It also seems some members of the CHC are finally speaking out about Obama’s gatekeeper, Rahm Emanuel, White House chief of staff, for pulling the strings when it comes to immigration. Politico also reported that the CHC is also singling out Emanuel for his involvement to prohibit undocumented immigrants from buying health insurance plans.

“A forensic study would show it all leads back to Rahm Emanuel and the White House,” said Illinois Democratic Rep. Luis Gutierrez, a member of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus who worked with Emanuel when the president’s top aide was in the House.

Since being chosen as President Obama’s White House Chief of Staff after the 2008 election, Rahm Emanuel has emerged as the “most influential White House chief of staff in a generation,” according to a New York Times article. His hardball approach to politics earned him the nickname “Rahmbo” during the the Clinton administration.

Obama selected of Rahm Emanuel as his chief of staff to exert control over Obama’s team and legislative agenda. Emanuel has proved in the past that he bows to no-one when it comes to getting the job done. Democrats fear the consequences of crossing him; their fear is not unsubstantiated. He once sent a dead fish to a disloyal Democratic pollster during a US Congressional race when Bill Clinton ran for his first bid to the Presidency. Outraged at “disloyal Democrats” during Clinton’s first presidential campaign, he stunned dinner companions by rattling off names of the offenders, each time stabbing the restaurant table with a dinner knife and shouting, “Dead.”

It’s no secret that Emanuel has been an obstacle for immigration reform since he views immigration as “third rail of American politics.” Like the electrified rail used to power the trains, he believed that any Democrat who touched immigration would face likely (political) death.

Upon President Barack Obama 2008 electoral victory, immigrant advocates expressed hope that immigration reform would take place in the first term or even in the first year. In a press briefing, Frank Sharry, executive director of America’s Voice, mentioned that immigration reform would probably occur between “September of 2009 and maybe the end of March 2010.”

Some felt Rahm Emanuel must had a change on heart when he told Hispanic media “the arrow is pointing in a different direction in relation to immigration politics in this country.” However, it was only a matter of time Emanuel’s true colors would come out.

During the summer, the president did an about face to make immigration reform “a top priority in my first year.” In June, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said there are not enough votes for the Obama administration to achieve its desired immigration reform. At a Christian Science Monitor breakfast, Emanuel reiterated the same message.

The simple fact is that Rahm Emanuel never deviated from his view that immigration is a “third rail” despite what told the Hispanic media. Speaking on the condition of anonymity to Politico, a CHC member confirmed that “[he] still thinks immigration will defeat Democrats.”

Although the ideas epitomized in Emma Lazarus’ poem of the “poor, yearning to breathe free” have been much immortalized in American culture, immigrants in the US have always faced problems of discrimination, ethnocentrism, and racism. Yet, to see Republicans wield undocumented immigrants as a weapon to derail or postpone the passage of any health care bill goes beyond than being mean-spirited.

From the time I started blogging, I have watched with unease as restrictionist forces gain ground in communities, public policy, and political discourse. It was easy to see wheels were in motion hijack the health care debate after Rep Joe Wilson’s “You lie!” outburst. As a consequence, the White House is now willing to placate to the immigration restrictionists in Congress.

What is frustrating, instead of listening to me and all the other people who were sounding the alarms, CHC once again was slow to respond. True, Rahm Emanuel may be an obstacle towards immigration reform, but the CHC is also their own worst enemy.

Their main mistake has been not fighting back hard and soon enough. As a consequence, CHC have conceded vast political terrain they had won after the 2008 election. Instead of using their constituents for support, they are now forced to choose between political realism and social idealism. The former focuses all energy on political reform and partisan politics, while the focuses on creating a society which would be more democratic and more just.

As Rep. Luis Gutierrez jump start the immigration debate by introducing a comprehensive reform bill in the Democrat-controlled Congress in December, Gutierrez’s bill most likely won’t see the light of day as Democrats leaders consider ditching their controversial legislative agenda next year; making it likely immigration reform will be addressed in Obama’s second term if elected.

Once again, immigration restrictionists have succeeded in framing the immigration debate, forcing Democrats to view immigration reform as a “third rail.” Maybe now the members of CHC will take us seriously.

NCLR (National Council of La Raza) President and CEO Janet Murguía and Executive Producer Eva Longoria Parker promised the ALMA Awards will be bigger and better than before. This year, the ALMA Awards will include feature new categories, including one for emerging young talent and a sports award

“If you like the ALMA Awards, you will love this year s show because we re bringing you more of what you love most, unique musical pairings and the best Latino entertainment, said Murguía. The ALMA Awards is one of the few opportunities in primetime to spotlight the Latino presence in entertainment, and we want to celebrate the impact Latinos had last year not only in film and television, but also in music and sports television.”

Eric Ward at Imagine 2050 highlights some of the new development for this year’s award show.

I know, I know, I have been critical of NCLR and this may seem like a puff piece. Some may feel I must have been brainwashed when I went to Chicago for the annual NCLR conference, which is hard to tell since NCLR has yet to mention on their highlight section of their website, such as the blog posts I wrote or the lack of photographs from the panels that my fellow bloggers and I were on. I can assure you I haven’t let them off the hook, and I still keep a watchful eye on them.

I am writing about the ALMA Awards because it was something Eva Longoria Parker and Raul Yzaguirre mention during the NCLR Annual Conference. At the time of this writing, I was hoping to include the video and the excerpt of the speeches made by Longoria Parker and Yzaguirre, unfortunately, NCLR has yet to upload their video on YouTube or posted the full text of their speeches on their website. During her speech, Eva Longoria Parker said there is more to the awards than just the glamour and glitz we see in the media.

