SACRAMENTO (OBSNews.com) - This week the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce (USHCC) is having its legislative conference in Washington, DC. The California Hispanic Chamber of Commerce is sending a delegation along with representatives of other Hispanic Chambers of Commerce from up and down the state.
The Sacramento Hispanic Chamber of Commerce will be represented by Dr. Emir Jose Macari, Vice Chair for Advocacy and Dean of the College of Engineering and Computer Science at the California State University, Sacramento -- our Sacramento State.
During the current financial crisis that is affecting every part of our economy, it is more important than ever to have good representation for the Hispanic/Latino community as President Obama's administration begins to work on a recovery that will lessen the impact of the recession and helps us emerge stronger than ever.
Everyone has heard about the "Stimulus Package" officially known as the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009. ARRA has been designed to make a swift and significant impact on our economy and to stop the bleeding of jobs and investment losses through out the United States. California is one of a handful of states that has been disproportionately affected by the financial and credit crises so it is most important that we have strong representation in Washington at an historic time like now.
President Obama to Address USHCC
Tuesday morning President Barack Obama will speak about Education at the US Hispanic Chamber of Commerce's opening session of its 19th Annual Legislative Conference and how it has been the key to fuller integration of Latinos into mainstream American society.
US unemployment figures show that we have surpassed the 10% mark, and more jobs are being lost every day. However, among educated populations, those with at least a Bachelor's degree, that figure is much lower; currently around 4.1%. That is why it is critically important that we inform our constituents of the need to attain more and better education.
The SHCC is front and center in the struggle to create a more educated Hispanic workforce, and its members are being represented every step of the way. We have endorsed or opposed candidates and legislation in order to improve the position of Hispanic business leaders. We are currently working with the California Air Resources Board to ensure that AB-32, a much needed legislation that was championed by one of us, former speaker Fabian Nunez, does not impact negatively on Hispanic-owned businesses, especially at this time when we are in recovery mode.
We need to ensure that as college education becomes more expensive and further away from the reach of many of our underserved constituents, the Federal Government invests in grants and scholarships to make it more affordable and to help our Hispanic population become empowered and full members of the recovering economy.
This is a time to retool, rethink and position ourselves in a place where we can better impact the growth of our state's economy. Education of Latinos plays a crucial role at this time. We need to ensure that Latino parents and their children understand how critical it is to receive an education and, in so doing ,become part of the solution and not add to the problems of our state. Together we can! As we get ready to honor the legacy of one of our most important leaders, Cesar Chavez, we should join our voices together and yell out "SI SE PUEDE"......(Yes we can).....but to do so, we need everyone's involvement.
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