Portuguese American Journal

Portuguese American Journal

Featured Stories
Social Media | Parliament proposes bill requiring parental consent for minors Update | Persistent severe downpouring forces evacuations Election’26 | Diaspora vote count shows strong support for André Ventura Book | An Azorean Family Election’26 | Socialist António José Seguro wins presidency
 

Social Media | Parliament proposes bill requiring parental consent for minors – Portugal

Portugal’s parliament has approved legislation that would restrict minors’ access to social media platforms by requiring parental authorization for users under the age of 16, making it one of Europe’s most concrete legislative steps toward regulating youth activity online. The proposal, introduced by the Social Democratic Party (PSD), mandates explicit, verified parental consent for minors […]

Update | Persistent severe downpouring forces evacuations – Portugal

Heavy and persistent rainfall continues to affect mainland Portugal as successive Atlantic systems prolong saturated ground conditions and heighten flood risk across several regions, forcing evacuations. Prime Minister Luís Montenegro described the extreme weather episodes as a “devastating crisis” affecting communities across the country while emphasizing that emergency coordination and recovery efforts continue nationwide. Mário […]

Election’26 | Diaspora vote count shows strong support for André Ventura – Portugal

Portugal’s presidential runoff election provisional vote count indicates that Chega candidate André Ventura secured the largest share of votes cast by Portuguese citizens living abroad. As final counts are still being compiled from abroad, Ventura has received approximately 51.88% of the diaspora vote, compared with 48.12% for Seguro. These figures reflect global voting and remain […]

Book | An Azorean Family’s History: Our Faria and Moitoso Roots | By Keith Tavares – Editor’s Note

Genealogical research is a journey into the past, uncovering the stories and connections that define our heritage. For Keith Daniel Tavares, this journey explored his Faria and Moitoso ancestors, unearthing the rich history and legacy that has shaped his family. An Azorean Family’s History delves into the significant findings of Keith Tavares’ genealogical research, highlighting […]

Election’26 | Socialist António José Seguro wins presidency – Portugal

Socialist António José Seguro was elected President of Portugal today, in a second-round runoff election, winning about 66–67% of the vote against far-right populist Chega candidate André Ventura with about 33–34% – according to near-final ballots counted. The national tally is not yet fully closed, as some precincts and consular votes remain to be counted. […]

Book: ‘Sea Loves Me: Selected Stories’ by Mia Couto – Editor’s Note

04 May 2021

Known internationally for his novels, Neustadt Prize-winner Mia Couto first became famous for his short stories. Sea Loves Me includes sixty-four of his best, thirty-six of which appear in English for the first time. Covering the entire arc of Couto’s career, this collection displays the Mozambican author’s inventiveness, sensitivity, and social range with greater richness […]

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Posted in Books, Featured, Heritage, Mozambique, People, Portugal

How Free? The pressures on press freedom – by Len Port

03 May 2021

The United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres promotes World Press Freedom Day annually on 3rd May to raise awareness of the fundamental importance of press freedom and remind governments of their duty to respect and uphold the right to freedom of expression enshrined under the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights. “Journalists and media workers are […]

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Posted in Featured, Heritage, Organizations, People, Portugal, World

Frank Ferreira: Legally challenging Portugal’s electoral system – Interview

23 April 2021

By Carolina Matos, Editor Frank Ferreira is a proud Portuguese American, with dual citizenship, who believes that Portugal’s (including the Açores and Madeira) current electoral system is impractical, injurious, unfair, discriminatory, and unconstitutional for the Portuguese living abroad. In short, what we have is an abridgement of constitutional rights. Ferreira also believes that the solution […]

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Posted in Community, Featured, Heritage, Interviews, Organizations, People, Politics, Portugal, World

Book: ‘Pessoa: A Biography’ by Richard Zenith – Editor’s Note

23 April 2021

Like Richard Ellmann’s James Joyce, Richard Zenith’s Pessoa immortalizes the life of one of the twentieth century’s greatest writers. Eighty-five years after his wrenching death in a cramped Lisbon apartment, where he left more than 25,000 manuscript sheets in a wooden trunk, Fernando Pessoa (1888–1935) remains one of the most enigmatic and underappreciated poets of the twentieth century. Celebrated […]

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Posted in Arts&Culture, Books, Featured, Heritage, People, Portugal, World

COVID’19: Azores appeal for emergency help within the US community – Portugal   

17 April 2021

The Government of Portugal has declined to support the Government of the Azores in procuring emergency COVID’19 vaccines in the United States, by refusing to invoke the Cooperation and Defense Agreement between the Portuguese Government and the United States, to supply vaccines for the underserved Azorean population. “We must effectively and quickly immunize the population […]

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Posted in Azores, Community, Featured, Heritage, Organizations, People, Politics, Portugal

Memoir (II): How I Found my Portuguese Family – By Diogo Teixeira

16 April 2021

I had an aunt in Portugal I had never met. She was my father’s only sibling, older than he, about 70, and lived in Vale de Cambra, my father’s hometown about 50 km southeast of Porto. She was married, had three grown daughters, and one of them still ran the family business, Farmácia Teixeira da […]

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Posted in Community, Featured, Heritage, People, Portugal, Travel, World