Cultural Diversity Training: Albemarle’s Latino Residents An Albemarle County Training By Linda Hemby October 20, 2009

Cultural Diversity Training:Albemarle’s Latino

Residents

An Albemarle County Training

By Linda Hemby

October 20, 2009

What this training can do

Introduce county staff to our area Latino population

Provide an overview of barriers Latinos confront when interacting with county agencies

Suggest some ways of enhancing customer service to Latinos

Share local resources and myth busting facts

What this training can’t do

Provide details

In other words, this training is meant to be an introduction, a beginning, to generate thought and discussion about our local Latino population and how we can best serve them.

Why offer this training?

To improve customer service: Latinos are an ever increasing population in the U.S., in Virginia and locally.

To comply with federal laws (Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964) and guidelines

“Cultural sensitivity is a prerequisite to professional competence. This is not merely a fairness issue.” (Asa Hilliard, 1984)

Terminology

Culture: values, assumptions and perceptions that are instilled early on in life and are expressed in the way we behave and interact.

Diversity: all of the things that make us different from one another.

Cultural sensitivity: valuing and learning from diversity and being willing and quick to adequately respond to differences.

Cultural competence: ability to work effectively with individuals from different cultural and ethnic backgrounds.

Beware of generalizations!

Hispanic vs Latino

Not all Latinos are recent immigrants: Texas originally belonged to Mexico and many Mexican Americans in California and elsewhere have been in the U.S. for centuries.


Not all Latinos are from Mexico: 18 Spanish speaking Latin American countries plus Brazil

Innumerable other differences among Latinos:

from historic, geographic, language, color & ethnicity, socio-economic class, education level, etc.

to cuisine and reason for coming to the U.S.


Acculturation differences: some don’t identify with the customs of their community of origin and don’t see themselves as Latino; many find it difficult to adapt to U.S. culture and remain strongly connected to the culture of their birth country; and others view themselves as bicultural (i.e., Mexican American), connected to values, traditions, and experiences of both countries

Latino Demographics - Nationwide

45.5 million Hispanics or 15% of the total population

Only Mexico and Colombia have larger Hispanic populations

Largest minority in 23 States (50% live in CA & TX)

Origins: Mexicans (64%), Puerto Rica (10%), Cuban (3.5%), Salvadoran (3%) and Dominicans (2.7%) …

Latino Demographics - Nationwide

78%, ages 5 and older, speak a language other than

English at home

24% speak English very well

88% of U.S. born adult children speak English

Source: Pew Hispanic Center http://pewhispanic.org

Latino Demographics - Virginia

One in 10 Virginians is foreign-born.

The largest foreign-born populations are in Arlington and Alexandria (20% each), Harrisonburg (9%), and Charlottesville, Richmond, Virginia Beach and Winchester (6% each).

In 2007, the top five countries of birth were El Salvador, Mexico, Korea, Philippines and India.

Latino Demographics - Virginia

481,500 Latinos

Over half are Mexican; the rest are largely Salvadorans, Guatemalans and Hondurans

Half are U.S. born citizens. 13% are naturalized citizens. The rest are living in the State with or without legal authorization. Around 85% of Virginia’s Latino children under 18 are U.S. born

Source: UVA Weldon Cooper Center

Latino Demographics - Cville

5 – 6,000 Latinos reside in the greater Charlottesville/Albemarle area

Mostly Mexicans, Salvadorans and Hondurans

Enclaves: Fashion Square Mall area, large area in front of Albemarle High School (Peyton & Commonwealth, two trailer parks, etc.), Southwood, Esmont, Crozet, etc.

