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In a historic partnership between two visionary travel industry organizations, the NTA-ASTA Hispanic Business Development Task Force met for the first time in conjunction with Tianguis Turistico Mexico and developed a strategic plan to capture the undertapped US Hispanic travel market.

“Because tourism creates jobs and the Hispanic market represents 16 percent of the US population, there is an unprecedented opportunity for growth,” said Olga Ramudo, a member of both NTA and ASTA. “We want to ensure this market is serviced, captured, and has a voice in our industry.

“NTA and ASTA are creating a home for travel professionals specializing in Hispanic travel with a ‘Mi casa es su casa’ approach,” said Ramudo, who chairs the task force.

“We are honored and excited to have hosted the first meeting of this task force in Puerto Vallarta-Riviera Nayarit, Mexico,” said Jose Barquin, Director, Mexico Tourism Board, Miami office, and a member of the task force, “We are convinced this market can create new opportunities to bring more visitors to Mexico.”

The Mexico Tourism Board and Aeromexico collaborated to bring the task force meeting to Tianguis.

Ramudo, President and CEO of Express Travel, one of the largest Hispanic-owned travel companies, is a member of US Travel and Tourism Advisory Board. The task force comprises a diverse number of travel professionals including Barquin; Nina Meyer, ASTA president; Maria Gross, MarkeTravel International; Angel Alvarez, Rail Europe; Kirk Whisler, Latino Print Network; Jorge Cazenave, Cazenave Argentina; Guisselle Nunez, Mundi Travel/American Express; Gloria Stock Mickelson, Travel Leaders Franchise Group; Jorge Sanchez, Mena Tours and Travel; and Laura C. Rodriguez, Marina Tours and Travel. READ MORE

Lance Winslow in preparation for a book he is writing stated that the number one reasons for Home Schooling was violence in schools. He stated this fact in an ezine article on http://ezinearticles.com/?Violence-in-Schools;-Number-One-Reason-for-Home-Schooling&id=457852

I'm not sure where he got his facts, so I can't vouch for the validity of this claim, however I do know at least two families in my own circle who pulled their kids out for this very reason. Parents vehemently complained to the school and to the district to no avail. Even after one child was physically threatened with harm before his peers, the school did nothing to punish the child for the ongoing threats and abuse levied at the other. Finally in frustration these parents pulled their child out of school. Sadly, in one of the very same districts, a teen committed suicide just a month later. Reason-the teen had been repeatedly and systematically bullied for years.

Now this same district is trying to push for ANti-bullying laws, when if they had just done their job in the first place their would have been no need to try to use this "advocacy" as a backdoor means to clean up their mess.

Other parents have pulled their children out simply so they won't be exposed to the viloence and threats of gang initiation. While others have complained of "grooming." Grooming is when a person of either the same gender, or even opposite gender, uses various methods to get kids involved in behaviors they normally would not participate in. These "groomers" are usually seniors or recent graduates who hang out at the school and target shy, weak, or otherwise lonely and needy kids. They feign friendship and concern, often showering them with gifts and attention. The kids is exposed and often becomes their next victim. If the kid rejects the attention, they may be stalked, harrassed, or intimidated.

This is bullying to the 9th power! If it works the groomer has a lover, sexual partner, drug partner, or partner in crime.

These are the kinds of things many kids are exposed to today in schools.

Now to be fair, there are many good schools out there, and not all kids are exposed to this sort of thing; so it would be wrong for me to put all schools in this box. Most schools do their best to keep kids safe and out of harms way. Most schools have strict policies against this sort of thing and they enforce them. But if you find out that your child is facing one of the above named potentially dangerous and harmful situations, and no one is listening to you-no one is helping you; THEN I IMPLORE YOU-please consider removing your child from the school and either homeschooling, or having them placed in another school.

