Alexandria seeks diversity in gifted education
WTOP, November 28, 2009
ALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP) - Alexandria schools Superintendent Morton Sherman is working to expand minority enrollment in elementary gifted programs as the Virginia Department of Education tackles the same issues.
State records show disparities in Virginia's gifted programs. Alexandria's disparities were the widest in northern Virginia. In the 11,000-student school system, white students make up 25 percent of the total enrollment but are 58 percent of those labeled "gifted." Black and Hispanic students make up 65 percent of enrollment but less than a third of those in gifted programs.
Alexandria educators are rethinking how they screen students. In February, all second-graders will sit for an aptitude test to determine whether they should be screened for gifted programs.
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
Obama's challenge is to keep Hispanic support
Obama challenge: keep Hispanic support
By LIZ SIDOTI, Associate Press
AUSTIN, Texas — Barack Obama has erased George W. Bush's inroads among Hispanics, with these influential voters consistently giving the president exceptionally strong marks and the White House employing an aggressive strategy to keep it that way.
Obama's challenge is to ensure that Hispanics pledge allegiance to the Democratic Party for the 2010 elections and keep supporting him through his own likely 2012 re-election race while he tackles the divisive issue of repairing the nation's patchy immigration system.
Hispanics are the nation's fastest-growing minority group. The government projects they will account for 30 percent of the population by 2050, doubling in size from today and boosting their political power.
If Democrats build on Obama's gains, Texas and other traditionally Republican states with huge numbers of Hispanics could be within reach in the future. That would mean deep trouble for a GOP that's already older, whiter, dwindling in numbers and lacking a standard bearer to make Hispanics a priority the way Bush did.
Yet while the latest Associated Press-GfK poll showed that a strong 68 percent of Hispanics approve of the job Obama's doing, maintaining such support is far from certain.
"Democrats speak to me, and this one in particular seems to be listening to what we need and what we want," said Tina Calhoun, 52, of Sacramento, Calif., who grew up in a family of Republicans but tends to vote Democratic. Still, she, like many others, isn't necessarily going to stick with Obama no matter what. "I want to give him a little more time," she said.
Indeed, it's unclear whether Hispanics will back Democrats to such strong degrees next fall when Obama is not on the ballot. Minorities and young voters who turned out in droves for Obama in 2008 didn't show up this year for Democrats in the Virginia and New Jersey governors' races.
There's also a lifetime before Obama's expected re-election campaign, and he's promised to push immigration legislation before then, including an eventual path to citizenship for some 12 million people in the country illegally.
That's no easy task. The spectacular failure of such a measure in 2007 proved as much.
Immigration is a galvanizing issue on both the left and the right, with pitfalls for both parties. Republicans could alienate Hispanics if the vocal right again takes control of the debate with angry rhetoric. Democrats risk seriously disillusioning Hispanics by inaction, delay or a piecemeal approach. A fight in Congress is assured.
"Our community will judge him based on how he delivers on the promise he made to see immigration reform early in his administration," said Janet Murguia, president of the National Council of La Raza, suggesting the issue trumps everything else.
Much was made during the Democratic primary of Obama's perceived weakness among Hispanics but he won 67 percent of their vote in the general election to 31 percent for Republican John McCain. It was a huge jump from 2004 when Democratic nominee John Kerry won Hispanics by 53 percent to 44 percent for Bush, a Texan who focused heavily on Hispanics.
Obama didn't win Texas, hard-core GOP country for decades. But 20 percent of voters here were Hispanic, and, of those, Obama won 63 percent of their vote. Obama dominated counties that include Austin, Dallas, Houston and San Antonio, where huge numbers of Hispanics live, as well as heavily Hispanic counties along the Mexican border, where he increased Kerry's margins by double-digits — a warning sign for Republicans.
Overall, the president has watched his job approval rating steadily decline since January; it stands at 54 percent in the latest AP-GfK poll. His support among Hispanics has largely held steady, with some surveys finding his backing among them as high as the low 70s — a figure even Republicans call impressive.
"They flirted with Republicans because they liked Bush. But the whole immigration fight really reversed all the gains Republicans had made," said Andrew Kohut, a nonpartisan pollster at the Pew Research Center. "There's no question that they are part of the Democratic base now."
Since Day 1, the White House has made a concerted daily effort to court Hispanics.
