IN THE NEWS

LATINO-JEWISH AGENDA

Latino Growth and its Impact on the National Agenda

The Aspen Institute, together with the Congressional Hispanic Leadership Institute is celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month with a discussion on “The Growing Hispanic Demographic: How Americans of Hispanic Descent are Influencing the National Dialogue” on Wednesday, September 10 in Washington, D.C. The panel will feature Dina Siegel Vann, Director of AJC’s Latino and Latin American Institute, Rudy Beserra, Vice President of Latin Affairs at The Coca-Cola Company, Leslie Sanchez, CNN Commentator and Founder & CEO of Impacto Group, LLC and Arturo Vargas, Executive Director of the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO).

The panel will discuss the latest trends in U.S. demography, considering that Hispanics are the nation's second largest group numbering 45.5 million people or 15.5% of the total U.S. population. Its growing economic clout is reflected in its purchasing power of $870 billion dollars in 2008 and is projected to reach $1.3 trillion dollars by 2015. In the political sphere, the number of elected Hispanics has grown 30 percent in the past eight years, from 3,743 in 1996 to 4,853 in 2004. The number of Hispanic voters has doubled from 5 to 10 million in the past 10 years.

AJC Urges Congress to Support the English and Integration Act

Understanding that the language barrier is the primary obstacle to immigrants building a new life in America, the American Jewish Committee sent letters urging legislators to support The Strengthening Communities through English and Integration Act. This bill will provide for English proficiency programs and other effective integration tools.  

The Strengthening Communities through English and Integration Act addresses the need to invest in our workforce through literacy and civics education, and assists local communities in integrating new populations. According to the Census Bureau, approximately 54.8 million people speak a language other than English at home. Despite this, there continues to be a one- to three-year long waiting list for English classes in many areas.

Renewable Energy Discussed at Diplomatic Reception  

During a dinner in honor of  Governor José Guadalupe Osuna Milan of Baja California at the residence of the Mexican Consul in Los Angeles, the topic of renewable energy was a top issue in the guests' agendas, which included  AJC's Los Angeles Chapter Executive Director, Seth Brysk. 

AJC believes that a comprehensive energy policy should be a national priority. Given its national security implications, the U.S. must substantially reduce dependence on imported oil and promote alternative energy sources.

 MONTHLY FEATURE

Presidential Candidates Launch Hispanic Voters Outreach

A common complaint among Hispanic voters has always been that politicians tend to view them as a one-issue bloc, concerned only about immigration. These time both presidential campaigns are taking care to avoid that trap, emphasizing issues like education, health care and housing as much as, if not more than, immigration and related border issues. They also clearly recognize the role that the Hispanic electorate, its numbers swelling with newly naturalized citizens and a population that skews young, could play in November.

Barack Obama’s presidential campaign and the Democratic National Committee just announced an unprecedented $20 million joint outreach effort to mobilize Hispanic voters. The statement comes on the heels of a survey released on July 24 by the Pew Hispanic Center that shows Obama with a commanding 66%-23% lead over Republican rival John McCain among registered Hispanic voters nationwide. Obama’s 76% favorability rating among Hispanics was also considerably higher than McCain’s 44% rating.

The presumptive Democratic nominee's strong showing in this survey represents a sharp reversal in his fortunes from the primaries, when Obama lost the Latino vote to Hillary Rodham Clinton by a nearly two-to-one ratio, giving rise to speculation in some quarters that Hispanics were disinclined to vote for a black candidate.

These new results may be a reflection of the candidates’ stances on the issues and their tone. Obama, drawing on his background as a community organizer, tends to evoke the theme of social justice and proclaims his support for legislation that would allow high school students, regardless of their legal status, to go to college or join the armed forces and gain legal residence. McCain’s message seeks to appeal to Hispanics deep religiosity, strong and extended family ties and patriotism. He emphasizes their propensity to create businesses of their own with his support for more free trade with Latin America and special attention to Hispanics’ small businesses.

As for immigration, both candidates say they favor comprehensive change in policy, but there are differences in tone. While Obama talks of 12 million undocumented immigrants in “hiding,” McCain, from Arizona, a border state, says there are two million criminals among that group and also talks of drug traffickers manipulating immigrant flows.

McCain’s support of the failed immigration bill, which many Republican primary voters were vigorously opposed to, threatened to doom his candidacy last year. However, during the primaries, he shifted his emphasis and began speaking of first securing the borders before trying to pass other components of the legislation, like its provision for a guest worker program.

