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 On any single day, a Latino youngster in the Bronx is likely to be removed from her home by ACS caseworkers due to neglect. This young girl will have gone days without regularly attending school -- because she frequently had to care for younger siblings when family and friends were not available.
Her single mother works three jobs from morning to night to support her family; yet she could not afford child care after losing access to a city-sponsored day care program.
This troubling scenario is a growing problem. Latino children account for almost 40% of all abuse and neglect reports in New York City, mostly cases of neglect. And more than 88,000 eligible Latino children in New York City do not have subsidized pre-k or early education and child care.
Yet, the Mayor has proposed a plan this year to cut city-sponsored child-care slots and child protective services staff that may directly impact many Latino families.
One reason this situation exists is that Latinos have suffered from a lack of a voice to match their size.
Given Latino population growth, budget cuts have resulted in significant per capita reductions in programs and services.
But that problem can be fixed. It depends upon the recognition of the growth of our Latino population, its needs and on what happens in the upcoming city budget.
As the latest US Census figures show, New York City is rapidly becoming more Latino, through both immigration and higher Latino birthrates.
Latinos now make up 29 percent (2.370 million) of the New York City’s population, according to the recently released 2010 census survey. Indeed, the Latino population has grown in all the city’s boroughs, reaching 28 percent in Queens and 58 percent in the Bronx.
The number of Latinos is probably even higher in reality, as the Census likely missed many immigrants, who were not comfortable with being counted by a government worker.
Yet despite Latinos’ growing size and presence across the city, we suffer many disparities compared to other communities, according to our recent report on “The State of Latino Families in New York 2011”.
Latinos increasingly suffer from poor health. The obesity rate among Latino children in New York City public schools are at a staggering 26.5%.
They suffer from city schools that fail them. The high school graduation rate among Latino students (55.9%) is significantly lower than their white peers (76.5%).
Latino youth are more likely to be arrested and sent to a city juvenile correctional facility. Twenty-eight percent of youth in juvenile justice facilities are Latino, significantly higher than White youth (4%).
Why do these conditions exist?
It is because many Latinos remain anchored among New York’s poorest residents, trapped there due to low levels of education and a dearth of decent paying jobs for immigrants with limited workplace skills.
And these conditions continue to trap many more Latinos because government programs fail to adapt in providing culturally and linguistically sensitive services for Latinos.
Latinos also have limited access to comprehensive health care coverage and very often face a host of preventable health problems or illnesses.
Many first generation Latino children enter school without the language support they so critically need to succeed and go on to score far below other students in exams in K-12.
The juvenile justice and child welfare systems often treat Latinos differently as a consequence of preconceptions, stereotypes, and assumptions.
Regardless of the economic and financial constraints, the Mayor and the City Council need to think of our city’s future and refuse to accept the path of least resistance.
Preventive services should be strengthened for at-risk Latino youth and unstable families.
Investments need to be focused on education and after school programs to engage Latino youth and build human capital.
Access to preventative health services is necessary in conjunction with culturally and linguistically sensitive interventions in human services.
Failure to further invest in Latino children and families will perpetuate conditions that limit their economic mobility and stifle the development of the city’s future workforce.
As our numbers have grown, Latinos’ need to receive our fair share of the city’s services. And that means listening as well to our voices and our calls for help.
Elba Montalvo is the Founder and President/CEO of The Committee for Hispanic Children and Families, Inc., a human services organization founded in 1982 to serve the unmet needs of New York’s growing Latino community.
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