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1 topic to highlight: Latinos resent inflation
US Latinos started the year less optimistic
about the economy compared to early 2021, as inflation threatens to reduce their significant purchasing power.
The sentiment of US Latinos around how well they think they and the US economy will do, year over year.
Towards the end of 2021, that confidence dropped quite a bitJacque Schrag/Axios
Why It Matters
: Latinos have been drivers of economic growth for the past decade.
Your contribution to the recovery could be diminished if your ability to shop, consume, save or invest is affected.
They have helped fuel the economy as workers, business owners and consumers, even though they are generally paid less than their peers, have less access to funds to start a business and have largely had a harder time saving, according to studies.
If they were a country, by their gross economic output they would be the seventh largest GDP in the world.
In figures
: The 7% inflation registered at the end of last year leads to price increases in items such as food, cars and fuel, according to the latest figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
As a result, the percentage of Latinos surveyed who said they were better off than last year fell from 62% to 59%, while those who said they expected to be better off financially in 2022 fell from 78% to 70%, according to the Consumer Confidence Index. Hispanic consumer.
Between the Lines
: A Bank of America study from late last year found that non-white Americans, especially Black and Latino families, and low-income households typically spend a larger share of their income buying basic goods.
Those products, like food and gasoline, tend to see more price increases.
Latinos are the group most vulnerable to phone scams.
So they can be avoided
Dec. 23, 202101:56
Those families also tend to use cash more often, even as much has moved toward digital payments with the pandemic.
It happens because Latino and black people especially face additional barriers to be able to process bank accounts or have to pay more in bank commissions when they have one.
That makes them more vulnerable to rising prices.
What's Coming
: Inflation was the fourth biggest concern for US Latinos in December, according to an Axios/Ipsos poll with Noticias Telemundo.
That could sway Latino voters in the midterm elections scheduled for November of this year.
2. When you are black or Latino, there are no pharmacies in sight
Black and Latino neighborhoods in 30 major
US cities have considerably fewer pharmacies than their non-Hispanic white counterparts, a disparity that deepens health inequalities.
Megan Robinson/Axios
Why It Matters
: The lack of places to fill prescriptions, get vaccinated, and buy birth control or medicine puts residents of those neighborhoods at a severe disadvantage.
Black and Latino people already have health insurance rates that are lower than their peers, as well as less access to preventive care and less chance of timely diagnosis of illnesses.
Those inequalities prevail even after accounting for socioeconomic differences between communities.
What's happening
: One in three neighborhoods was labeled a "pharmacy desert" with none available, according to research.
Those deserts were more likely to be in majority black or Latino areas.
The problem was particularly pronounced in cities with a lot of diversity, such as Chicago, Los Angeles and Dallas.
The average distance to the nearest pharmacy was one mile (1.6 kilometers), which implies considerable difficulties if people depend on public transport or have physical mobility problems.
Bottom line
: Local governments can address disparities by offering tax breaks to pharmacies that open branches in "deserts," according to researchers who studied the issue.
State authorities could also provide pharmacies with slightly higher Medicaid and Medicare reimbursement rates to incentivize them not to leave those communities behind.
3. Farm workers report toxic exposure
Hispanic women farmworkers
are raising awareness this month about the toxic impact of pesticides.
Backpacks decorated by farmworkers in California Courtesy of Lideres Campesinas
Details
: Women and their families are decorating backpacks with information on pesticides and what to do in case of poisoning.
The bags will be displayed on social media as part of an annual national campaign led by nonprofit organizations such as Lideres Campesinas and the Alianza Nacional de Campesinas.
The campaign ends in February, which is Pesticide Awareness and Safety Education Month in the United States.
The Big Picture
: Farmworkers develop more illnesses and injuries from chemicals than workers in other occupations, according to studies.
Female farmworkers are twice as likely to have these health problems, largely because they work more in nut and fruit fields (which are sprayed more regularly), according to research.
Pesticide exposure among farmworkers has been linked to babies with birth defects.
For reference
: 64% of agricultural and field workers are of Hispanic origin, according to the US Department of Agriculture.
More than a quarter of farm workers who sort or pick produce are women.
News push
: The National Farmworker Alliance and a coalition that also includes the Michael J. Fox Foundation sued the Environmental Protection Agency in September over the pesticide paraquat.
Last summer, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) reapproved the herbicide paraquat – used in soybean, cotton and almond fields – even though it is banned in more than 30 countries in part because ingestion direct kills and studies have linked it to the development of Parkinson's disease.
4. Giving a boost to Latin restaurants
Hispanic-owned restaurants in major
US cities that need help staying in business due to the pandemic can now receive up to $10,000 in grants.
Chefs in the kitchen at La Perla Puerto Rican restaurant in Oakland, California, February 2021 Stephen Lam/The San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images
Why it matters
: The food and hospitality industries are still reeling from the massive shutdowns triggered by the coronavirus in 2020. That's especially true for small businesses owned by Black, Latino, Asian and Native American people.
Funds that initially helped other businesses during the pandemic, such as the federal government's Payment Protection Program (PPP), barely reached Latinos.
What You Should Know
: The Hispanic Chamber of Commerce has partnered with food delivery service GrubHub to award more than $2 million in grants to 300 restaurants.
The grants range from $5,000 to $10,000, and are intended for restaurants that are majority Hispanic-owned, have fewer than 20 full-time workers and have federal tax identification, the chamber said.
Restaurant owners have until January 26 to apply.
5. Summary of key news in Latin America and the Caribbean
A Brazilian special military unit
stormed a favela in Rio de Janeiro early Wednesday morning, in a new wave of raids supposedly to eradicate drug trafficking in the poorest neighborhoods.
That unit has been accused of committing torture and extrajudicial executions, and has been criticized for repeatedly killing civilians from stray bullets during its operations.
In May, 28 people were killed during a similar raid in Jacarezinho, the same favela where the unit began operations on Wednesday.
The UN called for an independent investigation after reports of executions last year.
Rio Governor Claudio Castro said these units are the only way to get the gangs out of the favelas.
A member of the Brazilian Special Police Operations Battalion in the Jacarezinho favela, on January 19, 2022.Carl de Souza/AFP via Getty Images
Puerto Rico's bankruptcy appears to be over
: A judge Tuesday approved a restructuring plan that will significantly reduce the amount of debt the island must pay.
Negotiations between Puerto Rico and the US federal government had been ongoing for five years.
The financial crisis had a greater impact in causing Puerto Ricans to leave the island permanently than the impact of the disastrous Hurricane Maria of 2017, which in turn worsened the economy.
In January, two journalists were murdered in Mexico, one of the most dangerous countries to practice the profession
Jan. 18, 202201:49
Two journalists were killed in Mexico
this week for doing their jobs, extending a deadly streak.
Mexico is the deadliest country to be a journalist, outside of war zones.
Most of the deaths remain unpunished.
Journalists in the country are in danger, both from the actions of organized crime and corrupt politicians.
6. 🍰 1 smile to go: Dancing with the baker
TikTok has become an important promotion mechanism
for a Salvadoran pastry chef who mixes his pastry skills with reggaeton and rancheras.
This young pastry chef makes his business prosper thanks to the popularity achieved on TikTok
Dec 29, 202101:43
Details
: Carlos Enrique Monzón has amassed more than 550,000 followers with tutorials on flan, homemade fondant, rainbow jello, and short videos of him decorating quinceañera cakes.
It is an example of how Latinos and Latin Americans are increasingly turning to social platforms, especially high-growth ones like TikTok, to give their businesses greater reach.
