Latinos Take Over Washington
By Julian Pecquet Adelante *
Last month, Congress' freshmen Hispanic members made it clear that they represent an increasingly diverse group, both ethnically and politically.
''We're not a monolith; we have different philosophies, we have different points of view, and we have different political beliefs,'' Rep. Raul Grijalva told a media roundtable with the five new Hispanic members.
Two of these five legislators are of Mexican heritage: Grijalva, from Arizona, and Rep. Linda Sanchez, elected in southern Los Angeles County. Two other new California lawmakers trace their ancestry to the Portuguese islands of the Azores: Reps. Devin Nunes from Tulare and Dennis Cardoza of Merced.
Finally, Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart's family fled Cuba before his birth; he now represents Miami. According to Hispanic Link, a Washington, DC-based news service, that brings to 24 the number of representatives claiming Hispanic ancestry: three from Puerto-Rico, four from Cuba, three from the Azores and 14 from Mexico, with one of those sharing Nicaraguan ancestry as well.
According to Nunes, it is important to distinguish between the terms "Hispanic" and "Latino," at least on the political scene. "Some people use them interchangeably, when they're really not," Nunes said.
Nunes found that out the hard way when he was first elected as a state representative.
"I was never allowed to join the Latino Caucus in the (California) legislature," he said, because of his Portuguese ancestry. "Hispanic" associations, on the other hand, tend to be more inclusive and accept people of Central and South American heritage as well as those who trace their origins back to Spain and Portugal.
Diaz-Balart explained that, as members of the Hispanic community, lawmakers share common cultural traits in terms of family values and religious faith. Those similarities enable them to get together and communicate better, he said. But that doesn't mean they see eye to eye on the issues.
Indeed, three of the new members are Democrats: Sanchez, Grijalva and Cardoza. Diaz-Balart and Nunes are Republicans. Politically, there has long been a split between the GOP and Democratic Hispanic members. About a decade ago Republicans bolted from the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, now solely Democratic. At the start of this session, the Hispanic Republicans created their own group, called the Congressional Hispanic Conference.
This diversity of Hispanic viewpoints is center stage in the U.S. Senate right now, with Honduran native Miguel Estrada's nomination as the first Hispanic ever to serve on U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, hanging in the balance. Democrats are filibustering Estrada's nomination because they say he refuses to reveal his conservative viewpoints. The Senate debate has spilled over to the House floor, even though representatives do not vote on judicial nominations.
''When one Hispanic is accused of being less Hispanic than the other, I think that's a sad day for the United States of America,'' Diaz-Balart said, referring to comments by Rep. Robert Menendez, D-N.J., and some Hispanic interest groups that Estrada is not representative of the immigrant experience.
''The Senate has asked for information on some of his writing, some of his beliefs about issues that go to the very corps of the Hispanic community, including affirmative action, immigration, other issues,'' answered Sanchez, a lawyer and new member of the House Judiciary Committee. ''Before we appoint somebody to a position for life I think it's relevant that that information be provided.''
But even this division among Hispanics over the nomination of one of their own has its good side, Grijalva said.
''The Estrada nomination ... does have the benefit that the rest of this country needs to see where we come from, what we're about and where we stand on issues,'' Grijalva said.
The number of Hispanics in Congress has been doubling every decade since the 1960s, according to Hispanic Link, up to the current high of 24. At the same time, the first Hispanic political families are beginning to appear in Congress: Linda Sanchez is the sister of Loretta Sanchez, D-Santa Ana, and Mario Diaz-Balart's brother Lincoln has been representing Miami in Congress for the past 10 years.
Still, those 24 lawmakers only account for 5.5 percent of the House of Representatives, while Hispanics make up 12.5 percent of the U.S. population. 12.5 percent of the 435-member House would be 54. There are no Hispanics in the Senate.
Source: Christian Science Monitor
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