LULAC ISSUES NATIONAL ACTION ALERT TO CHANGE HOW LATINOS ARE MENTIONED IN GOVERNMENT FORMS

Nation's Largest and Oldest Latino Civil Rights Organization Says It Is Time for a New Category for More than 60 Million People in the U.S.

Washington, DC - The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) has issued a National Action Alert to its members and stakeholders. They are being urged to support a proposed language change in government forms that has a new category that designates Hispanic or Latino, and details about ethnicity.

“Es tiempo --- It’s time!” says Domingo García, LULAC National President. “This is the opportunity to have us seen and counted accurately and to make sure we are getting our share of the federal budget. Many times, on a government form, we check off the box that says ‘other’, then write in how we see ourselves --- Mexican, Native American, Puerto Rican, and so on. The problem is our true presence and impact in the United States is diluted when they add up all the check marks. LULAC wants that changed to one simple, clear box and we can still show ethnicity.”

Lydia Guzman, LULAC National Immigration Chair says the change in how we are shown on government forms could have another important benefit. A clearer identification would encourage more Latinos to take part on their school boards, city councils, and with other government actions on matters that impact them. “One of the chilling effects of civic participation is confusion of a government form. We’ve seen this in long and confusing and complicated census forms. If we want people to participate, we need to make it easier, not harder. We’re hopeful that this is the first step in simplifying other government forms, because immigration forms have similar questions regarding race and ethnicity,” says Guzman.

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