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Hi everyone!
I just conducted my first interview this morning. I'm not sure exactly how much we're supposed to write, but I thought I would highlight some of the notes from my interview.

I interviewed Marcia, who is the Fitness Director at the Downtown YMCA in Green Bay. When I asked her about the needs/problems facing the Spanish-speaking community, she said:

"Definitely the language barrier. It's hard to communicate our rules and regulations. When our childcare center closes at 1 pm and we're announcing over the loud speaker that a child needs to be picked up, they might not understand that. Sometimes they don't understand that their membership money is actually being taken from their bank account, so the following month it's upsetting to them when membership fees have been deducted.
She also added that:

"Green Bay is not the most cutting-edge community. It's a great community, but it's older, so there are probably some racial boundaries that adds to the problems."

When I asked about what the Y is doing to help with services, she said:

"This fall we're starting a new salsa-aerobics class, that will be taught in Spanish and English. I wanted to provide something for our Spanish speakers, because they come to the Y, they attend. It's their Y as much as it is for anyone else."

"We are also sending people from our front-desk staff to learn Spanish-speaking basics. We need to be able to communicate our services and how to use the equipment. Our registration forms have also been redone in Spanish as well."

Marcia said her goal is to have a trainer at each Y who is bi-lingual. She also always wants someone working who can communicate effectively with Spanish speakers.

Again, these are just some highlights from the interview. I'm curious to see what the others have to say.

On a personal note, I teach classes at this Y, and I do have some Spanish speakers in my classes. A few months ago, I wrote down some activities and put them in a hat that the class could choose from. They were all in English, such as, "run stairs," "run track," "step aerobics," "jump rope," etc. The Spanish speakers looked at them and just gave me this puzzled look, so I demonstrated and they understood. I felt very naive and promised from now on I would find someone to help me write these in both languages!

It's been great reading about the community interviews so far. It demonstrates there are multiple values to this process. Not only do you learn more about the Spanish-speaking community, but opportunities arise for future partnerships. I can't wait to read more!

Emily

Hello again!
I had another great discussion this morning with Karla, who is a children's librarian at Brown County's East Branch. Karla is also participating on a panel for the WLA Conference on serving the Hispanic community. We ended up talking pretty frankly for about 45 minutes, and I will highlight some of the things we discussed.

Karla also feels that communication and the language barriers are the biggest problems for Spanish speakers. It's hard for families to find the time to learn another language, and having their kids translate for them at the doctor's office or insurance agency puts a big burden on the children. It also doesn't help with the self-esteem in the adults.

Karla is not happy with the negativity that seems to be in the local media regarding Spanish speakers.

"They need access to information," Karla said. "They need to learn English in order to survive and have a life here, so the library can provide them those resources and a quiet place to study. They also need our support and a welcoming community."

When Karla started working at her branch eight years ago, there were maybe one or two Latinos who would come in, and the selection of books in Spanish was very little. They were also pretty battered and poorly written. Now, the Spanish-speaking population at their library has "sky-rocketed." They have also built up a nice collection of adult and kid books in Spanish with grant money and donations.

Karla also took it upon herself to learn Spanish so she could communicate with people more easily. She also does a weekly bi-lingual storytime and collaborates with local schools on giving kindergarten kids tours of the library.

She's happy with the progress they've made, but her ultimate goal would be to have more bi-lingual staff at the libraries, and have someone specifically for Spanish-speaking programming and other needs. She also would like to see their entire Summer Reading Program in English and Spanish.

Karla told me how one time a Spanish-speaking gentleman came in the library asking for GED materials.
"I kept encouraging him to check out these books," she said. "It took weeks and weeks. Many of our Spanish speakers are from Mexico, where the public library system is not as good as it is here. Or often times, the materials have to stay in the library."

"When I finally got him to check out the GED book, he opened his wallet and asked 'how much?' I told him, 'nothing, it's free to check out!'
She said, "He thought he had to pay for it. I just can't imagine how many other people might not know of the resources we can provide."

Community Leader Interview
August 20, 2007
Rev. Leigh, Vicar, St. John’s Episcopal Church, Sparta WI
Conducted by: Marcia Sarnowski, Winding Rivers Library System, La Crosse WI
:
Rev. Leigh was ordained in 2003. She grew up in Texas, where she studied Spanish in school and became fluent in the language. She came to Sparta (in western Wisconsin, population about 9,000) from northern Wisconsin. When she arrived in 2004 there were an average of 33 people attending Sunday services. The church began to offer English classes, and now the worship attendance has increased to about 65, and includes Hispanic families. Recently the church has instituted Spanish language worship services. Leigh provides assistance with translation, counseling, and connecting people with community services when they need them.

People began arriving from Mexico around twelve years ago to work at the Valley Pride meat processing plant in Norwalk, WI, a small village about 15 miles from Sparta. Gradually more people came and found jobs in Sparta with several local companies. The majority are from two villages in the state of Oaxaca in Mexico. It is not known exactly how many people are here, though the number of Hispanic children attending area schools is known. People have also arrived from other countries: Puerto Rico, El Salvador, Guatemala, Peru, as well as other states in Mexico. Many are indigenous (native people) – they hardly speak Spanish. A very few have a high school education. Some have completed 8th grade, most have less than a 6th grade education. The community struggles with prejudice and bigotry from external sources, but these issues also exist within Hispanic groups, with friction present among the different cultures.

There are many needs facing the Spanish-speaking community in this area, the most pressing being English language proficiency, and assistance with translation and interpretation, and help navigating the system (e.g. getting a driver’s license). Transportation is a challenge in households where two members work different shifts to accommodate child care needs; there is not enough child care assistance for those without local family support. Domestic violence is a problem which plagues many families. Cultural understanding of parenting is different from U.S. expectations (e.g. leaving small children alone in order to take care of other family members); this can result in problems with social services agencies. Many live in daily fear of immigration sweeps through employment sites, that they will be separated from their children with no warning. Many do not understand how the US medical system works. If they need medical attention they most often wait until after job hours (evenings and weekends) and then go the hospital emergency room, the most expensive care option. In Mexico, in towns where there are clinics, the care is free all the time. Dental care is very hard for these families to get in this region.

Spanish-speaking community members need better paying jobs, like many area people, so they can support their families; Hispanics are often the first ones laid off, in seasonal industries. They need a dependable network of people they can trust to ask for assistance with translation, interpreting, and instruction about how to access social and medical services. There is a free clinic which serves the area, one evening a week. Women are eligible for Badger Care [state health insurance] while they are pregnant, and for a short time after delivery. Children born here are eligible for Badger Care and food purchase assistance. However, people often don’t understand that they must reapply for these services, and they do not respond to printed mailings they receive, in time to meet deadline dates. There is a local food pantry for those in need, but it is rarely used by the Hispanic community. There are some faith-based volunteer groups who provide assistance upon request. There is a Job Center office in Monroe County which can provide assistance with finding employment. Free tax help is available. There is a bilingual social worker on the county human services staff – but only one.

The family support system is very strong. Most are dependable, hard workers – they have come here for jobs because there are so few in the small villages of their native countries. They are proud of their cultures and their countries. Many are generous to a fault, and will give to someone in need, even if they have little to spare. However, many lack reading and writing skills in Spanish, as well as English. Prejudice and racism divide the community; yet there is a perception that all Spanish-speakers are one homogeneous group. Many are reluctant to ask for help, to look less than capable; they perceive their vulnerability as failure.

There is a need for informal, accessible education, from trusted people. The most effective format is probably a tutoring classroom, with instruction offered to individuals or small groups. People need language instruction and general living information (e.g. home and apartment maintenance for those used to living in very different conditions). Leaders need to come from within the community to be bridges with area residents.

