ya es hora Campaign Calls for Complete Count of Latinos | 2010 Census

/in /by

Campaign Calls for the Confirmation of Dr. Robert Groves to lead Census Bureau

ya es hora Campaign Calls for Complete Count of Latinos and Immigrants in the 2010 Census

LOS ANGELES, June 26 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — At a press conference today, the partners of the historic ya es hora !HAGASE CONTAR! (It’s Time, Make Yourself Count!) Campaign urged the Latino community to participate in the 2010 Census. In addition to announcing new partners, the campaign called for the confirmation of Robert Groves to head the U.S. Census Bureau, and condemned the efforts of a small group of organizations calling for a boycott of the enumeration as a strategy to achieve comprehensive immigration reform.

“The partners in the ya es hora !HAGASE CONTAR! Campaign are committed to ensuring a full count in the 2010 Census,” said Texas State Representative Rafael Anchia, Chairman of the NALEO Educational Fund. “This is only possible if we have the continued support of partner organizations across the country as well as leadership at the Census Bureau and the full support of everyone in the Latino community.”

“A full count of the Latino population will help Latinos build a better future for their families,” said Dr. Jesse Miranda, CEO of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference (NHCLC). “A full count is critical for the continued economic and political progress of the Latino community. An undercount of the Latino community will do serious damage to our families and our neighborhoods. By diminishing the representation of newcomers in our democracy, an undercount will also undermine efforts to achieve comprehensive immigration reform. Encouraging anyone not to participate in the Census is simply wrong.”

The U.S. Constitution requires a full count of all residents of the United States, including immigrants. Census statistics determine reapportionment and political representation, and are also used for allocating federal funding for many social and economic programs that benefit the Latino community and the entire country. Additionally, Census data are used for the enforcement of civil rights and anti-discrimination laws, including the Voting Rights Act.

The ya es hora, !HAGASE CONTAR! Campaign will focus on promoting the importance of the Census, educating individuals about filling out their Census forms and encouraging households to mail back their responses once they complete their forms. This phase of the coalition’s work builds on the success of the ya es hora !Ciudadania!Campaign of 2007, in which 1.4 million Legal Permanent Residents (LPRs) applied for U.S. citizenship, and the success of the ya es hora !Ve y Vota! Campaign of 2008, in which a record 9.7 million Latinos exercised their right to vote in the presidential election.

The ya es hora !HAGASE CONTAR! Campaign is a coalition of national and local Latino organizations and Spanish-language media working to inform and motivate the nearly 50 million U.S. Latinos to fully participate in the 2010 Census. The campaign is lead by national partners, including the Dominican American National Roundtable, League of United Latin American Citizens, Mi Familia Vota Education Fund, NALEO Educational Fund, National Council of La Raza, Service Employees International Union, and media companies Entravision, impreMedia, and Univision, and includes organizational partners at the national, state, and local levels.

In recent weeks, a growing list of organizations have joined the campaign, including: Comunidad Presbiteriana Hispana & El Pozo de Jacob / The Jacob’s Well; Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU); The Hispanic Federation; Hispanic National Bar Association (HNBA); Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute (CHCI); Hispanic Mega Church Association; National Hispanic Pentecostal Congress; Jesse Miranda Center for Hispanic Leadership; Independent Sector; Latino Justice/Puerto Rican Legal Defense and Educational Fund; League of Women Voters USA; Leadership Conference on Civil Rights (LCCR); Mexican American Legal Defense & Educational Fund (MALDEF); National Association of Evangelicals; National Association of Hispanic Publications (NAHP); National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference; National Hispanic Foundation for the Arts (NHFA); National Hispanic Media Coalition (NHMC); National Latina Institute on Reproductive Health; National Puerto Rican Coalition, Inc. (NPRC); Colorado Immigrant Rights (CIRC); Consejo Nacional De Organizaciones Comunitarias(CBO); Connecticut Puerto Rican Forum Inc.; Diocesan Migrant & Refugee Services Inc.; Los Angeles City College-Workforce Development; Los Angeles Southwest College-Bridges to Success; Pasadena City College-Community Education Center; S.O.S. Immigration International; The Idaho Community Action Network; International Institute; Unity For Dignity; Mexican American Opportunity Foundation; UFW Foundation; The Illinois Coalition for Immigrant & Refugee Rights; Latina Initiative; Intercambio de Comunidades; The Latin American Coalition; Tenants and Workers United; Hermandad Mexicana Nacional Oxnard; Hermandad Mexicana Nacional East Los Angeles; Hermandad Mexicana Nacional Fontana; Hermandad Mexicana Nacional Palmdale; Hermandad Mexicana Nacional Pacoima; LA Voice/PICO; Alliance for a Better Community; Mayor of Miami, Manny Diaz; Hispanic Unity, Miami; Organizacion Hondurena Integrada; Minnesota Council of Nonprofits; Contra Costa Faith Works!; Hispanic Women’s Organization ofArkansas; Mexican American Commission of Nebraska; Colombo Americans for Action.

