Hispanic Heritage Month Programming
Connecticut Public honors Hispanic Heritage Month 2021 with a number of special presentations. See the full schedule below.
*Italics indicate a Connecticut Public Original
CPTV
VOCES - Porvenir, Texas
Sunday, September 26 at 11 a.m.
(Encores Wednesday, October 13 at 10 p.m. on CPTV Spirit)
Discover the true story behind the 1918 massacre of 15 Mexican men in this tiny border town. One hundred years later, the film asks what led to the events of that fateful night and reveals the tensions that still remain along the border a century later.
POV - Fruits of Labor
Monday, October 4 at 10 p.m. (Premiere)
Ashley, a Mexican American teenager, dreams of graduating high school and going to college. But when ICE raids threaten her family, Ashley is forced to become the breadwinner, working days in strawberry fields and nights at a food processing company.
Reel South - Santuario
Monday, October 4 at 11:30 p.m. (Premiere)
After 25 years of living in the U.S., Guatemalan grandmother Juana Ortega is threatened with deportation and soon takes sanctuary in a small North Carolina church. As time passes, and state lawmakers continue to ignore the family's pleas for a stay on her deportation, Juana's spirits slowly sink. And yet, Juana is patient that in God's house, God will answer her prayers.
American Masters - Rita Moreno: Just a Girl Who Decided to Go For It
Tuesday, October 5 at 9 p.m. (Premiere)
Discover how Moreno defied her humble upbringing and racism to become one of a select group of Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony Award winners. Explore her 70-year career with new interviews, clips of her iconic roles and scenes of the star on set today.
The 34th Hispanic Heritage Awards
Sunday, October 10 at 7 p.m. (Premiere)
Celebrate Latinx excellence as Carlos Santana, Salma Hayek, Ivy Queen, Ron Rivera, Kali Uchis and Latina NASA Engineers receive the 34th Hispanic Heritage Awards. With performances by Juanes, Kali Uchis, Leslie Grace, Black Pumas and more.
VOCES - Letters to Eloisa
Friday, October 15 at 10:30 p.m. (Premiere)
A haunting portrait of a writer’s life and struggle for artistic freedom, meet Cuba’s Jose Lezama Lima, an all-but-forgotten figure of the Latin American literary boom that included Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Octavio Paz and Mario Vargas Llosa.
CPTV Spirit
POV - The Song of the Butterflies
Wednesday, September 22 at 10 p.m. (Premiere)
(Encores Thursday, September 23 at 3 p.m. on CPTV Spirit and Sunday, September 26 at 10 a.m. on CPTV)
Rember Yahuarcani is an Indigenous painter from the White Heron clan of the Uitoto Nation in Peru. He left to pursue a successful career in Lima, but when he finds himself in a creative rut, he returns home to his Amazonian community of Pebas, visiting his father, a painter, and his mother, a sculptor, and discovers why the stories of his ancestors cannot be forgotten.
Nature - The Bat Man of Mexico
Sunday, September 26 at 8 p.m.
(Encores on CPTV Spirit on Monday, September 27 at 7 a.m., Tuesday, September 28 at 11 a.m., Thursday, September 30 at 12:30 a.m., Saturday, October 2 at 5 a.m. and Sunday, October 3 at 4 p.m.)
Ecologist Rodrigo Medellin tracks the lesser long-nosed bat’s epic migration across Mexico, braving hurricanes, snakes and seas of cockroaches, in order to save the species and the tequila plants they pollinate.
American Masters - Raúl Juliá: The World's a Stage
Wednesday, September 29 at 9 p.m.
(Encores Thursday, September 30 at 3:30 p.m. on CPTV Spirit)
This warm and revealing portrait follows the charismatic, groundbreaking actor’s journey from his native Puerto Rico to the creative hotbed of 1960s New York City, to prominence on Broadway and in Hollywood. Filled with passion, determination and joy, Juliá’s brilliant and daring career was tragically cut short by his untimely death at age 54.
Reel South - Fiesta Quinceanera
Wednesday, September 29 at 10:30 p.m. (Premiere)
(Encores Thursday, September 30 at 2:30 p.m. on CPTV Spirit)
Life for a Latinx immigrant family in the New South can be challenging and sometimes terrifying, but thankfully, there's always a fiesta to take you through the night. Three Latina girls and a seasoned drag artist host their own quinceanera, a complex and colorful rite of passage, showcasing the creative spirit of Latinx communities and their struggles to retain their roots and traditions.
Great Performances - Gloria Estefan: Sangre Yoruba
Friday, October 15 at 7:30 p.m. (Premiere)
Adventure through three of Brazil’s most influential cities with the GRAMMY Award-winning singer as she explores the origins of its music through its people and offers an inside look at the creation of her new Brazilian-influenced album.
POV - La Casa de Mama Icha
Wednesday, October 20 at 10 p.m. (Premiere)
Decades earlier, Mama Icha moved to the U.S. to help her daughter with the care of her grandchildren. However, she never lost sight of her hometown of Mompox. Now, at the end of her life, Mama Icha boards a plane and flies back to Colombia, where she bravely struggles with her loved ones. A co-presentation of Latino Public Media.
La Frontera with Pati Jinich
Thursday, October 21 & 28 at 10 p.m. (Premiere)
Savor the sights, sounds and flavors of the U.S.-Mexico border alongside acclaimed James Beard Award-winning chef Pati Jinich, host of PBS’s Pati's Mexican Table, as she experiences the region’s rich culture, people and cuisine.
Connecticut Public Radio
Seasoned - Aarón Sánchez Shares Life Lessons + Local Chef Carlos Baez*
Seasoned recently spoke with notable Latino chefs Aarón Sánchez and Carlos Baez. Stream this episode ofSeasonedhere.
On-Demand Video
PBS’ Hispanic Heritage Month Collection
PBS offers a special curated collection of films, episodes and profiles exploring the cultures and experiences of Hispanic and Latino Americans. See the full six-part series The Latino Americans, short films from Latino Public Broadcasting and more. Stream the Hispanic Heritage Month Collection here.
CUTLINE - Los de María: Four Years After the Hurricane*
It’s been four years since Hurricane Maria swept across Puerto Rico, forcing many puertorriqueños to leave their homelands to start new lives in New England. Los de María - the people of Maria - now live between two places. The island’s recovery is still not complete. And families are not done asking themselves, should we stay? Should we go back? Is this home? StreamLos de Maríahere. You can also view the photo essayPuerto Rico Four Years After Hurricane Mariahere.