News: September 2009 Archives

StoryCorps Historias Collect Latino Stories
Last week, StoryCorps launched a new initiative, StoryCorps Historias, which hopes to gather and share Latino stories here in the U.S. While most StoryCorps recordings are generally conversations between two people, some of the stories will focus specifically on unique Latino experiences.

Researchers Tackle Breast Cancer Racial Gap
Researchers persist in studying why there continues to be a larger proporting of breast cancer-related deaths among black women than white women, despite the greater numbers of white women being afflicted with the disease. Studies show there seem a relationship between biological and socio-economic factors that could help explain the difference.

Editor Apologizes for Stereotypical Cartoon
The opinions editor of the Daily 49er admits to running a "off-topic and off-color" cartoon and has extended an apology for illustrating common Latino stereotypes.

Japanese-American Newspaper Gets New Life
In San Francisco, a group of community leaders and journalists recently started the Nichi Bei Weekly, a Japanese-American newspaper. Despite pressures on print publications to scale down or close entirely, New America Media reports that readership among ethnic communities has increased 16 percent in the last four years.

Muslim Youth Practice Faith Through Punk
Many young Muslims are finding themselves immersed in Taqwacore - a kind of hard rock scene that encourages Muslim youth to express their spirituality through punk music. The growing movement has become a way for second-generation Arab youth to let music reflect their beliefs and help them engage their cultural and religious identity.

RI Law School Students To Represent Undocumented Immigrants
In Rhode Island, the Roger Williams law school has established a new immigration law clinic in which students, under the supervision of a professor, will represent currently detained immigrants facing deportation. Last year, Rhode Island Governor Don Carcieri announced a crackdown on undocumented immigrants.

Community Center Assists African Refugees
Hussein Samatar, a former Somali refugee and now a banker in Minneapolis, heads the African Development Center (ADC), an organization providing training, technical assistance, and loans to African immigrants and refugees.

Racial Health Disparity Cost US Billions
A study released by researchers from Johns-Hopkins and the University of Maryland reveals that between 2003 and 2006, racial health disparities cost the U.S. $229 billion dollars. Breaking down the issue in monetary costs may help best address how to lower rising health care costs, but much research is still necessary to understand and curb the persistent gap in quality of health and health care access.
To view the report, visit www.jointcenter.org

CIA Seeks Arab-American Support
CIA Director, Leon Panetta, made a bold move by reaching out to Arab-Americans in Dearborn, Michigan, the most heavily-populated Arab city in the U.S. While many Arab-Americans credit Panetta for his audacious plea for support, other have met his efforts with skepticism, especially due to on-going incidents of profiling from intelligence, homeland-security, and law enforcement agencies.

Documentary on Marine Widow's Immigration Battle
"Second Battle" is a 30-minute documentary on two spouses who now face deportation by the United States, the country which their husbands had served in the military. A problematic immigration law threatens to deport Hotaru Ferschke and her son, both Japanese citizens, because her marriage to her now late husband Sgt. Ferschke was never 'consummated'.

Black and Latino Numbers Dip At U.S.' Best High School
According to numbers from Fairfax County Public Schools, Thomas Jefferson High School, ranked by U.S. News and World Report as the best high school in the nation, is drastically losing its Black and Latino students. Some educators believe the decline is a sign for greater effort needed to reach underrepresented students at a younger age.

Latinos Still Stuck at Higher-Risk Jobs
A recent report published by the National Council of La Raza (NCLR) reveals that, Latinos, more than any other ethnic group, are more likely to die on the job, a statistic which has not changed for the past 16 years. Over 900 Latinos died from work-related injuries in 2007.

Black, Female Reverend Files Racial Profiling Claim
In Indiana, a a Black, female pastor claims she was racially profiled after being stopped for an obscure traffic violation by an Indiana State trooper, who she believes "has a problem with Black women".

photo credit: racoles

Immigration Probe Tied To American Apparel Layoffs
Following a probe made by U.S. immigration authorities, clothing company American Apparel Inc. will lay off more than a quarter of its workforce in Los Angeles. In July, the company was notified by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) that 1,600 of its 5,600 employees may be undocumented.

ACLU Stand By Latinos in Loitering Charge
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Virginia is demanding that loitering charges be dropped against three Latino men gathered outside their apartment complex. ACLU believes that the loitering ordinance that the Latino men were charged for violating is "unconstitutionally vague" and violates a part of the 4th amendment.

Billy Graham Group Sued For Discrimination
A black woman is suing the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, believing that she was discriminated against after being laid off for her complaint on the organization's lack of outreach toward Black churches.

CA Latinos Least Prepared for Emergencies
According to a report by Drexel University in Sacramento, California's underrepresented communities, particularly Latinos, are the least prepared in responding to emergencies such as floods, fires, and diseases. Due to persisting cultural and language barriers, Latinos have difficulty accessing information on emergencies that are primarily presented in English.