Hello GLIDE Community,
We are delighted to be part of the Latinx community during these 30 days acknowledging and celebrating National Hispanic/Latinx Heritage Month and the cultural and historical contributions of those among us whose family heritages include Mexico, the Caribbean, Central, and South America, and Spain.
Every day, we support, lift up and celebrate the people, voices, and issues of the Latinx community through acts of social justice and service. Our Latinx family extends from our innovative staff and bold leaders to our righteous community partners, generous donors, and resilient clients. We act and advocate in solidarity with coalitions that advance equity for Latinx communities throughout the city. We continue to walk in the footsteps of social justice warriors like Delores Huerta and Cesar Chavez. We draw inspiration today from activists such as Sister Norma Pimentel, honored for her unwavering support of migrants, Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, and the many other Latinx leaders who are pursuing justice for all in our society.
This month, we mark Latinx Heritage as American Heritage, with a legacy of cultural and historical achievements in the sciences, arts, literature, law, technology, economics, and government. There are more than 6,800 elected Latinx officials nationwide, and Congress is now, thankfully, more diverse, with six Latinx Senators in the U.S. Senate and 46 Representatives in the House. The fastest-growing population in the U.S., the Latinx community is also an economic driver. In 2019, the economic output of the Latinx community was $2.7 trillion, a nearly 60 percent increase over 2010. Eighteen percent of America’s middle class is now Latinx, roughly four times higher than in 1980 when it was predominantly white.
While we honor this heritage month, we also recognize the stark inequities facing many in the Latinx community. The criminalization of migrants and the crisis at the U.S.-Mexico border is abhorrent. This summer, there were nearly 200,000 migrant apprehensions and expulsions — the highest total in more than two decades. Additionally, the pandemic continues to wreak havoc on Latinx health, jobs, and families. Latinx people are diagnosed with COVID-19 at rates nearly twice that of whites, are hospitalized 2.8 times higher, and dying at a rate 2.3 times higher. The economic toll of the health crisis has been severe. The Latinx community accounted for 23 percent of initial pandemic job losses. Latinas continue to bear the brunt of this job loss, experiencing disproportionately high unemployment and dropping out of the workforce at higher rates than any other demographic group.
At GLIDE, we see the impact of systemic inequity on the Latinx community up close:
• 20% of our clients are Latinx.
• 75% of our Family Youth and Childcare Center families are Latinx — all are low-income.
• 93 % of FYCC families surveyed reported income losses due to the pandemic.
• 71 % of FYCC women surveyed said GLIDE helped them avoid hunger.
Every day, GLIDE is taking steps to overcome these challenges within our Latinx communities across San Francisco. We prevent homelessness, alleviate hunger, support women in the workforce, and intentionally address the systemic inequities that drive more Latinx people into our service lines. We are doing that through our transformative programs and expanded services across the city. In particular, our investments in Latinx women and families are stabilizing families and advancing the financial independence necessary to combat these economic inequities.
GLIDE is proudly part of the Latinx community. As we celebrate this month-long tribute to the community’s diversity, rich culture, and extraordinary contributions, we do so with gratitude for all the progress that has been realized and hope for all that is still to come.
In solidarity,
Karen Hanrahan
President & CEO, GLIDE
(@KarenJHanrahan) · Twitter