HispanicTrending

Q&A on Hispanics with Senator Barack Obama

April 24, 2008
Interview by Juan Guillermo Tornoe

A few days ago I had the privilege to receive Senator Obama’s answers to specific questions regarding Latinos, their values, their culture, and their importance to his candidacy. A very special thank you to all of you who made it possible.


Hispanic Trending: What similarities do you see between "Traditional" American Values and Hispanic Values?

Sen. Barack Obama: The challenges that Hispanics and all Americans face have been constant over the last twenty years – health, education, and economic insecurity. We need new leadership in Washington that understands the challenges working people and minorities face in this country. 

I think most Americans share the same values, hopes, and aspirations, and the same struggles.  Dr. King repeated often that our separate struggles – that of Latinos and African Americans – are really one.  He would say that an injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.  It means that the Civil Rights Movement wasn’t just a movement of African-Americans, but Latino Americans, and white Americans, and every American who believes that equality and opportunity are not just words to be said but promises to be kept.

HT: What values/characteristics do you admire the most from the Latino culture? Why?

Sen. Barack Obama: We cannot ignore the fact that Hispanics have contributed greatly to the social, economic, and cultural fabric of America.  From the Hispanic community's deep-rooted history of service in the U.S. military to the battles of leaders like César Chávez for workers’ rights, Hispanic Americans have helped make this nation a great one.  But despite all of the progress we’ve made, we know that there is more work to do.  I believe the greatest contribution we’ve seen from the Latino community is their belief in the future and their belief in this country.  It is a belief that inspires all Americans to remember what this country is about – people putting in the hard work required to make sure that the next generation is able to achieve its dreams.  And it is a belief and an energy that led me to a life of public service almost twenty-five years ago, and one I’ll carry with me to Washington.

HT: Why did your campaign take so long to proactively reach out to Hispanics in comparison to several of the other candidates? We saw Latino people gravitating towards you, but not until later in the game we saw a fully orchestrated effort from your camp to reach out to them? Do you think jumpstarting this efforts earlier would've resulted in easy wins in key states like Texas?

Sen. Barack Obama: Our campaign has been actively reaching out to Hispanic voters since we started this campaign.  In Iowa, where we campaigned for more than 10 months, we won the Latino vote.  We set up bilingual phone banks and canvasses, radio and print ads, and bilingual mock caucuses.  We were endorsed by Spanish-language newspapers in Iowa – and by La Opinion, the nation’s largest Spanish-language newspaper – which was attributed to the fact that we informed voters about my record fighting for the Hispanic community and also brought many more Hispanics into the election process.  We taught many new Hispanic voters how to participate in a caucus.  And we’ve been doing this all across the country, where more than 40 states have already voted.  As more and more Hispanics get engaged in this election, they’ve witnessed my proven ability to build support among Hispanic voters, and my commitment to continue engaging Hispanics in North Carolina, Puerto Rico, and the remaining contests.  And I will continue to fight for the issues important to the Hispanic community such as education, immigration, health care, and finally bring the war in Iraq to an end.   

HT: To what do you attribute your growing following among many Latinos?

Sen. Barack Obama: The more time voters have to get to know me, my track record, and my vision of bringing people together for change, the better I do – Hispanic voters are no exception. In Iowa, where we spent more than ten months campaigning, Hispanic voters chose us.  We won the Hispanic vote in Virginia, Illinois, Connecticut, and almost half of Hispanic voters in Maryland.  I’ve received endorsements from leaders in the Hispanic community: Governor Bill Richardson, Secretary Federico Pena, Congresswoman Linda Sanchez, and Rep. Luis Gutierrez.  Senator Ted Kennedy, a major leader on immigration in Congress, also endorsed me in February, as well as La Opinion, the largest Spanish-language newspaper in the country.