About the ya es hora Campaign

The ya es hora campaign is the largest and most comprehensive non-partisan effort to incorporate Latinos as full participants in the American political process. The campaign had a dramatic impact on naturalization rates and spurred record Latino turnout in the 2008 presidential election.
Source: The Ya es Hora Campaign

Renter affordability worsens over the decade

/in /by

The financial plight of the nation’s 34 million renters has deteriorated rapidly since the beginning of the decade, yet they are rarely included in conversations about housing affordability.

Renter affordability worsens over the decade

Renter affordability worsens over the decade

Half of all renters now spend at least 30 percent of their before-tax income on rent and utility payments, that’s up from about 40 percent in 2000, according to an analysis by the Associated Press. One in four shell out more than half of their income to cover those expenses, up from one in five.

And the AP’s analysis of census data through 2007, the latest available, doesn’t include the effects of the recession, which hammer renters harder than homeowners. Tough economic times also disproportionately affect minorities and the less educated — both groups are more likely to be financially burdened renters.

“In the next year or so, we’re going to see growing numbers of people who are literally homeless because they can’t afford their own home,” said Sheila Crowley, the president and CEO of the National Low Income Housing Coalition.

The median rent, including utilities, rose 7 percent to $775 between 2000 and 2007. But the increase felt worse because renters saw their median income drop 7 percent to $29,000 during that time.

After paying the landlord, what’s left for severely cost-burdened renters is a scant amount for the other basics of living like food, health care and clothing. Forget luxuries like transportation, retirement accounts, let alone a down payment on a house.

“They sacrifice basic household stuff you and I take for granted like hygiene products and detergent. Money for laundry,” said Cicely Dove, the director family housing at Crossroads, an emergency housing shelter in Providence, R.I.

Government funding for renter assistance has been stagnant since 2000. At the same time, the number of affordable apartments has been shrinking and the cost of building new ones rarely pencils out.

During the past six years, about 3 million affordable apartments were destroyed, converted to for-sale condos or upgraded to higher-priced rental units, according to census data released this week.

The waiting lists for Housing Choice vouchers, formerly known as Section 8, are years long in many cities. The program currently serves 2 million families. Renters in this program put 30 percent of their income to rent and the voucher makes up the difference. As the economy worsens, voucher recipients are contributing less money. The program must make up the difference, which means reducing the number of new recipients, said Donna White, spokeswoman at the Housing and Urban Development Department. Fewer are moving onto self-sufficiency too, White said.

The federal Low Income Housing Tax Credit, which encourages developers to build affordable housing, has little funding because investors who buy these tax credits have disappeared, said Eric Belsky, executive director of Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies.

The National Housing Trust Fund created last July to increase the supply of affordable housing remains empty. Funds were supposed to come from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, but the government seized control of the companies five weeks later and have so far pumped $85 billion into them to keep them afloat.

“The problems here are costly to address. We’re going to see it get worse and create more hardships with renters spending less on pensions, savings and health care,” Belsky said. “These things cost us down the road.”

