The Battle Against Racism Starts From Within

September 15, 2010

by Carlos Macías

This is my first contribution to Being Latino. Like many of my new colleagues who chip in here every week, pride for our roots and optimism about our future is what compels me to join this conversation. On my daily commute, sometimes I hear other Latinos refer to Mexicans or other Latinos with indigenous background with such revulsion, that it sincerely, makes me sad. We should stop for a minute or two, and ask ourselves if sometimes we contribute to this climate of fear-mongering and abuse against our people by using words like “wetbacks,” “beaner” or simply “these damn Mexicans.” Although we all may feel united in the crusade against racism and discrimination, I am convinced that more should be done at the personal level.

Our indigenous Latinos belong to our culture, and quite frankly, they embellish it. Despite our origins, we all share a common denominator: either we or our parents or grandparents came to America with the idea of finding a better future and a way to help our families. Some of us got the opportunity to attend college; others specialize in construction; others in the food industry, and others know how to work in farms, rippingthe fruits from the earth so we can eat abundantly year-round. We distinguish ourselves from other immigrant groups for being resourceful, hard-working and by our constant displays of happiness. We’ll do anything to earn our daily living: from improvising a tamales hot spot using a shopping cart right outside of the train station to starting our own restaurants; becoming success stories all around.

However, the deep cultural differences between our cultures cannot be ignored, including American-born Latinos who have their unique blend of cultural flavors. These differences should not be used to justify denigrating our own people. This assessment follows the same reasoning behind campaigns done by many civil rights groups against the use of words like “n**ger,” “f**got,” or any derogatory terms by anyone. We should embrace our rich cultural heritage and learn to love (if you don’t already) our Latinos with Aztec, Inca, Taino, Chibcha, Aymara and Mapuche backgrounds among others. Bottom line: I feel proud of mi gente. Do you?

PS. I would like to share with you a photo essay called The Magnificent Migrants produced by Mexican photographer Dulce Pinzón and featured by Foreignpolicy.com.

(Photo by Dulce Pinzón, a photographer working in Mexico and New York)

Original article was published on the Being Latino blog.

Recession Strikes Immigrant Jobs, Remittances AS/COA Online 12/12/08

Immigrants struggle with fewer employment options. (AP Images)

In the midst of a financial storm, the U.S. labor market lost more than half a million jobs in November alone. While unemployment affects all segments of the population, legal and undocumented Latino workers have been particularly hard hit. The Hispanic unemployment rate hit 8.8 percent in October, outpacing the national figure of 6.5 percent.

The rising joblessness coincides with slowing remittance rates, delivering another blow to Latin American economies—particularly in Mexico and Central America—that depend on emigrant money flows. Remittances slowed down worldwide from a 16 percent annual increase in 2007 down to only seven percent in 2008. In October, the Inter-American Development Bank forecasted that this year, for the first time since 2000, remittances to Latin America would decrease in value when adjusted for inflation.

Given the circumstances, Latin American migrants to the United States find themselves contemplating the idea of returning home, faced with the difficulty of holding down jobs in hard-hit sectors such as construction as well as stiffer immigration enforcement that includes random workplace raids. The Philadelphia Inquirer reports about Latin American immigrants moving home, and notes that even circular migration across the border may drop as Mexicans return home permanently. A Pew Hispanic Center report from October found that the number of illegal immigrants entering the United States dropped from 800,000 per year between 2000 and 2004 to 500,000 per year in 2007. Additionally, immigration officials claim that tougher enforcement has helped reduced illegal immigration; more than 290,000 illegal immigrants were deported in 2007, which they say has induced others to consider the option of returning home.

Those who return or remain must also contend with economic consequences. NPR covers the struggles of poor residents in the Mexican state of Michoacán receiving fewer remittances from their relatives. The report also envisions problems for local governments if, for example, 10 percent of migrant workers decide to return. “No, there’s no work…there are some serious complications. This is reality,” State Legislator Antonio Garcia says.

However, the Associated Press reports that remittances to Mexico rose by $2.4 billion in October compared with $2.2 billion a year ago as Mexican immigrants sending money ahead of the Christmas season and cashing in on the declining value of the peso. That means more purchasing power in the hands of millions of families already strained by a weak economy. Despite this positive glimpse of recovery, the Economist explains that many workers might be sending home their savings in advance of their planned return.

In the United States, the immigration debate became a lesser issue in the 2008 presidential race and could be relegated to the back burner of Barack Obama’s presidential agenda, given the pressing need to confront the financial crisis. During his campaign, Obama promised to secure U.S. borders, reform existing immigration laws, and “bring illegal workers out of the shadows.” The recent nomination of Arizona’s Governor Janet Napolitano to the secretary of Homeland Security post by Obama is perceived as a strong sign that the next administration will eventually tackle immigration reform, given Napolitano’s expertise in border issues and immigration law.