When Hispanic voters really look at my record of standing up for issues important to them, including the need for comprehensive immigration reform, the fight against health care disparities in minority communities and the need to focus on providing Hispanic youth with the educational opportunities they need to succeed, the more they vote for me.  Almost twenty-five years ago, I was hired by a group of churches on the South Side of Chicago to help turn around neighborhoods that had been devastated by the closing of nearby steel plants.   I knew that change wouldn’t be easy, but I also knew it would be impossible without bringing folks together and building a movement within the community.  So I reached out and formed coalitions between Latino leaders and Black leaders on every issue from failing schools to illegal dumping to unimmunized children.  And together, we made progress.  We set up job training and after school programs, and we taught people on the South Side to stand up to their government when it wasn’t standing up for them.   

But I didn’t stop there.  I kept building coalitions and making progress throughout my eight years in the Illinois State Senate.  I fought for working Americans, championed legislation to expand healthcare coverage to uninsured children and parents and provided tax relief to those who needed it most.  I cosponsored and helped pass the Illinois state version of the DREAM Act, and worked hard to move the federal version of the bill through the Senate.

And in the United States Senate, I have continued to stand with the Hispanic community – even when it wasn’t easy or politically convenient.  I have been unwavering in advocating comprehensive immigration reform.  I am the only candidate running for President who attended the rallies for immigration reform.  During the last immigration debate, I stood firm against politicians who wanted to demagogue the issue for political gain. I also introduced amendments and legislation to prioritize keeping immigrant families together, ensure citizenship application fees are not too onerous for working immigrant families, and ensure that employers have an easy, quick way to verify the citizenship status of their employees. And when I am president, I will revive our national discussion on comprehensive reform in my first year in the White House and work diligently toward a solution rooted in pragmatism, the rule of law, and our history as a nation of immigrants.

HT: Why do you consider wining the Latino Vote important for your campaign? Can you mention three things that you are consciously doing to achieve this goal?

Sen. Barack Obama: The Hispanic vote has been a crucial component of this primary and an important part of my campaign. We’ve seen the importance of Hispanic voter turn-out and the rising Hispanic voter registration rates in states like Nevada, California, New Mexico, and Texas.  Hispanics are not just the fastest-growing segment of the population, but issues such as immigration, education, health care, and our relationship with Latin America are critical for the next President to address.

To reach out to Latinos, my campaign has made bilingual resources accessible to Spanish speakers on my website, including my bio, my position on these issues, and the work I have done with the Hispanic community.  This information is available on my bilingual website as well as bilingual literature that volunteers have distributed to thousands of voters across the country, going door-to-door and through targeted phone banks to Hispanic voters.  Our campaign has always worked from the bottom-up, and the response from volunteers has been overwhelming. We have brought both national and local surrogates to these states.  Senator Ted Kennedy, Secretary Pena, and many other members of our National Hispanic Leadership Council have traveled for us, spoken on behalf of the campaign via television, radio, at town halls, and even canvassed.  They know this election is too important for voters not to get involved, and I greatly appreciate everything they’ve done for this campaign.  Finally, I have been speaking to Latino audiences personally, holding Latino town halls, and meeting with Latino leaders to learn from them and let them know that their issues and concerns are being heard.  When I gave my speech on race in Philadelphia in March, I think it spoke not only to black and white audiences, but to many different groups in this country.  I asked all Americans to rise above our racially divided past, and to seize the opportunity to carry forward the work of those who came before us, who struggled and died to bring us together. I think we have a great responsibility in this election to stop exploiting our racial differences and work together to have an honest discussion of the issues that ends the divisions of the past and looks toward the future.  Only by bridging our differences can we all succeed together as Americans.

HT: What can Hispanics expect to see changing for the better, for them and their community, once President Barack Obama is sworn in?

Sen. Barack Obama: When I'm president, I will put comprehensive immigration reform back on the nation's agenda during my first year in office, and I will not rest until it is passed once and for all. We must create an immigration system that strengthens our security while reaffirming our heritage as a nation of immigrants -- a nation dedicated to giving weary travelers from around the world the chance to achieve their dreams. That’s the America that answered my father’s letters and his prayers and brought him here from Kenya so long ago.

