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After the Protests, San Francisco Activists Must Build Latino Power
Latino immigrants and their supporters have shown unexpected strength the past two weeks, leading many to ask what will happen to this growing movement once the fate of the pending immigration bill is resolved. San Francisco activists should be raising a similar question. San Francisco’s large Latino community has remained a politically sleeping giant for decades, securing few elected positions and exercising nowhere near the clout of Latinos in San Jose, Los Angeles, or even Orange County. While San Francisco’s immigrant protests have not matched other cities, the city’s belated response reflects activists’ recognition that the needs of San Francisco’s over 100,000 Latinos are largely going unmet. Can House Republican attacks on immigrants become the springboard for growing Latino political power in San Francisco?
While San Jose and Los Angeles have Latino mayors and powerful Latino voter outreach programs, San Francisco’s Latino political infrastructure has advanced little over the past four decades. Latinos are 14% of San Francisco’s population, but remain politically unorganized and voter turnout remains far below the rate of Latino immigrant voting in Los Angeles.
Three forces bear chief responsibility for the massive immigrant rights crowds that have surprised America: organized labor, particularly SEIU and its Justice for Janitors members and supporters, the Catholic Church, and Spanish-speaking radio. Unfortunately, only the ethnic media played a similar role in San Francisco, and collectively these forces are unlikely to build Latino political clout.
The Catholic Church: While Cardinal Mahoney in Los Angeles is on the front lines in the struggle for immigrant rights, San Francisco’s politically conservative Catholic leadership has taken a “hands off” approach. While individual churches like St. Boniface urged parishioners to attend last night’s March, the San Francisco Archdiocese cannot be counted upon to help foster local Latino power.
Read More
http://www.beyondchron.org/news/index.php?itemid=3144#more
Three forces bear chief responsibility for the massive immigrant rights crowds that have surprised America: organized labor, particularly SEIU and its Justice for Janitors members and supporters, the Catholic Church, and Spanish-speaking radio. Unfortunately, only the ethnic media played a similar role in San Francisco, and collectively these forces are unlikely to build Latino political clout.
The Catholic Church: While Cardinal Mahoney in Los Angeles is on the front lines in the struggle for immigrant rights, San Francisco’s politically conservative Catholic leadership has taken a “hands off” approach. While individual churches like St. Boniface urged parishioners to attend last night’s March, the San Francisco Archdiocese cannot be counted upon to help foster local Latino power.
Read More
http://www.beyondchron.org/news/index.php?itemid=3144#more
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