The last two sentences in the opening paragraph that introduces the Pew Hispanic Center's latest report Between Two Worlds: How Young Latinos Come of Age in America should have everyone sitting on the edge of their seats.
Never before in this country's history has a [...]
Today, Rep. Loretta Sanchez convened a hearing as Chairwoman of the Subcommittee on Border, Maritime and Global Counterterrorism regarding the topic "Moving Toward More Effective Immigration Detention Management."
Immediately after her opening remarks, the Ranking Member from Indiana, Rep. Mark Souder blasted the [...]
If one thing was clear from the testimony of Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano, before the Senate Judiciary Committee Wednesday morning, it's that she wants to see immigration reform addressed in 2010.
With senators questioning Napolitano on everything from [...]
The big story being picked up from the new report jointly released yesterday by the Pew Research Center's Project for Excellence in Journalism (PEJ) and the Pew Hispanic Center is how, given the 47-million strong U.S. Latino population, mainstream media coverage of Latinos remains poor.
According to the report:
[...]
The big question since the GOP lost the Latino vote in the 2008 presidential election has been: How serious are Republicans about including Latinos in the GOP?
The answer, fresh from the heart of GOP country -- Waco, Texas -- is not at all!
It seems some [...]
Nationwide, there are more than 2,200 juveniles serving sentences of life without parole. That figure includes dozens of children as young as 13 years old.
Four years ago, the Supreme Court ruled in a 5-to-4 decision that executing anyone for a crime committed when [...]
Critics of No More Deaths' volunteer Walt Staton say the 27-year-old web designer, theology student and human rights advocate has to go to jail because he broke the law.
In June 2009, Staton was convicted for littering when U.S. Border Patrol agents spotted him in' [...]
Today the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) released the 2009 FDIC National Survey of Unbanked and Underbanked Households.
The report found that people who make less than $30,000, along with, blacks, Native Americans and Latinos are the four groups to be the ones who most [...]
From the beginning when news broke that Honduran President Zelaya had been forced from his presidential palace at gunpoint, there has been much controversy in the blogosphere and around the world as to whether or not this was a bona fide coup or a government enforcing its constitutional right [...]
While this is a day that tradition calls for to give thanks, there are many people in the nation for whom giving thanks -- have lost their homes, their jobs, need healthcare, depend on food pantries, have lost a loved one serving in the military, etc. -- seems an [...]
When Lou Dobbs abruptly resigned from CNN on November 11, 2009, no one expected him to go quietly away.
Lou Dobbs appears on the Today show in the first of many appearances to repair his reputation among Latinos.Nor did anyone expect the guy, [...]
In a recent Pew Research Center report, "Where the Public Stands on Immigration Reform," data was included that showed Latinos themselves did not rank immigration reform as a priority issue.
The economy, education, health care, national security and the environment all ranked higher than [...]
Anyone who expects a bipartisan compromise to be reached on the healthcare bill lives in La La Land. The point was explicitly brought home in a morning interview on the Today show between Sen. Dick Schumer and Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison.
[...] By Stephen N. Zack
With a last name like "Zack," most people don't realize that the president-elect of the American Bar Association (ABA) is Latino, Cuban-American to be exact. Mr. Zack will be the first president in the ABA's 131-year history who happens to be both Latino and' [...]
A new report by the Hispanic Institute has uncovered an alarming practice by credit card and debit companies and banks that result in basically stealing money from the poor to reward the wealthy.
Trickle-Up Wealth Transfer: Cross-subsidization in the payment card market is a [...]
In a nation of over 307 million people, 2.3 million doesn't sound like a very significant number. As a number by itself, it isn't.
Only when it's realized that 2.3 million refers to the number of Hispanic households with children who feel the pangs of hunger because they are [...]
It seems there is a flipside to driving undocumented immigrants out of your state.
In the past two years, there has been an irrational vengeance by some state legislators to drive undocumented immigrants out of their states. It didn't matter that these migrants were the main' [...]
When it comes to Congress undertaking immigration reform, there is one special demographic for whom it will mean a world of difference -- undocumented students.
It's known that any type of immigration reform will include a provision called the DREAM Act -- an official recognition of [...]
By Michael Wildes
Michael Wildes serves as mayor of Englewood, New Jersey. In addition, he is an immigration lawyer and a former federal prosecutor.
As partner of the NYC-based immigration law firm Wildes & Weinberg, established by his father, Wildes has become internationally renowned for having [...]