But the struggle does not end there. An Obama administration will also reflect the great diversity of our nation, and I’m proud that my campaign team is similarly diverse.  We need to close the achievement gap between Latino and other students, reduce the high school dropout rate, and finally enact the DREAM Act so that every child can have the chance to attend college. And I will sign a universal health care bill into law by the end of my first term. It’s a plan that will cover every American, including the 15 million uninsured Latinos, and cut the cost of a typical family’s premiums by up to $2,500 a year.   

But it is going to be hard to do any of this until we finally bring an end to the war in Iraq, a war I’m proud I opposed in 2002 at a time when it was not popular to do so.  We shouldn’t compound the original mistake of going in by waiting any longer to pull our troops out. That’s why I’ve been fighting in the U.S. Senate to end this war and have called for us to begin withdrawing our combat troops not in six months, not in a year – now.

When this war is over, we can begin refocusing our attention on the challenges we face in other parts of the world, including Latin America. I will move beyond rhetoric to renew relations in the hemisphere.  We are neighbors and what happens in Latin America matters to the United States. We need to be close partners for opportunity and security in the years to come.

HT: Many of Hispanic Trending readers either are or employ Latino professionals with work visas…What do you think about these men and women, contributing to this country, who entered legally, are paying their taxes, many have US-born kids, and most want to fully incorporate into the American Society? Are you for streamlining their path to residency and citizenship?

Sen. Barack Obama: There are few better examples of how broken our politics has become than the immigration debate. Just last summer, we saw comprehensive reform fail in part because of bitter partisanship. 

We must require the 12 million undocumented immigrants who are already here to step onto a path that includes the ability to earn citizenship by demonstrating a sound character, a commitment to America, and a strong work ethic.  We have to understand that many immigrants want to get right with the law. They work in their communities, pay taxes, and have become an integral part of our society. Many of them have started their own small businesses and assimilated into society, making our nation richer for it. We need to give this population a chance to pay a fine, learn English, and get to the back of the line for citizenship behind those who came here legally.  At the same time, we need to fix our broken immigration bureaucracy so that those who enter the country legally have an orderly and fair process. I worked with Congressman Luis Gutierrez (D-IL) to introduce legislation to ensure that fees for immigration applications are not too onerous.  During the recent immigration debate, I pushed Congress to find common ground and introduced amendments that would have prioritized keeping families together and would have held employers who hire undocumented immigrants responsible.

HT: Do you want to share anything specific with Hispanic Trending readers?

Sen. Barack Obama: I want to thank the readers of Hispanic Trending for their interest in this election and in my candidacy.  Latinos have a significant role in this election, and I appreciate the support I’ve already received from this community and hope to work together to make sure we make significant progress on these important issues in the weeks, months, and years ahead. 

Democrats look to local Hispanic leaders in anti-GOP efforts

April 22, 2008
By SUZANNE GAMBOA

Democrats sought Tuesday to tap into their networks of local Hispanic leaders to increase party support and turnout in the effort to deny Republican Sen. John McCain the presidency.

The Democratic National Committee, in announcing its 2008 Hispanic Leadership Council, accused McCain of betraying Hispanics on immigration reform and failing to address critical issues such as the economy in an ad he produced in Spanish in New Mexico.

The council is made up of Hispanic professionals, business owners, activists and community leaders who have given at least $5,000 to the Democratic Party. It's led by Gilberto Ocanas, a Texas-based consultant who has worked on four presidential campaigns, and Ingrid Duran, a Washington consultant and former CEO of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute.

"We shouldn't wait for people to engage us. We should engage our own folks," Ocanas said.

Republican National Committee spokesman Danny Diaz dismissed the criticism and said that McCain, the likely GOP nominee, "has the track record, the judgment and character to address the challenges America faces with all segments of the electorate, including Hispanics."

The GOP already has Hispanic team leaders working every day to get out the Hispanic vote and an advisory board working with the chairman on outreach to the Hispanic community, Diaz said.

"The Democrats may be announcing their effort, but we've been executing ours for 365 days a year," he said.

Via AP

America's languages

April 23, 2008
By: Jenn Young

Language has the power to define people, not only on an individual level, but within a national context.

