[posted by Andrew Brown]
Monday, March 8, 2010
Salinas students place 3rd in global math competition
Robert Aragon's third-grade class at Dr. Oscar F. Loya Elementary School — nicknamed the Challengers — raced ahead of Japanese, Australian and Saudi Arabian classrooms to answer more than 215,000 math problems correctly in 48 hours. The Challengers got their name because they jumped into the mathematic rink despite daunting obstacles, said Magaña. Many of Aragon's students speak English as a second language and come from families hit hard by the recession, she said, breaking momentarily into tears. The competition was part of World Maths Day, which pitted students from about 56,000 schools across the globe against one another in speed arithmetic. The competition "helped us tremendously to stay focused and stay on track with the state tests," Principal Mary Magaña said.
Brown Berets de Aztlan protest the police murder of one of their own
Units of the Brown Berets de Aztlan, MEChA de UC Riverside and over 100 community supporters gathered Saturday morning outside the Cesar Chavez Center to protest the cowardly gunning down, in the presence of her children and husband, of Brown Beret member Annette Garcia by a lone Riverside County sheriff . Twenty eight year old Annette Garcia, a mother and beloved member of the community, was shot in the back outside her home on the evening of January 21st. Witnesses say that the deputy shot at Annette while she was walking away and that she did not present a threat to anyone. The deputy, witnesses say, shot at Annette approximately five times from a distance of about 500 feet and that it was a miracle that other family members, who were standing nearby, were not killed .
by Braulio Felipe Ocampo
http://www.aztlan.net/brown_berets_seek_justice.htm
by Braulio Felipe Ocampo
http://www.aztlan.net/brown_berets_seek_justice.htm
Latinos anxious over end of school liaisons in Prince George's
As word spreads of the recent decision by the Prince George's Board of Education to eliminate 120 full-time parent liaisons next year to save money, parents and staff at schools with large Latino populations are increasingly worried about how they will cope.
....
The Latino community's growing anxiety over the board's decision highlights Prince George's uneasy transition from a majority-black county that has been a magnet for affluent African Americans to a county increasingly characterized by low-income Latino immigrant enclaves.
[posted by Ana Perales]
Stimulus Watch: less stimulus for minority firms
WASHINGTON -- Hispanic and black businesses are receiving a disproportionately small number of federal stimulus contracts, creating a rising chorus of demands for the Obama administration to be more inclusive and more closely track who receives government-financed work.
[Posted by Ana Perales]
Study: Latino ‘foreclosure generation’ devastated
A report by a Latino advocacy group says minority families are being disproportionately hurt by the housing crisis and need relief from foreclosures even if they lost their jobs, as well as the chance to buy affordable homes and stronger consumer protections.
By 2050, Latinos will make up 30% of the U.S. population, compared to 14% today, and immigrants will account for 82% of household growth between now and 2050, according to the National Council of La Raza, which conducted the study jointly with the Center for Community Capital, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
“An estimated 1.3 million Latino families will lose their homes to foreclosure between 2009 and 2012,” said Janet Murguía, president and CEO of the NCLR. About 400,000 Latino families were expected to lose their homes to foreclosure as of 2009.
[Posted by Brenda Diaz]
http://mortgage.freedomblogging.com/2010/02/16/study-latino-foreclosure-generation-needs-help/26383/
Whittier College racism, sexual debauchery and corruption
Whitter College, a small college in Southern California is facing scandals for "sexual debauchery, rampant drug use, the recent ousting of a crystal meth injecting homosexual college president and serious accusations that the college is abusing the federal Hispanic-Serving Institutions Program that was introduced under Title V of the Higher Education Act that is designed to serve the academic needs of Mexican and other Latino students." The Mecha Chapter of the college tried to talk to the University authorities about the Racist policies of the institution, but were thrown out by school officers, the report says.
By Braulio Felipe Ocampo
http://www.aztlan.net/whittier_college_racism_and_corruption.htm
By Braulio Felipe Ocampo
http://www.aztlan.net/whittier_college_racism_and_corruption.htm
Census question confuses
(Posted by Jesus Alfredo Galindo)
EL PASO - Many Hispanics do not know they are white. But, in the U.S. Census Bureau's eyes, they probably are.
For people such as former baseball star Sammy Sosa, who is a black Dominican, it may be easy to fill out a 2010 Census form.
But Hispanics may be confused over the questions of race and ethnicity found in the form being mailed out this month.
"The race question is the question I get the most queries about," U.S. Census Bureau Director Robert Groves said Monday in a national conference call. "This is a question that changes every decade."
In question No. 8, the bureau asks if a person is of Hispanic origin. Then, in the following question, the person must mark his or her race.
