Largest Spanish Language Daily Newspaper Touts Project

El Mundo, the Madrid-based largest Spanish language daily newspaper, recently featured the CasaBlanca Project.

... Jerome Wiley Segovia dirige también otra iniciativa: el Casa Blanca Project. Bajo ese [nombre está] el intento de crear un ejército de voluntarios latinos que movilicen a ese segmento de la población, tan grande desde el punto de vista demográfico como apático políticamente ...

The article mentioned a little bit of the history and origins of the project:

En [el] 2003, después de un debate entre los candidatos demócratas, Jerome Wiley Segovia, que entonces tenía 29 años, llamó entusiasmado a la campaña del candidato demócrata Howard Dean -el líder del ala izquierda de ese partido- para ofrecer sus servicios. Segovia trabajaba en una empresa que a su vez realizaba contratas para el Departamento de Veteranos -un estado de Bienestar ad hoc para los 23,5 millones de estadounidenses que han servido en las Fuerzas Armadas del país-, y se ofreció a crear una página web para que el candidato pudiera hacer llegar su mensaje a los hispanos o latinos, es decir, los latinoamericanos y descendientes de latinoamericanos que viven en Estados Unidos.

Please read the entire article here.

Alejandra Espinola to Join CasaBlanca Project

The CasaBlanca Project is proud to announce that Alejandra Espinola, a well regarded force in community organizing and Latino-centered services industry, has accepted an offer to join the staff as Director of the Office of Party Affairs and Research.

Ms. Espinola has been active in the creation and success of Kikioki, a capital-area center for expatriate Latino cultural activity, and planning and communications forum for its various events and constituents. The Kikioki.com organization has sponsored several important musical events among other projects.

Ms. Espinola holds a Masters degree in International Diplomacy, and has earned recognition as a highly capable and effective spokesperson for Latinos, providing a voice for their struggles in various roles.

CasaBlanca Project Up for Review at DNC Fall Meeting

The CasaBlanca Project staff is in high gear this week preparing a presentation which will be delivered to the DNC Hispanic Caucus this Saturday, December 1, 2007 at the DNC's Fall Meeting. The goal is to have the CasaBlanca Project approved as an official DNC project, which will inevitably raise the project's profile and add to the growing number of individuals and organizations which endorse the concept.

Following positive press mentions by the largest Spanish language daily newspaper El Mundo, and the Hispanic Business Magazine, and endorsement by the DNC Hispanic Caucus, composed of Latino members of the Democratic National Committee, would allow the project to continue to connect with all eight Democratic Presidential campaigns at the highest levels, and continue to facilitate the entry process for Latinos who are wanting to help particular candidates during the primary nominating stage.

Please consider attending the presentation and meeting this Saturday, which will be held at 10:00 a.m. at the Sheraton Premiere hotel in Tysons Corner (8661 Leesburg Pike, Vienna, Virginia). The more supporters, organizers and volunteers available, the better, to show the grassroots nature of our work.

Most US born Latinos Fluent in English

Me sorprende.

I would have thought the number would have been even higher. 94% of US born Latinos are fluent in English. This is a interesting study by the Pew Hispanic Center regarding the language fluency and preference of Latino immigrants and their US born children, conducted over a four year period.

http://www.reuters.com/article/domesticNews/idUSN2965236620071129

The study, conducted among 14,000 Latino adults over a four-year period, found that fluency in English rose to 94 percent in subsequent generations.

"As fluency in English increases across generations, so, too, does the regular use of English by Hispanics, both at home and at work," the study said.

"For most immigrants, English is not the primary language they use in either setting. But for their grown children, it is."

Dean: Hispanic Will Elect Next Democratic President

According to Howard Dean, Chairman of the Democratic National Committee, Hispanics will help nominate and elect the next Democratic president. According to Governor Dean, "Today Democrats are building momentum across the country, and building stronger ties than ever with the Hispanic community. The Democratic Party shares the Hispanic community's values centered on family, faith, and hard work, and our candidates offer the new direction the American people want."

Business coalition launches ad to reverse anti-immigrant ordinances

The Ayuda Business Coalition will be running a new ad on the negative impact of local immigration proposals on CNN this weekend and throughout the winter. The TV ad tells the story of Riverside NJ and what happened to the economy when they passed a local anti-immigrant proposal.

You can see the TV ad at http://www.ayudabusinesscoalition.org/.

For more information, please contact Estera Barbarasa at (202) 243-7306 or Mauricio Vivero (202) 243-7307.

VIRGINIA UPDATE: Virginia campaigns have been accepting volunteers and other resources and support from regional leaders and organizations in the past several weeks, to counteract the ugly anti-immigrant politics we've seen in places like Prince Williams County.

Please contact our main CasaBlanca Project headquarters at (703) TRY THIS for information on how you can help in this crucial election, November 6, 2007 (now only four days away).