February 06, 2009, cont. from front page, Two Bennys and Pilaseca sing on Valentine’s Day, By Krishna Villena, Security in San Miguel, Overdue book amnesty

Cont. from front page,

“It is really sad to be fighting young criminals with weapons and jail sentences,” said Daniel Trujillo, head of the Public Security Department (Dirección de Seguridad Pública).

“Nobody considers taking preventive measures to dissuade young people from crime.” After months of planning, Trujillo and the staff of the Public Security Department officially presented the program Estrella Azul, which will offer free workshops for children.

“Estrella Azul is focused on children, to whom, with the support of their parents, we will be teaching values such as honesty, responsibility, compromise, discipline, respect, loyalty, integrity and strength and giving them tools to manage their lives and become positive contributors to society,” said Trujillo. The program’s mission is to rescue children from drug and alcohol abuse through cultural, recreational, ecological and crime prevention activities. Workshops will cover subjects such as ecology, drug addiction prevention, English, self-defense, civil protection and values.

The workshops will be free and open to all minors age 6 and above from 9 to 11am and 4 to 6pm, three days a week. “We will even have transportation to bring them to the Police Training Center facilities,” said Trujillo.

According to Miguel Ángel Hernández Rodríguez, a psychologist at the Public Security Department, children and youths—especially those with a history of criminal behavior—will be invited to participate in the workshops through the schools or through neighborhood representatives. “The Public Security Department is in constant contact with the neighborhood representatives since we have periodic meetings with them. They already know who the troublesome youths are in their neighborhoods, and through them we will invite the young people to join the workshops,” said Hernández.

Trujillo said that he intends to begin the program in March.

Citizen involvement in Blue Star

So that the Estrella Azul program will continue after the current administration leaves office, the Public Security Department is inviting all members of the community—foreign and Mexican—to form a board of trustees to supervise and coordinate the program.

“We do not want any member of the government or political party to form the board; we want to invite members of the community to form it,” said Trujillo, who added that the board would have to work hard to organize fundraising activities to sponsor Estrella Azul. Some funds from the national, state and local governments will also be available for the program.

City councilor María de los Ángeles Pérez Flores said she would like to invite the community to join this common effort to save youth from crime. “It is very easy to say we love them, but it can be difficult to show it,” she said.

Those interested in becoming a member of the board of trustees should contact Miguel Ángel Hernández Rodríguez or Daniel Trujillo’s secretary, Laura Juárez, at the Public Security Department, tel. 152-2890.

The cases of Edgar and Rodrigo

Edgar, deaf since birth, had lived a relatively normal life until he was 18, finished school and became economically independent. At that point, says Edgar’s mother, Felícitas, “I began having problems with Edgar.

He told me that I could not say anything to him or scold him because he was now an adult. He started using drugs, and his attitude became violent. One day, he even hit me and his siblings. I did not know what to do.” Ever since he was a little boy, Felícitias had tried to give him a good education. “I did not notice when things got out of control. Unfortunately, we cannot be with our children 24 hours a day, and because of his hearing problem I could not communicate fully with him.”

Felícitas finally went to the Public Security Department and asked for Chief Trujillo’s aid. “Mr. Trujillo helped me to bring Edgar to the Public Security Department to see the psychiatrists.

Then, through a program of physical fitness, he was able to channel all the energy and violence he had inside,” said Felícitas. Edgar eventually entered the police academy and graduated after three months of training. “It was very difficult for him and for us, because we did not know what would result from this. Today, I can say that, thanks to God, Edgar has overcome all his problems and now he serves the community.”

Rodrigo, currently 16, also had conduct problems at school and at home. He dropped out of school and stopped coming home regularly. “One day he stole money from my credit card,” said his mother, Enedina.

“I did not know what to do. I decided to go to the police. Chief Trujillo suggested that Rodrigo attend Grupo Vivo (an antecedent of Estrella Azul that works with children on Saturday mornings). He began attending the group, but then he stopped going. He did not come home to sleep, and he started drinking alcohol and dating an older girl.”

Desperate, Enedina asked Chief Trujillo to force Rodrigo to go Grupo Vivo, or even to arrest him if necessary. “Mr. Trujillo asked me if I was sure of that, and I said yes,” said Enedina, with tears in her eyes.

