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This Sunday and Monday mark the inaugural summit of Oregon Latino Agenda for Action. OLAA was created to stimulate statewide efforts for social, economic, political and civic leadership in Oregon's Latino community. The summit, titled, "One United Voice," will address the different needs of Oregon's fastest growing ethnic group. The U.S. Census Bureau estimates that nearly 400,000 Latinos make up 11.2 percent of the state's population, and within the community are diverse concerns about achieving the American Dream.
Joining us in the conversation is the summit's director Andrea Cano who says that organizing the summit was years in the making.
My hope for this historic gathering is that it will bring together a diversity of voices. My fear is also the diversity of voices.
Also joining the discussion is Hector Lopez, past student body president of Rex Putnum High School, who discovered he was undocumented in September and deported to Mexico City. And Romeo Sosa, a former day laborer who now heads up an advocacy group for day laborers in Portland.
What would you like to know about Oregon's Latino community? If you are Latino, what has your experience in reaching for the American Dream been like? What priorities are important for you?
Correction: In this show there was an error in the introduction of Hector Lopez. He was brought here as a young child by his parents and there was no legal status for him to apply for. Hector also misstated the amount of time he was detained by US officials before deportation. According to his attorney, it was nine days. We regret the mistakes.
Tagged as: latino · politics · social issues
Photo credit: Thomas Hawk / Creative Commons
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Why are you so afraid of the Spanish language? America is the only major developed country where the majority of citizens are unable to speak a second language. You seem scared to death that we might learn one (the way Europeans are learning English).
This may shock you but people are actually able to speak more than one language at the same time. Some think it actually makes them smarter (and less paranoid).
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msalt: Why do you think I am afraid? I speak Spanish fluently.
!Viva la Revolucion!
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The guest said we need to do what is morally rite. that is simplefollow our imigration laws. I am not ignorant about the contibutions of hispanics in our history it is similar to that of all the people who came here.
The reason following the law is the most humain thing is because even ifn everyone who is here ilegally is hardworking at trying to do the rite thing they create the situation in whitch they can be taken advantage of because they are here illegally.
This is not hate it is a simple practical fact.
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You're right about being taken advantage of. Illegal immigrants are here for one reason -- because business owners want them here, to undercut the power of labor and unions.
Notice that while Republicans love to attack immigrants, they refuse to prosecute the factory owners who hire them. Most don't even want to make it illegal. The same rich conservative politicians often have hired illegal immigrants in their own house -- Meg Whitman, Mitt Romney, Lou Dobbs. Poor people don't hire gardeners and nannies.
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We need more non-Latinos listening and advocating.
I feel that it's important to get non-Latino individuals who are equal rights advocates involved in summits like this one. Latinos definitely need to gather to set a vision for their social and political future in the region, but I think that the other concientious citizens of our state (like myself) need to be there listening and learning so that we can advocate better for this group of neighbors who are more and more targeted by some of our other neighbors. I am a white anglo saxon protestant, and I plan to be there, just to listen and learn.
I also want to thank OPB for covering the story about the young man who was the senior class president at Rex Putnum getting deported--this is an important story that has not been given enough media attention. Keep talking about this please!
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It is unfortunate the conversation focused on the Immigration issue. I hope this summit addresses issues other than Immigration. Oregon Latino Population is more than 90% Legal residents and citizens, so I hope the conversation at this summit focus in all Latinos in Oregon not only undocumented. We know Immigration Reform must be addressed and lots of work has been done.
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Are latin-americans really so homogeneous that all their concerns can be addressed with a single political agenda?
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Please stop focusing on immigration! The vast majority of Latinos in the U.S. are citizens, by any one's count.
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Hector Lopez is a perfect example of someone schooled in America, who is culturally American. It must feel very strange to be sent to what is essentially a foreign country where you can barely speak the language. America is a meritocracy, so much so equal opportunity is the law. Not everyone takes advantage of this, but we teach the children if you study hard, work hard, you will succeed. In WE ARE AMERICANS, a recent book on this issue, the point is made through documenting the efforts of 20 undocumented students, that it's like slamming into a brick wall for kids who believe in this American dream. It also documents the monetary contribution through taxes that these families make. It outstrips anything they receive in government services. Because our governor took it upon himself in helping his favored unions requires that people provide a passport or equivalent to get a driver's license, we have thousands of people on the road who have no idea of what traffic rules are. So for these kids who are trying to succeed, they have to take the bus to their jobs and to their community college (which they have to pay for). Even though they've lived here all their lives, they have to pay non-resident tuition, making it more difficult. There are 15 to 30 million people in this country undocumented. I would love to see a national day of boycott by all Latinos, stay home from work, and for all who believe a solution providing a path to permanent residency and citizenship is needed now.