While researching language and nationalism in Israel, I came across an excerpt from an editorial entitled, "Learn Arabic Now!" which ran in April 2001 in Ha'artetz, a prominent Israeli newspaper. The article encouraged mandatory Arabic instruction within the Israeli school system, with the hope of showing Arab Israelis that they, as fellow citizens, are respected and their culture is valued. The article encouraged bilingualismm because the identity of an Israeli has within it both Arab and Jewish culture and history.

This article inspired me to think about language acquisition within the United States and its effects on how people identity themselves. The U.S. is unique in that it has no official language. In recent years, there have been attempts to declare an official language for the U.S. Regardless of that status, however, any listing of languages would limit the potential of America's culture, which is made up of a nearly infinite number of languages.

According to a 2005 study conducted by the Modern Language Association, out of 268 million Americans, more than 52 million - nearly 20 percent - speak a language other than English. This study catalogs about 30 languages spoken in the U.S., seven of which are spoken by more than one million Americans. Wouldn't this mean dozens of languages and subcultures are not only represented in the population of the U.S., but they also constitute the culture of the U.S.?

I discussed this question with several fellow students who speak multiple languages, some with non-English native languages and others who acquired new language skills with education. I asked them how they felt the languages they speak are incorporated into the fabric of American society. The responses I got in most cases excluded less-spoken languages while emphasizing the importance of Spanish within Americanism.

Rene Argueta learned Spanish as a first language alongside English. He recognizes the importance of Spanish acquisition for non-native speakers, as he says, "I know that when you speak to [native Spanish speakers] in Spanish or at least try to speak to them in Spanish, they feel more welcomed into the community." The three other students I interviewed all independently expressed the importance of Spanish within U.S. society. It is wonderful to see the U.S. embracing Spanish language and Latino culture in a way that incorporates them into the framework of education and society, as more than 32 million Americans speak Spanish.

However, other than Spanish, non-English languages are not seen as part of Americanism. Lilian Yu is a Korean American who grew up speaking Korean in her home. She says, "Personally, I don't think Korean is part of American culture. I think Spanish is more a part of the American culture than Korean is …. You don't see a lot of non-Korean people take the Korean language class." Similarly, Andrew Graber, an American studies and Chinese major, makes the comment that he studies Chinese to become a "global citizen" and has intentions of moving to China but does not learn Chinese to communicate with Chinese Americans.

Despite the fact that dozens of languages are represented in large numbers across the U.S., there is a distinction between Americans who retain subgroups and those who have incorporated their subgroup into what it means to be "American." I don't think this distinction should be made, as it limits the to potential for American multi-culturalism.

Andrew later commented that "America is seen as monolingual," an infamous distinction which has branded this country. However, as soon as each and every American begins to recognize the contributions of all languages and cultures, the U.S. can become well-known for more positive attributes, such as multi-lingualism and multi-culturalism.

Source: DiamondBack Online

ESPN Radio’s return cuts Spanish format

April 23, 2008
By Michael Futch

ESPN Radio has expanded in the Fayetteville market, but the change has cost Hispanics the only Spanish-language station in town.

On April 17, WFAY (1230 AM) started simulcasting the sports programming heard on ESPN Radio-affiliate WCIE (1450 AM) in Spring Lake. Together, these stations have formed what’s being promoted as the Fayetteville ESPN Sports Network.

With the change, WFAY dropped the Spanish-language format introduced less than two years ago when the Norsan Group of Tucker, Ga., bought the station for $850,000 from the Colonial Radio Group. Before then, WFAY carried ESPN Radio, so this on-air programming merger marks a return to sports talk.

Some in the Hispanic community lament the loss.

“I think, obviously, the legalized Hispanic citizens here all know English. But they’re also native Spanish speakers and they’re more comfortable speaking and listening to their native language,” said Lou Olivera, a lawyer in Fayetteville.

Kymxverlee Garcia, a local restaurateur and one of the founders of the new Latino Chamber of Commerce of Southeastern North Carolina, said she would have preferred that WFAY remain the same because of the growing population of Hispanics in the area.

“I just think that a lot of Spanish people like to listen to Spanish radio,” she said. “I just think that maybe, since we have sports on so many channels, I would prefer to leave it Spanish.”

