Radio Ambulante

In this episode of Unscripted Daniel Alarcón speaks with Camila Segura, Radio Ambulante Senior Editor and the producer of our most recent episode, Salter el muro, the story of Colombian writer and poet Carlos Framb. In 2007 Framb helped his mother to commit suicide and then attempted to take his own life. The case brought national attention to Colombia's ambiguous assisted suicide laws and the complexities of these decisions.

¿Hay algún caso en el que esté bien ayudar a alguien a morir? Carlos Framb tuvo que contestar esto cuando su mamá empezó a no querer seguir viviendo.

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Is it ever OK to help someone die? Carlos Framb had to ask himself this question when his mom had lost her desire to live.

Silvia Viñas speaks with journalist and writer Francisco Goldman about his coverage of the 1998 murder of Guatemalan Bishop Juan José Gerardi, a case in which ex-President Otto Pérez Molina was implicated but never convicted. Goldman speaks to his own reporting on the case and its ties to the current La Linea scandal brought by CICIG which recently toppled Pérez Molina from power.

Las manifestaciones recientes en Guatemala lograron tumbar a un presidente. Pero en un principio nadie pensaba que el movimiento llegaría tan lejos, ni siquiera la persona que lo inició.

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The recent protests in Guatemala managed to kick the president out of office. But in the beginning no one thought that the movement would go that far, not even the person who started it.

Dos niños se encuentran en un país que no conocen, rodeados de gente extraña que hablan un idioma que ellos prácticamente no entienden. No les queda más opción que confiar en un milagro.

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Two children find themselves in a country they don’t know, surrounded by strangers who speak a language they barely understand. They have no choice but to hope for a miracle.

En El Salvador, las pandillas amenazan hasta los más pequeños actos de expresión personal.

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In El Salvador, gangs snuff out a small act of self-expression.

When Ernesto Gomez was 10 years old his Mexican parents revealed to him that not only was he adopted, but his biological parents were Puerto Rican independence fighters; his mother, Dylcia Pagan, serving a prison sentence in the US, and his father, Guillermo ‘William’ Morales, a fugitive in Cuba. Ernesto’s given name was not Ernesto either–it was Guillermo like his father’s–and he was not originally Mexican as he had believed.

Luis Trelles, a producer here at Radio Ambulante, recently produced a story in Spanish that deals with Ernesto’s journey, called La Importancia de llamarse Ernesto, so Daniel Alarcón sat down with him to get a look into how the story came to be. They discuss multiple aspects of the production process, the backgrounds of Ernesto’s biological parents, and the relevance of this story today as Puerto Rico revisits statehood amid a financial crisis and U.S.-Cuban relations begin to thaw.

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Cuando Ernesto tenía 10 años sus padres mexicanos le dijeron no sólo que era adoptado, sino que sus padres biológicos eran combatientes por la independencia de Puerto Rico; su madre, Dylcia Pagán, estaba encarcelada en Estados Unidos, y su padre, Guillermo ‘William’ Morales, fugitivo en Cuba. Además, su nombre no era Ernesto–sino Guillermo, como su padre–y tampoco era de México como había creído.

Luis Trelles, productor de Radio Ambulante, produjo recientemente una historia en español sobre la vida de Ernesto, La importancia de llamarse Ernesto, así que Daniel Alarcón conversó con él para conocer cómo surgió esta historia. Ambos conversaron sobre múltiples aspectos del proceso de producción, los orígenes de los padres de Ernesto y la relevancia de esta historia en estos momentos, cuando Puerto Rico reconsidera su relación con los Estados Unidos al atravesar una crisis económica profunda y al comenzar a suavizarse la relación entre Estados Unidos y Cuba.

Christian Martinez y sus compañeros de orquesta estaban acostumbrados a que la guerrilla o los paramilitares los pararan en medio de la carretera. Pero una madrugada, después de un concierto, llegaron a un retén y esta vez los hicieron bajarse del bus. Lo que pasó después es algo que prometieron mantener en secreto durante años.

Productora: Jennifer Dunn

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Christian Martinez and his bandmates were used to being stopped by guerrilla or paramilitary soldiers on the road. But one night, after playing a gig, they came to a checkpoint, and this time they were told to get off the bus. What happened next was something they swore to keep secret for years.

Producer: Jennifer Dunn

Maria Clara Ramos por años se había preparado mentalmente para enfrentar una agresión. Hasta que un día le tocó vivirla.

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Maria Clara Ramos for years had prepared herself mentally to face an attack. Until one day she had to live through a real one.

Hay un nuevo superhéroe en Argentina. Se llama Menganno y su súper poder es llamar la atención.

There’s a new superhero in Argentina. His name is Menganno and his superpower is drawing attention to himself.