Melo, a Uruguayan town on the Brazilian border, awaits the visit of Pope John Paul II. More than 50,000 people are expected to attend, and the locals believe that selling food and drink to the gathered multitudes will make them rich. But petty smuggler Beto thinks he has the best idea of all: He decides he will build a public toilet in front of his house and charge for its use. His efforts bring about unexpected consequences, and the final results will surprise everyone. An official selection of both the Cannes and Toronto film festivals, “The Pope’s Toilet” gleefully mixes the sacred and the profane, with the Village Voice calling the film an “alternately heartbreaking and hilarious satire” that “bawdily conveys the complex Latin-American relationship to God – and the means by which authoritarian institutions take a dump on the lives of the impoverished.” Languages: Spanish w/ English subtitles

Zarim (Strangers), Thursday November 20^th, 7:00pm @ Plaza Frontenac. Meet in front of theater at 6:45

A 2008 Sundance selection, “Strangers” chronicles six days in the lives of Eyal, an Israeli living in a kibbutz, and Rana, a Palestinian living in Paris, who accidentally meet in the Berlin subway during the World Cup finals. Eyal, who came to meet his girlfriend, and Rana, who came to cheer the French team, are forced to share an apartment and, as the final match approaches, they fall in love – a relationship seriously complicated when war breaks out between Israel and Lebanon. Variety writes that although “gem-hard in its political realism, ‘Strangers’ is generous enough to suggest love may actually triumph – and as such will win a lot of hearts.” Languages: Hebrew w/ English subtitles

Come on out as i-squared supports the St. Louis International Film Festival!

By Andrew Chappelle, Communications Intern

More than 64 million Americans recently voted in a national election, electing Democrat Barack Obama as the 44th president of the United States. While the last few weeks of the contest between Senators John McCain and Barack Obama were filled with all sorts of issues, ranging from the current financial crisis and the war in Iraq, to not-so-important topics like Joe the Plumber and lipstick on pigs, one topic was noticeably absent from most campaign coverage: immigration policy.

Neither candidate had a particular desire to bring up what has been, unfortunately, a very polarizing topic in this election season, especially when each would have been unable to draw significant contrasts to the other’s plan.

According to Change.gov, the website of the Office of the President-elect, Obama’s immigration policy rests on 5 tenets:

1.) Creating “secure” borders.

2.) Fixing the dysfunctional immigration bureaucracy.

3.) Removing the incentives to enter illegally by cracking down on employers who hire undocumented immigrants.

4.) Providing a path to citizenship which would allow undocumented immigrants in good standing to come out of the shadows and have the opportunity to become citizens.

5.) Promoting economic development in Mexico and other Central American countries to decrease illegal immigration.

Let’s get a conversation going. How do you think Obama will change immigration policy?

By Andrew Chappelle
Communications Intern.

Last week, I went to my first i-squared events and really enjoyed myself! I-squared is the Institute’s young friends network and has events throughout the year which provide a greater understanding of the agency, its services and volunteer opportunities, among young St. Louisans. These events are also a great way to learn more about the families the agency serves. 

On Tuesday, the i-squared International Dinner Club went to Gian-Tony’s, a fabulous Italian restaurant in the Hill. Each time i-squared goes out to eat, there’s a different ethnic theme. In 2009, the International Dinner Club will continue its trek around the globe as we dine on Persian, Honduran, Nepalese and all sorts of other cuisines. Be sure to sign up for these events—you won’t regret it!

Also last week, there was an overview of the immigration system given by our very own Anna Croslin, President and CEO of the Institute. If you’d like to have a listen to this informative presentation (complete with slides), it’s provided here.

There has been some great coverage of the English Only Amendment in the local news. Check out Doug Moore’s story in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch here. And KWMU’s Matt Sepic has a story airing this morning on 90.7.

More links: 

Suburban Journals

St. Joe News

KMOV Channel 4

Kansas City Star (via McClatchy)

by Andrew Chappelle

In the next month, Missouri voters won’t just be heading to the polls to choose the next president of the United States or our next governor, but will also vote to solve what amounts to a statewide problem …that doesn’t exist.

November’s ballot will feature yet another wedge-issue constitutional amendment intended to divide voters, galvanize one party’s base and shift attention from more pressing issues we as Missourians currently face. This time around there is an amendment to declare English as an official language of government business in a manner that is arguably anti-immigrant.

Similarly in the 2004 election cycle, Missouri voters were divided by a constitutional amendment aggressively pushed by one political party, which succeeded in diverting voters’ attention from other serious local and national concerns.

Constitutional Amendment 1 would amend the Missouri Constitution to add a statement that English should be the language of all governmental meetings at which any public business is discussed, decided, or public policy is formulated, whether conducted in person or by conference call, video conference, or by Internet chat or message board. The ballot measure would also mean that English would be the only language for ballots, driver’s license exams and other documents.

Regardless of its intent, this amendment would adversely affect non-English speakers—effectively punishing them—and would impinge on their ability to seek and obtain information and services from the Missouri government. Such a move could negatively affect a wide swath of individuals, be they legally admitted or not.

A mechanism has been in place for several decades in which immigrants, international students and refugees have had the option of using a translated application for driver’s licenses—this system has worked and under the new amendment, would be scrapped.

According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol, the written test for a Class F license (the kind most people have, including myself) is currently available in 11 foreign languages. They are: Chinese, French, German, Greek, Italian, Korean, Russian, Spanish, Vietnamese, Japanese, and Bosnian. Seven foreign languages are offered on the computer: Spanish, Russian, Vietnamese, Japanese, Bosnian, Korean, and Chinese. Until recently, the Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) written examinations were provided in English and Spanish, though the Missouri House changed this law as of August 28th and it is now administered only in English, with translators not allowed for applicants taking the test. In the first half of 2007, nearly 3,700 written tests were in a language other than English. 

If we truly want immigrants, refugees and international students to thrive in the state of Missouri, we must provide them with the means to help themselves. The ability to drive a vehicle is key for so many people to obtain employment.

Theses changes to driver’s license examinations may not be apparent to the public in the language of the amendment, which focuses on official meetings. This is why it is important that we educate our community about the potential ramifications of this amendment, which could change the way government preceedings are conducted, the way testimony is given in a court of law, and other instances where a foreign language is occasionally spoken. There are far too many unknowns.

Join me in voting “no” on Missouri Constitutional Amendment 1.

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“English-only issue gets Missouri talking”, Kansas City Star

“English-only amendment sparks heated debate”, St. Joseph News Press

“Amendment would require English”, Belleville News Democrat