WFAY and WCIE are 1,000-watt AM stations. WCIE is owned by WCIE-AM Inc.

Once construction is completed, plans call for those stations’ local content to originate from a studio at Docks at the Capitol downtown on Hay Street. Decades ago, during the height of Top 40 radio, the original WFLB operated from a studio inside the landmark Miracle Theater building on Hay Street.

With WFAY now offering ESPN Radio, Fayetteville listeners should notice an improved signal when they tune in for ESPN network fare such as “Mike and Mike in the Morning” and “The Herd with Colin Cowherd.”

Weekday afternoons, the stations broadcast the locally produced show “The Cape Fear Sports Report,” with host Nick Sekkas from 4 to 5 p.m. A Fayetteville ESPN Sports Network news release indicates that Sekkas’ program may be expanding.

In the fall, the stations will carry East Carolina University Pirates football games.

According to the news release, plans call for a special program during downtown’s Fourth Fridays arts and music celebrations. This, the release added, would be “an interactive show with guests on the sidewalk having the ability to ask questions and converse with the show host and guests.”

Though local sports fans may be excited about the programming switch, Spanish-speaking people have lost the only radio station in Fayetteville that broadcasts in their language 24hours a day.

Niche programming is carried on a couple of stations in the market. On WCCG (104.5 FM), the Spanish-speaking program “Domingo Tropical” airs Sundays from 3 to 7 p.m. Fayetteville State University public radio station WFSS (91.9 FM) carries “La Hora Latina” Sundays from 9 to 11 p.m.

Robert Rivera, one of the hosts of “Domingo Tropical,” said WFAY’s ownership miscalculated its audience by programming largely to the Mexican community.

“Well, the thing is, Fayetteville within the city limits is ‘tropical’ people: Puerto Ricans, Dominicans, Panamanians,” he said. “They like the tropical tunes. That station was Mexican, who are (more prominent) on the outskirts of town. We have more Caribbean people in Fayetteville than we have Mexicans.”

Norberto Sanchez, who owns WFAY and is president of the Norsan Group, could not be reached for comment.

Rivera said the sound over the WFAY airwaves also lacked the clarity for music listening.

“Some places in Fayetteville, you get a little bit of reception. Some places, not at all,” he said. “Whoever gets the best quality music, that will be the one that people listen to.”

Source: The Fayetteville Observer

Hispanic Chamber of E-Commerce - Call for Action!

April 23, 2008
Via PRNewswire-HISPANIC PR WIRE

The Hispanic Chamber of E-Commerce -- HISCEC -- has been organized to put together the components that will enable Hispanic businesses to transform themselves within the electronic economy and gain competitive advantage by using Electronic Commerce.

HISCEC recognizes that small and medium-sized businesses utilizing e-commerce tools result in substantial financial and operational benefits.

The majority of small and medium-sized Hispanic businesses are not fully utilizing e-commerce tools due to one or more of the following reasons:

-- Hispanic business owners and managers do not have the time to explore the benefits of e-commerce tools.
-- Hispanic business owners and managers are conservative in nature, and are thus unwilling to experiment with new technologies and approaches.
-- There is a limited availability of tools offered by technology vendors that target the small and medium-sized Hispanic businesses.

HISCEC's services are designed to start helping small and medium-sized Hispanic businesses enjoy the benefits that e-commerce tools provide.

HISCEC will help your business to:

-- Be more competitive
-- Use an e-business tool that can help you to reduce costs
-- Interact with Hispanic business owners from around the country
-- Have access to new markets
-- Establish or increase international sales
-- Improve customer service
-- Have access to discounts provided for HISCEC's members
-- Have access to distance learning programs
-- Participate in virtual trade shows
-- Increase visibility of your business nationwide
-- Participate in virtual networking groups and forums
-- Participate in local and national events organized by HISCEC

Becoming a member of HISCEC is an action that can help you accomplish some of the above benefits and much more.

We invite you to give HISCEC a try; you have nothing to lose and everything to gain.

