2012 could be the actual beginning of the long expected Latino political awakening. Why? Perhaps sheer numbers, the reaction to the dire economic costs the community has endured, the evaporation of Latino family wealth in the housing bubble and great Mortgage scams, high unemployment and under-employment, continuously high drop out rates for high school completion of any ethnic group, the appallingly high prison population, and an alarming obesity and diabetes problem that plagues the community. All of these issues are maddening and worthy of action. Simply stated, the Latino community writ large is in crisis.

This crisis is further exacerbated by the anti-immigrant (now largely anti-Latino) social and political movement emerging throughout the country with such mean-spirited fury in Arizona, Alabama, Georgia and South Carolina and many other locales signals a most distressing phenomena. The continued aggressive deportations have helped portray Latinos as a marginalized class of dark, uneducated, criminally menacing and generally undesirable people. Our discouraging lack of unity or even outrage is sadly absent amongst our fellow Hispanics. This general lack of passion suggests that a boiling point has not been reached. Hence, to expect an out-pouring of angry or concerned Latino citizenry at the polls is not in the cards.

This lack of cohesiveness readily explains President Obama’s tepid leadership on Latino issues. At times, the Democrats smack of a craven or pusillanimous approach. For instance, the Congressional Democrats, more specifically those in the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, have been reluctant to challenge the President on his record deportations that have separated American born children from their parents and have occasionally caught US citizens in the ICE dragnet. As for the GOP, it manifests irrational derailment (crack up) or plain madness. An example of this is how many Republicans refuse to address the immigration problem humanely, while ratcheting up the heated rhetoric that many Latinos find offensive. Additionally, the Republican approach to Latin American foreign policy is irrational, as evidenced by the recent failure to confirm Ambassador Aponte and the continued linking of Hugo Chavez to Iran. Neither party appears to feel the need to cater or attend to our disturbing issues. It is as if our 50 million + population does not matter and may be satisfied with only a handful of swing states: Florida the biggest prize, which empowers the Cuban Americans out of proportion and the smaller states like New Mexico, Colorado and Nevada give the Hispanics some electoral heft. Overall, the Latino vote in electoral terms is largely viewed as those reduced groups of prosperous or “assimilated” Hispanics.

Leadership is another conundrum. Who and where are the leaders the community sees as following them into a foxhole in the endeavor to improve the general welfare? The current GOP primary debate is at best disquieting. It feels like Latino immigrants are readily tossed together with terrorists, Islamic extremists, drug cartel minions, and folks who are stealing America’s jobs. Being the national scapegoats begins to describe us in these difficult times. Yet, we can publish success stories of our 100 most influential Latinos because they are real. But is this the real pulse of our overall condition? We certainly should extol and applaud our achievements but never forget our less fortunate.

Perhaps 2012 will be the beginning of a more complete discussion of the Latino community. It is indeed merited in the 2012 electoral discourse. However, if one waits for our current national political leadership or presidential pretenders to address the Latino agenda, the betting is it is going to be plainly unsatisfactory. The new year could still bring a dramatic change in the effect Latinos have on the national scene. The most probable scenario for the Latino community is that if they do turn out in historic numbers is: they will be divided….neither party will be able to claim  with certainty that the Latino vote is wholly theirs. If that is the case then Latinos could be up for grabs every national election thus becoming a significant swing vote.

In San Francisco, California, the Sheriff will begin releasing low level undocumented people from its prisons beginning on June 1. San Francisco Sheriff Michael Hennessey cites the city’s local sanctuary law:

“The new policy, set to begin June 1, is meant to uphold San Francisco’s sanctuary ordinance, which prohibits local officials from assisting Immigration and Customs Enforcement with enforcing immigration laws unless it involves a felony.

“I’m trying to enforce San Francisco’s city of refuge law,” Hennessey said. “The city of refuge law says we are not supposed to comply with federal officials except with felonies. I’m just doing our best to enforce local law. That’s my job.””

President Obama is scheduled to deliver a speech on immigration in Texas this week. It will be interesting to see if advocates turn out to protest and raise awareness about the confusion and inconsistencies of the administration’s Secure Communities program.

What are your thoughts? Do you think President Obama will receive a warm and receptive crowd in Texas or will activists turn up the pressure? Or do you think that the President will respond more to the anti-immigrant crowd with more “boots on the border” rhetoric?

“We like to blame Obama for the inaction, but he can’t just disobey the law that’s written.”