Leigh will connect us with a liaison from the Spanish-speaking community (she will suggest that this person call me – after the September training session). Leigh suggests that representatives from public health organizations, the school district ELL department, and the Job Service Center would be able to help identify community needs.

Leigh finished the interview by saying, “I’m glad they [the Spanish-speaking community] are here. I believe God sent them to us, for us, to get us out of our perception that consumption and greed are what life is all about.” Leigh is working to develop a resource center to make it easier for people to find the information they need to have a better life in the community. She plans to work closely with the local library director.

I interviewed Linda Callon, the director of the Westside Community Action Network Center in Kansas City, Missouri, on August 28.The center serves two needs in the community:
•Neighborhood & community policing organization, one of 6 remaining in KCMO. Triage for: the D’s in a blighted, crime ridden neighborhood: disengaged, disenfranchised, distressed, devolved or devolving neighborhoods.
•Gathering place for day laborers: in 2002, an outreach program for migrant workers was started. In 2003, the current space was rehabbed. In 2004, the day laborers were moved from Southwest Blvd. to her location as they were becoming an increasing problem for small business owners, patrons, and residents along SW Blvd. as it became more gentrified.
Westside provides:
•A dayroom, kitchen facilities, showers, lockers for the homeless day laborers
•Health services through Jackson County Health Dept.
•Two on-site neighborhood police officers who speak Spanish
•An on-site building codes inspector
•Some ESL training
Ethnic make-up of community: 60 % Hispanic (mostly of Mexican extraction), 20% Afro-American, and 20% other.
Lynda’s parents emigrated from Canada to KC area when she was a small child. He father was a French Canadian who didn’t learn French because his mother thought her children would be more successful if they spoke English rather than French. As Lynda remarked, “Little did my grandmother know that one day Canada would be bi-lingual.” Lynda, on her own initiative, took 2 semesters of Spanish at local community colleges, and speaks what she calls “Lynda Spanish” which the day laborers and community residents have a lot of fun helping her with. She needed a job in 1994, so Linda created her own position by filling a need in the community where she lives.
Lynda’s Concerns, Hopes, and Plans
•Lynda worries about how the love of learning light goes out of the eyes of the children, especially the boys, somewhere in the 4-6th grade. She feels that people don’t rise to low expectations so when the neighborhood educators don’t set high expectations and promote rigorous standards, her children are cheated.
•Lynda worries about the effect of poor parenting on the children in her neighborhood as the culture is pervasive with instant gratification rather than long term goal setting. The parents are often poorly educated and have a lot of false pride about that, so education just isn’t on the family agenda.
•As long as her day laborers see themselves as “dirt”, they are going to be treated like dirt. Most of them are disconnected from society, families, community, etc. She is hoping this winter to work with them on their self images. She would like to have a male role model to participate in this project.
•Lynda would like to see more literacy tie in with KCMO’s health department’s Esperanza Para la Familia project which provides pre and post natal services for mothers until 3 months after delivery. She thinks education should made a mandatory adjunct to this program while the mothers and mothers- to- be are a captive audience.
•Language is not the friend of her neighborhood residents; even in their native language they are frequently inarticulate and illiterate. They struggle with critical thinking and analytical skills.
You can learn more about the Westside CAN by visiting its web sites: westcan@crn.org, and www.westsidecan.org

Yesterday, I had my first leader interview. It made me realize how much I have to learn as far as the community in Nashville as well as how important it is for me to triple my efforts to learn Spanish. It will be life changing pursuing this quest and my efforts and training may be a small ripple that I hope will spread.


Maricruz Figueroa, St Edwards Hispanic Church, Nashville, TN August 30, 2007

Some leaders come in small packages without big titles. I started off interviewing Fr. Joseph Breen re: the Hispanic Church that St. Edwards Catholic Church of Nashville started, Our Lady of Guadalupe, which will open December 12, 2007. It will be the first Hispanic Catholic Church in the Diocese. Currently they have 2 Hispanic Masses at St. E’s on Sunday Afternoon. He suggested that I come to the 2:00 service to make announcements about the library programs because it would reach ~700 people. He regrets that he cannot speak Spanish. I told him I was rapidly trying to learn it.

Within 10 minutes he turned me over to Maricruz Figueroa, a lovely lady who really had the pulse of the Hispanic experience. She herself has a Masters in Sports Medicine and came here from Mexico. With this as her background when she first came here, all she could find to do was to be a translator for a restaurant. She is now and has been one of the “go to” people in the area looking for help. She was a volunteer for the Hispanic church for 8 years and a fulltime employee the last two years. She said that the reasons the Hispanic community does not use the library is:

1) Language – not enough Spanish speakers in the library system.
2) Both parents work long hours and different hours. Most programs are while they are at work.
3) Education is the key and the mothers usually don’t know English at all, have perhaps just elementary education so they don’t read well in their own language. She feels that they need to learn how to read to their children in English.
4) Don’t have a library card because of the picture ID requirement. Afraid to give too much information because of deportation.

There are a lot of programs sponsored by the Catholic Diocese in the Middle Tennessee area. The hesitancy of the illegal immigrants to christen their children or register for school has to be overcome. But the hardest thing to hear was that they have a legitimate reason to be afraid. Parents are seized and deported and the children are left behind. I was amazed at the number of people who work beyond their jobs to help once they see the problem. At the nearby YMCA, there is a gentleman who works with 7th graders and above, plus the parents, to achieve academic success. However, many colleges will not take an application from a student without a social security number. Vanderbilt and Belmont will if they are straight A students. The parents could get a passport through the Mexican Consulate in Atlanta but if they are pulled over while driving they can be arrested because they are illegal immigrants and also do not have a driver’s license.

She gave me the name of many other tireless Hispanic heroes in the area whom I plan to interview. Maricruz helps anyone she can when they come to the Hispanic Church offices. She has helped with applications and directs the Hispanic community to the services and agencies available.

This was huge eye opener.

I interviewed Chico Ramirez, who is the Director of the Multicultural Community Center in Green Bay. He has been in this position for four years and has lived in this community for 10 years. He also serves as a translator for several companies. We spoke candidly for about two hours! It was so interesting to hear about his childhood growing up in Texas. He asked me to come to the Hispanic Advisory Council meeting next week if I was interested and also said he'd help translate key phrases that I could use in my kickboxing classes. How nice!

Chico thinks that this area is very welcoming, but he thinks city officials are the ones who make it hard for Spanish speakers to find jobs. He doesn't think immigration was a "problem" until people made it a problem. 9/11 also had a big impact, because it got people to pay attention.

He did say that the language barrier is also a big problem, but unfortunately, there aren't enough places like the Literacy Council to help, and even they can't keep up with the tutors that are needed.

He said the banking industry is one area where they need to "get on board" in this area. He has a friend who works at a major bank who has fought with bosses on creating brochures in Spanish. A few of the banks have hired bi-lingual workers, but not enough.

Chico agreed to be part of the panel when I do my training in Green Bay, and he was really excited I was doing this. He definitely placed an emphasis on promoting multi-culturalism for all people.

I went about town interviewing a few of the many leaders in our community. Each one of them had invaluable insight and information on the community and the challenges that are ahead as our Spanish-speaking population continues to grow at a fast pace. As per the 2000 census, The Hispanic or Latino population in the City of Reading was 37.3%. Realistically speaking, this information is outdated to say the least. During the past five years, there has been an overwhelming increase in the Spanish-speaking population in our area. During my interviews I realized that there is a definite need for more outreach programs that help our Spanish-speaking population adjust and become active participants in the community. Awareness and an attitudinal change are in the process. Attached are note of the interviews I have conducted so far…..

Attachments:

Interview_with_Leon_Churchill.doc (25.5k)    Sergio_Mery.doc (27.5k)    Ileana_Torres_interview.doc (26.5k)

Hi I'm Catherine in Bozeman, Montana.