Special offer to Hispanic PR Wire readers: register your free membership at HISCEC and we will upgrade it to premium. Send your username to info@hiscec.com with the subject "Hispanic PR Wire".

HISCEC's team is looking forward to serving you. For more information, visit http://www.hiscec.com .

Microsoft Announces Vida Digital Latina Campaign

April 23, 2008
Via PRNewswire-FirstCall

Microsoft Corp. today announced the official launch of the Vida Digital Latina campaign to promote computer literacy among Hispanics. Microsoft joined forces with ASPIRA, a national nonprofit organization devoted to the education and leadership development of Latino youth, and Latinos in Information Sciences and Technology Association (LISTA), an organization founded to close the digital divide among Latino communities. Together they will offer free computer literacy education to Hispanics in Los Angeles, Miami, New York City and San Francisco. A series of free Spanish-language classes will be offered in each market and will highlight the safety features of Windows Vista and the overall program benefits.

As part of the educational seminars, technology expert and Latino cyberguy Jose Ulloa will join local Windows Vista Ambassadors to share their expertise and personal stories on integrating technology and Windows Vista into their daily lives.

"Latinos are more likely to adapt to new technology such as computers, mobile phones, cameras, MP3 players and game consoles than the general market consumer," Ulloa said, on behalf of Microsoft's Vida Digital Latina program.

The Vida Digital Latina platform was created to further engage and increase technology education among U.S. Latinos. Windows Vista classes and presentations are free and open to the public and will be held on the following dates:

* New York: April 25, Compass Community Center, Bronx, 10:30 a.m. * Miami: May 14, Jobing.com offices, 8:30 a.m. * San Francisco: May 20, Hilton San Francisco, 8:30 a.m. * Los Angeles: June 11, Jobing.com offices, 8:30 a.m.
"Microsoft is excited to partner with organizations such as ASPIRA and LISTA to further promote computer literacy and educational outreach among the Hispanic community. Together, we hope to empower Hispanics to use technology in ways that allow them to advance in the workplace, promote communication with loved ones back home and retain valuable family memories," said Jose Pinero, director of multicultural marketing at Microsoft. "By entering these markets and providing interactive events that allow the Hispanic community to engage and learn one-on-one, we hope to increase awareness of technology tools that widely go unused or unnoticed."
Windows Vista provides innovative tools to help create a safer computing experience for the family and allow parents to better manage and monitor their children's PC and Internet activities. Parents can manage and monitor PC and Internet access with a few simple clicks in the new Windows Vista Parental Controls center and decide what kinds of TV, music and games are appropriate for their children. New features in Windows Vista include the following:

* Parental Controls with monitoring and activity reports. Windows Vista allows parents not only to set the rules, but also to supervise how the rules are followed by the different users of a Windows Vista-equipped PC. The new monitoring system provides parents with reports that show computer activity and time online per user, and also has the ability to limit Internet access to certain times for specific users. * Multilingual User Interface. Windows Vista Ultimate edition with Multilingual User Interface allows users to keep one or several languages installed on the same computer. Now, depending on the user, the Windows menus can appear in English or Spanish. * Windows Media Center music. With the Windows Media Center in Windows Vista Home Premium and Windows Vista Ultimate, consumers are the disc jockeys of their own music and can control the mood. Users will be able to find their music by looking at the compact disc covers on screen. They can select music by genre, artist, year, song or album, and can then transfer it to their MP3 player or sound system, or burn a CD with their favorite mix. * Windows Aero graphical interface. The new Windows Aero user interface offers special features, such as the "glass" effect that makes a clear and transparent difference by allowing users to locate information at a glance. In addition, with live thumbnails, users can take a look at the content of a given window from the taskbar, without fully opening that particular window.

Source: EarthTimes.org

A new Latino conservation group

April 22, 2008
By Ernie Atencio

We have seen plenty of conflicts between the green and the brown here in New Mexico. Enviro groups have been at odds with local Indo-Hispano communities over spotted owls and forestry policies, public land grazing, instream flow proposals, land grants, wilderness and immigration policy. It’s a problem in a state with a 44% “Hispanic or Latino” population, much of which can trace its roots back 400 years or more.