Parents today have so many more options than they had in the past, so please do not feel like your only option is to leave your child vulnerable in a failing system.*

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PLEASE NOTE: THE OPINIONS OF THIS BLOGGER ARE NOT INTENED TO REPLACE COMPETENT ADVICE FROM A PHYSICIAN, THERAPIST, OR COUNSELOR. NOR IS IT INTENEDED TO REPLACE LEAGAL ADVICE FROM LAW ENFORCEMENT, SOCIAL WORKERS, OR ATTORNEYS. IF YOUR CHILD IS IN ONE OF THE ABOVE NAMED, POTENTIALLY HARMFUL SITUATIONS, PLEASE SEEK PROFESSIONAL HELP.
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Lena Arnold is an award winning author and publisher of several books, including “In the Absence of My Father,” “Strong Black Coffee: Poetry and Prose to Enlighten, Encourage, and Entertain Americans of African Descent,” “For This Child We Prayed: Living with the Secret Shame of Infertility;,” dealing with black Christian infertility, and “For This Dream I Prayed: Companion Journal.” She is currently collaborating on a children’s book entitled “Jackie’s’ Way” dealing with childhood anger with nationally renown artist Michael Fields. Lena was endorsed by the late CBS News Correspondent Ed Bradley for “…being a thoughtful writer who goes beyond…”

10 Reasons to Homeschool
Excerpted from the National Home Education Network's posting (55 Reasons to Homeschool)
http://www.waldsfe.org/Humor/55reasons.htm

1. …Allow children time to learn subjects not usually taught in their school.

2. …Allow children to have time for more in-depth study than what is allowed in school.

3. …Allow children to learn at their own pace, not too slow or too fast. (You don;t have to be concerned about teaching to the average)

4. …Allow children to work at a level that is appropriate to their own developmental stage. Skills and concepts can be introduced at the right time for that child.

5. …Not have to deal with bullying or racially motivated incidents that can hinder the learning process.
(-this is one of the top reasons why many blacks have pulled their kids out of school. I personally know kids who have begged their parents to homeschool them because of bullying. Many of these kids want to stand up for themselves, but they are in schools that have zero tolerance for violence policies. They are in schools where SELF-DEFENSE is frowned upon!) Others are tired of fighting the racial prejudices and inequities. We all know racism is a problem our kids will have to deal with sooner or later, but we have to ask ourselves at what point do we continue to allow this to interfere with getting the critical skills they need RIGHT NOW!

6. …Encourage concentration and focus - which are discouraged in crowded classrooms with too many distractions.

(One of my closest friends took her child out of a school that was one of the "top" academic schools in our communities after her husband visited the school. After sitting in his child's classes for a day he realized how much she WASN'T learning.)

7. …Spend a lot of time out-of-doors. This is healthier than spending most weekdays indoors in a crowded, and often overheated, classroom. (The average person, not to mention child, only spends 30 minutes or less outdoors everyday. WAY less then children of a generation ago. Homeschool kids spend 3 times or more than that outdoors. On warm sunny days, many parents hold class outdoors.)

8. …Time is available for more nonacademic pursuits such as art or music. This leads to a richer, happier life. (Music and fine arts are part of the academic curriculum, not side events.)

9. …College Prep-Children will not feel like passive recipients of subject matter selected by their teachers. They will learn to design their own education and take responsibility for it. (Isn’t this what college students are expected to do.)

10. …Learning can be more efficient since methods can be used that suit a child's particular learning style. (This is one of the best parts. You can tailor each subject to all your kids individual learning styles.)

I realize this is not an option for many households, but it's something to consider. Don;t think because you are a single parent you cannot homeschool. There are single parents who can and do teach their own children. Those who can afford it may hire tutors, those who cannot will often have a grandparent keep kids during the day and they home educate them in the evening. Let's face it, many of you are already spending up to four hours a night helping kids with homework! In that same time frame you could be teaching them, with grandparents taking them to art and music classes during the day. If they are older they could also take courses through online charter schools. (Be advised, many do not consider this true homeschooling since depending on where you live you will still be bound by state mandates.) But it is an option for those who are afraid to tackle it on their own.

If you are considering homeschooling there are a lot of resources. Do a web search of local groups to see if there are any groups in your area. Get to know people who are already doing it. Email friends and family to see if they know any homeschool families you can connect with to get more information.

It was scary at first, but we have never looked back. Yes, it is a financial struggle for most families, but I have not met one family yet who has regretted their decision to homeschool.