Obama chose Ken Salazar and Hilda Solis for his Cabinet, and then nominated Sonia Sotomayor for the Supreme Court as part of what officials call a record number of Hispanic appointments. The president and administration officials have given numerous interviews to Hispanic media.
The White House held the first known bilingual White House press briefing. It also partnered with Univision and Telemundo to broadcast White House events. And it has made several Web sites available in Spanish, including WhiteHouse.gov.
All of that has struck a chord with Lucy R. Moreno of Houston, 70. "Finally, we're getting what's due to us. I'm pleased that he's following through on what he said he would do, like put Hispanics in positions of power," she said. "And he's hitting the right issues."
Mel Martinez, a Republican and former Florida senator, attributes Obama's standing among Hispanics both to his personal popularity as well as the GOP's failure to build upon Bush's gains in a serious way.
"It's a shame and it's something we're going to regret," he said. "To be a majority party, you must be focused on Hispanics."
By LIZ SIDOTI, Associate Press
AUSTIN, Texas — Barack Obama has erased George W. Bush's inroads among Hispanics, with these influential voters consistently giving the president exceptionally strong marks and the White House employing an aggressive strategy to keep it that way.
Obama's challenge is to ensure that Hispanics pledge allegiance to the Democratic Party for the 2010 elections and keep supporting him through his own likely 2012 re-election race while he tackles the divisive issue of repairing the nation's patchy immigration system.
Hispanics are the nation's fastest-growing minority group. The government projects they will account for 30 percent of the population by 2050, doubling in size from today and boosting their political power.
If Democrats build on Obama's gains, Texas and other traditionally Republican states with huge numbers of Hispanics could be within reach in the future. That would mean deep trouble for a GOP that's already older, whiter, dwindling in numbers and lacking a standard bearer to make Hispanics a priority the way Bush did.
Yet while the latest Associated Press-GfK poll showed that a strong 68 percent of Hispanics approve of the job Obama's doing, maintaining such support is far from certain.
"Democrats speak to me, and this one in particular seems to be listening to what we need and what we want," said Tina Calhoun, 52, of Sacramento, Calif., who grew up in a family of Republicans but tends to vote Democratic. Still, she, like many others, isn't necessarily going to stick with Obama no matter what. "I want to give him a little more time," she said.
Indeed, it's unclear whether Hispanics will back Democrats to such strong degrees next fall when Obama is not on the ballot. Minorities and young voters who turned out in droves for Obama in 2008 didn't show up this year for Democrats in the Virginia and New Jersey governors' races.
There's also a lifetime before Obama's expected re-election campaign, and he's promised to push immigration legislation before then, including an eventual path to citizenship for some 12 million people in the country illegally.
That's no easy task. The spectacular failure of such a measure in 2007 proved as much.
Immigration is a galvanizing issue on both the left and the right, with pitfalls for both parties. Republicans could alienate Hispanics if the vocal right again takes control of the debate with angry rhetoric. Democrats risk seriously disillusioning Hispanics by inaction, delay or a piecemeal approach. A fight in Congress is assured.
"Our community will judge him based on how he delivers on the promise he made to see immigration reform early in his administration," said Janet Murguia, president of the National Council of La Raza, suggesting the issue trumps everything else.
Much was made during the Democratic primary of Obama's perceived weakness among Hispanics but he won 67 percent of their vote in the general election to 31 percent for Republican John McCain. It was a huge jump from 2004 when Democratic nominee John Kerry won Hispanics by 53 percent to 44 percent for Bush, a Texan who focused heavily on Hispanics.
Obama didn't win Texas, hard-core GOP country for decades. But 20 percent of voters here were Hispanic, and, of those, Obama won 63 percent of their vote. Obama dominated counties that include Austin, Dallas, Houston and San Antonio, where huge numbers of Hispanics live, as well as heavily Hispanic counties along the Mexican border, where he increased Kerry's margins by double-digits — a warning sign for Republicans.
Overall, the president has watched his job approval rating steadily decline since January; it stands at 54 percent in the latest AP-GfK poll. His support among Hispanics has largely held steady, with some surveys finding his backing among them as high as the low 70s — a figure even Republicans call impressive.
"They flirted with Republicans because they liked Bush. But the whole immigration fight really reversed all the gains Republicans had made," said Andrew Kohut, a nonpartisan pollster at the Pew Research Center. "There's no question that they are part of the Democratic base now."