His choice of Latino outreach adviser, Juan Hernandez, is also telling. Hernandez, who was born in Texas, served in former Mexican President Vicente Fox's cabinet, making him the first U.S. citizen to ever serve such a role. He has been an outspoken advocate for immigrants, both legal and illegal, and has appeared many times on cable television news, often promoting a McCain-sponsored bill that would have given many illegal immigrants a path to citizenship. He is also an Evangelical Christian and has organized Latino Evangelical leaders to support McCain's immigration bill.

Information partly taken from the Pew Hispanic Research Center, Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Cox News and Hispanic Link.

QUOTES AND FIGURES

New Measures in Place to Fight Drop in Remittances to Mexico

In 2007, remittances flowing into Mexico reached a high of $23.98 billion, but the Bank of Mexico estimates that they declined by 2.2 percent in the first half of this year. According to the bank, 12.6 percent Mexican families receive money from the United States, making remittances the second largest source of income behind oil exports.

Additionally, an estimated 100,000 Mexicans have returned to their home communities so far this year as a result of their perilous economic and social situation in the United States.

The drop in remittances has prompted Mexican Secretary of the Interior Juan Camilo Mourino to urge Mexican nationals in the United States to keep sending money and invest in their home country. At the same time, the Mexican government has taken steps to counteract this fall, including tax incentives in marginalized communities, increased public spending and temporary employment programs for returning migrants.

Information partly taken from new America Media

LATIN AMERICA AND MIDDLE EAST PERISCOPE

 AJC HIGHLIGHTS

AMIA Attack: 14 Years Later

To commemorate the 14^th anniversary of the AMIA bombing in Buenos Aires, , AJC’s Access Program for the Next Generation and the Latino and Latin American Institute (LLAI) hosted an event at the Embassy of Argentina in Washington.

“Fourteen Years after the AMIA Bombing: The Continued Threat of Terrorism in the Americas” featured presentations by Dina Siegel Vann, Director of  LLAI, Ambassador Charles Shapiro, Senior Coordinator for Western Hemisphere Affairs Free Trade Task Force, U.S. State Department and Mark Sullivan, Congressional Research Service Analyst for the Europe and the Americas Section, among others. 

In Florida, AJC’s Greater Miami and Broward Chapter hosted  the program “14 Years Later: Iran and Islamic Terrorism in Latin America: A Present Threat” on July 17^th.

More than 400 people attended the event, which included a panel discussion with experts Claudio Grossman, Dean of the American University Washington College of Law, Eric Farnsworth, Vice President of the Council of the Americas, and Patricia Poleo, Political Analyst and Journalist of Nuevo País in Venezuela.

Chilean Leaders Visit Israel

A high-ranking delegation of Chilean parliamentarians, politicians, educational experts, and journalists visited Israel with AJC's Project Interchange and the Jewish Community of Chile (CJCH). The group met with major Israeli government officials, Israeli Arab leaders, human rights activists, journalists and historians.

Upon his return, Congressman Julio Dittborn commented that “The international press always insinuates that Israel is the aggressor and the Arabs the victims. No doubt that this perception has been dimmed by my visit (to Israel). I now have an admiration for the Jewish people’s strength to make from this, their homeland.”

This is the second AJC-sponsored visit with Chilean opinion leaders to Israel. AJC and CJCH have an association agreement.

AJC Congratulates Colombian Government on Stunning Rescue

Colombian Ambassador Carolina Barco thanked AJC for its congratulatory letter to President Alvaro Uribe following the rescue of the hostages held by FARC. Barco also acknowledged AJC's invaluable support for the US-Colombia Free Trade Agreement.

Madrid Interreligious Conference

Rabbi David Rosen, AJC's international director of interreligious affairs, was the only Israeli participant at a major conference of world religious leaders in Spain sponsored by King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia. The conference, which brought together Christian, Muslim, Jewish, Hindu and Buddhist leaders, among others, and received wide media attention, was a first for the Arab country. Rosen spoke of the importance of advancing peace efforts by ensuring that Israel was included in such events.

Israel @ 60 Internet Ad Campaign 

AJC launched the second phase of an Internet ad campaign celebrating, on Israel’s 60th birthday, the vitality and diversity of Israeli life and commonalities shared by Americans and Israelis. The ad, which includes a video, is aimed at the under-40 demographic and is appearing on several sites, including New York Times, Huffington Post, Washington Post, slate.com and gawker.com. The ad links to the special Israel @ 60 page on the AJC website.