For This Child We Prayed
CHAPTER 3
excerpted from: For This Child We Prayed: Living with the Secret Shame of Infertility

Year of Jubilee is the Year of Grief To Me
"Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the spirit..."
Ephesians 5:18a

February 19, 1997

Dear Children:

The other day, after watching our niece and nephew, your father and I asked ourselves,“do we really want kids?” They wanted to play and we wanted to watch a movie. Shoot,we’d pretty much gotten used to doing things when we wanted to do them. Was I really ready to give up myself? Now not only do I believe I can wait on God; I want to wait on Him.

At least that’s what I told myself in January.

I am no longer feeling jubilant. I feel like those saints in despair who have no choice but to fully rely on God. Charles Spurgeon said that great hearts can only be made by great troubles. He further said:“When the night lowers and the tempest is coming on, the Heavenly Captain is always closest to His crews. It is a blessed thing that when we are most cast down, then it is that we are most lifted up by the consolations of the Spirit.”

My tempest started with a light period and I was told this could mean you are pregnant.Convinced by a friend, I drove to a place I’d heard about on the radio that provides counseling and free pregnancy testing. I was nervous and anxious, not about what I thought the test might reveal, but rather by what it wouldn’t reveal, even though the Bible says we should be anxious for nothing.

I walked through the door feeling very much like an 18 year old who’d just been knocked up by her boyfriend, rather than the 30 year old professional that I was. After filling out a short form, I was led into a room by a counselor who asked for my name and address. I wondered what she needed to know all that for. I gave her our old address. She asked me my birthday and I wondered what my birthday has to do with anything? Forgive me Lord, but I lied. Then she wanted to know how I’d heard about the place as well as my views on abortion.

All this for a pregnancy test! I should have just bought one. I know the lady was just
doing her job, and she was really nice, but good grief, if I really were an 18-year-old
hiding from my parents I would have run right out the door. Finally, she gave me the cup and I spilled some pee on the floor while filling it. It was embarrassing !

I cleaned it up, washed my hands, cleaned off the jar, and carried it back. She gave me the test and instructions . When I realized I had to do it myself I looked at her like, “Okay you can leave now.” She didn’t, so I proceeded to administer it. We made
uncomfortable small talk while waiting for the results.

“So…how are you doing?”
“Fine,” I replied, wishing she wouldn’t talk to me.
"What do you do for a living?”
“I’m a Substance Abuse Prevention Specialist.” Stop talking to me!
“Really? That sounds interesting. What exactly do you do?”
“I work with kids and their parents. I design and implement programs to help them stay off drugs.”
“Wow, that’s pretty neat. I imagine that can get pretty wild and stressful?”
“Yeah, it makes for some interesting days.”
“So, is there anything in your life that could be causing you stress?”
“We’re moving.” I answered uncomfortably. Then it hit me; perhaps I could be under stress. I just never thought it was possible, but it could’ve been. Hey, I did live across the street from drug dealers, and next door to a bunch of dope heads. For the past few years I had been dealing with job related issues. No wonder I couldn’t get pregnant. Maybe the stress is interfering with my cycle. It’s not the first time it’s happened!”

After four long minutes the buzzer rang. I acted like I didn’t hear it because I didn’t
want to know what the results were.

“Negative.” She said.
“I can see that.”
“I encourage you to see a doctor anyway.”
“There is no point in that.” I tried not to look at her.
“Well come back anytime.”

She was nice, but I don’t think so.I wanted to cry, but maintained my cool. I wanted to run, but maintained my composure. I politely said goodbye and exited the building as fast as I could. My reaction to the negative pregnancy test confirmed that the words I’d uttered all month never really reached the truth that lied in my heart.

I wanted children more now than I ever did before, and the realization forced me to
confront my motives for wanting them. What was I really basing this desire on?
Initially I think I wanted them because I thought children would solidify our bond of
marriage. But then maybe it was because everyone else expected us to have children? You know, you get married and automatically have children, right?

As an American of African descent, this expectation is magnified. People automatically expect women of color to be fertile. After all, there’s the mythology of the big, black, breeding studs and “studdettes.” We are often led to believe, even by our own people that slave women dropped babies like it was nothing and then went right back to working in the field. The stories I’d heard as a child made me accept the lie that no slave woman ever died during childbirth, or had problems with infertility.