The ALMA Awards is to encourage and recognize the positive portrayals of Latinos in the entertainment industry. It is to show people the vast diversity and capabilities of the Latino community and to bring down the barriers that typically typecast Latinos into certain roles that are rigid and secondary in regards to the plot.

Raul Yzaguirre spoke about the history of the ALMA Awards. As a result from a 1994 study by NCLR, Out of the Picture, the American Latino Media Arts Awards was created in an effort to send a message to the public that Latinos can be versatile in different roles while embracing their role as a community role model. The study found that Hispanics were “invisible in both the entertainment and news media” and were negatively portrayed on network television. A year later, FOX aired NCLR’s Bravo Awards (later called the NCLR ALMA Awards). As he spoke about the ALMA Awards, like Eva Longoria Parker, I too remember having a feeling of pride when the Bravo/ALMA Awards was aired.

The ALMA Awards have come a long way since then. Some dub this award as the Latino Oscar. One noticeable difference, for the first time, the ALMA Awards will air during National Hispanic Heritage Month. Hopefully, this will be permanent, instead of being aired in February like it was in the past.

Given the current anti-Latino climate, it won’t be hard to look past the all the glamor and the glitz. I know where I will be on Sept 18. I will be watching the 2009 ALMA Awards with the same pride I had when it first aired 14 years ago. So save the date -

SEPTEMBER 18 (8:00-10:00 p.m., ET), The 2009 ALMA Awards on the ABC.

During the Hispanic Male Summit, the panel was asked by an ESL teacher asked what could these young Latinos do so they too could reap the benefits of going to college. I told them point blank, you make them scared of you. You let them know we are here and we are not going anywhere. I also reminded our newly elected Sheirff who voted him into office to make him the first Hispanic elected sheriff in Harris County. Most importantly, I reminded them of 2006.

On May 1st, it time we take to the streets and demand an end to immigration policies that marginalize and dehumanize millions of our people. It is important that we make this march historic and important, and that we will not stop. We have yet to speak with a unified political voice that forces our government to do right by all of us. But we can starting today, with your help.

As inaugural member, I like to introduce you to a new and exciting organization, Presente.org. There goal is to create a broad-based online community of Latinos and our allies strong enough to make the United States honor its promises and protect our people. To plan to kick off the on May 1st, and they don’t play to stop there – this organization is in it for the long haul by tackling the issues that most affect our communities, such as education and health care.

Our power is in our voices and our numbers. It starts by affirming a simple pledge: to stand up and speak out for the interests of Latino communities. Please join us, and just as important, invite your friends and family to do the same: Presente.org

President Obama has pledged to push for immigration reform, and other politicians are also with us. For the first time in a generation, we have a real chance to drastically change our country’s immigration policy, impacting the lives of millions of friends, family members, and coworkers. But we can’t rely on politicians to pass real and just reforms. There are strong forces who stand against us, and they’ve made it clear that they will do everything in their to fight true reform.

Real change will only happen if everyday people speak with a strong, unified voice. It is time we start looking behind the FACADE that passes for news. We must open our eyes to the truth to the ills of this nativist movement – the hatred, the racism, and the ignorance BEHIND this pretty facade.

If you hate…oppression…shackles…chains…exploitation – then I ask you to join us!

If you hate…injustice…inequality…segregation…isolationism – join us!

Presente.org seeks to make possible by using the Internet and national media to hold our leaders accountable, making our political presence accurately reflect our importance to this country. It is time to stand up and be counted, and show the world how large our movement really is!

Subprime loans are at the center of the debate because they are the central cause of the recent foreclosure crisis. It is fair to say the Latino community was not the only community affected by the tide of foreclosures; it extended beyond subprime borrowers to people at all levels of investment in the housing market.

Make no mistake, the subprime crisis was purely a Wall Street invention. While it is easy to blame the current culture of corporate corruption for the subprime crisis, there is plenty of blame to go around. Part of the story on how we got here is also partly those organizations that got caught up in pushing homeownership during so-called “easy credit” years of 2000-2006.

My criticism with the civil right organizations that assisted families achieve that proverbial American dream should not be confused with the right to homeownership. The truth is, for some, homeownership is the most rudimentary element of financial independence and the beginning of the wealth creation process. For others, it is an opportunity for a better life. For whatever reason a person wants to own a home, nobody has a right to deny them that right. While I support any organization wanting to help any family achieve this dream, they have the responsibility to make sure every issue is addressed and not turn a blind eye to the warning signs; mediocrity should not suffice.

Setting the stage
Enticed by the temptation of easy credit, the United States economy experienced a robust economic expansion between 2001–2006. If there was a significant event that contributed Americans to shop more was after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 when former President George W. Bush Jr. asked Americans to go shopping, claiming that if Americans didn’t feel free to shop, the terrorists had already won. “Get on board. Do your business around the country. Fly and enjoy America’s great destination spots. Get down to Disney World in Florida. Take your families and enjoy life, the way we want it to be enjoyed.”

As a result of the easy credit, this gave rise to super consumerism in the United States and served as a major plank of Bush’s “ownership society” – the conservative solution to our country’s domestic policy.

As consequence, we had entered a new era of marketing.

“All our instincts as clients, agencies and media owners are to encourage people to consume more – super consumption,” [Sir Martin Sorrell, founder and CEO of WPP, the world's No 2 advertising group,] told one conference. People have become used to: “the aspiration that you should consume more; the aspiration that you should have a bigger car; the aspiration that you should have a number of holidays, bigger houses and multiple houses.”