In making phone calls and doing interviews over the past few weeks I have discovered not only that a much larger community of Spanish-speakers are living and working in and around the Gallatin Valley but that a great group of people have been meeting for the last year to discuss and try to meet the needs of this growing community.

This group is CORO (Coalition of Resource Organizations). Coro translates to chorus in Spanish. It is a group of interested individuals that work in health care services, at the university, at the foodbank, for the church, for various state and county agencies. I've just been to a meeting yesterday and the stories that they shared just at that meeting heartwrenching.

They've welcomed me and the library into the group. Some were noticeably excited when I introduced myself and said I was with the library. The library is quickly becoming a cultural center here in the area and I think that the fact that we are becoming involved is a promising sign for the group.

The next meeting is the Friday after the Institute in Seattle and I'll have a chance to tell them all about SLO and recruit them for the area workshops.

Hi Pam,
There is a form that one of the previous trainers developed, which we will be sharing with everyone at the training institutes. However, I've attached it here as well, and below you'll find the questions.

Panel Questions:
In your experience

1. Please tell us about your organization and its services.

2. Please tell us us about the community you serve.

3. What are the major needs, issues and challenges facing this community?

4. What kind of support do community members need?

5. What services are available to help this community?

6. What are the strengths of the community?

7. What are the challenges for the community?

8. What else needs to be done?

9. Who else should we contact to help us identify the needs of the community ?

10. Is there anything else you would like to tell us about your community?

Regards,
Emily

Attachments:

~$O_Community_Panel_Member_Letter_Template.doc (0.2k)

It took a while to track down the community leaders I spoke to, but it was really worth the wait. I got some very interesting insights AND have a question for the group that I'm going to put right up front (in case you only have time to skim the interviews):

Our shared system (40 independent public libraries) requires the use of a photo ID in order to get a library card--partly to protect the library, but also ostensibly to protect people having their mail stolen and used to get a library card. This is extremely problematic for many Spanish speakers in our area, since a large proportion are undocumented. Anything to do with paperwork makes folks nervous, so proof of address is tricky enough...How do other libraries and shared systems get around this?

Attached is the write-up for the two interviews I did. Now I can see why several of the people who did one did another and then another! I feel like there is so much to learn and so many connections to make.

I interviewed Marissa Rodriguez of UMOS, a Wisconsin agency serving migrant agricultural workers, and I also interviewed Tim Stanton, ESL teacher at a local community college and Lucy Rojo, one of his students and a leader in the Spanish speaking community.

Attachments:

Marissa_Rodriguez_interview.doc (26.0k)

I interviewed Basilio Torres, Montana Migrant Council Outreach Director, on September 5, 2007. It was a pleasure!

Basilio talked about migrant workers in our area. Most migrant workers in Montana come from the Brownsville Texas area, the Rio Grande Valley and Arizona. They are moving north in greater numbers now as officials crack down on illegal immigrants in the southwest U.S. Billings has higher wages than Denver and migrants are moving to the higher wages. Many migrants are no longer farm workers, but are in the construction trades and hotels. It is common for migrant workers to live in small, cheap, crowded housing. Basilio mentioned one family with 10 people living in an old trailer. The migrants have a culture of poverty. They are not interested in owning a home because that would require disclosure of documentation to authorities. Instead, they buys cars, which they can take with them should they move from the area. Migrant workers are issued temporary work permits from the U.S. government. The permits are valid for 9 months; then the person must go back to Mexico for 3 months. The following year, the worker returns for another 9 months.

Labor unions have an impact on the migrant worker. In union positions, workers have a better opportunity to learn the trade from experienced co-workers and produce quality work.

Basilio suggested the following ways to approach outreach to the Spanish speaking community:

--Develop a dialogue between the library and Hispanics at their churches, community centers, etc.
--Start small – even if it only 4 people who learn about the library.
--Explain the concept of a library. Don’t scare them off. Tell them that the library is free, that internet is free. They really don’t understand that the library is a place to find out answers to problems.
--Have small group meetings and ask for ideas from the group. Also ask for help from the group.
--Don’t take on all the responsibility myself.

Basilio said to keep the library card application in English only, not Spanish. Then personally help people who need some translation help. In this way, the Spanish speaker must make efforts to learn some English and communicate with library staff.

Basilio volunteered to help translate at group meetings if I need his assistance.

Basilio’s suggested doing *fun* activities to bring Spanish speakers to the library.
--Show a film and have a discussion group after the showing.
--Start a book discussion for Hispanic adults
--Keep the current Spanish conversation group at the library

As I set about finding community leaders to interview, I discovered that although we (Norfolk, NE) have a significant Spanish-speaking community, we do not have very many people within that community who could easily be identified as leaders. I did manage to find two people, Juanita Ramirez (interpreter and translator) and Darlene Rodriguez (Migrant Grant coordinator)--both employed by Norfolk Public Schools--who were identified by several individuals as being movers and shakers within Norfolk's Spanish-speaking community.

I interviewed Juanita and Darlene on August 24th. They told me that Norfolk's Spanish-speaking is beginning to shrink due to the closure of one of our local meatpacking plants. They said that only the very well established Spanish-speakers are staying--families who have been here 10-20 years. Many of those families have purchased homes, become well-established in our school system, and have branched out into lines of work other than meatpacking. But there are still a large number of families who continue to be dependent upon meatpacking jobs in our area.

When asked what the major needs, issues and problems facing our local Spanish-speaking community were, they said: there needs to be better communication, immigrants have a great deal of suspicion of government entities, many face racial discrimination, and that there's a lack of decent, affordable health care.

In response to "What kind of help do Spanish-speaking community members need to have for a better life in Norfolk?" they said: More jobs, better paying jobs, a need for bilingual and immigration lawyers, ways to keep their kids from dropping out of school, and more Spanish-speaking employees in local businesses.

Juanita and Darlene said that the only special service offered in Norfolk for the Spanish-speaking community was our New American Center but it has lost most of its grant funding and no longer has bilingual employees. There are some area churches that offer Spanish language services and we are beginning to get some bilingual health care providers in our city.

Darlene and Juanita supplied me with the names of ten more people who could be considered community leaders for future interviews.

As a result of becoming acquainted through the interview process, Darlene, Juanita and I have communicated several times via email and the telephone. We have found a number of ways that our Public Library and the Public Schools can cooperate to better serve Norfolk's Spanish-speaking population

Karen Drevo
Youth Services/Circulation Librarian
Norfolk Public Library
Norfolk, NE
kdrevo@ci.norfolk.ne.us
402.844.2108

My interview was conducted with Angeles Ortega, the Executive Director of the Coalicion Latino Americana in Charlotte NC. The mission of her organization has evolved over the last 18 years from one of networking and cultural programs with clients from, mostly, Cuba to today’s programs that have expanded to include immigration and community organizing programs. Her current clients are 50% men and 50% women whose education is at the elementary or middle school level. Most speak Spanish exclusively. Most are natives of the Mexican provinces of Oaxaca, San Luis Potosi, and Guerrero. Word of mouth and the newspapers are their primary means of communication.

The most pressing issues facing this community are four:

1. Immigration issues
2. Discrimination as a result of the immigration issues
3. Language barriers
4. Lack of acculturation

Immigration issues are by far the biggest barrier to finding a better life in Charlotte. That must be resolved first. The acculturation piece is as important. This has meaning beyond learning how to be Americans. It also means that the majority population understands and respects the cultural gifts that this population brings to the larger community.