Longoria then urged Latinos to register to vote and to make their voices heard on immigration and other matters, which should go without saying.

A few weeks ago, I wrote a piece about how the Obama administration could pursue administrative relief for the DREAMers, many of whom keep falling into deportation proceedings. And this same theme has since been echoed by a legal memorandum written by noted immigration attorneys. Obama could provide relief through “deferred action”, but right now, it seems that he doesn’t want to pursue this option.

What are your thoughts? Do you think the Latino community will accept the message that Eva Longoria and other supporters of the President are now saying in regards to immigration? Or will other issues trump this one at the voting booth next fall?

Frankly, I think that this campaign launch would have had a bigger impact if all members of the CHC had signed on before issuing a press release. Also, I wonder how much Ozomotli resonates with people. Many reliable Latino voters (meaning those who are older) probably don’t listen to Ozomotli, and even among the younger crowd, I don’t think that the group is as popular as say Pitbull or even Shakira, but I guess there is hipness factor in having a band ask for respect instead of La gran jefa Janet Murguia.

Here’s the youtube announcement. Check it out and let us know what you think:

In some ways, I think that this campaign is too little too late. Why are we only asking for respect now? This could have easily been launched when Arizona Governor Brewer was talking about beheadings last year. But I think that this effort is better than nothing, and I do hope that the campaign has a positive impact. You can ask your member of Congress to sign on here.

Moreover, the upcoming release of the 2010 census will not provide sufficient clarity but probably provoke a debate on the accuracy of the Latino population numbers and the statistical definitions of the overall Latino community. Also, the changing political landscape in Washington and the state houses bodes a tough slog ahead. Plainly, the Latino community’s challenges persist and often appear to become even more muddled. The apparent political meltdown of the Obama Administration suggests an even more difficult time for the traditional Latino Democratic Party consensus. They are coming up empty-handed by and large. The GOP also faces a real dilemma with its feverish anti-immigrant emerging majority and its pragmatic need to continue to attract Latinos beyond the social conservative mantra.

This past election Latino GOP candidates achieved better results than their Democratic counterparts. As the political passing of Democrat Governor Bill Richardson occurred, with the end of his tenure, there were no Latino Democrats running for governor in any of the 50 states, yet, Republican Latino candidates for Governors were elected in Nevada (Brian Sandoval) and in New Mexico (Susana Martinez).  Three or two new Mexican-American GOP Congressmen (depending on whether Jaime Herrera of Washington State considers herself Latina) were elected. Texas chose two of these newly elected legislators: Kiko Canseco and Bill Flores. Additionally, in Idaho, another Republican Raul Labrador was elected to Congress; Labrador is Puerto Rican. The GOP also sent three Florida Cuban Americans to Congress, two were re-elected (Ileana Ross-Lehtinen and Mario Diaz Balart) and one was newly elected (David Rivera). While Marco Rubio, the newly elected GOP Senator from Florida, restored the number of Cuban-Americans in the US Senate (2), after Mel Martinez’ departure; Senator Bob Menendez is the only Latino (Cuban-American) Democrat in the Senate. While two Democrat Latino congressmen from Texas lost their seats (both Mexican-American) Solomon Ortiz and Ciro Rodriguez; three Democrat Puerto Ricans Congressmen were re-elected (Serrano, Velazquez and Gutierrez). Let’s not forget that Mexican-American Democrat Ken Salazar of Colorado left the Senate in 2009 to become President Obama’s Secretary of Interior and was replaced by a non Latino. At the same time, Democrat Congresswoman Hilda Solis left the House of Representatives to become Secretary of Labor and saw her seat also go to a non-Latino.  The sum of all these musical chairs further suggests that neither party has nor will have, any time soon, a solid in-run into the Latino community.

While the Democratic Party still appears to garner more Latino support over all, the question is whether this may hold solidly in the out years. The growing willingness of Latinos to vote for either party makes them most attractive to court since this vote will increasingly be ‘up for grabs’. But for the GOP to reap the benefits of this voting population, it will have to become more welcoming to the Latinos. Lately we have seen some GOP leaders seeking to augment their outreach to Latinos by restating their outlook on issues such as immigration reform. For example, Newt Gingrich, former speaker of the House, has made an about face. Though historically he was Tea Party-ish on immigration, he is now openly seeking to position himself favorably with the Latino community by calling for the legalization of all workers residing in the country.