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The Conservative argument is to send them back to their parents country to wait for some number of years and then apply, how about recognizing the number of years they have been in the US as decent people and count those towards the wait-time for citizenship?
I think that Hector Lopez has earned his way to be a citizen by the way he has lived his life all of the way to growing up. His parents too.
I think that when we have an opportunity to right a wrong, we ought to right that wrong.
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I am always hering how we need to learn more and respect more about other cultures and While I enjoy learning about other coulter I do not ever hear people promoting our coulture.
Afterall it is our culture of inovation and freedom not government handout that created the economic opertunities that people are coming here for.
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I hate to hear the lady guest argue for abusing cheap-labor migrants as farm laborers. I think that if you can't pay a decent wage to an american to do farm and harvest work you should not grow the crop.
And I'd like to see a return to teens harvesting summer crops, so that they make some money, learn how to work, and learn to honor the adults who work the hard labor jobs. Otherwise where can they learn a work ethic?
Surely an appropriate teen wage level can be legislated and proper regulation, oversight, and enforcement of the farmers on health, work hours, and safety issues established.
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I think this is a great idea
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In theory this would work. In theory so did communism.
Talk to a teenager--when they are not text msg, surfing the internet, or gaming. Their hands are soft, with no calluses. They have never dug a hole in their life or worked a full 12 hour day in the August Sun. They know that shovels can be used for that kind of work, but are unfamiliar with exactly how it works.
They are not aquainted with hard work, and will quit on you after a half day. They will not tolerate a red neck sunburn. And have no persistence for hard and hot work.
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jacob — Fri Oct. 15th 10:18a.m.
It worked in the past and so you are proved wrong.
In fact public school summer vacation was originally established so that the kids could do the needed farm work back when most americans were small farmers.
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wow so the rich republican are the sources of all eval yet again yes rich people both republicans and Democrats hire gardners and house keepers poor republicans and democrats do not. The same could probably be said for independants. I am glad that while we maybe disagree on imigration that you atleased understand that trickle down economics works.
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"...trickle down economics works."
Really? Can you cite one instance? I'd like to hear about that particular mythological Unicorn existing.
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About 25 years ago, I moved to San Antonio, Texas. After living there awhile, I was shocked--and dismayed--to be told that in Mexico (Bolivia, Peru -- I don't know about other Latin American countries) "the lighter your skin color, the easier it is to succeed economically and socially." I grew up in a family in which judging someone by the color of his or her skin was not only wrong, it was unimaginable. I was taught not to judge them even by their character--I was taught not to judge them at all, to accept each person as an individual, as he or she is.
Since then, I have lived for extended periods in Europe, Asia, and the Middle East and I have discovered a great deal of racism in those cultures too. Yet, Americans are perceived by these cultures as racist. Could it be that much of the racism that is perceived to exist in America is in the eyes of the beholders? At the summit, more will be accomplished if the participants look at the logs in their own eyes instead of the slivers in others'.
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I think this is very true, just look to how the countries south of us handle their own illegal imigration problem.
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THE LAW IS THE LAW, When we all decide that the law can be broken at will, then we become a lawless society and we can kiss it all good bye, especially the "American Dream". If I decide that today I want to make a better life for myself and my family, do I have the right to go take over my neighbors car and house? NO, that would be breaking the law and I would be arrested. If a family is here illegally...(illegal is illegal), when is it the responsibility of the leader of that "moral upstanding family", to say, we must obey the law and come into this country the correct way??? Apply for citizenship the correct way! If I enter another country without creating the correct paperwork trail, then will that country kick me out...NO, they will put me in Jail and maybe charge me with being a spy! I KEEP HEARING, WE AMERICANS DON'T LIKE MEXICANS...THAT IS NOT TRUE!!!! I DON'T LIKE ANYONE THAT BREAKS THE LAW!!!! MEXICAN, LATINO, BLACK, WHITE, HISPANIC, RUSSIAN, CANADIAN, ITALIAN, DOESN'T MATTER... DON'T BREAK THE LAW UNLESS YOU CAN PAY THE FINE AND THE PENALTIES! Some of the people here are paying the penalty for breaking the law, even if the parents were the ones breaking the law. The time lag does not negate the breaking of the law. The penalty may include being sent back to your country of origin.