Since Day 1, the White House has made a concerted daily effort to court Hispanics.
Obama chose Ken Salazar and Hilda Solis for his Cabinet, and then nominated Sonia Sotomayor for the Supreme Court as part of what officials call a record number of Hispanic appointments. The president and administration officials have given numerous interviews to Hispanic media.
The White House held the first known bilingual White House press briefing. It also partnered with Univision and Telemundo to broadcast White House events. And it has made several Web sites available in Spanish, including WhiteHouse.gov.
All of that has struck a chord with Lucy R. Moreno of Houston, 70. "Finally, we're getting what's due to us. I'm pleased that he's following through on what he said he would do, like put Hispanics in positions of power," she said. "And he's hitting the right issues."
Mel Martinez, a Republican and former Florida senator, attributes Obama's standing among Hispanics both to his personal popularity as well as the GOP's failure to build upon Bush's gains in a serious way.
"It's a shame and it's something we're going to regret," he said. "To be a majority party, you must be focused on Hispanics."
Hispanic families urge school uniforms
Hispanic families urge school uniforms
A letter sent to the Medford School Board says it could reduce problems of clothing colors linked to gangs
By Damian Mann, Mail Tribune, November 28, 2009
Alarmed by increased gang activity in the area, several Spanish-speaking families have asked the Medford School District to consider requiring school uniforms for students.
A letter sent to the School Board on Nov. 18 from 17 parents cited recent gang-related incidents in Medford and said uniforms would reduce the problem created by clothing colors associated with gangs.
"They think that would help alleviate the gang activities in our communities," said Yolanda Ortega, a North Medford High English language development teaching assistant.
She and other members of her department worked with the parents to draft the letter and put their words into English.
The parents raised concerns that school colors are red and black at North Medford High School and blue and gray at South Medford high. The Nortenos, "northerners" in Spanish, identify themselves with the color red, while the Surenos, or "southerners," often wear blue.
"Some parents are worried about their students being targeted because they were wearing a specific color," Ortega said.
She said the concern increased after a recent gang-related stabbing on Sept. 15 on Beatty Street and a separate stabbing at a coming-of-age party on Nov. 7 for a 15-year-old girl at the Ramada Inn on Biddle Road.
Gang activity still has not had much effect in local schools, Ortega said, adding that students who appear to have any gang affiliation tend not to stay in school for very long.
Some school districts around the country have adopted dress codes or require uniforms.
Waldo Middle School in Salem has had a dress code since 1997, giving students choices among four colors: navy, white, dark green or tan. Only solid colors can be worn, and the school has other restrictions on the type of clothing. In a 1998 legislative report, it noted that discipline problems fell 23 percent in the year after the dress code was adopted.
Ortega said there was discussion among parents about the cost of uniforms and how some families would pay for them.
"Parents can't afford to buy the uniforms," she said.
Eric Dziura, Medford School Board chairman, said the idea of uniforms is not an issue that's currently on the district's radar.
"There is nothing that would warrant it at this point," he said.
Dziura said he first heard of the request from parents on Friday.
During recent talks with the Medford Police Department, School Board members learned that gang activity has increased in the area, Dziura said. But there have been no reports of increased problems at schools, he said.
The idea of school uniforms could be considered by the School Board in the future, he said, if there is an uptick in gang activity on campuses.
"If we have particular concerns, we'll take it up," Dziura said.
Kim Lockett, an English language development teacher at North Medford, said very few students are affiliated with gangs.
"It does not impact daily school activity, usually — certainly not in the classrooms," said Lockett.
She said requiring uniforms might reduce the potential for gang activity at the school, but it wouldn't solve the underlying problem.
"I think it's more complex than colors," she said. "In the long term, what young men need is an education — and young women do, too.
"Kids who think they don't have a future turn to gangs."
Reach reporter Damian Mann at 776-4476, or e-mail dmann@mailtribune.com.
A letter sent to the Medford School Board says it could reduce problems of clothing colors linked to gangs
By Damian Mann, Mail Tribune, November 28, 2009
Alarmed by increased gang activity in the area, several Spanish-speaking families have asked the Medford School District to consider requiring school uniforms for students.
A letter sent to the School Board on Nov. 18 from 17 parents cited recent gang-related incidents in Medford and said uniforms would reduce the problem created by clothing colors associated with gangs.
