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☆ Pfizer, facing lawsuit, says minority fellowship program serves public interest
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( Jonathan Stempel | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

NEW YORK, Oct 26 (Reuters) - Pfizer Inc (PFE.N) said its fellowship program for minorities serves the public interest, as the drugmaker defends against a lawsuit by a group of medical professionals that claims the program illegally excludes whites and Asian-Americans. Fellows receive two years of full-time jobs, fully-funded master's degrees, and employment at New York-based Pfizer after completing the program. The fellowship program "does what Congress has encouraged and controlling law allows," Pfizer said. Among the precedents at risk is a 2003 Supreme Court decision where Justice Sandra Day O'Connor said race could be used as one factor among many to achieve diversity. The case is Do No Harm v. Pfizer Inc, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, No.

☆ Latino leaders call for resignations over racist remarks while outlining 'principled path' to representation
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-24 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Edwin-Head-Shot-Copy.Jpg | Edwin Flores | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

A group of Latino academics and civic leaders are insisting on the resignations of Latino members of the Los Angeles City Council after a recording of racist remarks was leaked, while outlining the need to ensure that the city's Hispanics are represented politically in a way that still strengthens race relations. "It is time to chart a principled path for the role an emerging Latino majority plays in our community." “The City of Los Angeles is overdue for institutional reform, especially reform that depoliticizes the redistricting process,” they said. The City Council is up for election on Nov. 8. In the letter, the group requested the opportunity to meet with City Council leaders.

☆ Florida's Hispanic voters back DeSantis over Crist, support Martha's Vineyard migrant flights
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-24 | by ( Marc Caputo | Noah Pransky | Marc Caputo Is A Senior National Political Reporter For Nbc News. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +9 min

Florida’s Hispanic voters back Gov. “There are lots of Hispanic voters in this state who really like the governor’s style, this strongman who won’t back down. And Crist has no mojo,” said Coker, who conducted the bilingual survey of 625 likely Hispanic voters from Oct. 17-22. And other Hispanic voters from throughout Latin America also side with Crist over DeSantis by a narrower percentage, 53% to 43%. Both DeSantis and Crist receive strong support from voters registered with their respective parties, but DeSantis has slightly more intense intraparty support than Crist, and the governor is leading among independent Hispanic voters by a 22-point margin.

☆ 'Anger on their minds': NBC News poll finds sky-high interest and polarization ahead of midterms
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-23 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Mark-Murray-Circle-Byline-Template.Jpg | Mark Murray | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +8 min

And two-thirds of reliable Democratic and Republican voters say they’d still support their party’s political candidate, even if that person had a moral failing that wasn’t consistent with their own values. In the Oct. 2010 NBC News/WSJ poll, Barack Obama’s approval rating was 45% (when Democrats lost 63 House seats in that midterm election). Seventy-one percent of voters say the country is headed in the wrong direction, compared with 20% who say it’s on the right track. A divided electorateThe NBC News poll shows just how polarized the electorate is before the midterm elections. And 60% of all voters say that President Biden won legitimately in 2020, compared with 33% (and 65% of Republicans) who say he didn’t win legitimately.

Rep. Mayra Flores speaks at the University Draft House in McAllen, Texas, on Oct. 10. “I still believe at the end of the day this is still a solid, moderate Democratic region,” González said. A fighting chanceOf the three Latina Republicans running, Mónica De La Cruz, endorsed by former President Donald Trump and running in an adjacent congressional district, Texas' 15th, is considered the party's best chance to win. Soon after being sworn in to Congress, Flores voted against the landmark gun safety bill pushed through Congress by Sen. John Cornyn, the Texas Republican. Francisco Medrano Jr., of Harlingen, says he’s likely to support Republican Mayra Flores.

☆ DeSantis' popularity among Latinos is boosting his chances of being the first Republican in 20 years to win Miami-Dade
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-21 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Carmen.Jpg | Carmen Sesin | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +8 min

Ron DeSantis’ popularity among Latinos, saying they are boosting his chances of becoming the first Republican governor in 20 years to win traditionally blue Miami-Dade County and therefore propelling his chances of a successful presidential run in 2024. The last time a Republican governor won Miami-Dade County was Jeb Bush in 2002. “DeSantis overperforms here in a way that you don’t tend to see Republican candidates perform elsewhere with Hispanics,” he said. Faced with this, Florida Democrats have expressed frustration and anger over their limited resources and money from national donor groups. Hillary Clinton won Miami-Dade County by almost 30 points in 2016, but Biden won the county by only 7 points.

