Saturday, October 1 at 7:00pm

Story of the United Farmworkers Union (UFW) and leader César Chávez, who inspired Chicano activism of the '60s and '70s, and involved millions in a non-violent struggle for social justice. Befriended by Robert Kennedy and attacked by the Teamsters, Chávez was the most important Latino leader in U.S. history – the movement he led changed American politics forever.

 

Saturday, October 1 at 9:00pm

Winner of the Alfred I. duPont-Columbia Award, this 1991 KBDI documentary by producer Carolyn Hales explores a land rights battle that has been raging in New Mexico for over a century. Filmed in a remote northern New Mexico valley, the program captures local residents as they set up an armed camp to stop a subdivision. Narrated by Luis Valdez.

 

Saturday, October 1 at 10:00pm

VALLEY OF TEARS is an epic examination of race, class and corruption in one south Texas town. Beginning with a 1979 onion workers' strike, the film documents the lives of Mexican-American migrant farm workers in Raymond-ville, Texas. The result is a complex story of the long journey of individuals who endure hardship in order to make a better future for their families.

 

Saturday, October 1 at 11:00pm

Denese, born Dominga, was nine when she became her family's sole survivor of a massacre of Maya peasants. Two years later, she was adopted by an American family. In "Discovering Dominga," Denese's journey home to Guatemala is both a voyage of self-discovery and a political awakening, bearing testimony to a hemispheric tragedy and a shameful political crime.

 

Sunday, October 2 at 8:30pm

Frida Kahlo was more than a great painter: her life and art reflected the maelstrom of revolution and culture that defined the first half of the twentieth century. By combining Kahlo's stunning artwork with photographs, archival films and contemporary interviews, this documentary profiles Kahlo's extraordinary life.

 

Sunday, October 2 at 10:00pm

This program examines the poignant life and work of Jose Limon, the enigmatic Mexican-American choreographer. Limon's life story is unveiled through his unfinished autobiography, in which Limon wrote of his childhood in Mexico, his family's flight north during the Mexican Revolution, and the inevitable discovery of his true language – that of the expressive human body.

 

Monday, October 3 at 8:00pm

Traveler Justine Shapiro ventures to Mexico City where she visits the colorful food markets, learns about the city's archaeological treasures, samples numerous varieties of tequila and takes in masked wrestling. Justine also joins the devotional throng for the Virgin of Guadalupe Festival, witnesses her first bullfight and explores the lush, secluded mountains of El Rosario.

 

Saturday, October 8 at 9:00pm

Southwestern Hispanic culture and traditional music have been in Colorado for more than five centuries. In the San Luis Valley, the songs and stories of Spanish conquerors, Mexican Settlers and indigenous peoples are living, breathing artifacts. This KBDI program features some of the area’s leading performers of southwestern music.

 

Saturday, October 8 at 10:00pm

In THE SUITOR, Yolanda Garcia (Rosa Arredondo, pictured) is called home from New York City to the Dominican Republic to work on her Uncle Mundo's presidential campaign. Against her explicit wishes, her live-in boyfriend, Dexter Hayes (Tim Guinee) follows, only to be overwhelmed by Yolanda's relatives, politics and country.

 

Saturday, October 8 at 11:00pm

In this drama, a century-old legend of the lost treasure of Tejano folk hero Gregorio Cortez changes the lives of four present-day Texans. Jesse Borrego, Jacob Vargas, Maria Candelaria and Rick Delgado star in this Tejano film noir that explores the class structure of San Antonio's multi-layered Latino community while telling a fascinating story of obsession, betrayal and death.

 

Sunday, October 9 at 9:00pm

Tango is a unique expression in music, song and dance, a local art form that blossomed to enchant and seduce the whole world. This performance special displays the finest of Argentinean tango. Pictured: Guillermo Lloyd & Marcela Vallejos dance on the cobbled streets of San Telmo, one of the barrios of Buenos Aires where tango was born at the start of the 20th century.

 

Sunday, October 9 at 10:00pm

ESCOLA DE SAMBA centers on the creation of the Sao Paulo Carnival, the "Celebration of Life," an all-consuming party which takes place annually throughout Brazil. The program unfolds on the streets of Sao Paulo, where Brazilian culture, with its Portuguese and African roots, shapes the story, songs, dances and costumes.

 

Monday, October 10 at 8:00pm

Traveler Justine Shapiro unravels the mystery of the great Mayan culture, traveling from Merida via the Mayan cities of Chichen Itza and Tulum, along Belize's coast, up to the vast Mayan ruins of Caracol and Tikal, then south to explore Guatemala's southern highlands. Along the way, Justine goes scuba diving in perfectly clear water full of dolphins.

 

Saturday, October 15 at 7:00pm

Castro's face with its trademark beard has become an iconic image worldwide, yet the man himself remains an enigma to all but a few. Through interviews with relatives, childhood friends, fellow rebel leaders, Bay of Pigs veterans, human rights activists and journalists, AMERICAN EXPERIENCE constructs an intimate and revealing portrait of the most resilient of leaders.

 

Saturday, October 15 at 9:00pm

This program captures the musicians of the all-female orchestra Camerata Romeu as they prepare for an end-of-the-year concert in Old Havana's Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi. With one of the world's most beautiful churches as the backdrop, the women play a unique blend of classical music, created by famous Cuban and Latin American composers.

 

Saturday, October 15 at 10:00pm

Mexican-Americans in Texas have consistently used poetry and spoken word to navigate their struggles, interpret history and celebrate life. Showcasing a diverse spectrum of writers drawn from bustling urban centers and small border towns, VOICES FROM TEXAS probes the cultural and historical factors that have shaped this unique and vibrant voice within the American mosaic.

 

Saturday, October 15 at 11:00pm

"Soldados: Chicanos in Viet Nam" is the first documentary to recount the harrowing experience of a generation of Mexican-American boys who fought in Viet Nam. "The Sixth Section" follows a group of Mexican immigrants from the tiny desert town of Boqueron to upstate New York where they struggle to support themselves – and their hometown 2,000 miles to the south.