This smacks right in the face of survival of the race. Procreation meant the race would not die despite the horrors of slavery. Reproduction represented the slave’s one hope of a bright future and expected end. We were simply too strong, too fertile to be infertile so to speak. Young, black, and infertile, what an oxymoron!What a lie! The reality is that black women struggle with infertility as much as any other race.

Margaret Marsh and Wanda Ronner, in their book, The Empty Cradle: Infertility in
America from Colonial Times to the Present, provide proof that infertility was roughly
the same among all races and cultures. However, for reasons unknown black women had a higher rate of childlessness than whites in the 1950’s, as they had for decades…and magazines aimed at black Americans focused on the issue.

Tan Confessions, directed at working-and-middle class Americans of African descent,
published several fictional accounts of infertility…and the publisher of one of the more popular books on infertility, Sam Gordon Berkow’s, Childless, advertised the book in Ebony, which also published a number of articles on infertility “clinics, artificial insemination, and adoption. Interest was widespread…” So if I wasn’t trying to prove something to my people, what was I trying to prove?

Over time I convinced myself that I wanted children so that I could raise great men and women of God, like those women in the Bible. I told myself that God wanted that from me, even if God doesn’t want it, then the Christian world sure expects it of you.

“How long have you been a Christian?” They ask accusingly. “Six years? And you still
don’t have kids?” Their silent accusations forced me to believe that raising little gods
was a much more noble reason for wanting kids and I felt it would make me more worthy of being a mother. So like Hannah I made promises to God. “God if You will give me children then I promise I will give them back to You…”

If I really love kids like I say I do, why am I so apprehensive about foster parenting or
adopting? Would doing so mean I am giving up on God; that if I foster parent or adopt I don’t really believe that He will allow me to have a child from my own womb?
I know most of our friends think it would be best for our emotional well being if we
would just admit that our bodies have failed us.

Which leads me back to the original question of why do I want kids? And that only leads me to other questions like, if I just want kids shouldn't anyone’s kids fulfill the maternal instinct? Do I want to have the birthing experience? Do I need to fulfill an expected womanly or cultural role? Do I want to fulfill a lifelong dream? Do I want to be
immortal, have a little image of myself running around, an image connected by blood?
How much do I need this child? My child? My blood child? Would I love an adopted
child as much as you, the child of my dreams? You are my Isaac; would another child be my Ishmael?

So many things I don't know but I question, but one thing I do know–I will never trust my period again. It has lied to me before and I should not have been surprised that it had lied to me again. Still, despite the hurt, I am filled with the hope of God's words — be fruitful and multiply.

Love Mommy
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Lena Arnold is an award winning author and publisher of several books, including “In the Absence of My Father,” “Strong Black Coffee: Poetry and Prose to Enlighten, Encourage, and Entertain Americans of African Descent,” “For This Child We Prayed: Living with the Secret Shame of Infertility;,” dealing with black Christian infertility, and “For This Dream I Prayed: Companion Journal.” She is currently collaborating on a children’s book entitled “Jackie’s’ Way” dealing with childhood anger with nationally renown artist Michael Fields. Lena was endorsed by the late CBS News Correspondent Ed Bradley for “…being a thoughtful writer who goes beyond…”

Books can be purchased at Amazon.com, Barnes & Nobles.com and at your local bookstore. Ask your local library to purchase a copy as well. Ebook is available as well.

Infertility Press: A division of Emperor Publishing is looking for stories of Black and Hispanic People who were, or currently are struggling with Infertility. Pays in copies of books as well as discounted books to contributors. There are no guidelines, simply email your story, poem, or encouraging words to lena@infertilitypress.com. Please be sure to include your name and contact information. Pseudonyms are okay as well, as long as we have current contact info. A letter will be mailed or emailed to you upon acceptance.

*PLEASE NOTE: Send your submissions as PDF's or pasted into the body of an email as attachments will not be opened.

In the run-up to the 2012 presidential election, many Hispanics are talking about voting for the lesser of two evils. The hard part is figuring out the lesser evil.