☆ Here’s how venture capital is helping to lift the next generation of Latinos in finance
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-21 | by ( Carmen Reinicke | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

A group of Latino-led and focused venture capital firms is looking to change that. Similarly, only 2% of venture capital professionals and partner-level professionals at institutional firms are Latino, a study from LatinxVC discovered. "We're trying to increase [Latino] venture capitalists within established venture organizations," said Mariela Salas, the executive director of LatinxVC. Latino-focused venture capitalThere are several Latino-focused venture capital firms that are working on at least one piece of the puzzle: investing in their communities. "We give the opportunity to first-time accredited investors, people of color and women to get access to venture capital," Mendoza said.

☆ I listed 'sex work' on LinkedIn and caused a viral uproar. This is the last time I'll defend that choice.
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-20 | by ( Arielle Egozi | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +13 min

In July, I added "sex work" to my LinkedIn work experience. But at least in sex work, there's an audience and a desire for every type of body, gender, and play. Sex work may have the word "sex" in it, but most of the job — digital, in person, or otherwise — has little to do with sex. A lot of people seem to ignore the "work" part of sex work. Sex work of all kinds is work, and that's the last time I'll defend that statement.

☆ Becky G sees 'magic' in collaborations with fellow artists
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-19 | by ( Liz Calvario | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +9 min

Becky G was just 14 years old when she signed her first record deal. In 2016, Becky started releasing songs in Spanish, finding a wider audience and recognition. “I use the word collaboration a lot, because to me, that’s where the magic happens. 1 spot on the Hot Latin Songs chart. That’s really where I tried to focus a lot of my energy and make an impact.

☆ Multigenerational Hispanic households are under pressure as rates surge and homes remain costly
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-19 | by ( Darla Mercado | Cfp | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Mortgage rates have also surged as the Federal Reserve tightens monetary policy to curb inflationary pressures not seen in about 40 years. Roughly a quarter of Asian, Black and Hispanic Americans each lived in multigenerational households in 2021, compared to 13% of those who are white. "Latinos are more likely to live in multigenerational households," said Gary Acosta, co-founder and CEO of the National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals. "But being a larger multigenerational family comes with complications if you're trying to be a homeowner," he said. For the Espinoza family, the ideal home would have at least three bedrooms, a backyard and proximity to employment and schools in Santa Ana.

Reyes said Hollywood films often reflected the politics of their time — and that had an influence on Latino roles. Studies by the Government Accountability Office, the University of Southern California and other groups consistently show that Latinos are underrepresented in the film industry. Just this year, UCLA’s Hollywood Diversity Report documented “enormous gains” by women and people of color, but Latino representation still lagged. Slowly but surely, we are shaking up the narrative in Hollywood.”Calderón is frustrated by the continuing practice of “brownface,” whereby Latino roles go to white actors. Sanchez cited Eugenio Derbez in “Coda” (2021) as an example of a well-written Latino film character.

At 27, Pierson has defied the odds that many entrepreneurs, especially Latinas, face. Latina founders run nearly 2 million businesses across the country, but receive less than 2% of venture capital funds. Pierson was one of several Latina entrepreneurs speaking in New York City on Friday at a breakfast for investors and members of the media (disclosure: This reporter was one of the moderators). Focused on funding opportunities for women of color, Pierson and others discussed their trajectories on raising capital, scaling up their businesses and achieving significant revenues. One of the other Latina entrepreneurs who discussed her experience starting a business was Karla Gallardo, the founder of Cuyana, a highly successful lifestyle brand known for its sustainably sourced and premium leather accessories and apparel.

☆ Latino meteorologist helps create better weather terms in Spanish.
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-14 | by ( Albinson Linares | Noticias Telemundo | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +9 min

For meteorologist Joseph Trujillo, the right translation is more than a language issue, especially when it comes to weather-related warnings. A NOAA assessment revealed a lack of weather-related resources in the Spanish language that could have helped communities take action to save lives. But those linguistic differences can bring great challenges when translating emergency information, such as weather alerts, for all Hispanic people. They designed a new list of categories that better reflect the risk of climate emergencies in simpler terms: minimum, low, moderate, high and extreme. That first experience led him to pursue meteorology and his investigative work, which he presented to the National Weather Service.