Saving up to buy something became a thing of the past. Supporting this conclusion, according to data from the US Census Bureau, the number of people holding a credit card grew from 159 million in 2000 to 173 million in 2006. In 2004, more than 1 billion credit cards were issued in the US.

After decades of redlining practices that starved poor minority communities for credit, through the use of cause marketing campaigns, a growing number of financial institutions (Countrywide, PMI Group, Bank of America, CompuCredit, Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae) suddenly flooded these communities with high-interest credit and predatory loans. Cause-related marketing (CRM) is defined as the public association of a for-profit company with a nonprofit organization to increase purchases and brand loyalty. Studies have shown that these campaigns have helped to increase a company’s profits.

Reeling Them In
The subprime crisis is more complicated than simply pointing the finger at irresponsible borrowers. The crisis can be attributed to a number of factors which emerged over a number of years. However, there is one simple fact; the push for homeownership can be found in both political parties because American history is the apotheosis of private property. It should not be a surprise that former President George W. Bush extended the principle of property to homeownership.

This wasn’t a new idea for Bush; he often spoke of homeownership as far back as 2002, when he proposed the American Dream Downpayment Initiative, – also known as the Blueprint for the American Dream – to help close the minority homeownership gap by 5.5 million families by the end of this decade. At the same time, Bush issued “America’s Homeownership Challenge” to the real estate and mortgage finance industries to increase minority homeowners by helping to educate homebuyers, increase the supply of affordable housing, offer down-payment assistance and provide flexible financing options that help people realize the American Dream.

George Orwell introduced the concept of “newspeak,” what we now call “doublespeak,” to describe one kind of propaganda practiced by the state in his classic novel Nineteen Eighty-Four. The term “newspeak” describes how words are “deliberately constructed for political purposes: words that is to say, which not only had in every case a political implication, but were intended to impose a desirable mental attitude upon the person using them.” Doublespeak is language that pretends to communicate but really doesn’t. By corrupting the language, the people who wield power are able to fool the others about their activities and evade responsibility and accountability.

This was evident with several bills that Bush was able get through Congress, such as the “Healthy Forest Initiative”, the “Clear Skies Initiative”, the Greater Access To Affordable Pharmaceuticals Act and the No Child Left Behind Program. While Bush’s rhetoric about increasing the number of minority homeownership is a noble goal, the details of his plan was not so noble. There is nothing wrong with this goal or requesting banks lend to unqualified buyers in neighborhoods formerly “redlined.”

Umberto Eco argued that authoritarianism coincides with the rise of an Orwellian version of newspeak, or what he calls the language of “eternal fascism,” which produces an “impoverished vocabulary,” and an “elementary syntax” whose purpose is “to limit the instruments for complex and critical reasoning.” Under such circumstances, language becomes the mechanism for promoting political powerlessness in that it is used by the state to misrepresent the truth.

So, was Bush’s “Homeownership Challenge” a coded message to the lending industry to open the sub-prime floodgates?

Follow the Homeownership Money
On December 16, 2003, Former President signed into law the American Dream Downpayment Act of 2003. Bush’s aggressive housing agenda to dismantle the barriers to homeownership included $200 million to low-income families who are first-time home buyers through the American Dream Downpayment Fund and urged Congress pass a $2.4 billion tax credit to low-income first-time buyers.

The year Bush announced his initiative, according to a real estate news site, Realty Times, flying below the radar that day was how Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae would play a major role in Bush’s plan. The two mortgage market banks agreed to increase their commitment to minority markets by more than $440 billion. Fannie Mae agreed to increase its already substantial lending efforts to minority families by targeting another $260 billion of mortgage purchases to them during the next nine years. Freddie Mac agreed to buy an additional $180 billion in minority-household home loans during the same period.

Both Fannie and Freddie announced specific plans to increase home purchases by African-Americans, Hispanics and immigrants. Fannie Mae announced an entirely new mortgage product designed to meet the unique needs of “New Americans.” The new loan concept would include underwriting changes that remove some of the common barriers immigrants encounter – denial of credit because of inadequate credit histories and language and cultural issues. Fannie also promised to establish partnerships with faith-based institutions to fund mortgages for their congregations.

Squeaky wheel gets the grease
While Congress debating the bill, both the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute (CHCI) and the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, Inc. were creating incentives – HOGAR (Hispanic Ownership, a Growing American Reality) and WOW (With Ownership, Wealth) – aimed at increasing homeownership in minority communities.

As mentioned in Part I of this series, the WSJ article revealed if a top lending institution was willing to donate $150,000 a year, they had the liberty to name a research fellow in HOGAR’s fellowship program. The fellow would also be allowed to conduct HOGAR’s studies, which could be used later by industry lobbyists.

As previously mentioned, in 2005, CHCI released a study that found Latino homeownership increased to 49.7% because “new flexible mortgage loan products” were adopted by the lending industry. The study also recommended that mortgage loan interest rates remain low, further easing underwriting standards to help further increase Hispanic homeownership nationwide.

Once bank balance sheets grew, fueled by the national appetite for debt and by the supply of relatively easy credit, many big financial firms had an unquenchable thirst for subprime loans. The calamity in subprime mortgages has exposed how human nature, greed and misaligned incentives lead to innovative financial engineering.

The push for increased mortgage lending is more complicated than simply pointing the finger. There is plenty of blame to go around in our home mortgage lending system. The allure to get rich quick is hard for people to ignore because people don’t base their decisions on reason when they see a quick way to make money.

One attraction of subprime loan market was the allure to get rich. With a lack of regulatory controls, it was too easy for people – realtors, brokers, even lenders, who often securitize and sell their loan portfolios – to make a quick buck. Therefore, they too are part of the problem.