Since news spread of Dobbs' resignation from CNN, Latina Lista has received our fair share of comments and e-mails railing against Dobbs' departure. Each of the commenters see the situation as unjust and forcing a man out of his job for "telling the truth."
What they fail [...]
On this Veteran's Day, while we honor the men and women who have volunteered to put their lives on the line to serve in the nation's military, we can't help but think of how some of our military veterans are being rewarded for their sacrifice in the most cruel' [...]
Yesterday, members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) met with President Obama to discuss their concerns that punitive language targeting undocumented immigrants in the Senate healthcare plan would be repeated in the House version that is supposed to be voted on this weekend.
If that's the [...]
Today's defeat of the Republican-authored amendment that would have forced federal officials to discount the presence of non-citizens in the 2010 US Census seems like a small tribute to the memory of Marcelo Lucero.
Defeating that amendment recognizes that people like Marcelo Lucero are [...]
Something happened in yesterday's governor elections in New Jersey and Virginia that everyone was afraid would happen.
No, it's not the fact that a Republican won in each race. It's the fact that voters of color and young people could have cared less about who would win.
There's no [...]
No state child protection agency wants a label of "dereliction of duty" hanging over their heads if a child under their supervision turns up abused, or worse, can't be found as happened in Florida with foster child Rilya Wilson.
Maybe that's the reason why' [...]
Though 80% of economists are saying the recession is over, for the thousands of people out of work that declaration is nothing more than wishful thinking.
Since layoffs began, we saw people with college degrees and professional careers band together in designated meeting spaces every morning to hear motivational [...]
If the CNN special "Latino in America" accomplished anything at all, it's hoped that it showed people that Latinos are not all alike.
The differences among us certainly come out in politics -- some are Republican, while others are Democrat and in our viewpoints as to how sensitive we [...]
Hispanic media is not only gaining in importance, but it's also gaining attention.
Historically, in this country, Hispanic media has been used to refer to Spanish-language media. Yet, with the rise of news sites, like Latina Lista, that target English-speaking Latinos and the growing presence of bilingual and/or English-language [...]
Earlier this month, the Pew Hispanic Center released a report titled The Changing Pathways of Hispanic Youths Into Adulthood.
While not a lot of the statistics cited in the report were new -- Latino students still lag behind their peers when it comes to high [...]
When news filtered out last week from Dallas, Texas that a rookie police officer had ticketed a woman for not being able to speak English, most people rolled their eyes and thought this was just a case of an overzealous recruit.
Come to find out there [...]
Credit cards. Can't live with the interest rates and can't live without the convenience of fast cash -- what's a person to do?
Well, too many families, especially Latinos, are finding they have no choice but to use their credit cards to survive these uneasy times. [...]
The jury is still out on the CNN "Latino in America" program but from the first night's show, it won't be surprising if people unfamiliar with Latinos and the inherent pride we feel for our culture will walk away with a negative impression.
For some reason,' [...]
From all the pre-publicity, CNN's special, Latino in America, which airs tonight and tomorrow night at 9 p.m. EST, is a program filled with enough anecdotal stories of Latinos that it serves as a great primer for those people who think Latino culture is nothing but Taco Bell.
[...]
There was a time when those of us, who are naive when it comes to the ways of Washington, believed that debate over undocumented immigrants would be limited to the Immigration Reform bill.
How wrong we were.
In almost every major policy bill up for review and [...]
One of the hopes the Latino electorate had of the Obama administration was that Obama would do away with the punitive measures of illegal immigration enforcement started during the Bush years.
One of the most egregious tactics for detaining and deporting undocumented immigrants is the use [...]
For months now, I've resisted trying to equate Michael Steele with Sarah Palin -- a Republican Party choice (a.k.a. token) to appease a certain demographic. Palin was to appeal to women voters. Steele was to be the public olive branch to people of color.
The trouble' [...]
By Mark Schneider
(This blog post was originally published on October 14, 2009 at The Enterprise Blog of The Journal of the American Enterprise Institute)
Mark Schneider
Mark Schneider is the former commissioner of the National Center for Education Statistics. He currently is on staff at the [...]
Another Hispanic Heritage Month has come and gone. There were the usual fiestas and celebrations packed into the last 30 days with enough emphasis on promoting worthy role models that it could be considered a big success.
Yet, while it's great to celebrate the heritage, [...]
Today was a big day in Washington.
There was the bipartisan passage of the Senate Finance Committee's health reform bill, even though there was only one Republican that signed on -- and there was the immigration rally attended by thousands of immigrants, advocates and sympathizers.
