Washington, DC - The Hispanic Association on Corporate Responsibility released today the most comprehensive study on U.S. Hispanic demographics titled, Hispanics Today. The publication is a compilation of non-published studies by leading Hispanic academicians and think tanks.
"We all know that Hispanics officially became the largest minority in the U.S. according the latest U.S. Census," said Anna Escobedo Cabral, president of HACR. "Hispanics Today goes more in-depth in understanding how complex and culturally rich and diverse Hispanics living in the U.S. are regarding their political participation, professional and individual networking habits, and preference in language. This is an important study for anyone who is trying to reach and engage this group."
According to one of the studies conducted by Felipe Korzenny, Ph.D., principal and co-founder of Cheskin, a consulting and strategic market research company, and Lou Lopez, People en Español, Spanish language continues to play an important role in most Hispanics' lives (83% speak Spanish at home). But when it comes to print media and the Internet, the use of English is the dominant language.
"A key reason for the preeminence of English in these types of media outlets is that Spanish language print and Internet content and distribution still lag dramatically behind Spanish language broadcast," said Korzenny. "When Hispanic consumers become more aware of their choices of Spanish language in print and the Internet, these will become more prevalent."
Moreover, Hispanic professionals mentored by non-Hispanic whites earned considerably more salary than those who were mentored by other Hispanics. More astonishingly, those with a Hispanic mentor earned even less than those with no mentor at all.
"Hispanic professionals with no mentor averaged approximately $63,000 and those with non-Hispanic (white) mentors averaged $71,000. Hispanic business professionals with Hispanic mentors averaged only $59,000," reports Donna Maria Blancero, Ph.D., W.P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University. "We can attribute this finding, in part, to the lack of influence that some Hispanics have in their organization, regardless of their level within the formal hierarchy."
Furthermore, Hispanics living in the U.S. are concerned about economic issues (32%), closely followed by national security (29%), according to a study conducted by Rodolfo de la Garza, Ph.D., professor of political science at Columbia University, and vice president of the Tomás Rivera Policy Institute.
"Overall, most Latino immigrants think that they have 'more influence' over the local and national government in the United States than in their home country," said de la Garza. "In other words, Latino immigrants feel more politically efficacious in the U.S. than in their respective home countries."
The study will be released during the 11th annual Symposium on Corporate Responsibility in Chicago, from June 30-July 1, 2003. Many of the panelist taking part in the Symposium, contributed their research to Hispanics Today. The Symposium will bring together some of the brightest minds and committed individuals and corporations and create a forum to discuss the most pressing issues affecting the Hispanic community today.
For more information, please contact:
Omar Velarde-Wong
Director of Communications
Phone: 202.835.9672
Fax: 202.457.0455
ovelarde@hacr.org