"They think that would help alleviate the gang activities in our communities," said Yolanda Ortega, a North Medford High English language development teaching assistant.
She and other members of her department worked with the parents to draft the letter and put their words into English.
The parents raised concerns that school colors are red and black at North Medford High School and blue and gray at South Medford high. The Nortenos, "northerners" in Spanish, identify themselves with the color red, while the Surenos, or "southerners," often wear blue.
"Some parents are worried about their students being targeted because they were wearing a specific color," Ortega said.
She said the concern increased after a recent gang-related stabbing on Sept. 15 on Beatty Street and a separate stabbing at a coming-of-age party on Nov. 7 for a 15-year-old girl at the Ramada Inn on Biddle Road.
Gang activity still has not had much effect in local schools, Ortega said, adding that students who appear to have any gang affiliation tend not to stay in school for very long.
Some school districts around the country have adopted dress codes or require uniforms.
Waldo Middle School in Salem has had a dress code since 1997, giving students choices among four colors: navy, white, dark green or tan. Only solid colors can be worn, and the school has other restrictions on the type of clothing. In a 1998 legislative report, it noted that discipline problems fell 23 percent in the year after the dress code was adopted.
Ortega said there was discussion among parents about the cost of uniforms and how some families would pay for them.
"Parents can't afford to buy the uniforms," she said.
Eric Dziura, Medford School Board chairman, said the idea of uniforms is not an issue that's currently on the district's radar.
"There is nothing that would warrant it at this point," he said.
Dziura said he first heard of the request from parents on Friday.
During recent talks with the Medford Police Department, School Board members learned that gang activity has increased in the area, Dziura said. But there have been no reports of increased problems at schools, he said.
The idea of school uniforms could be considered by the School Board in the future, he said, if there is an uptick in gang activity on campuses.
"If we have particular concerns, we'll take it up," Dziura said.
Kim Lockett, an English language development teacher at North Medford, said very few students are affiliated with gangs.
"It does not impact daily school activity, usually — certainly not in the classrooms," said Lockett.
She said requiring uniforms might reduce the potential for gang activity at the school, but it wouldn't solve the underlying problem.
"I think it's more complex than colors," she said. "In the long term, what young men need is an education — and young women do, too.
"Kids who think they don't have a future turn to gangs."
Reach reporter Damian Mann at 776-4476, or e-mail dmann@mailtribune.com.
Latino civil rights activist appointed as Ambassador
New U.S. ambassador is a civil rights activist
Dominican Today, November 24, 2009
Santo Domingo.- Raul Humberto Yzaguirre, 70, a veteran activist in the civil rights struggle of Hispanics in the United States, has been accepted by the Dominican Government as new American ambassador in the country.
The Dominican Foreign Relations Ministry informed the U.S. embassy that president Leonel Fernandez "has granted with pleasure the approval of State" the activist's appointment as ambassador.
Yzaguirre, of San Juan, Texas, son of Mexican parents, had presided the National Council on Race from 1974 to 2004, and in that regard confronted strict migratory policies implemented by presidents Jimmy Carter, George Bush, and had criticized president Bill Clinton for the very few appointment of Hispanic in key positions.
He replaces Robert Fannin, who's a brief and lackluster tenure concluded in January, and who in turn replaced the active and often controversial Hans Hertell.
Dominican Today, November 24, 2009
Santo Domingo.- Raul Humberto Yzaguirre, 70, a veteran activist in the civil rights struggle of Hispanics in the United States, has been accepted by the Dominican Government as new American ambassador in the country.
The Dominican Foreign Relations Ministry informed the U.S. embassy that president Leonel Fernandez "has granted with pleasure the approval of State" the activist's appointment as ambassador.
Yzaguirre, of San Juan, Texas, son of Mexican parents, had presided the National Council on Race from 1974 to 2004, and in that regard confronted strict migratory policies implemented by presidents Jimmy Carter, George Bush, and had criticized president Bill Clinton for the very few appointment of Hispanic in key positions.
He replaces Robert Fannin, who's a brief and lackluster tenure concluded in January, and who in turn replaced the active and often controversial Hans Hertell.
LULAC takes on Ohio registration rules
Latinos fight BMV plan for registrations
By Jessica Brown • Enquirer • November 24, 2009
CARTHAGE - Latino groups and business owners rallied to support a court action Tuesday to block the Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles from canceling more than 47,000 vehicle registrations.