The Migration Policy Institute recaps the top 10 immigration issues of 2008 and suggests which issues to keep an eye on in 2009.

Read AS/COA coverage on how the financial crisis has hit immigrant pockets this year.

En español.

Read the article as originally published at the AS/COA website.

Download a PDF file here.

Financial Crisis Hits Immigrant Pockets AS/COA Online 10/09/08

Immigrants share the tough economic ride. (AP Images)

Stepped immigration law enforcement, workplace raids, and construction of a 670-mile fence have slowed the influx of undocumented migrants crossing the Mexican border in search of work in the United State. On top of those factors, the financial crisis is dealing another blow as construction and manufacturing jobs dry up, slowing the flow of money both legal and illegal immigrants send to their families back home. In the case of Mexico, where remittances represent the second largest legal source of foreign income, the cash flow serves as a vital lifeline to the economy.

The U.S. Department of Labor released September figures, showing that the unemployment rate hit 6.1 percent and roughly 9.5 million Americans find themselves jobless. The unemployment rate stands higher for Hispanics at 7.8 percent. The Financial Times reports that, as the job market shrank, remittances to Mexico dropped more than 12 percent in August, confirming fears. The analysis notes that more than 25 percent of undocumented Mexicans in the United States work in the construction trade, a sector hit hard by the subprime mortgage debacle.

Rising unemployment could trigger the exodus of more than 350,000 immigrants living in the United States, says the head of Mexico’s National Confederation of Farm Workers Cruz Lopez Aguilar, who suggests the Mexican government create a plan to generate jobs for returnees and provide education to their children. An October report by the Pew Hispanic Center makes use of U.S. census figures to confirm that fewer migrants are entering the United States. The study finds the drop could amount to as much as around 800,000 per year in 2004 down to approximately 500,000 in 2007.

In response to concerns about the global financial scare and in an effort to stem unemployment in Mexico, the government of President Felipe Calderón unveiled on Wednesday a plan to show up the economy. The president announced a new cash infusion worth $4.3 billion into several infrastructure projects in an effort to rescue investor confidence and boost job creation in the face of a lower U.S. demand for Mexican goods due to the economy’s contraction. The peso devalued more than 6 percent on October 6, experiencing its worst day since the 1994 Mexican financial crisis and causing Mexico’s Central Bank to inject almost a billion dollars into the market to stop the dive.

Guatemala and El Salvador face similar hurdles in terms of remittance drops, with declines hitting 12 and 18 percent respectively, reports the Inter American Development Bank. An increase in the number of soldiers patrolling the Mexico-Guatemala border in an attempt to slow the drug trade could also result in lowering the number of Central American immigrants crossing into Mexico with the United States as a destination.

The Economist highlights the mixed effects of the fence along the U.S.-Mexico border in terms of security and economics, saying “America is creating a barrier that is at once much too porous and rather too tight.” The article explains that tighter controls strengthen organized crime rings, which take advantage of heightened security by increasing fees for human and drug smuggling.

Read AS/COA coverage of the financial crisis’ effect on Latin America.

On October 10, AS/COA hosts a discussion on Hispanics’ economic contributions in the U.S. economy and how the private sector can benefit from the Hispanic labor force and entrepreneurship.

Read the article as originally published at the AS/COA website.

Facing the Integration Challenge AS/COA Online 07/24/08

New U.S. citizens take the oath of citizenship on July 4, 2008. (AP Images)

Since U.S. Congress failed to approve comprehensive immigration legislation last year, states and local governments have proposed or passed a myriad of immigration laws. While the typically strict laws fall short of providing a national policy to resolve the fate of roughly 12 million undocumented immigrants, legal residents also face setbacks and hurdles to integration. Immigration raids occurring in factories and companies across the country have affected legal and undocumented workers alike, even as business leaders warn of a dearth of workers.

Reports of citizens and legal immigrants wrongfully detained by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency (ICE) have increased in the last six months. USA Today reported last month that 114 citizens have sued the federal government because they were wrongfully arrested during a raid in a California factory in February. A letter sent to Homeland Security Chief Michael Chertoff and ICE Assistant Secretary Julie Myers by the Center for Human Rights and Constitutional Law accuses ICE with the “blatantly unconstitutional use of ‘group detentions’” during such raids. The Dallas Morning News recaps a sampling of situations through February 2008 in which citizens or legal residents—usually of Mexican background—were arrested and even deported in some cases.

