Red, Brown & Blue

Latino Politics

What does Latino politics mean?

First let’s define Latino; the US defines Latino as a person from Mexico, Central or South America, Cuban or any other Spanish culture regardless of race. It’s really a term used to categorize an ethnic group despite the fact that Latinos are about as ethnically diverse as you can get.

Politics goes beyond the decision making process in Washington, DC or our state capitols. We are talking about politics on a local and national level, and all levels in between that affect the decision-making process in government.

Latino politics is the process by which Latinos in the US affect or are affected by the political process. At RedBrownandBlue.com, columnists like Rudy Ruiz and Rolando Rodriguez provide political commentary and social perspectives on some of the most vital and pressing issues in Latino politics, oftentimes their columns will focus on Hispanic discrimination, immigration commentary or race commentary. Red, Brown and Blue’s editorial team is multicultural in its make-up, and as such our team brings multicultural perspectives to many of our nation’s top issues not only in Latino politics but also multicultural issues. Through these efforts RedBrownandBlue.com also works to provide another perspective to the news and Latino politics covered by our nation most trusted outlets thereby adding to the political forums discussing politics ranging from immigration commentary to Hispanic commentary. At the same time RedBrownandBlue.com works to promote its own brand of Latino politics to the mainstream media, and provide new and relevant multicultural perspectives to the national dialogue.

RedBrownandBlue.com’s focus is not limited to the mainstream media, in fact, RedBrownandBlue.com takes great interest in supplementing the Latino politics covered by Spanish-language and multicultural news outlets. Our columnists take mainstream news coverage and identify the multicultural issues that are relevant to Latino politics and ultimately Spanish-language readers.

Recently, Latino politics have taken the national stage, and can be seen in the current debate on health care. Latino politics have also been a part of the immigration commentary since many Latinos are immigrants or the children or grandchildren of immigrants. Latino politics have increasingly become a factor in the past presidential elections, including the election of President Barack Obama. As Latinos continue to grow in influence and responsibility, Latino politics will continue to grow in importance for Latinos, the multicultural community and America in general. As such, RedBrownandBlue.com will continue to provide its multicultural perspectives and political forums to elevate the national dialogue on Latino politics.

Featured Article:

Arizona Immigration Law Should Energize Latino Politics in America

[Posted on July 26]

SB 1070, the strict Arizona anti-immigration bill, which aims to discourage illegal immigration through increased and somewhat draconian enforcement measures, will soon take effect. Leading up to and since it was signed into law, Latinos and concerned Americans alike have been outraged at the fact that such a law could even have the chance to become enacted. Without a doubt, this type of political danger calls for an increased need for Latino politics and political representation to protect the promise of America.

The Senate Bill 1070 contains some elements which have been viewed as not only strict, but perhaps even unconstitutional. Undoubtedly, this bill which has now been passed into law in the state of Arizona will force many immigrants, whether illegal or not, to reconsider living in the state of Arizona and perhaps force them to even reconsider living in the country. This is a consequence which many in the Latino community feel to be unnecessary and unjust, and many are also considering the possibility that Latinos in general are not being appropriately represented in state governments. If this view is shared by many within the Latino community in Arizona and in other US states, then it may be only a matter of time before more political weight is put forth by the community, which means that Latino politics will no doubt be in the spotlight in upcoming elections on the local, state, and national levels.

The Arizona law has not only enraged a lot of people all across the US, both Latino and non-Latino, but this law has also energized many with the will to stand up, voice their opinion, and engage in an organized effort to promote positive Latino politics which can better-represent and protect the Latino population not only in the state of Arizona, but indeed, in all parts of the United States. This support can be seen in city halls like San Antonio where the city council passed a resolution condemning the action, or the economic impact on Arizona’s tourism industry.

The movement for better Latino representation in politics has been one of slow yet steady progress, yet the Arizona immigration law may have encouraged a great deal more of Latinos to get involved in the political process so that the movement for better representation and the goals inherent in this movement can be achieved.

Those who are interested in fighting back against the Arizona immigration law have and will continue to participate in demonstrations, boycotts, and other measures. However, those who are seeking permanent change will need to engage in Latino politics so that better Latino representation in government can be accomplished and laws such as the one regarding immigration in Arizona will not have a chance to pass in any state government.

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