The League of United Latin American Citizens says the BMV is intentionally targeting illegal immigrants. It filed a lawsuit Tuesday in Franklin County Common Pleas Court.
The first hearing was set for Dec. 1.
Greater Cincinnati business owners and local representatives from the LULAC, Reform Immigration for America and Hispanic Catholic Ministries gathered Tuesday at Su Casa Hispanic Ministry in Carthage to announce their support of the lawsuit.
"It (the BMV cancellations) creates an enormous, enormous burden for our people," said Father William Jensen, director of Hispanic Ministry for the Archdiocese of Cincinnati. "We consider it a destruction of our community."
The BMV sent letters Oct. 8 to 47,457 vehicle registrants instructing them to update their BMV records by providing an Ohio driver's license, Ohio identification card or proof of their Social Security number. That proof and a $3.50 fee, is required by Dec. 8 or the registrations will be cancelled. It is unclear how many of those vehicle owners live in Greater Cincinnati.
The BMV crafted the new policy to prevent fraud in the wake of a high-profile crash last year in Columbus in which the at-fault driver fraudulently registered his vehicle, said Lindsay Komlanc, spokeswoman for the Ohio Department of Public Safety. The policy came after a Columbus Dispatch article revealed a loophole in Ohio law that allowed undocumented workers to register vehicles with falsified power-of-attorney forms. The forms don't require verification of the owners' identity.
The LULAC lawsuit focuses almost exclusively on the BMV's request for Social Security numbers. It alleges the BMV is trying to illegally enforce federal immigration laws by targeting the cancellation notices to people who declined to provide Social Security numbers. It calls the letters an attempt to "enforce identity requirements for non-citizens."
The lawsuit also says that the registrations were legal when approved by the BMV and that canceling them or requiring any additional information or fees would be illegal.
Latino groups say the policy will hurt those vehicle owners, their families, their businesses and ultimately, Ohio's economy.
"This will disenfranchise individuals and their family units," said Marilyn Zayas-Davis, Cincinnati attorney for LULAC Ohio. "And every time we lose a family unit we lose business and economic impact."
Fairfield business owner Lourdes Leon said business at Taqueria Mercado and a handful of other stores she owns has dropped 40 percent since the letters went out, she said.
"People are moving out of the state and in some cases, out of the country," she said.
"If they keep doing what they're doing, a lot of businesses like mine, we'll have to close our doors," she said.
By Jessica Brown • Enquirer • November 24, 2009
CARTHAGE - Latino groups and business owners rallied to support a court action Tuesday to block the Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles from canceling more than 47,000 vehicle registrations.
The League of United Latin American Citizens says the BMV is intentionally targeting illegal immigrants. It filed a lawsuit Tuesday in Franklin County Common Pleas Court.
The first hearing was set for Dec. 1.
Greater Cincinnati business owners and local representatives from the LULAC, Reform Immigration for America and Hispanic Catholic Ministries gathered Tuesday at Su Casa Hispanic Ministry in Carthage to announce their support of the lawsuit.
"It (the BMV cancellations) creates an enormous, enormous burden for our people," said Father William Jensen, director of Hispanic Ministry for the Archdiocese of Cincinnati. "We consider it a destruction of our community."
The BMV sent letters Oct. 8 to 47,457 vehicle registrants instructing them to update their BMV records by providing an Ohio driver's license, Ohio identification card or proof of their Social Security number. That proof and a $3.50 fee, is required by Dec. 8 or the registrations will be cancelled. It is unclear how many of those vehicle owners live in Greater Cincinnati.
The BMV crafted the new policy to prevent fraud in the wake of a high-profile crash last year in Columbus in which the at-fault driver fraudulently registered his vehicle, said Lindsay Komlanc, spokeswoman for the Ohio Department of Public Safety. The policy came after a Columbus Dispatch article revealed a loophole in Ohio law that allowed undocumented workers to register vehicles with falsified power-of-attorney forms. The forms don't require verification of the owners' identity.
The LULAC lawsuit focuses almost exclusively on the BMV's request for Social Security numbers. It alleges the BMV is trying to illegally enforce federal immigration laws by targeting the cancellation notices to people who declined to provide Social Security numbers. It calls the letters an attempt to "enforce identity requirements for non-citizens."