As the GOP begins to position itself for the 2012 presidential elections, we may yet see Jeb Bush (President George W. Bush’s brother) emerge as the GOP’s leading candidate who can deliver the Latino vote, especially Cuban Americans, the more conservative segment of the Latino community. Jeb is Roman Catholic, has a Latina (Mexican) wife, speaks fluent Spanish and has a solid base among both Florida and Texas Latino Republicans. Though his dynastic family name could still be an obstacle, given the current lack of potential candidates, the Bush name still could re-emerge. The biggest impediment for Latinos to vote solidly GOP is the troubling tenor or anti-immigrant tone among many of the rank and file members and some extreme sectors of its leadership.

The most immediate challenge to the Hispanic/Latino community is the conduct in addressing the undocumented or illegal conundrum: how do you satisfactorily resolve the status of over ten million undocumented people? The Latino community faces a formidable challenge in making the case for amnesty. An expanded Cuban Adjustment Act is not in the cards for the rest of the undocumented Latino immigrants. Getting to the front of the line is politically unacceptable. Plainly, politically the conditions for a reasonable and just resolution are distant. Especially when while the economic conditions are bleak or at best uncertain the mantra from some quarters seems to be: blame the illegals.

Immigration, educational achievement and equal economic opportunity are the most important and pressing issues on the Latino agenda. They remain unresolved or unmitigated. The Latino socio-economic indicators reveal a huge underclass in the making. Though, some progress is also apparent: more college graduates and an increasing middle class; the vast influx of immigrants in the last three decades has raised the numbers in poverty.  Educational statistics show a startling under-achievement among Latinos. Health and income conditions among Latinos are most unsettling. They continue to confront the Latino community. Most disturbingly the election of the first Black-American to the Presidency has sadly unearthed and aroused many racist sentiments in the body politic. Obama inherited two costly undeclared wars, the deepest recession since the Great Depression, a run-away debt crisis, the clear lack of vision among the leadership in Congress, a fractious body politic, a lame press, a growing income inequity, a withering national infrastructure, an underfunded and weakened educational system and a shrill tax sharing burden debate. The GOP take over of the House of Representatives will further hinder the President’s range of action. This is a daunting scenario. Obama is now weakened and is in no position to take up the Latino agenda. In sum, the national Latino leadership should be readying itself for a monumental struggle in addressing the key issues confronting the community. Moreover, the bruising political effort to attain some rational discussion and resolution of the tangled issue of immigration will not be swift. Success or failure will serve test the Latinos’ ability to manage formidable issues.

Lastly, Latinos seem to be totally disengaged from the global agenda. When a Latino soldier’s body is brought back home from war seems to be only occasion we discuss the war and the security challenges facing the country. Security policy is virtually absent from the Latino national agenda. Hence, it seems almost premature to discuss the Latino participation in globalization or its engagement in foreign policy and trade. The way forward is indeed a true challenge.

Photo Credits: NV Governor-elect Brian Sandoval, taken from his campaign’s Facebook page, and NM Governor-elect Susana Martinez, campaign website photo

On September 7, 2010, Mayor Richard Daley announced that he would not run for re-election for Mayor of Chicago.  After 21 years as Mayor, he decided he was ready to retire.  For many of us young Chicagoans, we do not remember any other Mayor of Chicago.  This announcement caused a free for all frenzy of Mayor hopefuls.  Slowly, but surely many of those hopefuls fell off of the long list.  With the petitions filed, we are now facing three Latino Mayoral candidates. Gery Chico, Wilfredo De Jesus, and Miguel del Valle are each hoping to make history by being Chicago’s first Latino mayor.

Gery Chico

Gery Chico was born and raised in Chicago.  His father was a local printer, and his mother a secretary.  Gery attended Chicago public schools and received a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Illinois-Chicago (UIC).  He received his law degree from Loyola University. He is the grandson of a Mexican immigrant. Gery Chico served as Mayor Richard M. Daley’s Chief of Staff from 1992 through 1995.  Currently, he is the chair of the City Colleges of Chicago and Senior Partner of the Chicago law firm, Chico & Nunes, P.C., where he manages 30 employees. Gery Chico and his wife Sunny live in Chicago. They have five children and one grandchild.

Gery Chico has a strong financial support for the expensive cost of a Mayoral campaign.  His website can be viewed in English, Spanish, Polish, and Chinese.  As a former chief of staff of the office he has an understanding of what needs to be done to improve the office and as a former President of the Chicago Public schools he understand the importance of improving Chicago’s School system.