Ignoring the Alarms
Some like to believe of the sub-prime crisis that began in August 2007 was unexpected. However, there were people who were brave enough to sound the alarm about the dangers of subprime lending as early as 2002. In February 2002, the Texas Observer had reported that predatory lending was already “skyrocketed … in minority communities.”

More alarming was the warnings Freddie Mac had received while they participated in HOGAR’s study. Documents uncovered by Congress show one Freddie Mac was not only warned they were running unknown risks, but they were treading on thin ice by targeting Hispanics, which could be “associated with predatory lending.”

In a memo to former Freddie chief executive Richard F. Syron and other top executives, former Freddie chief enterprise risk officer David Andrukonis wrote that the company was buying mortgages that appear “to target borrowers who would have trouble qualifying for a mortgage if their financial position were adequately disclosed.”

The proportion of Hispanic borrowers among the [No Income/No Asset] NINA loans is over 3 times as high as the proportion among non-NINA loans. Also, the proportion of African-American borrowers among the NINA loans is over twice as high as it is among non-NINA loans.

Regardless of all these warnings, subprime lending continued to grow, with the industry accounting for $330 billion of US mortgages in 2003 and continued to grow through 2006.

The causes of the housing implosion are many: lax regulation, financial innovation gone awry, excessive debt, raw greed. The players are also varied: bankers, borrowers, developers, politicians and bureaucrats.

It’s interesting that even displays of shock and regret, together with the belated recognition of larger problems concerning class and race uncovered by the lending crisis, yet, those who took part continue to hold themselves blameless.

Last week, I was invited to a press conference sponsored by the National Council of La Raza, – Back to Basics: Restoring Latino Financial Security – where former Housing Secretary Henry Cisneros urged the importance of helping the Latino community restore financial security. It is interesting NCLR used Henry Cisneros has their spokes person to forward their message, since Cisneros served on the board of directors of Countrywide Financial Corp and KB Homes.

When asked about his role, Cisneros continues to say he remains proud of his work, while having a few misgivings over what his passion has wrought. He insists his good intentions were hijacked by “unscrupulous brokers.” But it hard to turn a blind eye to the fact he had a look of people’s housing ears.

When asked about KB Homes or Countrywide, Mr. Cisneros says he was never aware of any improprieties, but did say he wished he had “asked more questions.” I am sure the 500+ people whole complained about Countrywide on the consumer complaint website the Rip-off Report or the shareholders have filed lawsuits against current and former company officers and directors wished he did.

After writing the first part of this series, Alejandro Becerra was quick to point out that the Wall Street Journal article I used as the foundation for part one of the series was “substantially … inaccurate information” because the article placed the blame on “President Bush because he supported broadening homeownership.” What Bush did was not only support the broadening of homeownership, but he gave the green light for wolves to start preying on them.

Given the incentive system, the lack of accountability for those who profit on the front end of home mortgage transactions, and the lack of regulatory controls, it is not a surprise to see the subprime mortgage market crashing.

There are some who argue that we should move on. In short, the mantra is what’s done is done, time to move on because addressing these actions will divert precious energy from the serious challenges facing our nation. While we should identify a solution to this mess, we also should not forget the people and policies that got us here. We cannot restore trust without fully understanding how things got so distorted without documenting and correcting improper activity that have just occurred.

In 2008, more than 2.3 million American homeowners who thought they had attained the “American Dream,” saw it shatter into a nightmare once they began defaulting on their loans. In American society, home ownership has always symbolized the triumph of moving up the economic and social ladder from the lower rungs of renting. It has always been associated with security and stability and is often thought to be an essential ingredient of the “American Dream.” That was all true until now. Owning one’s own home has now become nightmare for a growing number of American families.

Last month, fellow blogamiga, Adriana of Latino Politics Blog, blogged about the latest article by the Wall Street Journal on how CA Rep. Joe Baca and the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute (CHCI) “launched a housing initiative … to increase mortgage lending to Latinos.”

The Wall Street Journal ties a portion of the mortgage meltdown to a Hispanic first-time home buyers program, HOGAR, because they enabled people to get home mortgages without good credit, down payments or reliable evidence they could repay the loans. The article also states that the program was pushed by a coalition of mortgage industry professionals and Hispanic lawmakers. According to the Wall Street Journal:

An examination of that borrowing spree by The Wall Street Journal reveals that it wasn’t simply the mortgage market at work. It was fueled by a campaign by low-income housing groups, Hispanic lawmakers, a congressional Hispanic housing initiative, mortgage lenders and brokers, who all were pushing to increase homeownership among Latinos.

The network included [California Rep. Joe] Baca, chairman of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus [Institute Inc], whose district is 58% Hispanic and ranks No. 5 among all congressional districts in percentage of home loans not tailored for prime borrowers. The caucus launched a housing initiative called Hogar — Spanish for home — to work with industry and community groups to increase mortgage lending to Latinos. Mortgage companies provided funding to that group, and to the National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals, which fielded an army to make the loans.

It is not surprising that both Baca and CHCI refute the accusation that they aided the foreclosure crisis. So, what exactly was Rep. Baca and Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute’s role in the housing collapse?

Pay-to-play
The fact a pay-to-play system exists in our political system simply is not only bad business, but it taints the political process. The first thing that comes to mind when some mentions pay-to-play is the impeachment Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich for his “play for pay” scandal relating to Barack Obama’s vacated Senate seat. However, there are different forms when it comes to this practice. “Pay-to-play” is the practice of a business entity making some type of contributions with the hope of in hopes of getting in return.

