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Introducing her book
"I am my father's daughter"
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| TOP TEN REASONS WHY LATINOS SHOULD VOTE |
| Written by Maria Elena Salinas |
| Monday, October 18 2004 |
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| This year, Latino voters have finally reached a critical mass. We have the numbers and the leverage. Now it remains to be seen if we actually have the political will to decide who will be the next president of the United States.
Of the 16 million Latinos who are eligible to vote, between 9 million and 10 million have registered. But if, by chance, any of them cannot find a good reason to get off the chair, out of the house and into the polls on Election Day, here are the top 10 reasons why they should:
<b>1. We can help bring about necessary changes to our communities.</b> Let's face it -- when it comes to distributing funds, governments look to the communities that voted. If they ignore the needs of the people, politicians know that they can suffer the consequences in the polls next time around. So, in order to secure funding for better schools, health clinics, parks, trains, buses and safer streets, we need to vote.
<b>2. The more Hispanics who vote, the more politicians will pay attention to us.</b> We hear them uttering phrases in Spanish every once in a while. They come to our barrios and eat tacos, pupusas or empanadas, and sip a little Cafecito Cubano. They promise to bring down Fidel Castro or support immigration reform. But until they realize that we are a real political force to be reckoned with, they will not address the broader, more important issues that affect our communities.
<b>3. To help solve some of the ills that our community faces.</b>The poverty rate among Latinos stands at 22 percent, compared with 12.5 percent for all Americans. Thirty-two percent of Hispanics are uninsured -- about 14 million -- the highest level in the country. The latest unemployment report shows that 7.1 percent of Latinos are out of work. And about a third of Hispanic high-school students do not graduate.
<b>4. To dispel the myth that Latinos are not assimilating.</b> One of the biggest criticisms of Latinos in the United States is that we don't assimilate, that we don't learn the language or adopt "American" traditions. In order for immigrants to become citizens, they must pass a basic civics test in English, unless they are elderly or have some kind of disability that prevents them from learning the language. If we have the right to vote, that means we have passed the test and taken the oath.
<b>5. Because we are Americans, too. </b>Having a Latino surname, having darker skin, being bilingual or maybe even having an accent does not make Hispanic Americans less American. Whether we were born in this country or became citizens through the naturalization process, we are still Americans, and voting is a right reserved exclusively for American citizens.
<b>6. It can lead to more Latinos being named to higher positions within our government.</b> Latinos have progressed a long way when it comes to political representation. There are 4,853 Latino elected or appointed officials in the country at the local, state and federal levels. However, we still do not have a Hispanic senator, and Bill Richardson of New Mexico is the only Latino governor in the country.
<b>7. Because if we don't, someone else will decide for us.</b> Voting is a right, a privilege and a civic duty. Yet millions of people forgo this right come election time, allowing others to decide for them who should govern our cities, our states and our country.
<b>8. If we don't vote, we will not have the moral authority to complain about things we don't like.</b> Whether your issue is the war in Iraq, terrorism, education, the economy, the deterioration of our environment or the lack of affordable health care, if you do not vote, you are not participating in the process of electing those whom you believe can make a difference.
<b>9. It is a privilege to vote in a democratic society.</b> Many naturalized citizens come from countries where there is either no democracy or no respect for democratic elections. If it's not a dictatorship of an authoritarian government, it's accusations of fraud or voter intimidation.
<b>10. We must live up to the challenge. </b>Latinos are in a unique position to be the deciding factor in this election. We are already the largest minority in the country, but now we must let our tremendous cultural influence and economic buying power give way to an unstoppable political force. Our presence has increased in the past four years in many of the key battleground states. The challenge for Latino voters now is to show up at the polls. |
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