Nearly 17,000 Latinos were killed with guns in California from 1999 through 2016, which mirrors a national rise in gun violence, according to a new study from the Violence Policy Center. But the alarming data doesn't end there. In 2016, Latino firearm homicide victimization rate was 4.40 per 100,000. That is more than three times the white firearm homicide victimization rate of 1.45 per 100,000. The firearm homicide victimization rate jumps to 6.63 per 100,000 for Latinos ages 10-24. “For far too long, we have not had actionable data on Latino gun violence in California," said Fernando Rejón of the Urban Peace Institute. "This [Violence Policy Center] report provides us with critical information to understand the impacts and make change."
California's Shocking Gun Violence ...
Homes that have vinyl flooring or certain kinds of furniture are now known to raise the levels of potentially harmful compounds in children, according to recently presented research. Flame retardant chemicals and cushioning in sofas raised children’s concentrations of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) six times in comparison to children not exposed to these chemicals. Worse, kids who live in homes with vinyl flooring showed concentration levels up to 15 times greater than their peers. “[These chemcials] are widely used in electronics, furniture, and building materials and can be detected in nearly all indoor environments,” said Heather Stapleton, a Duke professor and environmental chemist, who led the study. “Nonetheless, there has been little research on the ...
At least 9.6 million U.S. children (13%) live in poverty. Among Latino children, poverty rates are even higher (22% vs. 8% white children). These children will often lack quality education and healthcare while suffering trauma and poor health outcomes. But what if there was a way to fight poverty? Or better yet, what if you had a road map with the most effective ways to fight poverty? A new bipartisan report produced by the National Academy of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM), focuses on 10 big policy areas that could cut the child poverty rate by up to 50%, while at the same time increasing employment and earnings among adults living in low-income families. Researchers conducted two simulations or projections for each policy area to explore the effects that ...
Big Bird, Elmo, and friends have connected with children on TV for years—now Sesame Street is helping parents and community providers help kids and families grow smarter, stronger, and kinder. Sesame Street in Communities provides hundreds of bilingual, multi-media tools to help parents and community providers engage kids and families in everyday activities to boost early childhood development. All content is available for free in English and Spanish.
Parents and Caregivers
Parents and caregivers can find activities and videos for all age ranges on 28 topics. These go from healthy eating to traumatic experiences. Eating Well: Food insecurity can make things seem hopeless. But programs like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and the National School ...
Close to 40% of Americans struggle to meet rising costs of housing, and Latinos face hardship in affording at least one basic need. To tackle a "housing crisis" in Boston (19.4% Latino), the city’s Mayor, Marty Walsh, announced $26 million in funding for affordable housing units, MassLive reports. Their plan? To convert previously used apartment buildings into income-restricted units available for low-income families. "We have no problem building high end housing in Boston. It is pretty easy and we see it every day," Walsh said in a press conference earlier this week. "The question is how can we make sure we can have it affordable and built in our city and targeted correctly."
Boston's New Affordable Housing Plans
Boston's ongoing growth, especially among Latinos, is ...
Paid leave reduces the use of public services, boosts employee productivity, and can help families better succeed—yet three in four Latinos are unable to take such time. Despite data that shows its benefits, there is no federal requirement to provide paid family leave. The 1993 federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), legislation most businesses follow, does not cover all workers and leave offers are unpaid. Lack of paid leave and other economic support contributes to health and economic disparities among Latinas, Latinos, and low-income families. Still, paid leave is gaining popular support, including a proposal for universal paid family leave. “If the [corporate officers and directors] gets paid leave, then the factory floor worker should also get paid leave,” ...
California media portray immigrants with derogatory descriptions with regularity, while immigrant voices and healthcare are rarely covered, according to a new report by Berkeley Media Studies Group (BMSG). The BMSG report examined over 2,500 immigration articles in 2017-2018 in California: Monterey (58.8% Latino), Sacramento (23.3% Latino), Kern (53.4% Latino), and San Diego (39.1% Latino). Researchers found neutral descriptors of immigrants—“undocumented” or “unauthorized”—in most media coverage. But they also found potentially dehumanizing terms—“illegal immigrants,” “illegal aliens,” or “illegals”—in nearly every news outlet, and 13% of all articles examined. No coverage focused on the health and well-being of immigrants, either. "The hostile ...
In 2017, the CDC revealed that drug overdose fatalities are continually rising in rural communities, even surpassing rates in urban areas. Additionally, the National Farmers Union (NFU) and the American Farm Bureau Federations (AFBF) discovered that the opioid epidemic has directly impacted as many as 74% of farmers. Latinos make up roughly 23% of the agriculture industry, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics, and opioid use is on the rise in this demographic. “Opioids have been too easy to come by and too easy to become addicted to,” AFBF president Zippy Duvall said in a statement. “And because opioid addiction is a disease, it’s up to all of us to help people who suffer from it and help them find the treatment they need.”
What Are Opioids?
These drugs voyage through ...
Exposure to a widely used substance in weed killers is connected to a 41% increase in the likelihood of developing cancer, according to a new study. Researchers found people who regularly interacted with high levels of the chemical, glyphosate, had a higher chance of contracting non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), reported in findings published in Mutation Research. This is important for Latinos and those in poverty, who tend to disproportionately live in regions where glyphosate is sprayed in California (39% Latino). Rachel Shaffer, a study author and a University of Washington doctoral student, told UW News the new study gives a current and in-depth examination of links between NHL and glyphosate. “These findings are aligned with a prior assessment from the International Agency ...
