Dear Readers,

This week I would like to share with you an entry that Jill Portnoy, a summer intern from the University of Pennsylvania, wrote for our blog.  Before coming to New Orleans, Jill knew little about Puentes, our work, and our group of energized volunteers working to change how we live.  As you will see from her entry, she quickly dove into the work and took on our challenge as her own.  We are proud of the works she did for us this past summer and wish her all the luck in the world, as well as hope that she finds her way back to New Orleans after she completes her studies.

Best,

Lucas Diaz

A U Penn Intern’s Reflection–Jill Portnoy

In late May, I traveled to New Orleans as one of fourteen Fox Leadership (a program of the University of Pennsylvania) undergraduate summer fellows.  My internship placement was at Puentes.

When asked about what I was to do this summer, I often received quizzical looks- Why would a Caucasian girl from Pittsburgh care about Latinos in New Orleans?

This summer I learned a lot while working at Puentes.  I learned that the words Latino and Hispanic are not interchangeable (who knew?).  I learned that tacos from Taco Bell do NOT taste the same as authentic tacos.  I even picked up a bit of slang (ya heard?). But, the most important thing that I learned this summer was the answer to this very question.

The reason I care about New Orleans Latinos is not just because they deserve to be cared about. While they certainly do deserve our compassion- they are disenfranchised, face disproportionately high victimization rates, often encounter language access barriers, and lack the cohesiveness needed to guarantee a political voice- there is another equally important reason that I care about the future of the New Orleans Latinos:

I believe that how we handle the problems that have exposed themselves post-Katrina in New Orleans will set a precedent for how we deal with urban problems, not only throughout the rest of the country, but also throughout the rest of the word.   I have heard Lieutenant Governor Mitch Landrieu speak twice to groups of college students and on both occasions he emphasized this point, stating that New Orleans is the “laboratory of the world.”  In other words, what we are able to accomplish in New Orleans will show the world what is possible elsewhere.

What this means is that if we ignore the New Orleans Latinos, pass anti-immigration legislation, and do not take action to make New Orleans a truly international city, then we will not only be letting down New Orleans, but will also be letting down the rest of the country.  By showing the nation that a city (in the south, no less) is eager to permit the entry of new citizens, integrate them into our society, and, above all, welcome them with open arms, we will demonstrate that our country is ready to become the melting pot (or gumbo, if you will) that this country once aspired to become.  If we fail, we will not only be letting down immigrants in New Orleans, but we will also be failing our brothers and sisters in Dallas, Los Angeles, Houston, and other cities throughout the country.

And now is the time to take action.  Never before has their been more of a spotlight on Latinos.  Daily, the national news media releases another story about the Latino vote and in New Orleans, in particular, people are noticing the Latino population. From taco trucks to events like Experience LatiNola to day laborers in front of Loewe’s, the Latino presence is unmistakable and undeniable.  If we do not take advantage of this opportunity now, we may never again have the chance to change the face of America and the way we deal with immigrant and minority populations.

Just as pressing, our actions now affect the perception of America on the world stage.  If we unceremoniously kick out a population of people that the New Orleans city government more or less invited here (see Tom Gill’s blog post), what does that say about our country and the way we treat citizens from around the world?

Having worked at Puentes for ten weeks, I am admittedly biased.  However, I believe that Puentes is the organization that will be able to lead efforts to change the way New Orleans (and as a result, cities throughout the entire United States) deals with Latinos.  At Puentes, we understand the opportunity we have before us to make New Orleans an international city.  We recognize the need to create affordable and safe housing for all, including Latinos.  We devised the concept of LatiNola as a vision of a strong, integrated, culturally rich Latino community, and as Carolina, one of our LatiNola volunteers and board members aptly noted, we know that we desire more than anything to make “LatiNola” a reality.

To all those who may question my commitment to the New Orleans Latino population, I would reply that when deciding whether or not you care about New Orleans Latinos, it is not simply a question of whether you think Latinos in particular deserve our attention, but about what type of country you want to live in.  Do you want it to be a homogenous place where everything non-English and non-American is shunned or do we want a nation that celebrates the diversity that has forever defined our country?  It is up to us.  The world is watching New Orleans and now is the time to make our visions and dreams a reality.

Jill

Tags: hispanic, hispanic community, immigration, latino, latino community, latino immigration, latinola, louisiana, new orleans, puentes

This entry was posted on Tuesday, August 19th, 2008 at 7:43 am and is filed under Puentes Director. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.