Ms. Ortega feels that any new program that hopes to attract and help the Latino population must think in terms of a “long term temporary project.” She mentioned as an example that language classes are needed right now, but may become less important as the children of immigrants come through the school system. She advises to “dive deep or don’t do it at all.” She hopes that new programs will not only “give” to the Latino population but will also “take,” that is, celebrate and use the skills and gifts of the community. An overlay of values of the larger population will not work. She advises that we “think outside the box” and make meaningful collaborations that will work for this population. She used examples of teaching computer skills to both immigrants (not only Spanish speaking) and senior citizens. They may all be new to computers but in the long run, they will learn more than computers with and from each other.

She cautioned that this population brings a value system with them that cannot be ignored. Understanding and making use of the value system will contribute to the success of any new outreach program. She used these examples to illustrate her point. While the majority population may value independent women, Latinos may not want their daughters to be “independent.” Daughters may have to take little brothers with them to classes. Parents may not attend parent-teacher conferences because it is considered an insult to a professional to do so.

Finally, she advised that we consider both practical transportation problems for this population and also a “safe and comfortable” environment that will make it easy to learn and to transition to other organizations and helpers.

www.latinoamericancoalition.org

September 14 2007
Margery Orell
Charlotte NC

Today I interviewed Terry Kelly, the English as a Second or Other Language instructor at the Dickinson Lifelong Learning Center (an adult continuing education organization) and Doug and Nellie McClelland, volunteers with Missoula Medical Aid (an organization providing medical and dental service outreach projects in Honduras every year) and active members of the Missoula Spanish Conversation Table.

Terry's observations about Missoula's Spanish-speaking community:
- There are no general trends, the population comes and goes, not centered in any specific area or economic strata, including people with little education or a BA or MA in their first language.

Doug & Nellie's observations:
- Many migrant workers travel through the area, working as cherry pickers on Flathead Lake or sheepherders. These workers often travel as entire families.
- The population also includes people affiliated with the University and people working in hospitality industry.

Terry - Major Needs, Issues & Problems:
- Transportation
- Time – juggling work, class, childcare & transportation
- Barriers to education – negative past experiences, lack of previous education, bad family life, lack of promotion of education in the family
- More education and computer skills are needed to get even basic jobs.
- Unlike the Hmong and Byelorussion populations in town, there are no centralized assistance offices available for the Spanish-speaking community.

Doug & Nellie - Major Needs, Problems & Issues:
- Missoula has a lot of services available to people, but the Hispanic community faces many barriers:
o Economics – can’t afford a car or insurance
o Communication – many organizations do not have employees that speak Spanish or resources in Spanish. As a result, many people do not know the services are available, are too intimidated to try to access the services, or attempt to use the services, but do not get the help they need.

Terry's Suggestions:
- Dual language storytime at the library
- A better community referral system to best pair a person up with the organization that will best meet a need.
- Terry will be teaching an ESOL civics course beginning in October. The class often includes a field trip to the library – the field trip could be made more in-depth with the addition instruction on what a library offers, how to use a library and how libraries differ around the globe.

Doug & Nellie's Suggestions:
- Set up a translator contact resource or way to easily direct people to such a resource.
- Publicizing the Spanish Conversation Table would enable Spanish speakers to make contacts for potential translation assistance and learn about services in town through casual conversation.
- Create a pamphlet/list in Spanish describing Missoula services.
- Offer instruction books such as the motor vehicle instruction book for driving tests in Spanish
- Offer Magazines & Newspapers in Spanish (or links to online access)

Terry, Doug & Nellie are all looking forward to building partnerships in order to connect people with the services they need. Among others, all referred me to the organizer of the monthly salsa dance party in town - one of the most popular events in the Spanish-speaking community.

I interviewed Melania Hoskinson. Melania is a busy woman in the Latino community here in Eugene, Oregon. She is a fulltime K-12 multicultural consultant for the school district. She has Masters degrees in Psychology and in Social Work. She also works for Option Counseling Services, an Oregon non-profit organization dealing with domestic violence, health care access, and other services. She's on the Board of several Latino organizations.

Eugene is a community of 145,000 people. Her estimate is that at least 10% are Latino (officially it is around 5% on the 2000 census), and that there is a higher percentage of undocmentated immigrants than legal immigrants. The majority are from Mexico.

The immigrant community wants to integrate but are up against many barriers such as: 1) many parents are busy and not highly educated so there's not much support for school at home, 2) lack of money for daycare and health care, 3) many are undocumented and afraid of government, 4) cultural barriers between kids and parents once kids start learning English and assimilating - this also changes the balance of power between kids and parents, 5) parents want to educate themselves and learn English but no time or money.

Strengths of Latino community: resourcefulness, perisistance, they manage to get ahead

Eugene has a lot of services available to help the Spanish-speaking community. Funding is a problem since many rely on grants and grant money comes and goes.

Since Melania is heavily involved with the school system, the overwhelming issue was lack of parental support for kids at home since parents are working so much and/or are undereducated themselves. Kids are overidentified as special ed even though they are bright. The drop out rate once kids get older is high.

-Lorie Vik, Eugene Public Library

Hi Shirley, it sounded there were several reasons:

1. Kids falling behind academically because there wasn't an environment at home to help with schoolwork (e.g. parents gone due to work, parents undereducated, etc)
2. Kids not having after school activities with some getting involved in gangs.
3. Kids being placed in special ed due to perceived language barriers (and I think therefore not being expected to achieve)

These are generalizations and I'm sure there are more reasons.

-Lorie

I interviewed Martin Goedken who works for the Catholic Charities Spanish Outreach program. His organization mostly works with individuals who have very basic human needs. This organization, provides transportation (bus passes), car rides, car repair, food, rental assistance and helps individuals with paying their utilities. However, Martin said the biggest need in St. Joseph Missouri a community of 75,000 is for translators. Martin, is working with the local university in town to provide translators from the college population. Martin stated that about 2 years ago there wasn't much need for services to the spanish speaking community. However, all that changed when Triumph Foods moved into town. It employees about 1,000 people and most of them are natives of Mexico. The company actually recruits individuals from there. Martin was also able to provide me with many names so I could do more interviews in town.

Hello,

This is from Shelley Quezada in Boston. I had an interesting interview with Carlos Vidal who is originally from Peru and works in Waltham, Massachusetts (a suburb of Boston) as a real estate agent and part-time radio host. His show, Latin Connection, is broadcast once a week on the local cable show. Waltham has a growing population (about 20%) of Latinos, mostly from Guatemala, Mexico and El Salvador. I chose Waltham because it is the site of our first training, on October 25th. I am happy to say that I got the contact from the local public library (which shows they are making some connections).

The key issues the Latino community face are related to immigration and housing. There are lots of young men whom I see in my favorite Guatemalan restaurant in town. They come to work jobs for seasonal labor- either landscaping or construction. They are here alone, without their families. Many are not here legally and they are very concerned about tightening of the rules e.g. the new id card.

Some other issues were: conflicts with long standing community members over use of pubic parks and the public school.

In one case, the police were called to disband a very animated game of pick-up soccer (in which Carlos had been playing). A local woman complained that the guys were "disrobed"-- they were playing what is known as skins and shirts. (Haven't they ever see people with their shirts off at public swimming pool?) . The game was disbanded and they were sent home!!

The other incident was equally disturbing - a Latina school principal was escorted "off the school premises " because she was said to have been paying too much attention to the needs of the Spanish speaking children and neglecting the other kids. Carlos says this issue is being settled in the courts right now.

He also says that the Latino community is totally underrepresented in local government. (I encouraged him to run for office and he is already inclined in that direction. He often goes in to "chat up" the mayor!)

My interview with Carlos provided a good opportunity to discuss some of the services that the local library could provide for him and others in the Latino community. I feel sure that he will feature these resources on an upcoming TV program (and hope he bring the library director or other staff on for the interview) . He will be a great person to have at our first training. I was so happy to meet such an articulate, bright and caring individual who is truly concerned about the needs of the Latino community. On a personal note, I think I may have found just the right person to go to at some future date when we sell our home!