It’s not that we’re anti-environment – recent surveys show that New Mexico Hispanos are more concerned about the environment and more willing to spend public money on environmental problems than their white neighbors – but hard-ball, confrontational environmental tactics, with no heart for culture and history and justice, have made locals very anti-environmentalist.

A group of Latinos want to make environmentalism more relevant and more accessible to that constituency through a new organization called the Latino Sustainability Institute. The group’s mission includes promoting conservation policies and social equity, building relationships between conservation groups and Latino organizations, supporting Latino land and water based organizations and preserving sustainable lifeways and cultural landscapes across New Mexico.

The founding board includes Jim Baca, director of the Bureau of Land Management under Bill Clinton and former New Mexico Public Lands Commissioner, Arturo Sandoval, Western coordinator for the first Earth Day in 1970 and long-time wilderness and community advocate (and short-time HCN board member) and president DeAnza Valencia, a law student with a broad background in environmental and justice issues. An advisory board consists of 16 Latino academics, farmers and conservation and social activists from throughout the state (including me). At its first annual meeting last week the group charted an ambitious agenda to become a presence and start making a difference in New Mexico environmental politics.

It’s about time we had an environmentalism in New Mexico that makes sense to people who are so deeply rooted in this environment we’re trying to save. New Mexico Hispanos/Latinos may have a different priority list, but they also have generations of local wisdom and strong, homegrown environmental ethics to bring to the table. It’s not a mainstream constituency so it won’t look like the mainstream environmental movement, but it’s no less environmental.

Source: GOAT A High Country News Blog

Authentic Communications 2008 Speaker Spotlight: TripAdvisor's Brian Payea

April 23, 2008

Brian Payea of TripAdvisor will be one of the case study presenters at the “Authentic Communications 2008: Beyond Web 2.0, What’s Next?” at the CUNY Graduate Center this Thursday, April 24.  Business Development Institute and PR Newswire have partnered together to organize this full day conference which will highlight many speakers and case studies throughout the day.

Brian Payea leads the newly created Trade Relations practice at TripAdvisor.   His focus is on opening communications channels with the travel industry and strengthening the ties between TripAdvisor and the hospitality community.   His department is building new tools for hoteliers and other hospitality professionals to take advantage of the wealth of traveler-contributed information on TripAdvisor.  Prior to TripAdvisor, Brian led public relations, marketing, government relations and investor relations at internet companies including Zoom Information and Lycos. 

Payea’s case study will explore TripAdvisor as a role model of authenticity. TripAdvisor-branded sites make up the largest travel community in the world, with more than 25 million monthly visitors, five million registered members and 10 million reviews and opinions.  Featuring real advice from real travelers, TripAdvisor is a fascinating example of authenticity at work and Payea will share how they built a large active community.

The conference runs from 8:30 a.m. until 5:00 p.m., with a networking reception following the event. Payea’s case study will be presented from 10:30 to 11:00 a.m., and should not be missed. For more information about the conference or to register, visit: http://www.bdionline.com/nycauthentic08/.

American Hispanics tired of hypocrisy

April 22, 2008
By Ruben Navarrete

U.S.-born Latinos in America are fed up. They're tired of the ugliness in the immigration debate, and they're not buying the argumentthat it does not concern them.

Take it from Janet Murguia, president of the National Council of La Raza, the nation's largest Hispanic civil rights organization. She recently delivered a passionate and important speech to the National Press Club in Washington.

Her topic: the immigration debate and what she labels a wave of hate sweeping the land — one that isn't limited to illegal immigrants, or even immigrants in general, but which is now splattering onto all Hispanics regardless of where they were born, what language they speak or what flag they wave.

"Most Latinos aren't immigrants," she said. "More than 80 percent of Hispanics in this country are U.S. citizens or legal residents. But the truth is, Hispanics understand that this issue is about all of us."

That's obvious. You might live in Colorado or New Mexico or Arizona and come from a family that has lived in the United States for several generations. And yet, your citizenship is being challenged by nativists who paint with a broad brush. All they see is your skin color or surname and, from this, they conclude that -- unless you go along with every harebrained scheme to combat illegal immigration -- you're, as one reader recently informed me, "an American in name only."