[...] At Twitter, "Happy Columbus Day" is the fourth most popular "Trending Topic." Yet, a quick browse of what people are saying uncovers the same things people are saying about Obama's win of the Nobel Peace Prize -- what did he do to deserve it?
These days, it's more accepted, and [...]
New Mexico Rep. Ben Ray Luján is a strong advocate for clean energy and chairs the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Task Force on Green Economy and Renewable Energy. Hailing from the Land of Enchantment, Rep. Luján has devoted his professional and personal life to promoting [...]
Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio is not a happy camper these days.
It seems the federal government has had enough of the complaints lobbed against Arpaio's use of the government's 287(g) program, which authorizes local law enforcement to enforce immigration policy.
With his infamous "immigration sweep" [...]
It goes without saying that the men and women of our armed forces who fight on behalf of our country deserve to be respected and honored for that service -- regardless of their citizenship status.
In many ways, the men and women who are not citizens of [...]
Finally, the Department of Homeland Security has a brain!
Notorious for treating all apprehended undocumented immigrants, children included, as hardened criminals locked away in prison-type facilities, DHS Secretary Napolitano and US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Assistant Secretary John Morton, announced today changes to how [...]
By Ivan Marte
Ivan Marte is the former Chairman of the Rhode Island GOP Hispanic Assembly and is currently a member of the Cranston Diversity Committee in the State of Rhode Island.
Disliking the tone and direction of the healthcare debate, as it concerns people of [...]
It's kind of embarrassing that even with the star power of the First Family and Oprah Chicago lost its bid for the Olympics. But if we had to lose, Rio was the best alternative.
Chicagoans react in disbelief in the city's Daley Plaza upon hearing the [...]
The frustration level of Rev. Miguel Rivera, chairman of the National Coalition of Latino Clergy and Christian Leaders, over Congress' inaction on reforming immigration policy is understandable.
Rev. Miguel Ángel Rivera
(Image by New America Media)
It's a frustration shared by many in the Latino [...]
In my 17 years of journalism covering issues that impact the Latino community, the saddest stories I've covered have had to do with teenage pregnancy.
Not for the fact that these young Latinas got pregnant and found themselves now as mothers because, in the majority of the interviews I've conducted [...]
An excellent piece appears in the student-written Yale Daily News about immigration raids that occurred in 2007 in a Latino dominant neighborhood of New Haven, Connecticut.
U.S. Constitution
It was just a little over a year ago that unimaginable stories of how Mexican-Americans, along the Texas-Mexico border, who had the misfortune of being birthed by a midwife, were suddenly being denied passports. The situation was problematic because without a passport, these border dwellers couldn't comply with' [...]
By David Shern, Ph.D., President and CEO, Mental Health America
The fall term of the Supreme Court begins on October 5, 2009. Among the cases on the docket to be argued are two dealing with life without parole for juvenile offenders -- Graham v. Florida and Sullivan [...]
The day after Obama made the rounds of the Sunday talk shows, a fellow blogger sent an email and asked what I had written about Obama's appearance on Univision's Al Punto program with Jorge Ramos.
Univision anchor Jorge Ramos hosts the news talk show Al Punto.
I [...]
Ever since Honduran President Mel Zelaya was unceremoniously removed from office by a military junta, the Obama administration has joined with other world leaders in demanding the Honduran government reinstate Zelaya.
Nominee for Mexico's Attorney General Arturo Chavez Chavez
Yet, when it comes to Mexico's President Calderon's' [...]
With yesterday's Latina Lista news of the latest Latino defection from the GOP, it's interesting that today we're hearing, and seeing, a new bilingual news service dedicated to Latinos.
Newt Gingrich
What is interesting about this is that the person behind the site is none' [...]
For many of us in the Latino community, who have been disgusted by the inflammatory political rhetoric and mean-spirited state and national legislation/policies targeting undocumented immigrants, it's not surprising that we saw today the defection of one more Hispanic Republican.
The surprising thing is that more aren't doing it.
[...]
(Update follows post)
In the latest example of how immigration enforcement has run amok, there comes a story out of the Dallas area where the home owner's association (HOA) of a trailer park has taken it upon itself to decide who gets to live in their community.
Though HOAs are traditionally' [...]
In the aftermath of former President Jimmy Carter's assessment that racism is fueling this unprecedented backlash against President Obama, nobody seems to want to agree with him.