But not only offended citizens respond to the repressive methods used by ICE or punitive laws approved (44 state legislatures approved immigration laws in in the first quarter of 2008 alone). A recent article in the New York Times examines how business leaders are fighting to soften harsh anti-immigrant laws in states such as Arizona and Oklahoma, where employers face a shortage of unskilled labor. They also express frustration with the controversial E-Verify system put in place by the federal government to check the authenticity of workers documents, saying the system is prone to errors based on faulty information in the databases from which it draws information.

In addition to the anxiety created by raids, legal immigrants face other obstacles that hinder their advancement in the workplace and in their communities. Many Hispanic immigrants must overcome limited English proficiency, modest financial literacy, and a lack of cultural familiarity. A new white paper as part of the AS/COA’s Hispanic Integration Initiative documents private sector best practices in workforce and community integration and serves as an opportunity to build support for their expansion. Presented at bipartisan Capitol Hill event on July 24, the white paper demonstrates a collective commitment by private sector leaders to integrating immigrant communities. The Hispanic population—the biggest and fastest growing U.S. minority—has a collective purchasing power that surpassed $800 billion in 2007. This year, the nearly 2.2 million Hispanic-owned businesses are expected to generate an estimated $389 billion in revenues.

Hispanics find themselves targeted not only for their growing economic might, but also their electoral power. Even in this area, legal immigrants face hurdles: Delays in processing immigration documents could keep tens of thousands of Latinos awaiting citizenship from voting in November presidential elections. Though immigration reform remains a political hot potato that many politicians remain reluctant to handle, presidential hopefuls have been courting a Latino vote that could serve as a decisive. Some swing states that previously voted Republican appear to lean toward presumptive Democratic candidate Barack Obama, based on a recent poll conducted by the Pew Hispanic Center. NPR provides extensive coverage on the Latino vote and its importance for both candidates.

In the Summer 2008 issue of Americas Quarterly, President of ImmigrationWorks USA Tamar Jacoby analyzes the current immigration reform conundrum and advocates for restructuring the U.S. visa system to avoid perpetuating a cycle by creating another generation of undocumented workers.

Read AS/COA’s analysis of the ongoing campaign to secure the Latino vote and how the state legislatures tackle immigration.

Read the article as originally posted at the AS/COA website.

Download a PDF file here.

Democracy’s New Tool AS/COA Online 02/07/08

Colombians protesting against the FARC used Facebook as an organizing tool. (AP images)

On February 4, Colombians in five continents demonstrated against the FARC (Armed Revolutionary Forces of Colombia) using Facebook to spread the word. While marches drew as many as two million protesters in Colombia alone, rallies took place in New York, Tokyo, Sydney, and Paris, as well as remote locations like Egypt’s Red Sea area and Chile’s Patagonia region.

Organizers, mostly college students and grassroots activists, recognized a worldwide trend of using cyberspace for political engagement. In less than two months before the protest, over 277,000 members joined the Facebook group called “A Million Voices Against the FARC.” The group’s forums were used by organizers to discuss logistics and keep its members updated about last minute details, including location changes.

The protests were the largest civil demonstrations in Colombia’s history. Marchers demanded the release of all hostages and an end to terrorist activities by the guerrilla group. Some criticism was drawn from victims’ families, who were nervous about the FARC’s reactions and the already delicate health situation of hostages long in captivity. Others argued that the message was too limited because the government and paramilitary groups also played a role in the four-decade old conflict. However, activists are using Facebook once again to mobilize protesters against the paramilitary group United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (AUC). A Facebook group dedicated to the march, planned for March 6, already has 5,300 members.

Cybersapce is also being used to engage young Hispanic voters and activists in the United States. Last year, pro-immigrant groups organized a national demonstration to support immigration reform while the matter was debated in U.S. Congress. Organizers used social networking site MySpace to reach and engage students on the topic, who shared information about their immigrant parents’ experiences.

More recently, media attention has focused on social networking as a tool to attract young voters during the 2008 U.S. election cycle. Generation 2.0 participated in the Democrat and Republican debates on via YouTube. Facebook has a permanent desk in some news outlets like ABC, and online blogs are mobilizing young voters to go to the polls. Latinos make up 68 percent of new young voters. Voto Latino, an organization dedicated to drawing Hispanic youth into the political arena, uses social networking and text message campaigns to mobilize Latin youth to vote. As Deputy Director of the Pew Hispanic Center Susan Minushkin told AS/COA Online in an interview, the Hispanic youth vote will play an increasingly important role because, while Hispanics account for 15 percent of the population, “they only make up 9 percent of eligible voters because so many Hispanic citizens are under 18.”

Read the article as originally published at the AS/COA website.

Download a PDF file here.