Wilfredo De Jesús

Wilfredo De Jesús, is Puerto Rican. He is the Senior Pastor of New Life Covenant Ministries, the largest Latino church in the Midwest.  He was born and raised in Chicago’s Humboldt Park neighborhood by a single mom.  He is one of 6 children. Under the direction of  Rev. De Jesús, New Life Covenant Ministries operates successful outreach programs that offer basic human necessities of shelter, food and clothing, and offers discipleship, mentoring, educational and job training opportunities.   Rev. De Jesús was named to Chair the National Immigration Campaign for the Congressional Hispanic Caucus to help organize the faith-based community in support of Comprehensive Immigration Reform.  He is a Commissioner on the Chicago Zoning Board of Appeals.  He lives with his wife Elizabeth and their three children.

Wilfredo De Jesús has had a long history of activism and grassroots outreach.  He is connected to the people at the most basic level.

Miguel del Valle

Miguel del Valle was born in Puerto Rico, but grew up on the west side of Chicago, and attended Chicago Public Schools.  He received a B.A. and M.A. in education and guidance from Northeastern Illinois University.  He has served for 23 years as a public servant.  In 1986, he became the first Latino Senator in the Illinois General Assembly, where he then served for 20 years and rose to become Assistant Majority Leader. While representing Chicago’s northwest side, he was Chairman of the Senate Education Committee and a member of the Senate Executive, Labor and Higher Education committees. Del Valle was the first non-African-American member of the Illinois Legislative Black Caucus.  In 2006 he was appointed by Mayor Daley as City Clerk of Chicago, which he currently serves as.  He lives with his wife, Lupe.  They have four children and three grandchildren.

Miguel del Valle was the first candidate to have a campaign ad up, and he has a strong grassroots effort supporting him.  He has emphasized the importance of him being the mayor for all of Chicago.

There are many contenders in February’s mayoral election, and Latinos make up about about 28% the population in Chicago, but compromise about 15% of voters. It is feared that with three Latino candidates the Latino vote will be divided and therefore kill the chances of Chicago’s first Latino Mayor.  However, there are still some who hold on to hope that the Latino vote will be a determining factor in this race, and maybe even elect Chicago’s first Latino mayor.

Cristina Villarreal is a guest blogger from Being Latino writing from Chicago, Illinois.

Farenthold gained notoriety in weeks leading up to the election for posing in pajamas with scantily clad women. Here’s a commercial Ortiz ran in this race:

What are your thoughts about these new Latino GOPers on the scene? Will they help moderate the immigration rhetoric? And what kind of contribution do you think they will bring to the political discourse?

If there was one recurring theme at last night’s Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute’s 33rd Annual Gala, it was the Dream Act and inherently immigration reform. One by one, Congresswoman Nydia Velazquez (D-NY), House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), and of course President Barack Obama took the stage and delivered the usual “si se puede” and quoted facts such as “Hispanics are the largest growing segment of the population” and “Hispanics have the largest number of business entrepreneurs”. If you have read the Pew Hispanic Center reports dating back to 2002, these facts should not be new to you, but I guess we all need to be reminded of the things we see and live on an everyday basis. After all, this is Hispanic Heritage Month!

As I walked to my hotel room I kept thinking to myself: “I feel so bad for Harry Reid.” The poor guy is fighting to keep his Senate seat in a political climate in which moderate republicans are loosing elections to Tea Party candidates backed by Sarah Palin for Christ sakes. It seems like the candidate’s level of extremism dictates their popularity. The Dream Act could be the single most important piece of legislation in U.S. history to positively impact the Hispanic community. But it almost seems like a “lose-lose” situation for Senator Reid and the Democratic Party. The Senator has committed to introducing the Dream Act next week, and all the speakers at the gala were optimistic about its chances of passing. I really don’t believe so, given the recent election results and the buzz here in Washington is all about how Republicans are going to regain control of the House. Reid is stuck between a rock and a hard place; and to our community, he’ll be both a hero and a villain. A hero for having the courage to bring the legislation to the Senate floor for a vote and a villain because once again we’ll be left with empty promises.

So where are our so called Latino leaders in Congress in all of this? Why don’t they stick out their necks just like Senator Reid is doing? Could it be that putting a Hispanic face to the legislation would cause middle America to freak out even more so than they already are? “You see honey, I told you they were taking over, now they want to give their children access to our universities, while I never even had a chance to go to college and I’m a citizen – I’m voting for the other guy.” That must be their recurring nightmare as they wake up drenched in cold sweat thinking of what they would do with their lives if they had to give up being “el mero mero”.