The Census Bureau gives respondents many options, but classifies data into five races - white, black, Asian, American Indian or Alaska Native and other Pacific Islanders.
"This is one of the stickier issues," said Arturo Vargas, executive director of the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials Educational Fund. "About half of Latinos who respond to the census consider being Latino their racial category."
His is one of the organizations the secretary of commerce appointed to the 2010 Census advisory committee. It has been instrumental among Latino groups in campaigning for census participation.
http://http://www.lcsun-news.com/las_cruces-news/ci_14495736
EL PASO - Many Hispanics do not know they are white. But, in the U.S. Census Bureau's eyes, they probably are.
For people such as former baseball star Sammy Sosa, who is a black Dominican, it may be easy to fill out a 2010 Census form.
But Hispanics may be confused over the questions of race and ethnicity found in the form being mailed out this month.
"The race question is the question I get the most queries about," U.S. Census Bureau Director Robert Groves said Monday in a national conference call. "This is a question that changes every decade."
In question No. 8, the bureau asks if a person is of Hispanic origin. Then, in the following question, the person must mark his or her race.
The Census Bureau gives respondents many options, but classifies data into five races - white, black, Asian, American Indian or Alaska Native and other Pacific Islanders.
"This is one of the stickier issues," said Arturo Vargas, executive director of the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials Educational Fund. "About half of Latinos who respond to the census consider being Latino their racial category."
His is one of the organizations the secretary of commerce appointed to the 2010 Census advisory committee. It has been instrumental among Latino groups in campaigning for census participation.
http://http://www.lcsun-news.com/las_cruces-news/ci_14495736
Hills Lags in hiring Hispanics
(posted by Jesus Galindo)
Hispanics make up nearly one-sixth of the U.S. population, but a new study shows that they’re almost nonexistent in high-level staff positions on Capitol Hill.
Out of 100 Senate chiefs of staff, only one is Hispanic: Amanda Renteria, who works for Michigan Democrat Debbie Stabenow. There are no Hispanic legislative directors or deputy chiefs of staff in the Senate, the study shows, and only one Hispanic staff director.In the House, the study finds, Hispanics hold only 12 of the roughly 440 chief of staff jobs and only nine of about 440 legislative director slots.
The Congressional Hispanic Staff Association calls the results an “outrage.”
“For whatever reason, we’re just not getting into senior-level positions,” said the chairman of the CHSA’s Placement Committee, whose office would not allow him to give his name. “We’re really trying to avoid finger-pointing at any one individual office. The real problem is that every single office is hiring [fewer] Latinos than they should be.”
That’s not to say that lawmakers aren’t hiring Latinos to staff their offices — currently, 156 members of Congress, seven leadership offices and 27 committee offices have at least one Hispanic employee on staff, according to the Latino Leaders Network.
But when Latinos are hired, it’s most often for low-level positions that don’t offer opportunities for policy work. A 2009 House employment survey found that the greatest number of Hispanic staffers in the House work as schedulers, followed by staff assistants.
Gloria Montano Greene, former chief of staff to Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz.), is among the few Latino staffers who have risen to the top. She began her work as a part-time staffer in Grijalva’s district office and later moved to Washington, where she worked her way up through almost every position in the office before becoming chief of staff four years later.
“You do notice sometimes that you’re the only person representing your constituency, and you realize you have different ways to approach the conversation,” said Greene, who is now the Washington director for the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials Education Fund. “As a Latino staffer ... you have to understand how to deal with the disparities. You have to work to find networks of support, both professional and personal, to stay in the D.C. way of life. It’s a reason why beginning staffers might have difficulty staying in the long haul. The financial aspect is hard. You lack familial support, and you leave your community.”
To read the rest follow this link http://http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0210/33401.html
Hispanics make up nearly one-sixth of the U.S. population, but a new study shows that they’re almost nonexistent in high-level staff positions on Capitol Hill.
Out of 100 Senate chiefs of staff, only one is Hispanic: Amanda Renteria, who works for Michigan Democrat Debbie Stabenow. There are no Hispanic legislative directors or deputy chiefs of staff in the Senate, the study shows, and only one Hispanic staff director.In the House, the study finds, Hispanics hold only 12 of the roughly 440 chief of staff jobs and only nine of about 440 legislative director slots.
The Congressional Hispanic Staff Association calls the results an “outrage.”
“For whatever reason, we’re just not getting into senior-level positions,” said the chairman of the CHSA’s Placement Committee, whose office would not allow him to give his name. “We’re really trying to avoid finger-pointing at any one individual office. The real problem is that every single office is hiring [fewer] Latinos than they should be.”
That’s not to say that lawmakers aren’t hiring Latinos to staff their offices — currently, 156 members of Congress, seven leadership offices and 27 committee offices have at least one Hispanic employee on staff, according to the Latino Leaders Network.