According to the WSJ, HOGAR was financed some of the nation’s top subprime lenders that are either now defunct or now taken over because they ran into trouble in mortgage markets. HOGAR’s backers included: Countrywide Financial Corp, Washington Mutual Inc, New Century Financial Corp, and Ameriquest Mortgage Corp. Two of their largest sponsors are mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, both now under federal control.

The article also revealed that companies that donated $150,000 a year got the right to place a research fellow who would conduct HOGAR’s studies to be used later by industry lobbyists. Those who donated over $100,000 a year, HOGAR would highlight the lender’s commercial products intended for the Latino market in their news releases.

The Players
It was reported that HOGAR and Freddie Mac had partnered with each other on a two-year study identifying the state of Latinos homeownership in 63 Congressional Districts in 11 states, including Puerto Rico. The study in question is HOGAR’s The Potential of Hispanic Homeownership: Challenges and Opportunities, authored by HOGAR Fellow and former U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) insider, Alejandro Becerra.

After a closer look, XicanoPwr.com discovered that Freddie Mac was not the influential play that took part in the HOGAR study. As noted in the WSJ report, the National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals (NAHREP) sponsored the study, however, former Housing and Urban Development Secretary and CityView Executive Chairman, a national housing investor, Henry Cisneros also had input into the study. Other influential people in the housing industry included Moises Loza, President and CEO of Housing Assistance Council (HAC) and Ron Jauregui of Hispanic National Mortgage Association (HNMA).

Mr. Jauregui currently serves as Vice President for Community Alliances for the HNMA and has one of the most interesting backgrounds out of HOGAR’s fellows. According to Mr. Jauregui’s bio on Hispanic National Mortgage Association, Mr. Jauregui was not only a Fellow; he also served as HOGAR’s Director. Prior to working for CHCI, he worked for Bank of America, where he worked on processing and underwriting mortgages Bank’s Spanish Language pilot Fulfillment Team.

While subprime loan products can sound relatively simple and attractive, some people have benefited from their use. As more details of the industry’s activities begin to surface, it is evident Jauregui was at the forefront pushing lenders different subprime loan products to increase homeownership among Latinos, such as ITIN mortgages. American Prospect defines subprime lending as:

Sub-prime lending is a fancy financial term for high-interest loans to people who would otherwise be considered too risky for a conventional loan.These include middle-class families who have accumulated too much debt and low-income working families who want to buy a home in the inflated housing market. To cover their risk, lenders charge such borrowers higher-than-conventional interest rates. Or they make ‘adjustable rate’ loans, which offer low initial interest rates that jump sharply after a few years.

Real estate blogger, Pam MacKenzie, explain that in 2007, a Texas-based national consulting firm, the Gonzalez Group, advised a group of Realtor on how to effectively market themselves to minority groups. One particular group she was concerned was the push to lend money to undocumented immigrants. She wrote that Wells Fargo and Deutche Bank (two of HOGAR’s backers) and some other bankers were “lending money to people who didn’t have Social Security numbers” by using ‘ITINs’ – Individual Tax Identification Numbers – to process their applications.

After Ms. MacKenzie wrote her post about this questionable practice, Ron Jauregui replied. Jauregui defended this practice because he felt that “ITIN loans perform better than the rest of the market.” However, if one were to look closer at his statement, the purpose of this practice is to exploit the “underground economy.”

It is undeniable the issue of immigration became one of the most significant economic themes during the housing boom. Under the guise of immigration reform, a 2004 study was conduct by The Immigration Policy Center of the American Immigration Law Foundation for NAHREP. Rob Paral & Associates performed the study. Paral was a research fellow with the Immigration Policy Center, though the report was performed outside his duties at the center. The report asserted that nearly a quarter of a million undocumented immigrant households in the US could become homeowners if barriers such as identification, legalization, traditional credit requirements and language were no longer an issue.

Presenting the study, Tim Sandos, president of the NAHREP – a group made up of Latino and non-Latino representatives of banks, real estate firms, developers, homebuilders and real estate service providers – advocated that if the mortgage companies made greater use of ITIN, $44 billion in new mortgages – primarily to first-time buyers – could be originated.

Leaders from the corporate arena applauded the findings of the study, particularly those in the industries that are challenged with developing initiatives for the under-served market. Making matters worse, they interest in immigration reform was never out of altruism but out greed. Once in the hands of the mortgage lending industry, subprime loans became predatory loans – a faulty product that was ruthlessly hawked even though financial institutions were aware of its defects. The spillover effect from theses wholesale bad loans, communities have been torn apart, with one house after another in a neighborhood becoming vacant and property values deteriorating by thousands of dollars.

It is unfortunate civil rights organization like Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute, National Council of La Raza and Immigration Policy Center of the American Immigration Law Foundation pushed for these lending practices, which has made a mockery of the American dream and has ruined many economic lives and many communities. What was supposed to be a financial product intended for limited use by a limited number of people has been parlayed into another ill-fated bubble by mortgage lenders lacking the integrity, foresight, and any vestige of civic concern.

The subprime crisis continues to threaten US society by deepening the already existing wealth divide. The foreclosure of the dream must be prevented. Millions of Americans still live in communities that are separate and unequal. Empowering the Latino community means helping Latinos make informed financial decisions; not using them as a vehicle to reap huge profits by ignoring their ability to repay a loan and/or neglect to document the homeowner’s income. We must hold those who engaged in predatory lending practices accountable.

With a new Administration in place, we must that this moment to recognize the failures of existing government policies and address predatory lending through vigorous enforcement of safety and soundness standards, consumer protection, financial education programs, credit counseling, and a new legislative solution.