African-Americans aren’t facing the same dilemma, and yet many of those on the far left are also disappointed in President Obama. While most black voters approve of his job performance, there is also frustration that he hasn’t been more attentive to issues such as the lack of economic development in African-American communities, high unemployment among black youth, and a school system that fails children right from the start.

Having already been criticized by prominent figures such as PBS host Tavis Smiley and Princeton University professor Cornel West, Obama has now earned the scorn of the progressive website Black Agenda Report. Executive Editor Glen Ford recently said this at a public forum:

“Let me say from the very beginning that we at Black Agenda Report do not think that Barack Obama is the Lesser Evil. He is the more Effective Evil. He has been more effective in Evil-Doing than Bush in terms of protecting the citadels of corporate power, and advancing the imperial agenda. He has put both Wall Street and U.S. imperial power on new and more aggressive tracks – just as he hired himself out to do. … READ MORE

The National Association of Hispanic Nurses launched a Mentorship Academy in July 2011 to maintain a formal peer-driven process to help advance Hispanic nurses' educations and careers.

The academy pairs novice nurses with experienced mentors, said Vivian Torres-Suarez, RN, BSN, MBA, director and founder of the Mentorship Academy. "They work together for a year on goals and objectives set by the novice and on achieving tasks related to advancing their career and/or their education," she said.

Torres-Suarez said the Institute of Medicine's report, "The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health," and findings from the 2008 National Sample Survey of Registered Nurses by the Health Resources and Services Administration were motivators in creating the academy and added her participation in the Robert Wood Johnson Executive Nurse Fellowship program made the academy possible.

"The NSSRN states that Hispanics comprise 15.4% of our society while Hispanic nurses represent only 3.6% of the 3 million nurses in the United States, remaining underrepresented in the RN population compared to their profile in the general population," she said. "In addition, Hispanic nurses along with Asian nurses are more likely to have pursued a bachelor's degree for initial RN education but less likely to have pursued graduate degrees than were white, non-Hispanic RNs. Not only are more Hispanic nurses needed, but more Hispanic nurses are needed in education and administration, as well." READ MORE

Finding "almost laughable" Republican claims that newly drawn electoral districts were not influenced by partisan factors, a panel of three federal judges unanimously ruled that new maps for two districts on Milwaukee's south side violate the Voting Rights Act and dilute Latinos' voting power.

The judges enjoined the state's Government Accountability Board from implementing Act 43 as it stands, but Wisconsin's 130 other newly drawn districts are expected to stay the same.
Act 43 concerned redistricting of state legislative districts.

Wisconsin Act 44 affected congressional redistricting, and Act 39 permitted the Legislature to draw new districts before Wisconsin's municipalities drew or redrew their ward lines based on the 2010 Census.
Voces de la Frontera and Latino community members filed a federal complaint that was consolidated with an earlier lawsuit filed by other Wisconsin voters. Both groups claimed the Legislature violated the Voting Rights Act by dividing Latinos into two Assembly districts.

They said the split would dilute the power of Latino voters in the two districts and force them to wait 6 years to vote in state Senate elections, instead of the usual 4.

The three-judge panel agreed, finding that "representative democracy cannot be achieved merely by assuring population equality across districts." They judges called the Republican drafters' testimony that they were not influenced by partisan factors "almost laughable." READ MORE

The closest those attending the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce’s (USHCC) Legislative Summit will get to the cherry blossoms now in season is a meeting room, make that many meeting rooms. Entrepreneurs have signed up for a crash course in Washington, D.C., to learn how to influence the players in government who can help Hispanic-owned businesses grow. This includes a new alliance between the USHCC and the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) announced at this conference with the aim to grow the number of Hispanic-owned small businesses participating in SBA programs.

This measure intends to streamline access to funds such as loans and create trade opportunities or secure government contracts.