Hints of hope, however, are emerging as the country moves away from the homeownership mantra and recasts its housing priorities. President Barack Obama’s recent budget includes $1 billion for the National Housing Trust Fund and another $1.6 billion for 200,000 new housing vouchers.

But housing experts say that is nowhere enough to make a dent in the problem:

Sixty percent of single parents and senior citizens who rent spend at least 30 percent of their income on housing costs, while a third pay at least half.

Blacks and Hispanics face similar challenges. The unemployment rates for blacks and Hispanics are both outpacing the national rate and 30 percent of black renters and 27 percent of Hispanic renters spend half or more of their income on housing. This is happening at the same time that the foreclosure crisis batters these two groups the most.

Indiana is the least affordable for black renters, where 43 percent pay at least half their income to housing expenses. And a third of Hispanic renters in Massachusetts spend 50 percent of their income on rent and utilities, the worst showing in the country for Hispanics.

The least affordable areas for renters are the deep South, the once red-hot housing states like California and Florida, and the beleaguered Midwest manufacturing states. But places like Hawaii and Vermont also rank high on the list.

Now the recession adds another obstacle.

The unemployment rate shot up to a 25-year high of 9.4 percent in May, but that percentage is even higher for those without a high school degree — almost 16 percent — and who are more likely to be renters. They predominantly work in service industries, clearing restaurant tables, cleaning homes and offices and taking care of children and elderly parents.

“We’re talking about the person who makes your latte in the morning,” said Crowley of the National Low Income Housing Coalition.

People cope with these housing situations by crowding in with family or friends or living in substandard housing or in dangerous neighborhoods. Others flock to shelters, and, in the worst cases, they sleep on the streets. For those who strain to make the rent, they are often one medical bill or car repair away from homelessness.

If affordability issues facing renters aren’t addressed, there will be social and economic consequences. Children of low-income renters who are forced to move multiple times usually fall behind in school, and later replace their parents as low-income renters. These renters will drag the nation as it faces other costly issues like Social Security, health care, ongoing wars and repairing a broken economy.

“In the long run, a society that doesn’t attend to fundamental human needs won’t succeed,” Crowley said.

We all have a stake in it.

wise quote

wise quote

Source: San Francisco Chronicle – AP – By J.W. ELPHINSTONE, AP Real Estate Writer

 

Hispanic Christian leaders organizing boycott of census

/in /by

Some Hispanic Christian leaders say they’ve waited too long for immigration reform so they are taking a controversial step — they want illegal immigrants to boycott Census 2010.

Census 2010 and Hispanics - Hispanic Christian leaders organizing boycott of census

Census 2010 and Hispanics – Hispanic Christian leaders organizing boycott of census

The leaders are asking illegal immigrants not to fill out census questionnaires when they are sent to homes nationwide, said the Rev. Miguel Rivera, chairman of the National Coalition of Latino Clergy & Christian Leaders, a Washington, D.C.-based group organizing the boycott. Boycott proponents are pushing the effort in several states including Texas and California.
“To us it is a moral issue,” said the Rev. Dr. David Guel of Houston, who sits on the executive committee of the group, which represents 20,000 Hispanic churches nationwide.

Rivera said the boycott will bring attention to the need to legalize the estimated 12 million people living and working in the United States without status. He said their cause is a human-rights issue that affects many undocumented church members and pastors.

“Once there is a legal path for citizenship, then undocumented immigrants will become citizens and have a right to vote,” Rivera said in a telephone interview.

But U.S. census officials said the boycott could hurt Hispanics.

Census data is used to determine federal funding for an area and seats for the U.S. House and can boost jobs.

The League of United Latin American Citizens has been countering the boycott by stressing the need for Hispanics to be counted through an information campaign called Ya Es Hora Hagase Contar! or It Is Time to Make Yourself Count.

Gabriel Sanchez, the Dallas regional director for the Census Bureau, said Hispanics are a growing demographic.

“This is the way to get recognized in the United States,” Sanchez said. “Any call for anybody to not participate is doing them, their cause and their country a disservice.”

Some companies use the data to determine where to open a plant, and some governments use it to place job-training programs, Sanchez said.

