Lambda Theta Phi Latin Fraternity, Inc. (Lambda) and the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) have partnered in order to provide Latinos around the country the opportunity to come together and view PBS’s Latino Americans documentary series.
Below is a brief description on the series airing in September and October. Latino Americans on PBS is airing on Tuesday, September 17, Tuesday, September 24 and Tuesday, October 1 at 8:00 p.m. (check local listings).
FROM PBS:
“LATINO AMERICANS is a landmark three-part, six-hour documentary series that is set to air nationally on PBS in the fall of 2013.
It is the first major documentary series for television to chronicle the rich and varied history and experiences of Latinos, who have helped shape the United States over the last 500-plus years and have become, with more than 50 million people, the largest minority group in the U.S.
Immigration is at the heart of the American experience, and a central part of the long-running democratic experiment that is the United States. So it is that our series intersects much that is central to the history of the United States. The story includes expansionism, Manifest Destiny, the Wild West, multiple wars (Mexican-American, Spanish-American, World War II), the rise of organized labor, the Great Depression, the post WWII boom, the Cold War, the Civil Rights movement, globalization, and the effects of multiple kinds of technologies – from the railroad and barbed wire to the internet and satellite television.
Despite such familiar landmarks, our history will go to places where standard U.S. histories do not tend to tread. The series will be driven by the human dramas of our characters’ struggles and triumphs, successes and disappointments, both historical personages and living ones. They are people whose stories tell us much about their times.
The films will chronicle Latinos in the United States from the sixteenth century to present day. It is a story of people, politics, and culture, large in scale and deep in its reach. The changing and yet repeating context of American history provides a backdrop for the drama of individual lives. It is a story of immigration and redemption, of anguish and celebration, of the gradual construction of a new American identity that connects and empowers millions of people today.
LATINO AMERICANS features interviews with an array of individuals, including entertainer Rita Moreno, the Puerto Rican star of West Side Story and a winner of Academy, Tony, Grammy and Emmy Awards; labor leader and 2012 Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient Dolores Huerta, who in the 1960s co-founded with César Chávez the National Farm Workers Association, which later became United Farm Workers of America; Mexican-American author and commentator Linda Chávez, who became the highest-ranking woman in the Reagan White House; and Cuban singer and entrepreneur Gloria Estefan, who has sold more than 100 million solo and Miami Sound Machine albums globally.”
Lambda would like to participate in this historic event, being that Lambda is the organization that started the Latino Greek movement and has a place in the United States’ history.
Each active entity will host a viewing party on their campus (total of three for the three different nights the episodes air) and have discussions with those in attendance about the night’s episode. While viewing Latino Americans on PBS, the members of the organization will live tweet, post on Facebook, take videos and photographs (of gatherings) to post on Instagram. The members of the organization MUST use the following hash tags when posting: #LatinosPBS #Lambdas #HHM2013. Make sure to mention @Lambdas1975 in your tweets.
Hosting a viewing party is your opportunity to rally your community and raise awareness of the contribution Latinos have made to the United States. During the telecast of Latino Americans, you will have the opportunity to join a national conversation (through social media) that will not only include all entities from our great organization but the wider Latino community.
You can lead a discussion on the episodes you just watched, host a potluck of dishes made from Latin American countries or even have speakers from academia join your group. Viewing parties are left up to the discretion of the entities. Viewing parties can be as small as two Lambda Brothers getting together to watch the episodes or as large as an entity hosting a broadcast of the episode on campus and inviting guests.
Viewing Party Rules
§ You must complete the registration form in order to register as an official viewing party.
§ Parties must be free of charge.
If you want to host a viewing party, please fill out the registration form before an episode.
FAQ’s
What time do the PBS Latino American episodes air?
The episodes of Latino Americans will air on three separate nights.
Tuesday, September 17 at 8:00 p.m. (check local listings)
Tuesday, September 24 at 8:00 p.m. (check local listings)
Tuesday, October 1 at 8:00 p.m. (check local listings)
Do I have to show the entire two hour episodes?
Yes, in order to understand the story of Latinos in the United States, you must watch the entire one hour six episodes being shown on three nights.
Is there a fee associated with this viewing party?
No, there is no fee.
Who else is hosting a viewing party?
All active entities of Lambda Theta Phi are expected to host a viewing party per night. In addition, alumni will host viewing parties on their own to support this endeavor.
What should I do during the episodes?
You must post on social media during the two-hour event each night.
Please use the appropriate hash tags when posting. Please make sure you are posting on your entity’s page (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram).
What should I do after the episodes have aired?
You should have discussions or debrief the episodes with colleagues, Brothers and friends. If hosting an event on campus, you may even choose to invite a faculty member to provide some remarks, or guide discussion, before the viewing begins.
We believe this is a great opportunity to be involved in the viewing of this epic documentary series being shown by PBS. Latino history in the United States dates back to the 16th century and it is time we show the rest of the country the great contributions we have made in the building of this great nation.
When posting, please refrain from using obscene language or photos. This is a great opportunity for the rest of the Latino community to view our organization as leading the movement.
If you have any questions, please contact the National Historian, Oliver Fajardo at 240.421.6354 or .
Disclaimer – PBS is a great organization and has provided great programming in the past. Lambda Brothers have not screened the entire documentary but expect that it will be a great moment in Latino history.