The guest said we need to do what is morally right...IT IS MORALLY RIGHT TO FOLLOW THE LAWS OF THE COUNTRY YOU ARE TRYING TO IMIGRATE TO!!! It is interesting that the guest wants to make this a "moral" issue, when clearly they have no morals to begin with. If you have morals you follow the law, not just the ones that you feel are fair. IF I DON'T THINK IT IS FAIR MY NEIGHBOR HAS A NICER HOUSE, THEN WHEN DO I GET TO DECIDE THAT MY MORALS ALLOW ME TO WALK INTO HIS HOME AND BEGIN TO LIVE THERE? LET ME ANSWER FOR YOU...NEVER, NOT IN A COUNTRY WITH LAWS.
IT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH COUNTRY OF ORIGIN...IT HAS EVERTHING TO DO WITH BREAKING THE LAW AND THINKING THE PERSON HERE ILLEGALLY IS DUE SOMETHING! YOU ARE NOT DUE ANYTHING BECAUSE YOU BROKE THE LAW! WE CANNOT AWARD SOMEONE FOR BREAKING THE LAW. END OF STORY!
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Hmm, and so I suggest that we take the Conservative Republicans who entice and hire the illegals and deport them to some third world country.
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I have lived here all my life, arriving legally at age 3 with my parents and a 2 year old brother back in the late 1950's. I am a US citizen as are my parents, and other sisters born here. My brother, however never became a US citizen because he too thought he was one. Back in 2002 he got in trouble with the law, arrested, and was deported.
He was here in the US LEGALLY (he had a green card) yet he got deported???? He had never visited the country (Costa Rica). He didn't know how to speak Spanish, he didn't know the culture. He didn't know any distant relatives that might have helped him and they did not know him.
He has been unable to come back to his country!
He has 6 kids, 8 grandkids, a wife, parents, cousins, siblings, and all of them US citizens.
We miss him! and don't know if he will ever be able to return. He is in his 50's!
Having a green card, being legal is NOT a guarantee you can stay!
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Something that I see that people fail to acknowledge is that undocumented immigrants file their tax declaration. They are paying their share for the schools, police, etc. And from their paycheck deductions they add to social security, medicare and unemployment; services they can not tap into. I advise everyone to access the Immigration Policy Center website and look for yourselves the numbers in our state of Oregon and then let's start this conversation again. A lot of opinions, but not enough research in the matter.
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The Sunday Oregonian had an article on that a few months ago, maybe 6 or 8. The illegals overall contribute far more than they get back.
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Lots of people who get deported aren't here illegally. Some people, like Hector's dad, are here as "permanent legal residents" (holders of a "green card"). People who hold this status are here legally and are often in the process of becoming citizens. Immigration law passed in 1996 put much harsher deportation penalties in place for infractions of the law, say a DUI for example, that could result in someone who holds a green card and has been here obeying the law for years and years to be deported. And some people, like Hector, may get caught up in something like that and not have ever done anything wrong.
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Comments are now closed.
What language will our descendants speak in 100 years? A leading demographer argues it will be Spanish. Hispanics are the biggest minority recently surpassing Blacks. And are the fastest growing minority, both through immigration (both legal & illegal) and births. Hispanics have twice the birth rate compared to whites in the 2010 Census. Jose was the most popular baby name in California in 2008.
English speakers will be a shrinking minority. If you look at the Western Hemisphere or the Americas, there are 35 countries. Spanish (& Portuguese) account for ALL BUT THREE countries. Haiti speaks a form of French. Canada and the US speak English(excepting Quebec). Over 2/3 of the population of the Western Hemisphere /The Americas speak Spanish. The US-Mexican Border is the hotly contested language barrier for the entire hemisphere and is overrun. English speakers are the tip of a spear and on the retreat. The Americas may be the Manifest Destiny for Hispanic Culture.
Our armed services are populated with Hispanics. Spain won the World Cup. Spain won the Tour de France. And our most popular heroes are the Trapped Chilean Miners. Geo Bush's grandchildren are Hispanic. The Olympic Committee recently preferred Rio de Janiero as the Next Olympic City despite President Obama's pleas for Chicago.
If California approves of Legalization of Marijuana, expect to be flooded by cheap Mexican Marijuana along with their syndicates and drug lords. Welcome the new Robin Hood- gangster bootleggers from Sinaloa. We will have a Hispanic president within a generation --probably in part financed by wealthy drug lords patrons.
Ironically the European continent is uniting around one language destiny, English (or bad English.)
It is hard to argue with demography. Vaya con Dios!