La Cucaracha!

lacucaracha, originally uploaded by Ensie.

The LA Times has apparently dropped La Cucaracha. This is the plea that was relayed to the Latino Urban Forum listserve today:

Dear friends,

My daily comic strip, La Cucaracha has been CUT from
the LA TIMES, without so much as an explanation. Can
you please help bring to their attention that perhaps
Los Angeles, with its majority Raza population might
need at least ONE THING in the newspaper to show kids
and grown-ups that represents a large part of Los
Angeles in the paper? I'm thinking "Blondie" isn't
really reflective of Los Angeles.

If you email them, please cc me at
laloalcaraz@ yahoo.com

Please contact:
Los Angeles Times Readers' Representative Office
E-mail: http://mailto:readers.rep@latimes.com/
Telephone message line: (877) 554-4000
Fax: (213) 237-3535
Postal mail: 202 W. 1st St., Los Angeles, CA 90012

Gracias

So here's what I wrote:

To the Readers Rep,

Axing La Cucaracha is stupid and ridiculous. I start my boycott today. And will encourage as many as I can to follow suit.

-Nate Baird
(ensie.blogspot.com)

Late Monday UPDATE: And Cindy Mosqueda, of Loteria Chicana and Blogging.LA, notes the upsetting news, as well.

Tuesday Morning UPDATE (from Lalo):

(FOLLOWUP FOR TUESDAY AND WEDS)
Thank you, oh, thank you for writing the LA Times and
asking to
reinstate La Cucaracha, the first and only
syndicated politically themed
Latino-rrific daily
comic strip. On Tuesday or Wednesday please write to
the comics editor Sherry Stern at
http://mailto:sherry.stern@latimes.com/
and the editor in chief James
O'Shea at http://mailto:james.oshea@latimes.com/
and the publisher
with the "Latino Strategy" guaranteed to attract more
Latinos to the Times, David Hiller, at
http://david.hiller@latimes.com/, to
reiterate the point.

I will be on national Air America radio (KTLK 1150
AM)
sometime this week with Elayne Boosler and Merril
Markoe, who are
subbing for Stephanie Miller, and
locally in Los on 90.7 FM KPFK's Uprising
with Senali
between 7-8am on Thursday. Thanks, I will keep ya
posted!
lalo

Last UPDATE?:

Thanks for your note. I'm glad to say that "La Cucaracha" will return, starting
Wednesday in the daily Calendar section, and on March 25 on Sundays (because the
Sunday sections are printed so far in advance).

"La Cucaracha" was one
of several comics recently dropped as part of a shift in the Sunday feature
lineup; less space on those pages during the week meant that editors had to make
cuts. However, editors reevaluated when they realized that that particular strip
has such a loyal following, and you will be seeing it again tomorrow in the
Times.

Thank you again for taking the time to write.
Jamie Gold
Readers' Representative