But when Latinos are hired, it’s most often for low-level positions that don’t offer opportunities for policy work. A 2009 House employment survey found that the greatest number of Hispanic staffers in the House work as schedulers, followed by staff assistants.
Gloria Montano Greene, former chief of staff to Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz.), is among the few Latino staffers who have risen to the top. She began her work as a part-time staffer in Grijalva’s district office and later moved to Washington, where she worked her way up through almost every position in the office before becoming chief of staff four years later.
“You do notice sometimes that you’re the only person representing your constituency, and you realize you have different ways to approach the conversation,” said Greene, who is now the Washington director for the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials Education Fund. “As a Latino staffer ... you have to understand how to deal with the disparities. You have to work to find networks of support, both professional and personal, to stay in the D.C. way of life. It’s a reason why beginning staffers might have difficulty staying in the long haul. The financial aspect is hard. You lack familial support, and you leave your community.”
To read the rest follow this link http://http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0210/33401.html
Day laborers holding 'Hire Here' signs in Costa Mesa
COSTA MESA – Barred from soliciting work by distracting drivers, day laborers are holding "Hire Here" signs and standing still on sidewalks throughout the city, according to the Daily Pilot.
A city ordinance adopted in 2005 prohibits "active solicitation" by, of or from people in moving cars. It also bans solicitation in commercial parking areas that have signs prohibiting such actions.
However, the ordinance allows people to stand on sidewalks with signs, distribute literature to pedestrians and talk to others in lawfully parked vehicles.
Earlier this month, the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California, along with the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund and the National Day Laborer Organizing Network, filed a lawsuit against the city challenging its ordinance targeting day laborers.
[Posted by Brenda Diaz]
http://www.ocregister.com/news/laborers-234809-day-city.html
A city ordinance adopted in 2005 prohibits "active solicitation" by, of or from people in moving cars. It also bans solicitation in commercial parking areas that have signs prohibiting such actions.
However, the ordinance allows people to stand on sidewalks with signs, distribute literature to pedestrians and talk to others in lawfully parked vehicles.
Earlier this month, the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California, along with the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund and the National Day Laborer Organizing Network, filed a lawsuit against the city challenging its ordinance targeting day laborers.
[Posted by Brenda Diaz]
http://www.ocregister.com/news/laborers-234809-day-city.html
Gilroy community college offers Spanish class in Playa del Carmen
Gavilan College in Salinas is offering a Spanish language immersion experience this summer. Students and community members who want to learn or improve their knowledge of Spanish will have the opportunity to attend Spanish language classes at the Soléxico Language and Cultural Center in Oaxaca, Mexico. Students are able to enroll in classes at all levels, Beginner to Advanced, and will be awarded 5 transferrable college credits for their participation.
Full article here
[posted by Andrew Brown]
Full article here
[posted by Andrew Brown]
Immigrants get lessons on local laws
SANTA ANA - Nailea Anguiano arrived at the Mexican Consulate early Wednesday expecting long lines, not a pitch from Santa Ana police.
The 30-year-old was pleased. Not only did she turn in some necessary paperwork for a U.S. immigration appointment next week, but she also discovered that there's a number she can call to report the graffiti she hates spotting on her morning commute through the city.
"This is great. I didn't know who to call," she said. "Now I know."
Anguiano was one of more than 50 people who showed up at the consulate office on various errands and found themselves a captive audience for Santa Ana police officials' first presentation aimed at Mexican nationals who may not be familiar with U.S. and local laws.
The morning presentations, scheduled to take place almost every Wednesday, tackle safety issues -- from the importance of crime reporting to risks associated with driving without a license, said Santa Ana police Deputy Chief Carlos Rojas.
[Posted by Brenda Diaz]
Dem encourages Latinos to pursue Ph.D.s
A group of Latin American students got an earful of good ideas about college success and leadership. Javier Gonzales, chairman of the New Mexico Democratic Party, spoke to UNM’s League of United Latin American Citizens at its monthly meeting Friday. He said 2 percent of Latinos earn their Ph.D. out of the 46 million who attend college, and he hopes talks with Latin college students will help that number rise.
[posted by Laura Ibarra]
Mobilization is Prepared for Reform
Thousands of immigrants and activists in all parts of the United States will March on March 21 to the nation's capital to demand Congress to approve a comprehensive and just immigrant reform.
[posted by Laura Ibarra]
Hispanic students lead nation on test
New Mexico's class of 2009 led the nation in the percentage of Hispanic students who earned a score of 3-5 on at least one Advanced Placement exam, according to the College Board's annual Report to the Nation released last week.
[posted by Laura Ibarra]
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