PROGRAMS  |  BLACK CHURCH INITIATIVE AND LA INICIATIVA LATINA

Clearing House and Resource Center - Latina and Latino Issues

The MultiCultural Programs Department Clearing House and Resource Center features a collection of theological books, sermons, speeches,  workshop presentations, youth and adult sexuality curriculums. The Clearing House and Resource Center serves as a resource to clergy, seminarians, health and human service educators, parents and youth. Resources are available for loan. For more information, contact bciinfo@rcrc.org or call 202-628-7700.

Books

A Reader In Latina Feminist Theology: Religion and Justice, Maria Pilar Aquino, Daisy L. Machardo, Jeannette Rodríguez
With twelve original essays by emerging and established Latina feminist theologians, this first-of-its-kind volume adds the perspectives, realities, struggles, and spiritualities of U.S. Latinas to the larger feminist theological discourse. The editors have gathered writings from both Roman Catholics and Protestants and from various Latino/a communities. The writers address a wide array of theological concerns: popular religion, denominational presence and attraction, methodology, lived experience, analysis of nationhood, and interpretations of life lived on a border that is not only geographic but also racial, gendered, linguistic, and religious.

Latino Gay Men and HIV: Culture, Sexuality, and Risk Behavior, Rafael Diaz
By the end of December 1996 a total of 42,563 AIDS cases were diagnosed among Latino gay and bisexual men. In a world of safer sex, where the message is out to use condoms, why is it that a staggering proportion of Latino and gay men contract HIV each year? Rafael Diaz provides us with a pivotal examination of how sexual silence, machismo, homophobia, poverty and racism continue to contribute to high risk practices among Latino gay men.

A Theology of Liberation, Gustavo Gutierrez
Gutierrez has revised a key section of his masterwork and has added an essay  that reviews the evolution of liberation theology and delineates key themes of the present and future. The text has been completely re-edited to employ inclusive language throughout. A Theology of Liberation is the single most lucid, direct and powerful statement of the heart of liberation theology.  

Introducing Latino/a Theologies, Miguel De La Torre and Edwin David Aponte
The author articulates the fundamental principles and perspectives with which Hispanics from different faith traditions do theology. They show who Latino/as are and how their various cultures have been shaped by historical movements such as colonialism and Christian mission.

Mujerista Theology, Ada Maria Isasi-Diaz

Hispanic/Latino Theology, Ada Maria Isasi-Diaz and Fernando Segovia
U.S Hispanic/Latino voices have emerged in the last ten years to become one of the strongest and most creative theological movements in the Americas. Fully ecumenical and organized in systematic, collaborative framework, this major volume features Hispanic theology’s sources (the Bible, church history, cultural memory, literature, oral tradition, Pentecostalism), loci (urban barrios, Puerto Rico, exile, liberation, social sciences, Latina feminists), and rich and vigorous expressions (mujerista theology, popular religion, theopoetics). Hispanic/Latino Theology not only celebrates the full flowering of U.S. Latino work, it also splendidly reveals the exciting possibilities and future shape of contextual theologies in close touch with the daily realities of struggling people.

Hijas Americanas: Beauty, Body Image, and Growing Up Latina, Rosie Molinary
Do some people believe that being Latina means you must be voluptuous? A good dancer? Overly sexual? Bound to get pregnant? A strict Catholic? From a big family? Marked by an accent? Are you overwhelmed by the current climate of body-consciousness in American? Do the media images of Latinas and women ring false to you? Do you ever feel like you are caught between cultures and are being asked to choose just one? Have you ever been labeled “inauthentic” because you don’t fit into someone else’s perception of how a Latina should look or act? These are just a few of the questions that more than five hundred Latinas from diverse backgrounds answered when author Rosie Molinary set out to research and write Hijas Americanas. In this book, Molinary pairs her experiences growing up in the South as a Puerto Rican with stories from Latinas across the country to show how coming of age between two cultures impacts every Latina’s self-image and way of life. In doing so, she bridges the identity gap: We are Latina, these women explain, and we are American—in all our colors, styles, looks, mixed back-grounds, heritages, and ethnicities. Ultimately, this book exposes the ways in which Latinas’ experiences are profoundly unique—and yet comfortingly universal.

Body Drama, Nancy Amanda Redd
Body Drama talks about all the issues that keep you up at night –lopsided boobs, stinky pitts, eating disorders, facial hair, bad dye jobs and more. Alongside real-deal photographs of women just like you and me (no airbrushing, no supermodels, no kidding), you’ll find medical pictures of things you need to be able to recognize, true confessions by yours truly, and the encouragement you need to appreciate the uniqueness, strength and beauty of your body.

Salsa, Soul, and Spirit: Leadership for a Multicultural Age, Juana Bordas
Using a sports analogy, leadership without and inclusive multicultural orientation would be like trying to play golf with a tennis racket. You can do it, but how poorly! Study the eight beautifully illustrated and resourced principles in this book and you’ll find that they are both universal and timeless. Only by honoring and celebrating diversity can we synergistically produce unity, including peace and prosperity for all. Juana Bordas presents a compelling and inspiring analysis of the absolute need in the United States and the global community for multicultural leadership based on ‘earning’ principle-centered moral authority.

Curriculum

Jovenes Sabios: Responsabilidad Masculina Curriculo, Family Life Council of Greater Greensboro North Carolina

Videos

Broken Vows: Religious Perspectives on Domestic Violence, Parts I-11 DVD, produced by the Faith Institute (available in Spanish)

Live With It, Episodes 1-3, produced by Incendia Health Studios
Live With It is the Web's first animated series about people living with HIV/AIDS. It is an award-winning site that is creating a buzz within the HIV community. Live With It episodes have been viewed by thousands of people in over 140 countries.

Nightmare on AIDS Street, A Scenarios USA film
A teenage girl experiences flashbacks and realizations as she waits to get the results of an HIV test. Written by 15 year-old Nicole Zepeda (San Juan, TX).

Don't Dance with Death, A Scenarios USA film
This film is based on the Mexican myth, "Devil in the Dance Hall." A night at a dance blub turns serious for four chicas when an unwanted image appears. Don't Dance with Death deals with condom use, relationships and friendships.

Today I Found Out, A Scenarios USA film
Shot on the Texas/Mexico border town of Laredo, this film was adapted from an essay written by a 14 year-old girl who is trying to make sense of the world around her when she learns her best friend is pregnant. Deals with choosing abstience, peer pressure, and self-awareness. Written by Samantha Hernandez.