“If there is something that everyone should participate in, it is the census,” Sanchez said. “Our goal is to count everybody.”

Education called key

Sanchez said the best way to fight the boycott is education.

By the time people begin receiving census questionnaires next spring, Sanchez said, he wants the Hispanic community to be comfortable with the 10 questions asked, including how many people live in a household on April 1 and whether they live in a house, apartment or mobile home.

Sanchez stressed that no questions ask about immigration status, Social Security numbers or credit cards.

“It doesn’t ask for anything that can hurt you,” Sanchez said. “It only asks for things that can help you.”

Boycott advocates said fears exist in the Hispanic immigrant community that data will be compiled and sent to immigration authorities or Homeland Security officials.

“All census data is confidential by law,” Sanchez said, explaining that the names are taken off, data compiled and published in statistical form so no one can be identified. “No one can see the data, not even the president.”

Praying for reform

Boycott advocates lament what they call the broken promise of immigration reform. These proponents said they believe that President George W. Bush would have made good on the immigration reform promise if he hadn’t been diverted by 9-11.

“We are praying it will pass this year,” said Eli Rodriguez, coordinator of the Hispanic Baptist Convocation of the Laity in Dallas. “Amen! Every church in Texas and the United States is praying that will happen.”

A recent White House meeting on immigration was a beginning, but boycott advocates said they must push forward with the effort to gain momentum.

They said that only with bipartisan support will reform happen. They said they want President Barack Obama to make good on his promise and for Republicans leaders to ignore polls that favor anti-immigrant measures.

So far the boycott effort is garnering the group media attention. If the boycott puts at stake federal dollars or congressional representation, then it is a small cost compared with the rights of the undocumented, Rodriguez and Rivera said.

“We know the problems, the conflicts, the anxiety that our undocumented people are experiencing,” Rivera said. “We know what we are talking about. That’s why we need to bring radical action.”

Census 2010

The Census is required by the Constitution. Every 10 years, the federal government counts the people in the United States. Data from questionnaires is used to apportion seats in the U.S. House. The data is also used to distribute more than $300 billion federal funds each year.

Questionnaires will be sent out in the spring.

Bilingual questionnaires will be sent to about 13 million households.

Advertising about the census will be presented in 28 languages nationwide. The Census Bureau will have assistance available in 51 languages.

About Census 2010: http://2010.census.gov/2010census/

About the National Coalition of Latino Clergy & Christian Leaders: www.conlamic.org

About the League of United Latin American Citizens: www.lulac.org

Source: Star-Telegram – By Diane Smith

sarcasm quote

too funny

Hispanics Face Discrimination Even Among Their Own

/in /by

When Hiring, Look at Talent not Surface Features

I often receive phone calls from advertising colleagues who are looking to add Latino talent to their teams. The caller might own or work for a Hispanic market agency, or a multicultural agency or a general-market agency. He might be a headhunter hired to work with any of these agency types. In most cases, the request is simply about who I know that is talented, easy to work with and has all the right skill sets. However, in some cases, certain biases rear their ugly heads. I’m asked questions that have no business being asked in this day and age. At a time when jobs are hard to find, it pains me to believe that there are worthy candidates being passed over because of:

It's more important to be NICE

It’s more important to be NICE

Skin Color: General-market agencies are often criticized for the lack of diversity within their ranks and, in many cases, they certainly should be. But if truth be told, there are U.S. Hispanic agencies whose staff photos simply do not reflect the diversity of the U.S. Hispanic population as a whole. Black Hispanics have historically found it difficult to find acceptance within some Hispanic circles. The same holds true for the more brown-skinned Mexican-Americans or those who self-define as chicanos. Occasionally, the white, blond, blue-eyed Hispanic will also lose out on a job opportunity because he doesn’t fulfill the agencies expectations of what a Hispanic is, particularly when general-market agencies are trying to hire window dressing to check off a diversity box or create the illusion of having a Hispanic competency in-house.