☆ This exec helped raise $100 million to fund Latino-owned startups: It's 'a smart economic strategy'
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-14 | by ( Morgan Smith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

As the U.S. slides closer to a potential recession, economists and business leaders are racking their brains for ways to improve the country's financial health. For Solomon "Sol" Trujillo, the answer is simple: Invest in Latino-owned businesses. In 2019, Trujillo, 70, founded L'Attitude Ventures, a venture capital (VC) firm that exclusively invests in Latino-owned businesses. Trujillo is a general partner at L'Attitude Ventures alongside former United Airlines CEO and chairman Oscar Munoz, Kennie Blanco, Laura Moreno Lucas and Gary Acosta, who is also a co-founder of the firm. "We want people to see that there are a lot of companies that can create growth and stimulate our country's GDP with the right support."

Republicans have gained ground with Latino voters since the 2018 “blue wave” midterm cycle, even though Hispanic voters still favor Democrats, a Latino tracking poll shows. “Five weeks into our tracking poll, it’s becoming clear that Republicans have gained significant ground with Latino voters since the last midterm cycle,” Arturo Vargas, NALEO’s executive director said in a statement. Latino eligible voters' numbers have jumped by 4.7 million since 2018 and are 62 percent of the total growth in U.S. eligible voters since the last midterms, Pew reported. Asians were the fastest growing group of eligible voters over the past two decades, but their growth leveled off some in 2018, Pew reported. However, Joe Biden won the majority of Latino voters in the 2020 presidential election.

☆ Indigenous Latino L.A. residents feel hurt, betrayed by racist remarks
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-13 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +7 min

But the disparaging remarks still deeply hurt the city’s immigrants from Oaxaca, which has one of Mexico’s large indigenous populations. Both growing up in their homeland and after reaching the U.S., they say they’ve become accustomed to hearing such stinging comments — not only from non-Latinos but from lighter skinned Mexican immigrants and their descendants. Martinez used a disparaging term for the Black son of a white council member and called immigrants from Oaxaca ugly. Los Angeles is home to the country’s largest Mexican population and nearly half the city of 4 million people is Latino, census figures show. Informal studies indicate several hundred thousand Oaxacan immigrants live in California, with the largest concentration in Los Angeles, said Gaspar Rivera-Salgado, director of the University of California, Los Angeles Center for Mexican Studies.

Some may want to see the explosive, racist diatribes of a handful of prominent Los Angeles City Council members as an unfortunate incident that will eventually fade away. But the reality is that such prejudice from Latino to Latino and Latino to other racial groups is not so uncommon. That was on stark display in the conversation among former Los Angeles City Council President Nury Martinez, council members Kevin De León and Gil Cedillo and Los Angeles County Federation of Labor President Ron Herrera, who resigned Monday. "If you’re going to talk about Latino districts, what kind of districts are you trying to create?” she asks her colleagues in frustration. Zapotecs, or Indigenous people of Oaxacan descent, number about 200,000 in Los Angeles County, one of the largest Oaxacan communities outside Mexico.

☆ Former L.A. City Council president resigns amid uproar over leaked audio of racist remarks
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-12 | by ( Antonio Planas | Antonio Planas Is A Breaking News Reporter For Nbc News Digital. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

The former president of the Los Angeles City Council at the center of a controversy over leaked audio of racist remarks announced her resignation from the elected board on Wednesday. “It is with a broken heart that I resign my seat for Council District 6, the community I grew up in and my home,” she said. No one expected me to win, but with the support of residents throughout the district I overcame that challenge and won the seat for Council District 6. In the leaked audio, Martinez likened the Black son of council member Mike Bonin, who was 2 years old at the time, to an animal. Since the Los Angeles Times first reported about the audio recording on Sunday, the controversy has grown into a national story.

☆ California attorney general to investigate L.A. City Council after leak of audio with racist remarks
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-12 | by ( Antonio Planas | Antonio Planas Is A Breaking News Reporter For Nbc News Digital. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +5 min

The California attorney general announced Wednesday his office will investigate the Los Angeles City Council to determine whether any laws were broken after an audio recording of racist remarks surfaced this week. Martinez has resigned as council president, and she announced she is taking a leave of absence from the council, according to NBC Los Angeles. Bonta said in the statement he was “deeply appalled" by the remarks from some of Los Angeles’ highest-ranking officials. A council meeting Wednesday was also met with a hostile crowd that disrupted the beginning of the meeting more than once. “The leaked audio has cast doubt on a cornerstone of our political processes for Los Angeles," Bonta said in the Wednesday statement.