USHCC President and CEO Javier Palomarez calls this partnerships an investment in Latino-owned businesses that will help the economic recovery. READ MORE

The Friends of the American Latino Museum (Friends), a 501(c)(3) created to support the American Latino Museum initiative, surpassed 100,000 followers on Twitter and has accumulated 70,000 fans on Facebook and 67,000 supporters through its website, bringing its total reach to over 237,000 supporters. A renewed energy and hope for the museum is increasing rapidly since the introduction of the Smithsonian American Latino Museum Act earlier this year in the House and Senate. The Smithsonian American Latino Museum Act would designate and hold the Smithsonian's Arts and Industries Building as the official site for the museum.

"The history of Latinos is woven into American history going back to a time before the first pilgrim ever set foot on this land," said Emilio Estefan, Commissioner, National Museum of the American Latino Commission and President of Estefan Enterprises. "This is the story we want to tell. These are the gaps in American history that we are trying to fill, so that all Americans have a better understanding of our shared history and legacy. It is wonderful to know, through our social media efforts, that there are thousands that support our telling this story."

The museum would be devoted to the preservation, presentation, and interpretation of American Latino art, cultural expressions, and experiences. It would take its place among the treasury of museums within the Smithsonian Institution and would establish a new model in its integration of programs, training, research and personnel within the family of Smithsonian museums. The goal of Friends is to create a museum truly national in operational scope as well as prominent in Washington to educate the public and support the Latino community.

"It is amazing and heartening how much support this museum is getting from across the country. It shows how important it is for us to share all of the important and, many times, untold stories of the history of Latinos in building this great nation," said Maria Cardona, Friends Board Member and CNN Political Contributor. "The public is excited about the progress of the American Latino Museum initiative, and now that support can be seen in our 100,000 followers on Twitter and over 70,000 on Facebook. All supporters of the museum should join with us in asking Congress to pass the Smithsonian American Latino Museum Act now." READ MORE

The Republicans are committing political suicide by catering to the xenophobic vote. Assuming that Latinos will vote for the candidate promising the most free taxpayer money shows how out-of-touch the mainstream media and a lot of American politicians from both parties are with voters in the Hispanic community.

If the Republicans would talk about social issues and economic issues and drop the endless ranting about immigration I would almost guarantee they'd receive 60+ percent of votes from Latinos. That said, those advising them apparently don't get it because the message remains more of the same, and those GOP candidates and office-holders who do attempt to be the voice of reason are lambasted by conservatives in the media for being too lax on immigration.

The Democrats appeal is that they don't care about the immigration issue and don't come across as xenophobic --- at least not on the surface. Not that I'm in the country illegally. I was born in America. My father and maternal grandfather were not, but both are now citizens.

I know I for one am not the least bit motivated by the idea that I might get some money that someone else earned. I wouldn't even take it if they tried to give it to me. If I cannot earn it, I do not deserve it.

All that said, I find the Democrats' contention that Latinos are somehow too stupid to get a driver's license or some other form of photo ID to be both racist and extremely offensive.

So how will I vote in the upcoming Presidential election and the congressional races slated for the ballot in November? I've not yet decided, and may or may not reveal the decision publicly when I do arrive at a conclusion.

SPEAKING two languages rather than just one has obvious practical benefits in an increasingly globalized world. But in recent years, scientists have begun to show that the advantages of bilingualism are even more fundamental than being able to converse with a wider range of people. Being bilingual, it turns out, makes you smarter. It can have a profound effect on your brain, improving cognitive skills not related to language and even shielding against dementia in old age.

This view of bilingualism is remarkably different from the understanding of bilingualism through much of the 20th century. Researchers, educators and policy makers long considered a second language to be an interference, cognitively speaking, that hindered a child’s academic and intellectual development.

They were not wrong about the interference: there is ample evidence that in a bilingual’s brain both language systems are active even when he is using only one language, thus creating situations in which one system obstructs the other. But this interference, researchers are finding out, isn’t so much a handicap as a blessing in disguise. It forces the brain to resolve internal conflict, giving the mind a workout that strengthens its cognitive muscles. READ MORE

Employment among Hispanics and Asians in the U.S. has climbed back to levels seen prior to the last recession, while hiring of whites and blacks has lagged behind, a study found.