That was the subject of today’s conference call hosted by the Workplace Project, Long Island Immigrant Alliance, New York Immigration Coalition, and the National Council of La Raza.

The death of Lucero is cause for great concern because this is the latest expression of hate that is not only happening in Long Island, but in the nation as a whole. The tragic death of this man must be seen as an urgent warning and call to action.

What we are experiencing is not just an immigrant or Latino issue, but this “hate” has also spread to the African-American community as well. Racism is a serious problem in America. Police has already documented a range of disturbing incidents since the election. These incidents range from vandalism and vague threats to physical attacks. More disturbing, these insults and taunts have been delivered by people from all age groups; from adults to young adults to small children. These are just some of the incidents being reported: (h/t to jobsanger, James of The Mahatma X Files, and Nez of The Unapologetic Mexican)

* Four North Carolina State University students admitted writing anti-Obama comments in a tunnel designated for free speech expression, including one that said: “Let’s shoot that (N-word) in the head.”
* At Standish, Maine, a sign inside the Oak Hill General Store read: “Osama Obama Shotgun Pool.” Customers could sign up to bet $1 on a date when Obama would be killed. “Stabbing, shooting, roadside bombs, they all count,” the sign said. At the bottom of the marker board was written “Let’s hope someone wins.”
* Second- and third-grade students on a school bus in Rexburg, Idaho, chanted “assassinate Obama,” a district official said.
* University of Alabama professor Marsha L. Houston said a poster of the Obama family was ripped off her office door. A replacement poster was defaced with a death threat and a racial slur. “It seems the election brought the racist rats out of the woodwork,” Houston said.
* Black figures were hanged by nooses from trees on Mount Desert Island, Maine, the Bangor Daily News reported.
* Crosses were burned in yards of Obama supporters in Hardwick, N.J., and Apolacon Township, PA
* A black teenager in New York City said he was attacked with a bat on election night by four white men who shouted ‘Obama.’
* In the Pittsburgh suburb of Forest Hills, a black man said he found a note with a racial slur on his car windshield, saying “now that you voted for Obama, just watch out for your house.”

These are just a few of the hundreds of incidents occurring across the country. In Texas, we have our fair share of anti-Obama and anti-immigration racism. On the campus of Baylor University in Waco, TX, a rope resembling a noose was found hanging from a campus tree the day the nation’s first black president was elected into office. A thin, white rope tied with a loop at the end was found by a Baylor student hanging from a tree. Earlier that week, there were reports that students made a barbecue pit bonfire out of Barack Obama campaign signs. University president is now reporting that the rope was apparently an abandoned rope swing and is also denying students were burning Obama signs in a barbecue pit.

In Austin, TX, it was reported that member of the University of Texas football team was expelled from the team for posting a very racist remark that crossed the line to eliminationism about President-elect Barack Obama on his Facebook page. On the status update section of his Facebook page, Buck Burnette posted, “All the hunters gather up, we have a n* in the White House.”

These incidents are just limited to Barack Obama. Just before the election, in Colorado County, west of Houston, TX, people were outraged over a racist theme party that involved at least one area school teacher after pictures surfaced onto the internet. The pictures were from taken at a pre-Halloween party in the small town of Garwood, TX. They portray white men in “black face” drinking 40-ounce bottles of beer and carrying buckets of fried chicken.

More troubling is the way our law enforcement is contributing to this problem. Last week, a Montgomery County, TX deputy was under fire following comments he made concerning the killing of 17 year old, Eugene Posana Villaruel. The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) demanded an apology after Montgomery County spokesman Lt. Dan Norris said the Hispanic culture played a part in the teenager’s murder.

“You can fill in the blanks with Hispanic culture and how they, meaning the Hispanic culture, sometimes deal with family, sometimes thinks and or deals with family issues,” Norris said last week.

Last night, it was reported that the father of Green Bay Packers wide receiver Donald Driver was in critical condition after Houston police beat him after being stopped for outstanding traffic warrants. According to the family, he can communicate through notes and has described “the torture he went through.”

Community activist Quanell X showed reporters the paper towels Marvin Driver wrote on from his hospital bed. Driver wrote that the officers, whom he said he knew personally, took him to a Valero station, kicked him in the stomach, elbowed him in the neck and forced something down his throat.

“They picked him up and took him behind a Valero station by a dark road, where he was beaten and forced to swallow something. What they gave him to swallow, he said that they made the statement that he was going to see Jesus. Told him to ‘Swallow this. You’re going to see Jesus,’” Quanell X said.

There are endless examples of this, and they continue to this day. The one example that continues to stay fresh to this day is the tragic and brutal beating of David Ritcheson, Latino teen who was brutally beaten, tortured, and sodomized with a plastic pole by two white racist teenagers.

Tuck and Turner began kicking, beating, and stomping [David Ritcheson], Tuck wearing black, steel-toe boots, one of which was emblazoned with a swastika. Yelling “Beaner!” and other racial epithets, Tuck inflicted most of the damage. After one especially vicious kick, Tuck shouted “White power!” and gave a Nazi salute. Unable to fight back or defend himself in any way, [Ritcheson] just lay there and took it, mumbling and groaning occasionally.

Americans are proud that we are people with different backgrounds, faiths, viewpoints, and personal characteristics. A nation with a long history of slavery, segregation, and violent forms of racism, a country has finally came together and elected its first African-American president. However, outside of the public view, the number of hate crimes taking place in the US is on the rise.

Whether intended or not, we are in the midst of a growing culture of hate. If we want to continue to extol the virtues of freedom and rail against oppression, then it is vital as a Nation that we must prevent ourselves from falling destructively under the influence of racist schemes that that are dividing our nation.