Latino Demographics - Cville

Many newcomers (Hondurans, indigenous Mexicans)

Higher level of undocumented adults

Most children are U.S. born

Our Latino PopulationSocio-economic Commonalities

Rural poor

Limited or no experiences with

• modern conveniences (from plumbing and wash machines to bank accounts and birth control)

• legal and bureaucratic policy, processes and protocol

• agencies that provide benefits and services• civil, human, and consumer rights

Our Latino PopulationSocio-economic Commonalities

Illiteracy is high

Adults have little knowledge of English

Low acculturation, especially among adults

Our Latino Population Cultural Commonalities

Family Centered (lifetime allegiance/loyalty, interdependence, collective good vs individualism, extended family includes friends)


Hierarchical society: respect for and/or fear of authority figures (age, social position, economic status, or the police and other government workers)

• Fear of “rocking the boat”: avoiding conflict even when there is a wrongdoing; not challenging or asking questions; not reporting discrimination and other injustices or crime (even more so with the undocumented)


Being personable and friendly: being polite, smiling and showing warmth and enthusiasm; direct personal contact vs letters and voicemails; close physical proximity vs being separated by a desk or security window; touching.

Trust: being personable and over time, reaching a high level of comfort by showing respect and in other ways dispelling misconceptions.


Fatalism or when each day is taken as it comes• little experience with the concept of punctuality or

planning ahead

Spirituality (based more on widespread cultural beliefs, including superstitions and folklore, than on affiliation with a particular religion)


Strong positive work values: pride, self-discipline, perseverance, grateful for having a job, loyalty

Machismo, etc.

Our Latino PopulationService Access Barriers

Limited information and knowledge of services, where they are located, their policies, procedures, processes, and Clients’ rights to redress

Being embarrassed about asking for help outside of the family (or church)


Latinos lack of English fluency (to communicate or understand)

Lack of bilingual/bicultural service providers

Inconsistent or non-use of interpreter services


Agency misunderstandings due to the lack of cultural awareness of service providers– as irresponsible – as not forthcoming– as understanding all or some of what is being said– who assume Clients are literate

Misconceptions or anti-immigrant sentiments of service providers

Recommendations for Service Providers

“If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart.” – Nelson Mandela

• Be sensitive to whoever you are interacting with.

• Be aware of your own attitudes and how they may impact on service delivery.


Be accessible:

• Show respect. Speak English slowly and clearly and don’t raise your voice.

• Don’t assume the Client understands you. If you do not speak fluent Spanish, use a bilingual co-worker or an interpreter service or other resource. Avoid using children to act as interpreters.


• Make time to learn about Latino culture to be more understanding and responsive to cultural idiosyncrasies.

• Encourage questions and make sure the Client understands.

• Make sure you understand.


Build trust:

• Be warm and personable rather than distant and formal.

• Be attentive and take time to listen.

• Show respect.


• Explain, in a clear and concise way, agency policies, procedures, processes, and Clients’ rights.

• Learn and use a few Spanish words.

• And in other ways, show you care and really do want to help.

Recommendations for County Agencies

Learn about and develop mechanisms to comply with LEP federal policy and guidelines

Develop LEP guidelines for your staff, along with monitoring procedures and sanctions to ensure their compliance.


Develop culturally sensitive informative written materials (i.e., minimal text)

Use Spanish language forms and other documents

Offer a bilingual telephone service

Include bilingual and bicultural skills as a hiring preference.


Encourage and/or provide ongoing cultural sensitivity trainings, including attendance at Creciendo Juntos (CJ) and other Latino oriented venues and reviews and discussions of information on the CJ website (www.cj-network.org).

Recommendations for County Agencies – Word of Caution

“In order for a person to be bicultural and operate as a liaison between cultures, it is not sufficient for him or her to be from an ethnic minority. In fact, if a person who looks like a member of an ethnic minority group has adopted Anglo American values and identifies with the mainstream culture, he or she may be a poor choice to represent their culture of origin in collaborative efforts.”

Source: Toolkit for Cross-Cultural Collaboration, Chapter I

Trainer

Linda Hemby is a sociologist and human rights activist. She has dual nationality (U.S./El Salvador), is bilingual and bicultural. She lived in El Salvador for 20+ years, visits each year for a month, and plans on returning there to live. She works at Social Services and is a member of the CJ Executive Committee. Linda can be reached at [email protected]

References

This power point presentation, as well as a handout provided during the training – which identifies online and other resources for myth busting fact sheets and local resources for Latinos – is available on the CJ website at

http://www.cj-network.org/lep.html#sensitivity

Documents

Cultural Diversity Training: Albemarle’s Latino Residents An Albemarle County Training By Linda Hemby October 20, 2009