The number of Hispanic workers reached 20.7 million in the last three months of 2011, up from 19.9 million in the final quarter of 2007 when the economic slump began, according to a report by the Washington-based Pew Hispanic Center, a non- partisan research group. Employment among Asians climbed by about 263,000 during the period, while it was 4.9 million lower for whites and 763,000 for blacks.

While all categories have shown gains since the recovery began in 2009, the speed of the improvement has tracked the rate of growth in each group’s working-age population, leaving the share of those employed little changed. The economic rebound has also been less kind to women than men, even as the opposite was the case during the contraction, the report showed.

“Two years after the U.S. labor market hit bottom, the economic recovery has yielded slow but steady gains in employment for all groups of workers,” according to the paper, written by Rakesh Kochhar, the group’s associate director of research. “The gains, however, have varied across demographic groups.”

Using the employment rate, or the share of the working-age population with the job, as a gauge, reveals a different story. The rate for Hispanics and blacks was at least 5 percentage points lower at the end of 2011 than when the recession began. The deficit was about 4 percentage points for whites and Asians. READ MORE

For years, America’s growing and mobile Latino population helped transform cities such as Atlanta and Las Vegas as well as many smaller communities. But the deep recession slowed this great dispersion, a new analysis shows, raising economic and political implications.

Between 2000 and 2010, the nation’s Latino population jumped 43 percent to 50.5 million, growing especially fast throughout the South and in smaller metropolitan areas in the Midwest and Northeast. The Latino populations more than tripled in such places as Palm Coast, Fla.; Knoxville, Tenn.; and Wausau, Wis. Job opportunities and an influx of new immigrants from Mexico and Latin America helped drive the boom.

But with the economic downturn that began in 2007, the meltdown of the housing market and a slowdown of new foreign arrivals, many of these same communities have seen the Latino growth rates flatten out. READ MORE

Mitt Romney won a landslide victory over Rick Santorum in Puerto Rico last weekend and Santorum is not taking his 75-point defeat lightly.

Santorum, who spent two full days campaigning in the Caribbean island, congratulated Romney on his victory in a press release late Sunday night, but in the same breath accused the former governor of pandering to Puerto Rico's Latino voters by switching his position on making English the official language of every U.S. state.

"Their decision to put political expedience and political deception ahead of previously held policy positions further erodes their candidate's credibility and trust," Santorum spokesman Hogan Gidley said of the Romney campaign in the statement. "We all know Mitt Romney will do and say anything to get votes, and this is just another example of that."

But just how much of a conservative two-step did Romney dance while courting Puerto Ricans? Here's a look at some of the positions Romney softened, and those he stood by while attempting to woo Latino voters. READ MORE

While more than half of California's public school children are Latino, they are underrepresented on college campuses, particularly in four-year schools, according to a new statewide study.

The Campaign for College Opportunity's "Latinos and Higher Education" report finds that Latinos are not going directly to college after high school graduation in as many numbers as youth from other groups. It also found these students are not accessing high school college preparation courses as much as students in other age groups.

In addition, Latino students attending community colleges are less likely to obtain a degree or transfer after six years, Campaign for College Opportunity Executive Director Michele Siqueiros said.

At Napa Valley College, Latinos accounted for nearly 2,000, or 31.6 percent, of the students enrolled in credit courses in the fall 2011 semester, according to college statistics.

But, just 27 percent of the full-time Latino students who attended Napa College for the first time in fall of 2007 had graduated with a degree or certificate in three years.

The new report showed poorer overall results. It found that while large numbers of Latinos attend classes at community colleges, only 22 percent earn a degree or transfer, Siqueiros said.

"That's really disturbing," Siqueiros said. "It doesn't bode well for the future." READ MORE

NALEO researchers are redirecting their aim to improve Hispanic voter turnout, pointing efforts at the most influential target inside Latino households: the women.

The National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials is using new findings from recently gathered focus groups to retool its campaign for the Hispanic vote, after participants in Houston revealed that a nudge from wives and mothers could be the key.

“We will develop a strategy where we speak to Latinas,” said Arturo Vargas, longtime executive director for NALEO. “There's something there that we need to tap into to get our Hispanic mother and wife and sister to get their husbands and brothers and sons to vote.”