I interviewed Laura Kasak who is a supervisor with the Rock Road branch of the St. Louis County Library. One if her responsibilities are to provide an entry point for Spanish speakers to utilize library services.
She has organized a number of outreach events directed to the Spanish speaking community including a Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) celebration. This is a Mexican holiday also celebrated in the United States and throughout Latin America. She was also instrumental in organizing English as a Second Language classes with a local school district. The classes meet once a week with 15-20 regular attendees.
In her community, Laura observes two groups. The first are families who have immigrated here and intend to stay long term. Many of them have been in the area for five or more years. The other group is single men, here as migrant workers. They send money home to their families and travel back and forth between the United States and Latin America.
Many of the Hispanics are migrant workers who find seasonal work in construction, farming, and landscaping. Most work very hard, sometimes around the clock, and are just trying to make a better life for themselves and/or family.
Health care is a major concern for these people. For the ones who are not citizens, they do not qualify for any public assistance and have no health insurance. They often use the emergency room to treat even basic injuries and sickness, which puts a strain on local resources.
Laura helps in the ways that she is able in the citizen process. There are many legal issues that are outside of her realm, but she can help then get the needed forms and resources together. One advantage seen to citizenship, besides qualifying for public services, is obtaining the right to vote. It is felt that more of the concerns and issues of these individuals would be addressed if they were voting constitutes of the elected officials.
One of the main goals Laura strives for is to serve her entire community, no matter what the need. This includes everything from getting them a library card to being a point of contact for referrals to community resources.

Interview with Alfonso Zepeda-Capistrán, Statewide Recruiter, Migrant Education Program, Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction on August 15, 2007. Alfonso is also a well-known Hispanic community activist outside of his employment parameters and is an officer or has been an officer of many mulit-state and national Hispanic advocacy groups.

Employment Issues
Many Hispanics in Wisconsin work service industries such as food service industries, hotel services, restaurants, cleaning services, and roofing, landscaping service, and general construction industries. These people are not migrants; they live year round in Wisconsin. Many work in foundries and factories that make such things as windows, foam, semi-trailers, and scissors. Many do assembly work in factories with such things as electronic components.

There are always employers who want to take advantage of their workers. Some intentionally hire people they know do not have the legal paperwork to work in the U.S. so that they have control over their work force. Employers know very well when they are hiring someone who is in the U.S. illegally because it is very easy for them to check. They use their status as leverage. Cleaning services are notorious for doing this. Employers, including the state itself, sub-contract with cleaning companies rather hire their own employees in part because they don’t want to deal with the issue of hiring undocumented workers and they know that many Hispanic people work for cleaning services and that many are undocumented. They hire the service as a way to avoid dealing with the issue of finding someone willing to do their cleaning because they are aware of the high number of Hispanics who work in the industry.


1. Major Needs, issues and problems facing the Hispanic population

Hispanic Migrant Families with School Aged Children
Some major problems that migrant families have include:
-school interruptions due to continual moving
-falling behind from one classroom to the next
-adjusting to new classes, teachers, and friends
-high drop out rates of 30-40%
-need for in-school support and services such as guidance counselors, mentors, and just
someone who watches out for these kids to make sure they don’t fall through the
cracks and to keep them in school

Problems Facing Teens and Young Adults in Relation to Seeking Higher Education
One issue that many Hispanic teens and young adults face difficulty accessing higher education. They can’t prove legal residency so they are charged out-of-state or even out-of-country tuition at state universities and technical colleges. This means that although they may have lived most of their lives in Wisconsin, and have graduated from a state high school, they can’t afford secondary education.

Health, Nutrition and Exercise Issues
Health Education is a major concern for many Hispanics. They also have problems accessing the health care system and getting jobs that provide health care benefits. Many have several part-time jobs. Their employers hire part-time workers as a way to avoid paying health insurance premiums for their workers. Even when health care insurance is available through their work, they can’t afford it, and it rarely includes dental insurance. There is a lack of preventive health care and reliance on emergency room care to address health issues after they become serious, rather than on prevention.

Many Hispanic families eat food that is inexpensive, which tend to be high in fats and carbohydrates. This includes a lot of junk foods and fast foods that have a lot of fat in them. Fruits and vegetables are fairly expensive. As a result Hispanic children have some of the highest childhood obesity rates in the country and diabetes is now being seen more and more frequently in Hispanic children

Often poor families do not have the money to pay the school fees to put their children in sports programs or to send them to sports camps, or the equipment and uniforms needed to play sports.
Hispanic kids may not be encouraged to become involved in team sports or to get regular exercise. They may not live in neighborhoods where playing outside unsupervised is safe. This contributes to the problem of childhood obesity for Hispanic children.

Immigration Issues and Access to Social Services
Many Hispanic people in Wisconsin do not have the proper legal documents they need to work and live in the U.S. This limits their access to all kinds of services. The counties and state agencies often get their funding from the federal government. Many of these programs exclude non-residents. Even parents of American children hesitate to access social services for their children entitled out of fear that their legal status will be revealed.

Language is a major barrier for Hispanic families who do seek social services help, especially outside of Milwaukee and Madison. The larger cities tend to have bi-lingual staff or translators available, but the more rural areas do not.

Computer Literacy Issues
Computer illiteracy is a real issue fro many Hispanic people. Not all that many people have computers in the home and this puts Hispanic kids at a disadvantage. Adults often don’t know how to use computers because they have limited education and even if they did complete high school most public schools in developing countries do not have extensive access to computers. Public libraries are one place that the Hispanic community can access computers without a cost, but many Hispanic adults are not aware of public library services. It often takes someone they trust to introduce them to public libraries.

Barb Huntington, Wisconsin

I had already posted one interview last month. I've done several more since then, I am attaching those files to this post.

Yolanda Jasso
Baright Public Library
Ralston, NE

Attachments:

Alberto_Silva_Interview.doc (27.0k)    Beto_Gonzales_Interview.doc (22.0k)    Dianne_Young_Interview.doc (24.5k)    Dr._Mary_Petersen.doc (23.0k)    Sonia_Bartles_Interview.doc (22.5k)

On Monday, September 17th, I spoke with Socorro White, who is the Region II Hispanic Services Coordinator for the Alpha Center, which provides substance abuse and counseling services in the area. She also works as an interpreter/translator for the local school districts. Although her office is here in Kershaw County, she provides services for a large region of South Carolina, including the Midlands area (around Columbia, the state capitol, and into more rural areas of the state. She coordinated the Hispanic Festival held on Saturday the 15th, which was well attended.
The state’s Hispanic population is diverse. While our Hispanic population is still much lower than many parts of the country, it is rapidly growing. She feels the census numbers are very low. In Richland and Lexington counties, the population is more stable and urban. Many of the Hispanics in these areas have been here the longest, have papers and are well established in the community. Along with Mexicans and Puerto Ricans, there is a sizeable population from South America as well.
In Kershaw County and the neighboring Lee County, most of the Hispanic population is from Mexico or Honduras. In Kershaw County they work primarily in construction, industry and at the horse farms. In Lee County-a very rural county—the primarily work is farming—seasonal laborers at strawberry farms and tobacco fields. Also, there is a large nursery which employs many Hispanics. Any classes and programming have to take into account times—such as when the strawberries are ripe—when the workers are working 10-11 hours daily with no days off. A large part of the population is migrant and undocumented.
Socorro feels that the language barrier is a large problem in the area. Very few businesses and organizations have any literature in Spanish. She is a member of IMPACT Kershaw County—a consortium of organizations and volunteers in the area—and one of her goals is to get the organizations to translate their brochures, and to provide a Spanish message on their answering machines.
She also feels that computer literacy is a problem. She would like to see the library provide computer training in Spanish. Also, there are many websites and databases which can help someone learn English, but they may need help finding the sites and navigating the web. Summer programs in Spanish would be great, and she suggested using bilingual high school and college students as volunteers to help out with programming and computer help. That sounds like a great idea!
Socorro seems very eager to help, and I believe she will be a great resource. She has wonderful ideas and has contacts throughout the state. I very eager to work with her. She has invited me to become a part of the HOLA committee,part of IMPACT Kershaw County.