It is ironic with less than a week for the election, I am proven correct again. According to the Los Angeles Times, ICE once again mistakenly detained a US citizen. Guillermo Olivares Romero, 25, was held in a detention center for two weeks.

Federal authorities have released a Los Angeles man from immigration detention after acknowledging that he is a U.S. citizen.

Guillermo Olivares Romero, 25, was held at an Otay Mesa detention center from Sept. 25 until Oct. 9, when an American Civil Liberties Union attorney presented his birth certificate, school and vaccination records to immigration authorities. He was released that day.

In an interview with HOY (h/t to el profe of Latino Like Me), Olivares said “No me creyeron. … Me decían que yo era mexicano porque me parecía a los mexicanos.” (They didn’t believe me. They told me I was a Mexican because I looked like a Mexican.)

If it wasn’t for the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), Olivares would probably have spent more than two weeks detained in the privately run Corrections Corporation of America’s Otay Mesa detention center. Olivares was only released after ACLU provided ICE with his birth certificate, vaccination and health records, and old school records.

Olivares first run in with immigration officials was in 2000 when Border Patrol accused Olivares trying to sneak his cousin across the border. It was not until his mother came down with his birth certificate, Olivares was allowed to cross.

Later in 2007, unbeknownst to him, Olivares did not realize he was being deported when he was serving time in a state prison awaiting his deportation. It was not until he was handed over to ICE. Immigration officials told Olivares he has signed a document acknowledging he was a Mexican National, even though he insisted he was not. The document in question is ICE’s voluntary departure order.

One of the most commonly heard complaints are the tactics used by ICE to pressure detainees to sign papers, whether they understood them or not. If they refuse to sign, guards tend to exert psychological pressure with verbal threats and physical intimidation. If ICE is claiming Olivares signed this form and was suddenly surprised he was being deported, it sounds like what he experienced the same treatment many undocumented immigrants have reported..

Olivares decided to live with relatives in Jalisco but when he wanted to return because his father was ill, he was denied entrance. Desperate to see his father, he crossed illegally and was caught and deported the same day that his father died. When his mother tried to help him get in legally, Border Patrol, did not believe he was a UC citizen, and that she was his mother.

When Olivares and his mother tried again last month, ICE once again tried to force him to sign “deportation papers.” However, this time he refused and demanded to see a judge. It was at this time; ICE arrested him and shipped him off to the detention center near San Diego.

As usual, ICE does not think they did anything wrong because he told ICE he is a Mexican. According to Virginia Kice, spokeswoman for ICE claims Olivares said he was born in Guadalajara, Mexico and that his criminal record from the California Department of Corrections also shows that he was born in Mexico.

This is not the first time ICE deported a US born Latino. Last year, ICE detained and deported Pedro Guzman, a mentally disabled man, to Mexico, where he spent 89 days alone in an unfamiliar place. Again, ICE also said Guzman had falsely contended that he was Mexican.

While ICE can provide evidence to show that Guillermo Olivares Romero and Pedro Guzman contended they were Mexican citizens, however, there are certain incidents they cannot spin. There is mounting evidence demonstrating ICE has a pattern of targeting people based on a person’s skin color or a person’s Spanish surname, such as the incident with Marie Justeen Mancha, a Mexican-American US, citizen who was home alone in Southeast Georgia when four federal agents stormed into her house, shouting “police! Illegals!”

The unfolding record of ICE’s deportation protocol is further evidence that comprehensive immigration reform must be made top priority during the next Administration. It is also vitally important for the next president and the new Homeland Secretary to investigate of the inhumane tactics practiced by ICE. There is a human tragedy in people who are wrongfully deported and detained. However, it is a greater tragedy when racial stereotypes have influenced ICE’s perception with the idea that all Latinos/as can be considered an immigrant.

There report explores the growing electoral clout of naturalized citizens and immigrant communities or as they are now being grouped electorally “New Americans.” The report is being touted as being highly innovative in that for the first time it examines “New Americans” as a distinct group and acknowledges the voting power of not only naturalized US Citizens, but their US-born children born after 1965. These children are of particular interest because having watched a parent navigate through a new society and culture, they have personal connections with both the efforts made by immigrants and the reactions of society to them.

Thursday’s briefing will provide insight into the ranks of New American voters, along with Latino and Asian voters, who have been growing rapidly this decade and will likely play a pivotal role in elections at all levels in the years to come – particularly in battleground states like Florida, Colorado, Nevada, and New Mexico.

Immigration Policy Center Blogger Call The New American Electorate: The Growing Political Power of Immigrants and Their Children
Ground-breaking Analysis of America’s Fastest Growing Voting Bloc

Speakers:
Rob Paral and Madura Wijewardena, Rob Paral & Associates
Tuyet G. Duong, Asian American Justice Center
Clarissa Martinez, National Council of La Raza
Frank Sharry, America’s Voice
Angela Kelley, Immigration Policy Center

The presentation that was given in the conference can be found here and the full report here.

This is what the study found -

2006: Close to one in 10 registered voters was a New American
- 7.6 million were Naturalized Americans, accounting for 5.6 percent of registered voters.
- 4.1 million were Post‐1965 Children of Immigrants, accounting for 3.0 percent of registered voters.