Social Status: Often U.S.-born Latinos, and particularly those of Mexican descent, are judged based upon their parents’ social status, regardless of what the candidate’s U.S. social reality is. This stems from country-of-origin practices that prioritize a more European-influenced presentation skewing toward lighter hair, lighter eyes, lighter skin and a facial bone structure that does not shout “indigenous” (or doesn’t bear “la mancha de platano” as a friend of mine used to say). I know that there are Latinos in hiring positions that will rule out candidates because they remind them of the maids and cleaning ladies that were a part of their foreign-born reality. I know there are non-Latinos that will do the same based on their U.S.-born frame of reference. While the hiring of foreign-born Latinos from Argentina, Colombia and other South American countries is often discussed in terms of the need for better language skills, there are most definitely other factors, including social status, that in some agencies make a U.S.-born Latino a less desirable hire.

Accents: Of course no one is going to hire someone who can’t make themselves understood to an English-only customer base, unless the role does not require direct client contact. However, there are any number of accented Latinos who not only can make themselves understood, but also can out-think and outperform some of their non-accented co-workers. Nonetheless, over the past six months, I have received at least two calls from general-market colleagues about creative positions they were seeking to fill. And in both cases they were hoping I knew someone who “didn’t have an accent” because they didn’t feel their clients would be comfortable. On the flip side, I’ve seen clients fall head over heels in love with accented Latino creatives, deeming them to be somehow more authentic because of their accent. Sometimes the adoration is warranted because the quality of the work is that good — accent or not. But frankly, I’ve seen really poor work get pitched by heavily accented old-school salesmen and get approved because of the illusion of authenticity and therefore the implied expertise that the accent created. Perhaps worse off than the accented creative is the accented account person, who is often not considered client-worthy regardless of intellect and ability to write, present and handle the requirements of the job.

I have always found the hiring process to be complex. Resumes get screened and, no matter how free of bias one believes themselves to be, perceptions get formed based on names, colleges, who-knows-who in common, and a myriad of other pieces of information. All that before the person ever walks in the door. Then there’s the voice on the answering machine, the grammar in the e-mail and the first impression when they do finally walk in and shake your hand. Even the handshake sends its own message of strength or weakness, confidence or insecurity.

We are none of us perfect. That said, we still owe it to ourselves and each other to work at being fair and impartial. We must leave our prejudices and personal preferences at the door.

I know that every job candidate turned down for a position could cry foul regardless of ethnic or racial background. Maybe it’s age or gender. Maybe it’s the cologne he wears. Who knows? But the fact is that for Latino job candidates trying to deal with the day-to-day realities of the advertising and marketing industries (including the multicultural and U.S. Hispanic advertising agencies), there are subtle and not so subtle forms of discrimination that often go undetected or are rarely acknowledged or discussed. If putting it out there helps one person go from unemployed to employed during these most difficult of times, this blog will have served its purpose.

Managers' Hiring Practices Vary By Race, Ethnicity Says University of Miami Study

Managers’ Hiring Practices Vary By Race & Ethnicity

/
1 Comment
Read more
Consumer Searches on Life Insurance Climb

Infinity Insurance Joins the Fight Against Unemployment

/
2 Comments
Read more

MillerCoors pact to serve Hispanics

/
1 Comment
Read more
Hispanics Face Discrimination Even Among Their Own

Hispanics Face Discrimination Even Among Their Own

/
0 Comments
Read more

Source: Rochelle Newman-Carrasco – http://adage.com/bigtent/post?article_id=137503 Hispanics Face Discrimination Even Among Their Own

New National Poll Reveals Economic Abuse Defined Differently on Main Street than Wall Street

/in , /by

I believe the research should have included at least 15% Hispanic respondents in order to mirror the breakdown of the current U.S. population according to the U.S. Census but interesting results nonetheless:

The Allstate Foundation responds with new financial curriculum for abuse survivors

NORTHBROOK, Ill., June 23 /PRNewswire/ — While 70 percent of Americans know people who are or have been victims of domestic violence, nearly the same percentage of Americans fail to see a connection between domestic violence and “economic abuse,” according to a new national poll released by The Allstate Foundation.