I interviewed Dr. Perla Rodriguez, she’s the Principal of the Cornelius Elementary school. I first started by asking her what are the barriers for the Latino community. She said that language being number 1, number 2 the level of education, and number 3 is poverty with all the issues that comes with it like; low self-esteem, immigration, housing conditions, healthcare, transportation, and childcare, among many others. Then I asked Dr. Perla about the strengths- she said that family is the most important thing for Latinos. The values are different and sometimes people misinterpret that as being irresponsible, lazy, people who take advantage of the system, etc. The main reason why Latinos are in the U.S. is to work, to get a better life for their families (children). For them sometimes going to the park, or going to the library is a luxury, they have to work hard, feed the family, take care of the kids, etc. – life is harder than we think for Latinos and for immigrants in general. How can we attract them to the library? That personal invitation is key, they want to know somebody, a familiar face who they can later recognize at the library; I’ll go to the library only if you’re there. Flyers don’t work, letters don’t matter much, but getting to know them and personally invite them makes a huge difference. The best way to get them into the library would be to explain them how the library can be a resource for them.
The majority of the Latino families are mostly here to work, to dream they could change their lives, and for survival. Because of their social-economic and educational circumstances they think of the library as a place where other people, “the smart people” go to study, is not a place for me…I barely know how to read, they usually think so it’s hard for them to get to know their community library when they feel so intimidated and vulnerable. Ideally to attract more Latinos we need to have more Spanish-speaking staff, or maybe recruit more bicultural, bilingual volunteers to assist them when they come to the library. Latinos are more visual, they prefer to see it on a video rather than reading something. It’s difficult to get them to read to their children when they know they have issues with their reading as well, sometimes they’re ashamed and it’s like being weak and they don’t want their kids to perceive this, it’s painful. There are a lot of things that needs to be done; basic adult literacy would be a good way to start, we’ve work with children but is like we have forgot to take careof the parents, the adults who need basic education to really improve their lives.

I am posting this community interview on behalf of Jennifer Patterson.

Interview with Rafael Marquez, September 22, 2007

My meeting with Mr. Rafael Marquez was full of surprises. First, he asked to do the interview in Spanish. I speak Spanish, so that was okay with me. But he spoke English throughout the interview (I spoke Spanish mixed with English). This is how it was at my library branch – customers would begin speaking English as soon as I made it clear that I was willing to speak Spanish! I guess my willingness to make mistakes made them more courageous about trying English?

Second, he is from the northern part of Mexico - Coahuila, the state which included the Austin and Williamson Colonies, the two land grants which became what we now call central Texas. He knew about our Texas heroes, and told me that he had visited a museum exhibit in his home town, Monclovo, which told the early history of Texas.

As a child, he and his family moved back and forth between Northern Mexico and San Antonio. He is a legal immigrant, but he told me that 90% of the people he knows here in Texas are not legal. He said that those immigrants who speak English with an American accent do fine here; those who speak with an accent are discriminated against and have difficulty getting employment here, whether they are legal or not.

In Mexico, he was an architect, working for INFONAVIT (part of the government) building low cost housing. Here, he’s a building maintenance person, but he thinks that’s okay, since he has health insurance. His children and nieces and nephews are well educated; some live in Mexico and some in Texas. They can all speak English with an American accent (he does not).

When I asked him what the major needs, issues and problems of Spanish speakers here in Austin, he said “In Austin, Spanish speakers don’t have problems, compared to the problems in Mexico. Here everyone has a radio and a TV and a computer and (usually) a car. You can own your own house; you have plenty of food. In Mexico, there isn’t any middle class. Lots of people live in hovels. Corruption is everywhere. Educated people usually work for the government; the private sector is pretty small. So you get a job in government if you know somebody. Then you’re part of the ‘syndicate’. You don’t make a big salary, but you take in money under the table. This is a big problem.”

In reference to services which are needed, he mentioned the importance of health insurance, schools which offer English classes for adults (in Saltillo there are schools which offer English classes for a fee; we should do more of that here). Kids learn English, the parents do not. There MUST a way for children born outside the US to become legalized. “There are many, many kids who have good educations but who can’t get legitimate employment because they don’t have a social security number”.

Northern Mexico is more technologically advanced and has a higher per capita income than southern Mexico. Most of the Mexican immigrants in Austin are from the south.

Today I finished my first community leader interview. I met with Dr. Suzie Allard of the University of Tennessee School of Information Science whom I had met a few weeks ago. She is in the middle of submitting an IMLS grant proposal which seeks to create tools that librarians who serve Hispanic populations can use. I have attached a file for the whole of our conversation, but I came away thrilled that we are so close to a university and a library school who sees this need as well. We will in all likelihood work together on at least one project and she was a wealth of information about possible panel members for future workshops.

Attachments:

Interview_with_Dr._Suzie_Allard.docx (11.9k)

Greetings from Utah!

On September 25, 2007, Shawn Bliss, Librarian, Cache County Bookmobile Library, Krista Griffiths, Librarian, Library for the Blind and Disabled, and Juan T. Lee, Librarian, Utah State Library Division conducted a Community Leader Interview as part of the Round 3 SLO Institute. Attached is a PDF with highlights of that meeting.

For the past four years, the State of Utah has conducted a project called "Library Services for Spanish Speakers" in which targeted libraries are invited to receive training, consulting services, and a grant to develop a collection of library materials in Spanish. Each year, 6 libraries are selected to participate in the 3-year project.

One of the libraries participating this year is the Cache County Bookmobile Library serving the rural areas of Cache County in Northeastern Utah. The interview with Mr. Bravo is focused on Hispanic/Latino residents of that area.

For more information please contact Juan T. Lee, jtlee@utah.gov

Attachments:

Notes_from_Leo_Bravo_interview.pdf (234.2k)

I interviewed Sylvia Romero, a Pastor of the United Methodist Church in the City of Olathe, Kansas. Sylvia is the Director of the Mission and Outreach Center of Grace and the coordinator of the Grace Hispanic Ministry Taskforce that brings together organizations that provide services to the Hispanic community.

Sylvia indicated that the Hispanic community in Olathe, Kansas continues to grow and according to recent estimates the Hispanic population in Olathe is close to 10%. The majority of immigrants are from Mexico, however, we the have a significant representation of individuals from the different countries of Latin American. Their economic status is generally low due the fact that many of them are recent immigrants.

Their education level ranges from low literary to individuals with college degrees. Olathe has seeing a growth of the Hispanic population as well as the growth of small businesses owned by Hispanics.

The needs of Hispanics in our community vary. New immigrants have different needs than the ones that have lived in Olathe for sometime.

Recent immigrants have basic needs such as clothing, food, a place to live and finding a job. They need information about the process of enrolling kids to school, where to find medical help and transportation. There is a tremendous need for mental health services, new immigrants become confused with so many changes and not being able to speak the language to figure things out. They feel lonely and vulnerable.

Hispanics that have been here for sometime generally have gone through the process of adaptation. They have a job, they speak English and their needs include finding better jobs, furthering their education, purchasing a home and there is also a strong need to develop connections.