The groups — eligible-but-nonregistered and registered-but-not-voting Hispanics — were assembled in December to determine if they were tuned in to the political issues and candidates of the day, Vargas explained.

Participants showed that they closely follow platform issues, and demonstrated awareness but no engagement.

Asked who among them planned to vote in the 2012 elections, none raised a hand. Who might influence them to vote? Participants said they would listen to their wives and mothers. READ MORE

Cosmopolitan, the iconic women’s lifestyle magazine, is launching a Hispanic-focused, English-language version, Cosmo Latina, in May, per Adweek, which reported the news earlier this week. Cosmo Latina aims to attract beauty and fashion advertisers looking for a platform to reach young, bilingual and bicultural Latinas.

Self-identifying bicultural Latinos (of both genders) make up 39% of the total U.S. Hispanic population, according to the 2011 edition of Horowitz Associates’ annual Focus: Latino report. That works out to about 19.5 million people, or 6.3% of the total U.S. population.

Overall, the U.S. Hispanic population, which is estimated at 50 million by the U.S. Census Bureau, wielded $1.1 trillion in spending power in 2011. This is expected to increase to $1.6 trillion by 2016. Bilingual and bicultural Latinos, who tend to be better-educated on average, likely account for a disproportionate amount of this spending power.

This growing population is critical to future profitability for big advertisers, according to a recent study commissioned by the Association of Hispanic Advertising Agencies and performed by Santiago Solutions Group. The study found that marketing efforts targeting Hispanics are correlated with overall revenue growth for consumer packaged-goods companies and CPG-based retail companies.

Cosmopolitan is enjoying success on a number of fronts. Long one of the bestselling magazines at print newsstands, over the last year the magazine became the first Hearst Corp. title to attract over 100,000 digital subscribers. READ MORE

The glass ceiling still keeps many women from reaching the top echelons of business or government. But it's something that Labor Secretary Hilda Solis hasn't experienced herself. The 54-year-old former lawmaker, the first Latina to become a Cabinet secretary, knows firsthand that women can overcome barriers. She was born into a large family of limited means in Southern California, the daughter of a Mexican father and a Nicaraguan mother with less than sixth-grade educations. She was expected to seek a secretarial or clerical job, but, encouraged by a high school counselor, became the first in her family to attend college. After graduating from California State Polytechnic University, she earned a master's degree in public administration from the University of Southern California.

Solis arrived in Washington in 1980, as the federal government was seeking to hire more women. She reached out to Hispanics on behalf of President Carter and worked as a policy analyst in the Office of Management and Budget. Then she returned to California and launched a political career, climbing from a community college's board of trustees to a state Assembly seat before becoming the first Hispanic woman elected to the state Senate in 1994.

Outspoken on labor and environmental issues, she ran for Congress in 2000 as an unwavering liberal and trounced the incumbent, Matthew Martinez, in a Democratic primary. As Solis learned the ropes in what she recalls as "a very male-oriented" Congress, her affability masked her toughness. She drew close to Nancy Pelosi, a sister Californian who became the first female House speaker. Labor unions have approved of her Cabinet performance, though their leaders grumble privately about her lack of influence on President Obama's economic policies. Edited excerpts from an interview follow. READ MORE

The era of the Hispanic homebuyer is upon us, according to the 2011 State of Hispanic Homeownership Report released by the National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals (NAHREP). The 36-page document offers an analysis of data on the Hispanic homebuyer market and points to youth, birth rates, household formation, rising purchasing power, labor trends, educational achievements and desire as key indicators that will make Latinos a major purchase force in the first-time homebuyer market.

“Despite recent losses suffered by Hispanics during the housing crisis, young Latino families that were unaffected by foreclosure or lost home values are ready to enter the market,” said Carmen Mercado, president of the 20,000-member group. “When they do, they will have an exponential impact on housing sales.”

According to the report, demographic forces are aligning with Latinos poised to take center stage as a mega force in housing. Latinos filled 1.4 million or 60 percent of the 2.3 million jobs added to the economy in 2011, are expected to account for 40 percent of the estimated 12 million new households over the next 10 years, and their collective purchasing power is expected to jump 50 percent by 2016 – just four short years from now. READ MORE