Latinos and Asians Accounted for 9.3 Percent of All Registered Voters in 2006
- 9.3 million Latinos comprised 6.8 percent of registered voters
- 3.3 million Asians accounted for 2.5 percent of registered voters

The Number of Latinos and Asians Registered to Vote Increased Nearly 46 Percent from 1996 to 2004
- The number of Latinos registered to vote grew from 6.6 million to 9.3 million—an increase of 41.6
percent.
- The number of Asians registered to vote increased from 2.1 million to 3.4 million—an increase of 58.6
percent

New Americans, Latinos, and Asians Look to Immigration When Voting
Immigration appears to be a key issue driving the rise in naturalization rates and voter registration among New Americans, Latinos, and Asians. New Americans, Latinos, and Asians, regardless of their immigration status, all feel the impact of the current environment—some because they or close family members are immigrants, others because they may “look like” immigrants in the eyes of government authorities and the broader public. Anti‐immigrant policies affect not just immigrants, but the Latino and Asian communities in general.

The political power of New Americans, Latinos, and Asians will continue to grow
The political power of New American voters will continue to increase in coming years as more and more children of immigrants come of voting age, more long‐term legal immigrants become naturalized citizens, and increasing numbers of New Americans register to vote.

The key to the electoral power of New Americans is voter registration. If more New Americans register to vote, it is likely that they will turn out in high numbers, thereby increasing their share of the electorate.

Since the agenda of this conference call was on this report, the remaining speakers mostly echoed the finding of the report.

Here is a CSPAN link of The New American Electorate

I find this information very eye opening in light of recent events regarding House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Hidden in an article about Congress not “unlikely to approve a tax rebate before President Bush leaves office,” Pelosi also signed the Democrats will have to sacrifice the fight of “giving illegal immigrants a path to citizenship.”

In an interview with The Associated Press, Pelosi said: “Maybe there never is a path to citizenship if you came here illegally. I would hope that there could be, but maybe there isn’t.”

This is not sitting well with the member of The Sanctuary.

I find it odd that Pelosi would be making this statement so close to the election, knowing that taking this stance is how the GOP lost the lost the Hispanic vote.

What concerns me, Pelosi is not a person who is willing to back off once she has made up her mind. And this not the first time she has taken off an important issue off the take right before a national election. Last time she decided to take a bold stance and deciding to go against the will of the people was the issue of impeachment during the 2006 election.

While Pelosi may not respect the will of the people, hopefully the new members of Congress will, especially those in the battleground state, knowing that it was the increase of Latinos and Asians voters who help put them there.

In the National Council La Raza effort to reach out to the blogging community, tomorrow will be their third in a series four conference calls with the blogging community.

The agenda for this conference has to deal with health care and the group invited to this conference call is a representative from Health Care for America Now.

Folks you don’t want to miss out on this conference call, both Presidential campaigns have been invited to participate and have confirmed they will be there. They will be highlighting their proposals and their responsiveness to the needs and concerns of the Latino community.

I will be live blogging the conference call again. Hope to see you there.

Formal Agenda

I. Call Introduction (Kety Esquivel)

II. The Role of Latinos in Health Care Reform (Jenn Ng’andu)

III. Health Care for America Now! and principles connections to Latinos (Esther Garcia)

IV. Perspectives from the Obama Campaign (Dora Hughes)

V. Perspectives from the McCain Campaign (Jay Khosla)

VI. Perspectives from the Field

VII. Questions (moderated by Kety)

Recently, the US Census Bureau reported 37.3 million (12.5%) people were living in poverty in 2007, up from 36.5 million in 2006. According to the Census, poverty rates were statistically unchanged for non-Hispanic Whites (8.2 percent), Blacks (24.5 percent), and Asians (10.2 percent) from the previous year, however, it increased for Hispanics (21.5 percent in 2007, up from 20.6 percent in 2006).

For many Americans, poverty is considered to be an unheard concept because it is assumed this country classless. To acknowledge that class does exist is to acknowledge poverty does exist in this country. When the topic of poverty does arise, popular images of poverty in America are typically associated with black ghettoes and white trailer parks. However, Mexican American barrios or the colonias of South Texas are rarely included in images and discussions of American poverty.

One of the poorest parts of the US can be found along the US-Mexico borders. Approximately 400,000 Texans live in colonias. Areas along the US-Mexico border that are invisible from the highway, where families crowd into battered trailers patched with plywood in communities that still lack of sewer systems and paved streets where ordinary rainstorm can fill yards with disease-ridden sewage from flooded septic tanks.

Poverty is a costly and wasteful brake on the nation’s economy and future. Addressing poverty and economic security takes on greater urgency in the new economy. Employment for millions is now less secure than at any point in modern American history. In a recent study, Latinos suffer negative effects sooner, more severely and for longer duration during economic downturns compared to their counterparts. The study also found “that the disparity in unemployment rates between white and Hispanic workers likely will not correct itself and recommends policy actions to address some of the underlying causes.”

As inequality continues to grow and take an ever larger toll, one way to end poverty is to elect and hold officials who are committed to the fight against poverty accountable. They must be willing to pass legislation that will repair the damage created by years of piecemeal attempts that have failed.

Widespread enthusiasm can be found across the country in the belief the proverbial “Latino sleeping giant” has awaken. The immigration debate has energized new citizens to join long-time US citizens of Latino descent to turn out for the first time in years. It is expected that millions of new voters are preparing to cast their first ballots in November. This election year has proven to be a political turning point for these voters, they are now realizing the power of the ballot box and how it can shape their future and the future of their families.

While passion of the immigration debate has galvanized immigrants to flex their political muscle this November, as Latinos, we must remember political action does not stop at the voting booth. We must hold our elected officials in all levels accountable to enact antipoverty policies that will cut the current poverty rate. Such policies advocated by The Half in Ten Campaign, which is committed to cutting poverty in half in the United States over the next 10 years.