One Saturday morning, a police car stopped at Rodrigo’s house and took him to jail, where he remained for three days. “I was afraid of his possible reaction. First, he used to call me and ask me to bring him food since he did not like the food at the jail. After the three days passed, he was a different boy. His attitude toward me and his father changed completely.”

Now, Rodrigo volunteers in the Public Security Department’s administration. He returned to school and has decided he wants to be a lawyer.

	Total arrests	Minors	11-12	13-14	15-16	17-18

Alcohol	1,624	270	1	12	77	180

Other drugs	399	113	0	4	43	66

Family’s request	362	23	1	0	4	18

Five neighborhoods with greatest numbers of youth arrests by category

Alcohol
Centro
San Rafael
San Antonio
Allende
Palmita de Landeta

Other drugs
Centro
San Rafael
Cuevitas
San Antonio
Palmita de Landeta

Family’s request
Centro
San Antonio
San Rafael
Cuevitas
San Luis Rey

Two Bennys and Pilaseca sing on Valentine’s Day
By Krishna Villena

Concert, 6pm
Benny, Pilaseca & Benny Ibarra
Sat, Feb 14, 6pm
Plaza de Toros, Recreo 52
400 & 200 pesos

Famous Mexican singer and former member of the pop band Timbiriche, Benny Ibarra, local rock band Pilaseca, and Benny Ibarra’s father, also named Benny, are among the musicians who will perform together in a concert on Valentine´s Day at the Plaza de Toros (bullring) in San Miguel. A percentage of the profits will benefit Hospice and DIF.

Benny Ibarra De Llano (Benny Jr.), musician, producer and actor, was born into a family of artists: his mother, Julissa, a singer and actress, and his father, Benny Sr., a rock singer with the group Los Yaki and actor, were popular in Mexico in the 1960s. The younger Benny studied jazz, guitar, classical music and composition at the Walnut Hill School of the Arts at Berklee College of Music in Boston. He began working as a solo artist in 1992. With this concert, he brings his “Claroscuro” tour to a close, accompanied by his father.

The idea for the benefit concert came from Pawis, a member of Pilaseca, who asked Benny to come to San Miguel for a concert at Teatro Ángela Peralta. But they decided to do something bigger, and “we ended up renting the city’s bull ring for the concert,” said Ibarra.

The band Pilaseca mixes funk and hip-hop rhythms and “is well known in San Miguel,” said Ibarra. The group formed in San Miguel in 1999, and they have recorded two albums, Humo de Cigarro and Afrodisiaco. “Finally, this February 14 my dream of giving a concert in this town with my friends is coming true,” said Benny. This concert is different for Benny in many ways, especially because “it has been a huge and complete effort of love and it has been an important lesson to me.”

San Miguel is the place where Benny started his solo career after leaving Timbiriche. He is dedicating the concert to “a great dreamer, musician, mentor and friend, Scott Mahorik, who opened the doors of his legendary Pancho’s and Lefty’s to me.”

Tickets are for sale at the DIF offices and in the Jardín from 11am–3pm, at Café del Jardín (Plaza Prinicipal), Cantina de Los Milagros (Reloj 7), Mama Mia (Umarán 8) and Perfiles magazine (Ancha de San Antonio 69). In Querétaro, you can buy tickets at Encrucijada Rock House (Av. Circunvalación 46) and Encrucijada Jazz Club (Calzada de los Arcos 21). More info is available at www.benny.tv or by calling 045-415-100-2767.

Security in San Miguel

US consul Ed Clancy welcomes members of the US Embassy’s Regional Security Office, Social Security department and general authorities for a special question-and-answer session. The meeting is Wednesday, February 11, 6pm, Bellas Artes theater, Hernandez Macias 75. To close the meeting on a musical high note San Miguel favorite sons of strings Gil and Cartas will perform.

The consul wishes to remind the public that a general Town Hall style meeting will also be held that same day, Wednesday February 11 at 3pm, Sala Quetzal.

Overdue book amnesty

The Biblioteca Pública de San Miguel announced an Amnesty Box will be available in the Biblioteca’s patio February 13–14. Library members who have books checked out with 2008 return dates that were not returned on time may deposit their books with no charge.