New Mexico-Would it be a detention facility or a family residential center, as the development group pushing the plan refers to it?Perhaps more importantly, would it be an economic boost for Las Cruces, or a dangerous, risky endeavor?There are far more questions than answers among Las Cruces residents and city officials about a proposed facility on the city's West Mesa where undocumented migrants would be kept.
January 14, 2010
San Antonio, TX – Today, the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF), the nation’s leading Latino legal civil rights organization, strongly criticized the decision of Texas Governor Rick Perry not to pursue federal Race to the Top funds despite the fact that these funds are intended to help states increase student achievement and high school graduation rates, decrease achievement gaps, and improve teacher performance. Under the program, Texas could receive up to $700 million to prepare students for success in college and the workplace; turn around the state’s lowest-performing schools and build data systems that track student success.
“Texas desperately needs Race to the Top funds,” stated Nina Perales, MALDEF Southwest Regional Counsel. “Our school districts are struggling with deficits and the Texas Education Agency’s own data demonstrates that our students are performing far below national educational standards. Forty-eight percent of Texas public school students are Latino; the Latino community and all of Texas is looking to the Governor to improve education, not turn his back on the schoolchildren of Texas.”
http://maldef.org/news/releases/maldef_criticizes_texas_governors_01142010/
(Posted by Victoria Bell)
Texas could gain between three and five congressional seats after the 2010 census is tallied – more than any other state.
Besides more representation, additional seats would mean a bigger slice of federal resources and funds – more than $400 billion is doled out each year based on population data. And Texas certainly could use its share for hospitals, schools and roads.
But we need an accurate count to make it happen.
Unfortunately, Texas also ranks second behind California among states with hard-to-count populations, according to a study of census data by the Annie E. Casey Foundation. More than a quarter of Texas' population lives in hard-to-count areas, according to the study.
And Dallas and Harris are among the top 10 counties with the greatest number of people living in hard-to-count areas. They also happen to be counties with large Hispanic populations.
The data has spurred several national Hispanic organizations to mobilize to ensure an accurate headcount of all Latinos by April 1. Next month will see a flurry of activity by local and national organizations and officials...Read More
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