Former President Jimmy Carter
The White House couldn't distance itself quick enough nor did Republicans waste any time in denouncing' [...]
If there was any doubt as to how vicious the issue of undocumented immigrants has become then you haven't seen the Senate Finance Committee's version of the healthcare bill.
The Chairman's Mark America's Healthy Future Act of 2009 goes out of its way to calm fears that undocumented immigrants' [...]
It's safe to say that Congress is a mess these days with partisan machismo run amok.
Representatives Lorena and Loretta Sanchez from California are two Latina politicians paving the way for more Latinas and women to seek public office at the nation's highest level.
Too many congressMEN [...]
Forget all the outrage over Rep. Joe Wilson's rude yell during the President's healthcare speech to the joint members of Congress last week. Rather than sanction him or ignore his outburst of "You lie," the Senate Finance Committee's "Gang of Six" (3 Democrats/3Republicans) met this morning to rehash certain [...]
Whoever created the phrase "Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me" was just plain dishonest.
Obama delivers his push for healthcare reform to a joint session of Congress.
No matter how many times we were taught to let insults "roll" [...]
Last night's outburst by South Carolina Representative Joe Wilson where he shouted, "You lie" to President Obama during Obama's joint address to Congress was quickly condemned by members on both sides of the aisle in the only strong show of bipartisanship visible last night.
Former President [...]
THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
_____________________________________________________________________
Below is the text of the letter from Senator Edward M. Kennedy referenced by the President in tonight's address to a Joint Session of Congress.
May 12, 2009
Dear Mr. [...]
Over the Labor Day weekend, I traveled to a small Mexican border town called Piedras Negras for a wedding. The town, across the bridge from Eagle Pass, Texas, was the typical Mexican border town -- a gazebo in the town square, a maze of streets that twisted and turned [...]
One of the universal signs of an abusive country that doesn't respect basic human rights is when that country locks up a person and essentially throws away the key.
In other words, the person is indefinitely incarcerated/detained without being charged for a crime or allowed to have a trial. It's [...]
The White House media center has released the text of the President's speech planned for delivery tomorrow to the nation's schoolchildren.
You be the judge if it's warranted the outcry it generated.
Prepared Remarks of President Barack Obama Back to School EventArlington, Virginia
September 8, 2009
The President: Hello everyone - [...]
Wikipedia defines McCarthyism as:
Caption reads "Say, Whatever happened to Freedom-From-Fear?"
Since the dawn of education in this country, every school child has been taught to respect the President of the United States. For children, it's not about politics but all about being the leader of this country.
Take during his presidential campaign, Barack Obama talked to students [...]
One of the arguments for reforming immigration and recognizing the people who, though living illegally in this country are working, is to bring them out of the shadows where unscrupulous employers take advantage of them on a continual basis.
This Labor Day, it's only fitting that we remember [...]
When it comes to keeping kids in school and actually thinking of college as being a future possibility for them, one would think that all the adults would be on board with that. Yet, an interesting article on edweek.org titled Attitude Adjustment: The Stockton, Calif., district gets serious [...]
Back in the heyday of journalism, before the whole debate of whether or not bloggers were journalists, journalists were always careful not to attach their names or appearances to events and/or issues that might suggest to their readers/viewers that they leaned a particular way.
Nowadays, it's a badge [...]
This week, the National Women's Law Center (NWLC) and the Mexican American Legal Defense Fund (MALDEF) joined together to release a new study about the Latina dropout crisis.
Listening to Latinas: Barriers to High School Graduation examines the complex reasons that prevent 41% of [...]
Since Senator Ted Kennedy's death, advocates, editorial cartoonists, commentators and politicians have tried to turn the contentious debate over healthcare and immigration reform by proposing that Congress work extra hard to pass both bills in tribute of Sen. Kennedy's devotion to each issue.
Editorial cartoon contrasts [...]
The announcement of Sen. Ted Kennedy's death late Tuesday night from brain cancer wasn't unexpected, but to an older generation of Latinos his death signals the end of an era when "honorary Latinos" were entrusted with championing the voice of la gente in Washington.
Sen.' [...]
If anyone ever thought New Mexican politics was boring, they haven't been keeping up. Aside from the ongoing investigation that cost Gov. Bill Richardson a return trip to DC as part of the president's administration, there's what happened recently with the state's GOP party and their Latino deputy' [...]
Organized opposition or concerned citizens?
It's the question most Americans now struggle with whenever seeing on television images of people screaming, pointing fingers or waving weighty stacks of paper at healthcare town hall meetings.