The second person I felt sorry for was President Obama, but to a lesser degree. I like President Obama, but his speech last night sounded like the same thing I heard two years ago in the campaign trail. Let’s give him credit for appointing Latinos and Latinas to his cabinet, to the Supreme Court, and to important positions all over his administration. In fact, he has appointed more Latinos/as than any other president in history. But that hasn’t translated into the passing of the Dream Act or any sort of comprehensive immigration reform. He and the rest of our “politico” friends were just dangling these issues in front of us, and the crowd acted like the skinny dog dying for a bone. But the truth is, he can’t do it alone, he needs our Congressional Latino Leaders to step-up to the plate, to mobilize, and to “bite the bullet”. Will they be brave enough to do it? Who knows, but I’m going to bet that they won’t.

In the meantime, I am looking forward to watching Senator Harry “el valiente” Reid bring the Dream Act forward for a vote next week and do something that our own Hispanic representatives should have taken ownership of years ago (for more information about the CHC’s reluctance to take on the DREAM Act separately from comprehensive immigration reform see this and this). We have Congressional leaders in California, Colorado, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, Florida, Illinois, and New York,  and what do they deliver for us? Let’s just say that Latino elected officials are just like beer. So many choices and flavors, and it makes so little difference in the end. All together now, hurray for the Congressional Hispanic Caucus!

Webmaster’s note: Bender Bending Gonzalez has over ten years of experience in government relations, holds a master’s degree in public policy, and will be occasionally contributing blog posts. He attended last night’s CHCI gala.

POLITICO reports that Senator Bob Menendez (D-NJ) along with Reps. Luis Gutierrez (D-IL) and Nydia Velazquez (D-NY) will meet with President Obama on Thursday at 2:30PM “to request his support for the new legislation and the immigrant-student bill, known as the DREAM Act.”

The Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act (or “DREAM Act”) is an amnesty for unauthorized immigrant students of “good moral character” who arrived in the U.S. as minors and have graduated from US high schools and have lived in the U.S. continuously for at least five years prior to the bill’s enactment. The bill allows for an estimated 65,000 unauthorized immigrants who graduate from American high schools each year to go to college, get jobs, serve in our nation’s military, and compete in the American economy. The DREAM Act is an amnesty and, according to Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX), “it represents a dual assault on law-abiding, taxpaying American citizens and legal immigrants.” In short, Rep. Smith concludes, “The DREAM Act is a nightmare for the American people.”

Why? Well, Senator David Bruce Vitter (R-LA) is “opposed to [the DREAM Act]…because it would unfairly place American citizens in direct competition with illegal aliens” in the college admissions process. Indeed, according to Sen. Vitter, “enactment of the Dream Act would do just this, and it would be bad policy under any circumstances, but in the current economic climate, it would be a catastrophe.”

If competition is a nightmarish catastrophe for the American people, then we are already living it. Regrettably, somehow, Rep. Smith and Sen. Vitter have failed to notice that as the world becomes more interconnected, the best and brightest in the U.S. now find themselves competing with counterparts all over the world. The DREAM Act allows for some of the best and brightest within the U.S. to get in the game where they would otherwise be sidelined for the sins of their parents. Many of those who qualify for the provisions of the DREAM Act came to the U.S. with their parents when they were to young to decide for themselves whether or not stay abroad and maintain a legal status in a foreign country. For many their “homelands” are just that, a foreign country, as they have lived and now seek to thrive in the only place they’ve ever called home: our United States.

The DREAM Act is an amnesty, sure, but it is also an opportunity for the United States to demonstrate that we are better than punishing youngsters for the sins of their parents. It is also an opportunity for American citizens to reject the absurd, impossible, anti-competition isolationism championed by Sen. Vitter and Rep. Smith. Finally, it is an opportunity for a small, elite group of unauthorized immigrant all-stars to actively contribute to our American society, and augment our global competitiveness, as citizens.

Ironically, as I write Barack Obama’s Back-to-School speech is at the top of my Facebook newsfeed with the caption:

“If all of our students work hard and focus on education, if you keep fighting for your dreams and help each other reach each other’s dreams, then you’re not only going to succeed this year—you’re going to succeed for the rest of your lives. And that means America will succeed in the 21st century.”

Let’s hope President Obama keeps that in mind tomorrow when he meets with our Latino lawmakers.

Webmaster note: This footage is from today, where Chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Chair Nydia Velazquez and Sen. Menendez speaking about moving the DREAM Act forward.