Economic abuse is a tactic commonly used by abusers to control their victims’ finances and prevent them from leaving a dangerous relationship. However, the survey also revealed nearly eight out of 10 Americans link economic abuse to Wall Street woes or irresponsible spending.

“Many people associate domestic violence with physical cuts and bruises, but bruises on your credit score and being cut off from access to money create lasting scars that make it hard, if not impossible, for abuse victims to recover,” said Jennifer Kuhn, manager of the Economics Against Abuse Program at The Allstate Foundation. “For victims of domestic violence, economic abuse is much more personal – and dangerous.”

To better educate Americans about this often overlooked aspect of domestic violence, The Allstate Foundation provides the following signs to recognize economic abuse:

  • Taking money, credit card or property from a partner without their permission
  • Racking up debt without a partner’s knowledge
  • Purposely ruining a partner’s credit score
  • Forbidding a partner from earning money or attending school
  • Being forced by a partner to hand over paychecks
  • Cancelling insurance or credit cards without the partner’s knowledge
  • Harassing a partner at work to negatively impact a job

“A downturn in the economy impacts us all, but it disproportionately impacts the most vulnerable members of society, including domestic violence survivors,” said Rene Renick, director of programs and operations at The National Network to End Domestic Violence (NNEDV). “Now more than ever it’s important that domestic violence survivors build economic skills to overcome financial instability, a major barrier to escape and stay out of an abusive situation.”

The Allstate Foundation, in partnership with NNEDV, recently developed a Financial Empowerment Curriculum to help victims achieve financial independence. The Financial Empowerment Curriculum includes financial tools and information designed to enable survivors of domestic abuse to fully understand their financial circumstances, as well as engage in short-term and long-term planning (e.g., budgeting tools, step-by-step planners, tips, etc.) to accomplish their personal goals.

“Our goal is to raise awareness about how economic empowerment can lead to a safe and financially secure future,” said Kuhn. “With resources like the Financial Empowerment Curriculum, we’re providing tools to domestic violence survivors and others who may need financial guidance in these tough economic times.”

The user-friendly curriculum is available in a variety of formats, including hard copy, Spanish-language, DVD and downloadable versions at >www.ClickToEmpower.org. Also available are e-learning modules to help people of all incomes and earning power work toward long-term economic empowerment.

Other national survey findings include:

  • More than three-quarters of Americans (76 percent) believe the poor economy has made it more difficult for victims of domestic violence, and two-thirds (66 percent) believe it has caused an increase in domestic violence.
  • 44 percent say the most difficult barrier to leaving an abusive relationship is financial security.
  • Almost 60 percent of Americans don’t see a connection between harassing a partner at work and economic abuse, even if it may cost the victim their job and ultimately limiting income.

About the National Poll

The Allstate Foundation “Crisis: Economics and Domestic Violence” poll was a nationwide telephone survey of 708 Americans conducted in May 2009 by Murphy Marketing Research. The survey sample was generated by random digit dialing and represents a margin of error of +/- 3.7 percentage points. The survey sample was designed to closely mirror the breakdown of the current U.S. population with 10 percent African-American and 10 percent Hispanic respondents. For the full survey results, please visit www.ClickToEmpower.org.

About The Allstate Foundation

Established in 1952, The Allstate Foundation is an independent, charitable organization made possible by subsidiaries of The Allstate Corporation. Allstate and The Allstate Foundation sponsor community initiatives to promote “safe and vital communities”; “tolerance, inclusion, and diversity”; and “economic empowerment.” The Allstate Foundation believes in the financial potential of every individual and in helping America’s families achieve their American dream.

About the Economics Against Abuse Program

The Allstate Foundation Economics Against Abuse Program helps domestic violence survivors build their financial independence to get free and stay free from abuse. Seeing a significant gap in resources for programs designed to assist survivors with the economic challenges that they face, The Allstate Foundation took action and partnered with the National Network to End Domestic Violence to create a comprehensive program. Economics Against Abuseprovides resources, funds direct services and spreads the word on how to empower those touched by domestic and economic abuse. For more information and to find out how to help, visit www.ClickToEmpower.org.
Source: The Allstate Foundation