Woman protests Obama's healthcare reform at town hall meeting with Rep. Barney [...]
The Associated Press reports that Mexico has passed a new law that makes it legal for people to be in possession of small amounts of drugs: marijuana - 5 grams (about 4 joints); cocaine - 1/2 a gram (about 4 lines); heroin - 50 milligrams; methamphetamine - 40 [...]
In borrowing a line used by Dem. Massachusetts Rep. Barney Frank at a recent town hall meeting on health-care reform, "What planet do those Latinos live on who believe there is no health-care crisis?"
Rep. Barney Frank confronts the challengers of health-care reform at [...]
Recently, the Latino Policy Coalition conducted a nationwide poll of 1,000 Latino registered voters in 23 states and discovered something that should put to rest any political pundit and Republican politician who think Republicans can continue with their partisan behavior and Latino voters won't notice.
[...]
There's a difference between health-care and health-care coverage.
One is the act of receiving health-care. The other is the act of paying for a policy and/or entitled to coverage for impending health issues.
Some of these vocal opponents of Obama's health-care plan are trying to confuse the issue [...]
If it weren't for Latinos, the nation's Roman Catholic Church might not have a future. As we recently reported, Latinos now comprise the largest majority of the ethnic groups studying for religious vocations.
Thousands of Catholics listened Sunday as pastors read a letter by Archbishop' [...]
First, there was Benita. Then came Walter. After that, Taha. Now, it's Herta.
These are the names of young people who faced deportation from the Department of Homeland Security because their parents brought them to live in the United States when they were very young, overstayed their initial visits and [...]
Ever since last week's Senate vote for Sotomayor, where only 9 Republican Senators -- 4 of which will be retiring at the end of 2010 --, articles, blog posts and cable news shows have been talking about whether or not the Republicans who voted against Sotomayor will feel the [...]
In yesterday's Latina Lista post recounting how prisons are the breeding grounds for new tensions arising between blacks and Latinos, one faithful reader, Efrén Paredes, Jr., who has been behind bars since the age of 15, in a gross miscarriage of justice, serving three life terms for a [...]
The issue of tensions existing between blacks and Latinos, in this day and age, has always been quickly pooh-poohed. The consensual feeling is that both communities have reached the heights of education, political sophistication and cooperation that the rivalry that once spurred harsh words, resentment, competition and even fights [...]
For those of us who advocate the government get started on reforming the nation's immigration system, President Obama's announcement that he's pushing back the issue on his agenda until other priorities, like health care, get resolved are disappointing.
Mexico President Felipe Calderon and President [...]
By Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV)
In reviewing the biography of Judge Sonia Sotomayor, it quickly becomes clear that she had to overcome many challenges to arrive where she is at today. The last challenge of her professional career was trying to convince Republican senators that she was [...]
One Twitterer that I follow posted the understatement of the day: "Did anything happen today?"
Confirmed Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor
For millions of Latinos across the country, there was a swelling of collective pride over the confirmation of Sonia Sotomayor as the first Latina [...]
As the final arguments for confirming Sonia Sotomayor as the first Latina Supreme Court justice get underway, it's very apparent that Republican opposition has everything to do with trying to show Obama who's the boss in Congress and less with accusations that Sotomayor is an "activist judge."
[...]
It seems that since Judge Sonia Sotomayor was nominated for the Supreme Court, there's been a full-blown offensive launched by the Grand Old Party (GOP).
Even those among the GOP who always counted themselves as friends of the Latino electorate are disappointing us faster by the [...]
By Cynthia Mazariegos
Second-generation Guatemalan-American, Cynthia Mazariegos, dreams of becoming a lawyer one day and championing justice for immigrants as an immigration attorney. Her dreams are fueled by the ongoing debate in the United States over comprehensive immigration reform and witnessing how hard-working, undocumented immigrants have been caught in [...]
Anyone who subscribes to newspapers knows times are tough in newsrooms, of all sizes, across the country. Loss of advertising revenue means smaller staff, less diversity and the fewer remaining reporters turning out more copy on shorter deadlines.
Yet, a balanced news story shouldn't be the sacrificial lamb' [...]
Anyone who subscribes to newspapers knows times are tough in newsrooms, of all sizes, across the country. Loss of advertising revenue means smaller staff, less diversity and the fewer remaining reporters turning out more copy on shorter deadlines.
Yet, a balanced news story shouldn't be the sacrificial lamb' [...]
