Hispanic activists given political tips

By Timothy Pratt (contact)

Wednesday, July 11, 2001 | 9:03 a.m.

James Yapias, chairman of Utah Gov. Mike Leavitt's Hispanic Advisory Council, ended his recent visit to Las Vegas with a question.

"How is it that we, with a Hispanic population of less than 10 percent of the total, have a direct line to the governor, while Nevada's Hispanic community, which is nearly 20 percent of the state, doesn't?" he asked.

The group that Yapias was appointed to lead in 1999 has advised the governor on the concerns of Utah's Hispanic community since 1973.

Fernando Romero, vice-president of Hispanics in Politics, a local organization dedicated to issues such as Hispanic voter registration, said the idea of creating such a council was raised here in 1985 but died soon after for lack of interest.

Buzz Harris, director of appointments for Nevada Gov. Kenny Guinn, said there is nothing like it among the governor's 200-plus commissions and councils.

"But we've been considering it," he said.

Yapias came to Las Vegas to speak with Hispanic activists about the work of his council and to learn about the issues of Nevada's 393,000 Hispanics. But he couldn't help but return to the basic difference between the two states -- one has a much smaller Hispanic population, percentage-wise, but much more of a voice in the state capital.

When the council was created in 1973, the state had less than 5 percent Hispanic population. It was set up together with the Office of Hispanic Affairs by executive order, along with offices on blacks, Pacific Islanders and Asians. These offices work for the governor, and each one has its respective council to act as a link to the community. The councils also make recommendations to the governor.

"The governor at the time was sensitive to minorities," said Leticia Medina, director of the Office of Hispanic Affairs. "That, together with an organized Mexican-American community of seven generations, helped make our state what is still one of only several with executive-order agencies on Hispanics."

Medina said Utah has one of the oldest Mexican consulates in the United States, having recently passed its 90th birthday. "Still, people from other parts of the country are always saying to me -- 'Utah? Hispanics?' "

Yapias gave an example of how the council and the office give a voice to the state's 201,000 Hispanics when he recalled the governor's last two State of the State addresses.

"In November 1999, the governor asked us what issues were important to the Hispanic community, and how the state government had responded to them. In January 2000, he mentioned nothing in his address of what we had told him.

"Then he asked us the same in November 2000 and we kind of said, 'Why go through the same conversation if the results are going to be the same?' But this time he responded and spoke on issues such as the high dropout rate in our community, and what's being done about them."

Ingrid Quiroz, editor of the Salt Lake City-based newspaper La Prensa, said the advisory council and the Office of Hispanic Affairs influence the community and the governor.

"Though Gov. Leavitt may not always agree with them, he listens to what they say," she said.

As for Nevada, with a Hispanic population that has more than tripled in the last decade, Yapias said that Clark County in particular is seeing such rapid growth that services provided today are outdated tomorrow.

"If a young Hispanic male has problems with the law here, for example, he may speak English, but his parents may not. They need counseling services from the county, but there aren't enough Spanish-speaking professionals to meet their needs," he said.

He also mentioned Las Vegas' growing gang problem, which disproportionately affects the Hispanic and black communities and is linked to eight slayings in February and March of this year, according to Metro Police.

"We targeted Hispanic, African-American, and Caucasian youths in gangs six years ago in Salt Lake, and are just now seeing results," he said. The efforts ranged from conferences in schools to passing stiffer laws for youth offenders.

"Here, the county is still identifying programs that might work," he said.

Yapias also said that the Nevada Hispanic community has yet to come together and demand these services, as well as the political representation that their numbers would suggest.

"Nothing will happen until there's enough pressure," he said.

"Here in Las Vegas, it's clear that the Hispanics are essential to the economy. So they need to go to local and state government and say, 'We're the labor force here. What are you going to do for us?' "