The services Hispanics receive in Olathe include the ones we currently offer at the Center of Grace: clothes closet, emergency food pantry, community dinner once a week, computer lab with tutors for the family, family activities night, Summer sack lunch programs, ESL, STEP UP a community learning program for dropout students, Migrant Even Star, a program for migrant families, and Pathway to hope to help families living with the mentally ill.
Other churches in Olathe are beginning to develop services to the Hispanic community.

Strengths of the program. We have created a partnership with local organizations, the city and the county. We take our role very seriously representing the needs of our Hispanic community and because is our believe that we speak for those who have no voice.

Weaknesses.
There is a great need and there is a limit to what we can do. However, we work with other agencies to provide the best service we can.
Sylvia's final comment:
Another important point about Hispanics in our community is their relationship with schools. Parents are not used to the educational system that requires their participation in their children’s education. The school system in the US requires parents’ participation which is a foreign concept among Hispanic parents. They believe teachers are in charge of educating the children.
Hispanic parents are involved in working and paying the bills and are unable to function adequately because of the language issue.

Young children have an easier time adjusting to the new system. They learn English quickly and learn the school structure as they move through the grades.

Teens are another story when they arrive here they do not speak English and they have a hard time adjusting to the new school structure. Intelligent and capable kids begin to feel that they are dumb. They become isolated and are unable to catch on with their new peers. They create groups as a way of protection and survival and there is a potential for the development of gangs.

Vermilion Parish Library Director Jackie Choate and I interviewed Mr. Greg Meaux, Supervisor of Early Elementary Education, and Letty Gallet, ESL Bilingual/ Spanish Coordinator, both of the Vermilion Parish School Board.

We chose these two to interview because they deal directly with Spanish-speaking school children. Mr. Meaux provides services to all elementary students in the parish, and Ms. Letty, who falls under Mr. Meaux’s supervision, works directly with non-English speaking students.

• Vermilion Parish has 140 Spanish-speaking children in the school system.
• Vermilion Parish has approximately 400 Spanish-speaking adults in the parish.
• Most Spanish-speakers are here using work visas, which allows them to work 10 months and then they must return home for 2 months to allow time for another visa to be prepared.
• These migrant workers are primarily working in the seafood industry, chicken farms, and at horse stables.
• Most families are doubled up in homes, living in mobile homes, or employers provide rental properties for their workers.
• The largest population of migrant workers is located south of Abbeville, our parish seat.
• The largest Spanish-speaking child population is at Seventh Ward Elementary, which has 30 kids, 6 in 1 Pre-K class.
• All Spanish-speaking children in the parish are falling behind educationally.
• Many of the Spanish-speaking families are coming from Houston which has a bilingual system within schools.
• The Vermilion Parish School System currently has 5 Spanish translators and looking for more.

We also learned that there is a Spanish mass at St. Theresa’s Catholic Church, and a Spanish priest we hope to speak to as soon as we return from Seattle.

Ms. Letty explained that the Spanish-speaking adults love to read! They would like to read about culture, especially U.S. culture. This would help in becoming U.S. citizens.

The Spanish-speakers in our area also hold weekly Spanish dances.

Problems our Parish faces:
• These masses and dances keep like people to like people. We want to create a mix in races, rather than single out only one.

• Our library does not provide enough resources for these Spanish-speaking citizens. Although, we are working on it! We are in the process of translating our library catalog and library registration cards into Spanish. Also, a conscious effort has been made towards getting bilingual picture books for children.

• Library staff, area business owners, and most people in our area do not speak Spanish.

Mr. Meaux, Ms. Letty, Ms. Jackie, and I discussed getting the same type of Spanish software to allow practice and use with the same system, both at school and at the library. We feel this partnership would greatly help in the transition to learning English.

We also discussed how our new Mobile Library would impact the Spanish in the area. We could service areas not normally serviced by our library branches and more Spanish populated areas. We can also promote Spanish books for both adults and children.

Hello all: attached you will find my notes from the two interviews I conducted in Dallas, Texas.

Best wishes
Miriam Rodriguez

Attachments:

Interviews_Miriam_Rodriguez.doc (30.5k)

Community Leader Interview.

I met with two Spanish language community leaders and had a telephone discussion with another.

First, I spoke with Brenda Melara, Editor in Chief of El Tiempo, a spanish language publication in our area. She is also the spanish language parent/school liaison for the East Bank in Jefferson Parish. We talked for a while about some of the problems in the latin community. Prior to the hurricanes of 2005, much of the community was Honduran. Since the storm many Hondurans have moved to the area, but many Mexicans are moving here as well. Many are coming from other places in the United States and have lived in the US for some time. Most are illegal. Poverty is a huge problem. This has impacted the schools enormously. Almost all of the public schools have ESL classes in every grade. Special bussing is available for the few districts that do not have ESL classes. Transportation is a big problem as is fear of government institution. She indicated that their are different types of potential SL library users. The more affluent would benefit from Rosetta Stone and library materials, but the vast majority need programs on healthcare, English language instruction, tutoring for their children, and basic computer skill classes. These services need to be free.

The second interview was with Maria Reyes, the social worker for the school system. She talked a great deal about the poverty in the SL community. She told me that as many as seven families will live in one home. The problems are not just financial. In order to rent an apartment, buy a car, etc. one must have a social security number. He who has one is the leader in his group. She was of the opinion that the library needs to build trust in the SL community. A book mobile that visits churches would be a good start. She also said that many of the materials would likely be lost because the community is unstable and people are forced to move frequently. She thought a flier with pictures of the process of getting a library card would be useful. She also thought making SL newspapers more available would attract and service the SL population. She also suggested programs on medicaid and other social services would be useful to the SL community. She made a list of some of the community organizations that I should visit. She also invited me to attend SL parent night at some of the schools.

The thrid person with whom I spoke was Alina Sampson, the Bilingual Coordinator for Jefferson Parish Schools. She is interested in working with the library. We offered a bilingual Prime Time Family Reading Time last spring and she helped identify at risk SL families to attend the program. She was called away at the last minute before our meeting, but has indicated that she would like to reschedule.

I interviewed Hector Bojorquez. He is an education associate at the Intercultural Development Research Association (IDRA). Because Texas is such a huge state, we tried to address the broad interview questions in relation to South Texas.

When describing the Spanish speaking population of South Texas, Hector indicated that it is both monolithic and not monolithic. Monolithic because the majority are from Mexico; not monolithic because there are increasing numbers of individuals from Central American countries. Monolithic because we’re talking about Spanish; not monolithic because there are differences in language expression. These differences are influenced by whether they were born in the US or not, whether Spanish is/was their first language, whether Spanish is spoken at home, etc.

Hector added that Spanish speakers’ expectations of institutions – libraries included - vary. He suggested that some feel: ‘They’re going to come and get me because I have an overdue item.’ or ‘There’s no one there to help me because they can’t speak to me or they’ll look down on me.’

As far as needs, issues, and problems, Hector listed some needs as issues related to language access, in other words, availability of materials (specifically books they see themselves in; newspapers and periodicals from their home countries). He also mentioned computer literacy classes from a multi-cultural perspective taking into account a fear of computers sometimes manifested in the idea that if they break it, they’ll have to pay for it. Additionally, taking into account there are many in this population that have never touched a mouse. He also mentioned how important it is to have easy instructions or capability to change the language settings on public access computers.

Hector believes there are three major problems facing the Spanish speaking community in South Texas. One – anti-immigrant sentiment (he also feels this leaks over to anti-Spanish sentiment), Two – education, and Three – access to health care. He believes that an effective way to address these problems is through grass roots organizations already working within the Spanish speaking community.