“He was always on, always.”Jarrín, now 86, is set to retire as the Dodgers’ Spanish-language broadcaster this year. Jaime Jarrín threw out the first pitch to mark his last year on the job on April 14 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles. Jarrín was scheduled to retire on Jaime Jarrín Day, on Oct. 1, when the Dodgers played the Colorado Rockies at home. Jaime Jarrín waves to the crowd during his final regular season game at Dodger Stadium, in Los Angeles, on Oct. 5. “Jaime Jarrín has been the first voice that I can remember as a kid,” said Jose Benito Garcia, 35, of Inglewood.

DALLAS — Well before jumping into the Texas attorney general's race, Democrat Rochelle Garza beat back a Trump administration attempt to stop a detained immigrant teenager from getting an abortion. Bob Daemmrich / Zuma via Alamy fileGarza has already made history by being the first Latina nominee for Texas attorney general. I’m a mother and I’m here to beat criminally indicted Ken Paxton,” Garza told supporters gathered at a Chocolate Secrets in Dallas. Polls have shown Garza within 2 to 7 percentage points of Paxton with all Texas voters. Tony Gutierrez / AP filePaxton was recently in the headlines again for fleeing his home to avoid being served a subpoena to testify in a lawsuit challenging Texas’ abortion ban.

☆ Crowd demands resignations at chaotic L.A. City Council meeting after leaked recording of racist remarks
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-11 | by ( Antonio Planas | Antonio Planas Is A Breaking News Reporter For Nbc News Digital. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +7 min

An outraged crowd converged on a meeting at Los Angeles City Hall on Tuesday and demanded the immediate resignations of three Latino City Council members after an audio recording of racist remarks surfaced this week. Martinez has resigned as council president, and she announced she is taking a leave of absence from the council, according to NBC Los Angeles. Lori Condinus of the National Action Network Los Angeles was one of dozens of members of the public to speak. Martinez apologized and announced she was stepping down as council president in a statement Monday. “Therefore, effective immediately I am resigning as President of the Los Angeles City Council."

☆ Radio DJ Art Laboe, who helped desegregate music venues and celebrated 'oldies but goodies,' dies at 97
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-11 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Dennis-Romero-Circle-Byline-Template.Jpg | Dennis Romero | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

Radio DJ Art Laboe, who interviewed Elvis for radio in the 1950s before helping make Black music and Latino youths lifelong friends, has died. The DJ, who hosted a show on Los Angeles radio station KDAY, died Friday of pneumonia, according to a statement on his Facebook page. The final show from Laboe, who is credited with coining the phrase "oldies but goodies," was broadcast Sunday. "Art Laboe's legacy will endure as his team will continue to produce his current nightly request and dedication syndicated radio show, 'The Art Laboe Connection,'" the post said. In the mid-1950s, Laboe was the top daytime radio DJ in Los Angeles.

☆ Los Angeles council president steps down after audio leak of racist comments
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Oct 10 (Reuters) - A Los Angeles city councilwoman resigned as president of the council on Monday after the release of an audio recording in which she makes racist and other disparaging comments, including ones about the Black son of a colleague. She continues to represent Los Angeles' sixth district. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterMartinez also disparaged Mexicans from Oaxaca and voiced her displeasure with Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón, saying "he's with the Blacks," the Times reported. Bonin issued a statement on Sunday calling for the city council to remove Martinez as president and for her to resign from the legislative body. Martinez was the first Latina to become president of the city's council in January 2020, according to her office website.

The president of the Los Angeles City Council resigned Monday after an audio recording of racist remarks surfaced. Los Angeles City Council President Nury Martinez at Los Angeles City Hall on April 1, 2022. The 2021 audio from a political strategy meeting attended by a handful of Latino Democrats on the council was first reported Sunday by the Los Angeles Times. "Therefore, effective immediately I am resigning as President of the Los Angeles City Council," she said. Bonin has called for Martinez, De León and Herrera to resign and said the episode points to deep fissures in the city’s population.

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