How do you suppose Hispanics will react? A middle-aged reader who describes himself as Italian-American recalls that when he was growing up and the Italian kids were picked on in school, it only made him feel "more Italian." It could be the same with Hispanics, he wrote.

Could be. According to Murguia, "two-thirds of Latinos say that the failure (of immigration reform) has made life more difficult for Latinos overall and roughly half say that it has affected them personally."

Part of the problem is that the right-wingers weren't content to just attack illegal immigrants. They had to attack an entire culture, which is shared by legal immigrants and U.S.-born Hispanics. And so, a discussion that should have been about exactly three things — improving border security, smoothing the path for legal immigrants, and deciding the fate of 12 million illegal immigrants in the United States -- became about outlawing taco trucks, limiting the number of people in a home, blasting pizza parlors for taking pesos, banning Spanish language library books, and other nonsense.

The way Murguia sees it, immigration is "on the verge of becoming one of the largest civil rights issues of our generation."

Not to mention, an election-year issue. Arguing that the ugliness of the immigration debate "galvanizes the Latino vote," Murguia vowed that Latinos would fight back.

"We will not be demonized," she said. "We will not be scapegoated. And we will not be ignored."

You tell 'em, Janet. I've had my share of run-ins with the NCLR over the years, and lodged my share of criticisms of the organization. But not for the reasons that nativists, cable news demagogues, and right-wing columnists and bloggers attack it. I've argued that, for too much of its 40-year existence, the group has been too corporate, too cautious and too easily co-opted by foundations and Fortune 500 companies looking for an entree into the Hispanic market.

But in this case Murguia has a point. An ethnic group that has always answered the call to duty, and which boasts a higher ratio of Medal of Honor recipients than any other, deserves better.

That's what I'm hearing from many U.S.-born Hispanics. When they talk to me about the immigration debate, they condemn the hypocrisy of a society that is addicted to illegal immigrant labor but looks for others to blame for the addiction. As for the claim that much of this is about national security, they wonder why no one talks about building a wall along the U.S.-Canada border. They worry about racial profiling as authorities become more aggressive in rounding up illegal immigrants.

They recognize the racism, and the assault on their culture, and they resent that they're being lumped together with recent immigrants. But at the same time, they find it easy to identify with the immigrant plight — through their parents or grandparents. Most of all, they scoff at the claim that, as U.S.-citizens, this debate doesn't concern them and that the attack is limited to illegal immigrants.

Hey, no matter what side of the border we were born on, we weren't born yesterday.

Source: AppealDemocrat.com

Minority-Owned Hispanic Online Money Fund Trading Portal Launches

April 22, 2008
Source: Crane Data

The world of online money market fund trading portals gets a new entrant this week as Tradefunds (​www.​finacorptradefunds.​com) begins operations. The new site says, "Finacorp Securities has teamed with The Bank of New York Mellon to establish Tradefunds.... The Tradefunds portal provides institutional clients with direct access to over 25 leading mutual fund families and over 100 specific money market funds -- all through one account, one wire, one agreement, with one consolidated statement."

President & CEO Ed Prado tells Crane Data, "​We'​re pretty excited. There'​s a lot of emphasis on the money market space, and there'​s been an explosion of assets." On their minority- and Hispanic-​owned angle, Prado says, "Finacorp Securities works with a lot of clients that have minority mandates in place, and this platform allows them to invest and satisfy diversity goals."

Partner Bank of New York Mellon launched the first money market fund trading portal in 1997, MoneyFunds DIRECT. The company claims to also be the "largest in client assets, transacting $​95 billion per day." Finacorp also founded the first "online trading platform for bonds, Tradebonds.​com," according to the firms'​s website.

Finacorp'​s Tradefunds joins the rapidly-​growing but increasingly crowded online money fund trading marketplace. Crane Data currently tracks 20 offerings with approximately $​340 billion in assets, including minority-​owned CNI Inc. and new entrants PNC Pinacle, UBS and Wachovia Connection.