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September 19, 2000
Latinos have historic opportunity to influence American democracy By Bob Filner
In this election year, the Latino community will be
politically courted by both the Democratic and Republican Parties. Why? Because Latinos are
expected to vote in record numbers, especially in the “battleground states” that will decide both the presidential election and control of the U.S. Congress. And because Latinos are not monolithic in their political
values, they are a high priority for both parties.
By 2005, Latinos will be the largest minority group in the
nation. In California, of the 1.1 million additional voters registered in the last decade of the
20th Century, 1 million were Latinos! This brings the total number of Latino voters in California to 2.35 million or 16 percent of California voters-up from 10 percent in 1990. In spite of this incredible growth,
however, there is still much work to be done. While one in nine Americans is Latino, only one in 20 Latinos vote. Only 39 percent of eligible Latinos are registered to vote in California. The San Diego area alone has
91,000 eligible Latino citizens who are not registered to vote.
Contributing to this situation is the fact that nationwide,
one-third of Latinos are not U.S. citizens. Latinos are attempting to gain U.S.
citizenship, but backlogs within the Immigration and Naturalization Service add 15-24 months to the application process. While in Congress, I have worked with the Congressional Hispanic Caucus to push for more funding
to expedite the citizenship process. I also work closely with the caucus on such issues as housing, healthcare, and education.
A driving force instilling activism and civic participation
in the Latino
population is the Southwest Voter Registration Education Project (SVREP). This is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to educating Latino communities across the Southwest about the democratic process, the
importance of voter registration, and voter participation. The core of its mission is to politically empower Latinos by increasing civic engagement in the American electoral system. SVREP has conducted more than 1,800
voter registration campaigns in 14 states. Because of the efforts of SVREP, Latino voter rates have increased from 2 million in 1974 to 5 million in 1994. The number of Latino elected officials has also increased from
1,500 to 5,000 nationwide.
As a member of the Honorary Steering Committee of the San Diego SVREP, I recently co-hosted a dinner to kick off the Latino Vote 2000 campaign. The goal of the Latino Vote 2000 campaign
is to raise Latino civic participation in this election to 8 million registered voters with 6 million votes cast. This dinner brought together more than 300 Latino leaders from throughout the San Diego area to discuss
upcoming activities and plans to register Latino voters.
Civic participation is essential to a full-functioning democracy. Throughout my life, I have always supported civic participation and have worked to
end disenfranchisement of all minority groups in our country. Long before my days on the San Diego School Board, the City Council and the United States House of Representatives, I participated in the civil rights
movement. In 1961, I rode through Mississippi as a Freedom Rider-working to end the racial segregation that was dividing our nation.
I urge the Latino community to take this historic opportunity afforded by the
importance of upcoming elections to secure its place in our democratic process. In the words of civil rights hero Cesar Chavez, “the day will come when the politicians do the right thing by our people out of political
necessity and not out of charity or idealism.”
I encourage you to become part of the democratic process by making sure you are registered to vote and exercising that right on November 7. For more information on
the Southwest Voter Registration Education Project, please contact Esther Rodriguez at 619-585-0888.
Bob Filner is a U.S. Representative representing California’s 50th Congressional District. |