The lawsuit also says that the registrations were legal when approved by the BMV and that canceling them or requiring any additional information or fees would be illegal.
Latino groups say the policy will hurt those vehicle owners, their families, their businesses and ultimately, Ohio's economy.
"This will disenfranchise individuals and their family units," said Marilyn Zayas-Davis, Cincinnati attorney for LULAC Ohio. "And every time we lose a family unit we lose business and economic impact."
Fairfield business owner Lourdes Leon said business at Taqueria Mercado and a handful of other stores she owns has dropped 40 percent since the letters went out, she said.
"People are moving out of the state and in some cases, out of the country," she said.
"If they keep doing what they're doing, a lot of businesses like mine, we'll have to close our doors," she said.
Virginia Ed Department seeks to increase Hispanic enrollment
Virginia Education Department Hopes to Increase Hispanic College Enrollment
Sarah Sager, whsv.com, Nov 23, 2009
The state Assistant Secretary of Education and James Madison University alumnus, Douglas Garcia, attended a Hispanic education ceremony Sunday.
Garcia says the state is focusing on improving college attendance numbers for the Hispanic community in Harrisonburg and Rockingham County, which is seeing a large increase.
Garcia also says it's often difficult for young adults, who grow up in households with English as a second language, to attend universities or community college.
Garcia says, "JMUs numbers have improved since I've been here. When I was here it was two percent of the undergrad population was of Hispanic Latino decent. Now, they are up to five percent."
Garcia says the Virginia Department of Education holds a yearly education symposium, where Hispanic students can gain a better understanding of the college entry process.
Sarah Sager, whsv.com, Nov 23, 2009
The state Assistant Secretary of Education and James Madison University alumnus, Douglas Garcia, attended a Hispanic education ceremony Sunday.
Garcia says the state is focusing on improving college attendance numbers for the Hispanic community in Harrisonburg and Rockingham County, which is seeing a large increase.
Garcia also says it's often difficult for young adults, who grow up in households with English as a second language, to attend universities or community college.
Garcia says, "JMUs numbers have improved since I've been here. When I was here it was two percent of the undergrad population was of Hispanic Latino decent. Now, they are up to five percent."
Garcia says the Virginia Department of Education holds a yearly education symposium, where Hispanic students can gain a better understanding of the college entry process.
Monday, November 23, 2009
Over 2 million Hispanic households going hungry
New Report: More Than 2 Million Hispanic Households With Children Face Hunger
2.3 million Hispanic Households with children are food insecure
The Latino Journal E-News, Vol. 2, Issue 5
CHICAGO -- The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Economic Research Service (USDA) reported yesterday that almost one in four children living in the United States are food insecure. According to the 2009 report on Household Food Insecurity in the United States, there is a striking disparity in the prevalence of food insecurity among Hispanic children. More than two million Hispanic households with children were food insecure at least some time during the year, an increase of 37 percent over 2007, compared with non-Hispanic whites' households with children. The study also revealed that 177,000 non-white Hispanic households with children - an almost 50 percent increase over 2007 -- experienced very low food security, meaning that the food intake of one or more of the household children was reduced and their eating patterns were disrupted at times during the year because the household lacked money. This marks the largest increase in food insecurity rates among non-white Hispanic households with children since the USDA has been collecting data. Very low food insecurity for non-Hispanic whites rose 35 percent during the same period.
"Importantly, these numbers reflect the state of the nation one year ago, in 2008. Since then, the economy has significantly weakened, and there are likely many more children of varying ethnicity struggling with hunger than this report states," said Vicki Escarra, president and CEO of Feeding America, the nation's largest hunger-relief organization. "It is an outrage that one in four children in this nation lives on the brink of hunger and doesn't have access to adequate amounts of nutritious food."
The new data reinforces recent findings from a research study conducted by Feeding America reflecting a dramatic increase in requests for emergency food assistance from food banks across the country. Conducted in September, the Feeding America study shows that more than half of its network food banks reported seeing more children as clients.
"This study reinforces the fact that there are likely millions of Hispanic families in need of food assistance who are not turning to our system for help. We believe this is due to a lack of awareness of emergency feeding programs and perhaps the stigma associated with asking for help," said Escarra. "We will continue to reach out to Hispanic communities to ensure families in need know they can turn to us in times of crisis.