Hector’s experience with Community Based Organizations (CBO) tells him that this is a model well suited to Texas and, for services available to Spanish speakers, he cited EFN, the Edgewood Family Network and Arise as two working examples in San Antonio. The weaknesses he identified for this type of organization lie in that they often don’t have enough money and that they tend not to address root cause or systemic issues.

Overall, Hector got me thinking and provided constructive suggestions as well as being kind enough to suggest other contacts to reach out to. I look forward to my involvement in this program and participating in the training next week.

Interview with Carlos Marentes, Director of the Border Farm Workers Center

For my password to WebJunction, I chose Guichito, an endearment term for Luis. This name was given to me by a Huichol Indian from Nayarit, Mexico in a bracero camp in Cucamonga, California many moons ago. This experience has been imbedded in my mind for many years. As I was pondering what leader to choose for my interview, the image of that poor illiterate Huichol far away from his homeland kept dancing in my head.

With this thought in the back of my mind, it was not surprising that I choose to interview someone, who following Cesar Chavez, has dedicated his life to the betterment of the farm workers in the Texas-New Mexico region.

Carlos Marinates heads the Centro de Trabajadores Agricolas Fronterizos located one block way from the Mexican border in the Segundo Barrio—the second ward in South Side El Paso. This most impoverished area of the city has an average income of less than $12,000 annually per capita. Although poor in material wealth, El Segundo Barrio is extremely rich with history. Pivotal battles of the Mexican Revolution were fought three miles across the Rio Grande from El Segundo. It was also the breeding grounds for revolutionary figures like Pancho Villa and Pascual Orozco. Mariano Azuela, the famous novelist, penned his classic Los de Abajo while living in a modest apartment in Oregon Street in 1915.

This area also gave birth to one of the first proactive movement in Mexican-American librarianship in the early sixties when the Armijo Branch was involved in a controversy dealing with a mural depicted in the bookmobile. Thanks to a young librarian who rallied the grass roots troops of the Barrio, a crisis of major proportions was prevented. In subsequent years, Chicano/as with freshly minted MLS degrees created the El Paso Chapter of REFORMA and aggressively fought back efforts to close this Barrio branch. Unfortunately, the struggle for survival of library branches in predominately Mexican American areas still continues. (See lchaparro.livejournal.com.)

In an hour-long conversation conducted in Spanish on September 17, 2007, Marentes in essence, gave me an individual lesson on the role of migrant farmworker in the multimillion agricultural industry in the United States. He touched upon the deplorable working conditions and low salaries of these workers. He described in passionate language the impoverish lives of the people who pick the fruit and vegetables for our dinner table and yet are almost dying from hunger. Quite a contraction in this, the wealthiest of all nations! He discussed the advent of mechanization in the agricultural industry that has as its goal the efficient production of crops with minimum intervention by human hands.

On the topic of technology in the agricultural field, Carlos related a fascinated story of a prototype of a huge tractor-like machine he saw at New Mexico State University last year. This machine with its mechanized arms and computer driven system can displace up to 80 workers! Modern technology is, in effect, minimizing, if not eliminating, the need for human participation in the cultivation of numerous crops. Thus, employment opportunities are decreasing at a rapid rate in the agricultural sector. This trend, in Marentes' view, creates the need to train current farm workers to seek employment opportunities outside the agricultural field. More on this later.

As has been depicted by most of the participants in this training, this Center and its approximately 6,000 low income persons it serves each year, shares with the rest of the Mexican-American population numerous needs such as adequate access to health care, education, and basic human needs ( a roof above their shoulders and food on the table).
They are struggling to survive at the lowest scale in Maslow Hierarchy of Needs. Therefore, any talk regarding library services and access to the latest technology, is met with skepticism and distrust. If you spent 10 long hours under the harsh sun of the desert picking onions, how can you dedicate a couple of hours a day to read or to learn how to use computers? This is indeed a though challenge.

Carlos Marentes discussed his views on technology and the how computers can be used to improve the lives of the poor campesinos. The conversation with Carlos on this topic can be summarized in one word: EDUCATION.

Marentes sees education both in the short and long-range term as the only viable solution.
For the years ahead, Carlos can visualize educating the farm workers to become operators of the harvesting machines of the future. In other words, promote the hands who toils the soil to drive the harvester that reaps the crops. Another short-term use for computers is to use them to track the workers who pass thru the Center following the crops up north. Frequently there is a need to communicate with them in case of emergency. The Center can keep up a register and give migrant workers a quick lesson on how to stroke a few keys to communicate electronically with the Center. In theory, they could go to any library in any part of this country and use the computers to communicate with their love ones. Again, the huge challenge of education comes to mind. We need to not only train the farm workers in basic computers skills, but also educate the library staff in public libraries all over the migrant routes to welcome them and offer a helping hand. Education that reaches two different groups: the computer illiterate who is afraid to enter a public library and to the learned library professional who might not have the cultural competencies to deal with (and welcome) such a unique patron.

Finally, his vision for the long term includes collaborating with public libraries, community colleges, work force agencies and non-profit organizations to create a program to transition agricultural workers to other sections of the local economy.

In El Paso, this initiative can be undertaken by creating partnerships with El Paso Community College, the Upper Rio Grande at Work and Sin Fronteras, a non-profit organization and El Paso Public Library. Carlos envisions a long-term comprehensive program that would include training in basic computer skills, GED and citizenship classes and the creation of a job bank to match local farmers’ employment needs with the farm workers’ availability.

Finally, Carlos welcomed WebJunction as a potential partner and expressed his hope that WebJunction’s participation can advance the realization of this dream.

I interviewed Dennis Bangs, who runs a Spanish language school in town called It's Spanish Time. Dennis always tries to recruit as many native Spanish-speaking teachers as possible and is very involved socially with the Spanish-speaking community.

Like the other community members I interviewed, Dennis referred to the fact that Missoula's Spanish-speaking community is not centralized and from many different countries. The population has increased over the last ten years, especially the Mexican population. Many people come to the area for transitional construction or migrant labor jobs and end up staying.

Translation is a major need, especially for people in jail as there are few Spanish speakers on the police force. Translation is also needed for people to navigate their everyday lives and get the services they need. Entertainment, such as movies and music, are also a need as there is no cultural center for the Spanish-speaking population.

Dennis suggested the library should consider popular films and television shows from Telemundo and Univision and mentioned that there is a demand for Spanish-language materials for kids, whether the parents are Spanish speakers or not.

Dennis gave me a great list of additional contacts, but unfortunately none of the people on the list have returned my phone calls, so I have hit a bit of a dead end for right now.

Dear Cheryl Carpenter:
Your recent posted interview was a real eye-opener. One of my leaders (Dr. Pablo Davis, head of Latino Memphis) also spoke to me at length concerning the impact of the climate of mistrust that surrounds so many interactions between Anglos and all "Hispanic-looking" people because of immigration issues. (I hadn't considered the impact of 9/11 before!) Your interview emphasizes Dr. Davis' points for me.

What I like best about your posting is how you captured the sense of urgency of this group of people's need. Even though we're "just librarians" and haven't dedicated all of our waking hours to the issue like Yuri has, we can still be of use.

Thank you for getting my day started off right! I appreciate this.

I doubt I will ever cease to be amazed as to some of the people that I meet conducting the Community Leader Interviews. Lucy Taylor had been a board member of the Bedford County Library in Tennessee. She is a third generation Mexican American. Bedford County has the 4th largest Hispanic population in the US. It is agricultural with the main focus on Walking Horses. I didn't think that I would find that much was being done for the Hispanic population there.

Several years ago the mayor, Geneva Smith, started an organization called El Centro Latino where she started with the white community to start getting to know their Hispanic neighbors. It started with food preparation, dances, kid's programs and Christmas trees of different cultures. It brought the whole community together and has relieved misinformation and hostility. While Ms. Smith is no longer mayor her vision lives on.