Latino USA

Today on Latino USA, we enter the U.S. Senate chambers and get to follow along as members of Congress tackle one of the nation's most controversial issues: immigration. There's just one twist—this Senate is comprised of nine and ten year-olds who are currently 4th graders. At the Edward M. Kennedy Institute in Boston, these young students are given the chance to craft and pass their own immigration reform bill, that will provide a pathway to citizenship for nearly 11 million undocumented immigrants. We follow these senators as they attempt to create comprehensive immigration reform, something that our own government hasn't been able to do for over 30 years.

Latino USA teamed up with the Unterberg Poetry Center at the 92nd Street Y to put on an event honoring the 25th anniversary of Esmeralda Santiago's coming of age classic "When I Was Puerto Rican." In conversation with producer Antonia Cereijido, Santiago talks about what it's like to live through a hurricane, the #metoo movement, and learning to not care about what other people think of you.

In 1998, three television writers tasked with creating the next hit children's show came up with the idea of a young girl who would go on adventures, and ask questions directly to the audience. With the help of consultants, they created a seven year-old Latina girl named Dora Márquez and the show, "Dora the Explorer." Almost 20 years later, Dora is reimagined as a teenager in a new live-action film called "Dora and the Lost City of Gold." While some of the elements in Dora's world are still fictional, the live-action film grounds Dora in reality. In this segment, Latino USA dives into the legacy of "Dora the Explorer" then and now.

On August 3rd, a gunman opened fire at a Walmart in the border city of El Paso, Texas. 22 people were killed—eight were Mexican citizens and the majority were Latino. The suspect, in a white extremist manifesto posted online, cited what he called "an invasion" of Latinos in the U.S. The Walmart where the gunman opened fire is frequently visited by Latinos and Mexicans from both El Paso and Juarez—the neighboring city in Mexico. In this episode, Latino USA travels to El Paso, a town that has long been considered a commuter hub, to talk to residents impacted by the tragic shooting.

Gina Torres knew from a young age that she wanted to be in the arts. The Cuban-American actress grew up in the Bronx, New York and graduated from LaGuardia High School, the school for the performing arts featured in the movie Fame. She's made a name for herself in the sci-fi universe with roles on critically acclaimed series such as Firefly and Angel —and she even had a role in the Matrix sequels. Recently, you may have seen her playing something different—a lawyer, on the USA network series, Suits . Latino USA sits down with Torres to talk about her childhood, and how being an actress in science fiction, gave her the freedom to be anything.