"Feeding America's 200 food banks continue to work on the front lines feeding more than 25 million people each year, through our country's food pantries, soup kitchens, and emergency feeding centers - more than 63,000 agencies in total," continued Escarra. "These establishments, many of which are grass root and faith based centers operated solely by volunteers, serve as an oasis for the more than 4 million people who seek relief weekly to help feed themselves and their families. Emergency food assistance is a critical link in the nation's response chain to help people through times of crisis."
Escarra observes, "Our network food banks are calling us every day, telling us that demand for emergency food is higher than it has ever been in our history. Feeding America will continue to work closely with our partners at USDA to ensure that the public and charitable sectors are keeping pace - as best we can - with the dramatically increasing needs for food assistance."
About Feeding America
Feeding America provides low-income individuals and families with the fuel to survive and even thrive. As the nation's leading domestic hunger-relief charity, our network members supply food to more than 25 million Americans each year, including 9 million children and 3 million seniors. Serving the entire United States, more than 200 member food banks support 63,000 agencies that address hunger in all of its forms. Feeding America is based in Chicago. For more information on how you can fight hunger in your community and across the country, visit http://www.feedingamerica.org. Find us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/FeedingAmerica or follow our news on Twitter at http://twitter.com/Feedingamerica.
2.3 million Hispanic Households with children are food insecure
The Latino Journal E-News, Vol. 2, Issue 5
CHICAGO -- The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Economic Research Service (USDA) reported yesterday that almost one in four children living in the United States are food insecure. According to the 2009 report on Household Food Insecurity in the United States, there is a striking disparity in the prevalence of food insecurity among Hispanic children. More than two million Hispanic households with children were food insecure at least some time during the year, an increase of 37 percent over 2007, compared with non-Hispanic whites' households with children. The study also revealed that 177,000 non-white Hispanic households with children - an almost 50 percent increase over 2007 -- experienced very low food security, meaning that the food intake of one or more of the household children was reduced and their eating patterns were disrupted at times during the year because the household lacked money. This marks the largest increase in food insecurity rates among non-white Hispanic households with children since the USDA has been collecting data. Very low food insecurity for non-Hispanic whites rose 35 percent during the same period.
"Importantly, these numbers reflect the state of the nation one year ago, in 2008. Since then, the economy has significantly weakened, and there are likely many more children of varying ethnicity struggling with hunger than this report states," said Vicki Escarra, president and CEO of Feeding America, the nation's largest hunger-relief organization. "It is an outrage that one in four children in this nation lives on the brink of hunger and doesn't have access to adequate amounts of nutritious food."
The new data reinforces recent findings from a research study conducted by Feeding America reflecting a dramatic increase in requests for emergency food assistance from food banks across the country. Conducted in September, the Feeding America study shows that more than half of its network food banks reported seeing more children as clients.
"This study reinforces the fact that there are likely millions of Hispanic families in need of food assistance who are not turning to our system for help. We believe this is due to a lack of awareness of emergency feeding programs and perhaps the stigma associated with asking for help," said Escarra. "We will continue to reach out to Hispanic communities to ensure families in need know they can turn to us in times of crisis.
"Feeding America's 200 food banks continue to work on the front lines feeding more than 25 million people each year, through our country's food pantries, soup kitchens, and emergency feeding centers - more than 63,000 agencies in total," continued Escarra. "These establishments, many of which are grass root and faith based centers operated solely by volunteers, serve as an oasis for the more than 4 million people who seek relief weekly to help feed themselves and their families. Emergency food assistance is a critical link in the nation's response chain to help people through times of crisis."
Escarra observes, "Our network food banks are calling us every day, telling us that demand for emergency food is higher than it has ever been in our history. Feeding America will continue to work closely with our partners at USDA to ensure that the public and charitable sectors are keeping pace - as best we can - with the dramatically increasing needs for food assistance."
About Feeding America
Feeding America provides low-income individuals and families with the fuel to survive and even thrive. As the nation's leading domestic hunger-relief charity, our network members supply food to more than 25 million Americans each year, including 9 million children and 3 million seniors. Serving the entire United States, more than 200 member food banks support 63,000 agencies that address hunger in all of its forms. Feeding America is based in Chicago. For more information on how you can fight hunger in your community and across the country, visit http://www.feedingamerica.org. Find us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/FeedingAmerica or follow our news on Twitter at http://twitter.com/Feedingamerica.
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