Angry Hispanic Upset By Facts

Much passion in response to my post today, "Tomatoes and Cheap Labor." Facts can be very upsetting, and reader "Rogers Park Latino" is muy upset. (RPL's spelling errors have not been corrected.) Shame on you! How dare you post this senseless and debasing propoganda [sic]! I'm truly disgusted. As an Hispanic I find this utterly offensive. Not only that, it's full of fallacy after fallacy. The reality is that only 15% of the Latino population is here illegally. Extend that number proportionally to the students - and only 15% of those students are here illegaly.

NOTE: Don't you love that the commenter says "only" 15% are here illegally? That's more than one in six! Number 2 - "A third-world culture that does not value education," Wow - that's a lie if I ever heard one. The reality is education is the number one issue amongst Latinos (Pew Hispanic Research) Number 3 - "That accepts children getting pregnant and dropping out of school by 15" Again, disgusting that someone would write this. I'm Mexican and my mother (who has dual citizenship) owns a home in Mexico. I can tell you that that type of behavior isn't accepted in Mexico or in the US.

NOTE: If that behavior is not accepted, then why is it so widely practiced? Number 4 -"and that refuses to assimilate" Again. Not founded on evidence. Read any recent Tribune article - Latino 2nd and 3rd generations are assimilating faster than any previous immigrant group in the US's history. Most 2nd generation are bilingual and most 3rd generation can't speak Spanish.

NOTE: Oh, but the evidence abounds. Visit East Los Angeles sometime.

I could continue to rebut this hate-filled e-mail all day long - but instead I'll just politely ask that you remove it. Thanks, Rogers Park Latino RESPONSE: Dear RPL: How dare I? It's my blog. How dare YOU tell ME to remove something that challenges your worldview. "Remove it?" Are you kidding me? I didn't write the piece you're so ticked off about. I presented it as something that is going around the Internet. But since you decided to step in this, I must say that your hate-filled comment shows your own ignorance. You wrote, "The reality is that only 15% of the Latino population is here illegally." How could you possibly know that if they are UNDOCUMENTED? You CANNOT know that "only 15%" entered the country illegally. In any case, who cares? Fifteen percent would still be a heck of a lot of people. Your point is moot. "Not founded on evidence," you write. Ever been to East L.A., Amigo? There's a whole bunch of evidence right there. You say education is the number one priority amongst Latinos. Sure, the educated ones certainly do, but they're in the minority. You wrote, "That accepts children getting pregnant and dropping out of school by 15." Again, disgusting that someone would write this. I'm Mexican and my mother (who has dual citizenship) owns a home in Mexico. I can tell you that that type of behavior isn't accepted in Mexico or in the US." RPL, but are you just completely clueless? Right here in our own neighborhoods we have kids getting pregnant and dropping out by age 15, of all ethnicities. Your mother owns a home in Mexico - so what? What's that got to do with 15 year old here or anywhere getting knocked up? "Isn't accepted?" Perhaps not by you, certainly not by me, but look outside your window. "Advocates say that the high birth rate is a major factor why so many Latinas are forced to drop out of high school since many cannot find adequate day care. In 2004, the Latino drop out rate in New York City was 20.6 percent compared to 17.7 percent for blacks, 10.6 percent for whites and 9.5 percent for Asian students. While the city’s Department of Education does not break down the numbers by gender, an analysis by the Pew Hispanic Center based on 2000 U.S. Census data showed that in New York state native-born Latinas had a 3.8 percent drop out rate and foreign-born Latinas a 10.7 percent drop-out rate – higher than that of black and white female teenagers." Source: http://www.eldiariony.com/noticias/detail.aspx?id=1449298§ion=17 You wrote: "Number 2 - "A third-world culture that does not value education." Let's see, it's not a lie that it's a Third World culture. So is it a lie that the Hispanic culture does not value education? I would agree that it is. But I didn't say that. I would say, however, that as a whole they value it less than some other Western cultures. But don't take my word for it. Northeastern Illinois University notes that, "Nationwide, Latino students have a 38 percent school dropout rate, higher than any other population. About 55 percent of Latino adults have a high school diploma. In 1997, 27 percent of Hispanic high school graduates ages 18-21 were enrolled in college, as compared to 46 percent of white students." Source: http://ola.wkkf.org/ENLACE/chicago.htm Unfortunately, Latino students have a very high drop-out rate (50%). This is line with a national trend where drop-out rates are increasing for all students, with the average being around 30%. Its not limited to rural or urban or one particular ethnicity or social group, however Latinos seemed to be hit particularly hard according to Ruben Navarrette Jr., a columnist at the San Diego Union-Tribune. He believes that “while [Latino parents] value education for their children, they don’t always value it for themselves. Many Latinos have decided that the way to get ahead is through hard work, and that is where they focus their passion.” Source: http://www.scholarships-ar-us.org/blog/2006/12/06/what%E2%80%99s-behind-the-high-drop-out-rate-for-latino-students/ But this is not happening only in the U.S. It is happening IN LATIN AMERICA. According to the ECLAC report Social Panorama of Latin America 2001-2002, "Thirty seven percent of Latin American adolescents (from 15 to 19 years) drop out of school before completing secondary education. Almost half leave early, without finishing primary school, but in several countries most leave during the first year of high school." Source: http://www.hispanictips.com/2007/02/06/teen-pregnancy-rate-continues-drop-except-among-latinas-arizona/ Also see: "Buenos Aires aims to cut dropout rate" at http://www.iht.com/articles/2002/10/18/rargentine_ed3__0.php I could continue to rebut your hate-filled, devoid-of-facts comment all day long - but instead I'll just politely ask that you do some reasearch on your own. Try reading reliable sources, like the ones I cited above, instead of the opinion pages of La Raza.