RECENT ARTICLES

Edward R. Roybal Legacy Gala

A Promoter Committed to Her Community

A Caller’s Story

Acceso Hispano’s Bilingual Hotline

Acceso Hispano Presentation and training

READ FULL ARTICLES

Edward R. Roybal Legacy Gala

February 10, 2009

For more information visit NALEO.

A Promoter Committed to Her Community

Linda Sosa arrived in the United States in 1982, leaving behind Aguas Calientes Mexico, where she was born. Six months after arriving in Colorado she became concerned about the “clash of cultures” that she was witnessing in her community. The communication problems her compatriots faced in dealing with the surrounding American culture went well beyond language barriers—they were a result of strong cultural differences. She saw this problem reflected in a variety of situations, from parents who were afraid to take their children to see the doctor, to teenagers who refused to speak Spanish with their parents because they were ashamed of being different from their American friends.

Linda got involved in the church and began to work at the Museum of Anthropology in Denver supporting an exhibition on the Aztecs, despite knowing little English. She began to let the other Mexican families in her community know about the exhibition, and encouraged them to bring their children to see this exhibition about their cultural roots. From there she and others from the community began to organize traditional dance groups, singing groups, and other activities to celebrate their Mexican heritage and encourage the youth to be proud of where they came from. Linda began to organize small acts of solidarity with her community like bringing food to a group of people who were stuck in a Detention Center on Christmas, orienting families about how to obtain health insurance, or teaching them how to discipline their children in new ways that didn’t include corporal punishment.

She took English courses at her local Community College, and started looking for answers to important issues or problems that she observed within the community. She identified doctors, lawyers, psychologies, and even journalists who spoke Spanish and were willing to help—sometimes for free. She approached the local Spanish-language television stations (Univisión, Telemundo, TV Azteca) and asked for their help in denouncing abuse by authorities that she had witnessed in her community and demanding accountability from them—a strategy that continues to be effective today in keeping abuses in check. She also began to organize educational “social Fridays” with her church to talk about different issues affecting the community. Linda is often contacted by various organizations throughout the state to help facilitate contact and communication with the Mexican community in Colorado.

In speaking with Linda, her passion for helping others shines through. She demonstrates natural leadership and a strong spirit. Her perseverance is fueled by a tremendous dedication to her work (which she does on a completely voluntary basis), and compassion for her community. If she doesn’t know the response to a question, she goes out and finds it. If someone from her community needs help, she does whatever it takes to find a solution to their problem.

When asked to share some of her wisdom after years of working on behalf of the community, Linda emphasizes the importance of helping youth. “Youth are our future, and to work with them requires a lot of patience.” She goes on to add that to be a promoter “one must have the heart to truly help—to open oneself and listen to people. They develop a lot of trust in you and tell you their deepest secrets. It is important to never betray the community and never abuse their trust.”

A Caller’s Story

Ernesto Solis is from a small town in Nicaragua, and currently lives in Arlington, Virginia. His family is still in Nicaragua, including his little sister who is the youngest of their large family. Ernesto came to the U.S. to work and live but remains the caretaker of his family, providing both financially and emotionally for them.

Five months ago, Ernesto’s family called him to say that his youngest sister had been abducted along with another young girl from their town. The family was distraught, didn’t know where to turn and asked him to help find her. He began making calls, organizing prayer chains and talking to anyone and everyone who might listen and provide advice on what he could do.

Several months passed and he felt helpless, but he continued to make calls, console his father, and ask others for help. One day he saw a brief television announcement that said, “…if you need help or need somewhere to turn in a time of crisis call the Linea de Ayuda.” Ernesto picked up his phone and called the hotline, and spoke with Jairo—one of Acceso Hispano’s hotline specialists. Jairo listened to the story—a familiar one that he had heard several times before of a young girl abducted and a family member desperate to find her.

Jairo gave Ernesto several referrals to both U.S.-based groups and international organizations that could potentially help him find his sister. Jairo made the first call to advocate on behalf of Ernesto, which started the ball rolling in the search for his sister. Ernesto kept in touch with Jairo over 3 weeks, keeping him up to date on his search. Jairo told the rest of the Acceso Hispano team that he had a good feeling and that he was sure it was only a matter of time until they’d find her.

On a Friday morning, Ernesto called Jairo with elation in his voice—his sister had been found in Guatemala by the authorities working on the case. Ernesto’s father and family in Nicaragua were amazed that even being so far away, he was able to solve the family’s crisis. He took a day off of work the following week to go into Washington DC to thank the Acceso Hispano team in person, so appreciative of the emotional support he had received and the referrals which led to finding his sister. Fortunately she is still alive, though very ill after having suffered a horrible and unimaginable ordeal. Ernesto’s family is relieved and grateful for the blessing of having her with them again.

Acceso Hispano’s Bilingual Hotline

Acceso Hispano’s team manages a toll-free bilingual hotline, so that callers from across the country can access the information and referrals that they need to address a wide variety of issues.  Over 100,000 people have been helped since the hotline was created in 1996.

Callers typically hear about the hotline through Spanish-language educational radio programs produced by Hispanic Communications Network, a close partner of the Self Reliance Foundation.  Many callers also hear about the hotline through word of mouth however, with approximately 20% of calls currently received based on referrals.

The Acceso Hispano team fields calls from across the country, from rural Washington state to New York City, Arkansas to Minnesota and rural Georgia to Los Angeles.  The people who call have a wide range of needs.  Some examples of calls the hotline has received include:

• A Mexican woman in Reno, Nevada about to give birth who needed to know which hospital would accept her without health insurance;
• An elderly Puerto Rican woman in New York who wanted to understand how she could begin receiving her social security pensions;
• A Guatemalan worker from a meat-packing plant in Oregon seeking to denounce to the public that they were being forced to pack spoiled meat for sale and threatened with losing their jobs when they protested;
• A Dominican entreprenuer in Florida who wanted to know what small business loans and advice might be available to him;
• A migrant farm worker from Mexico whose family and community was experiencing skin rashes and nausea from the pesticides and wanted to know where they could get help.

This a just a sampling of the daily calls received by the hotline staff.  These callers are in turn referred to the appropriate community-based services (health centers, clinics, small business associations and counselors, lawyers, etc) and/or national hotlines or governmental agencies (EPA, FDA, Social Security Administration, Medicare, etc).  When the caller does not speak English, Acceso Hispano staff ensure that they refer the caller to a Spanish-speaking hotline or person, or they call in advance to identify a bilingual resource and then link that person directly.

Acceso Hispano is seeking to expand our database of service providers beyond the existing 17,500 resources we had in December of 2008.  If you provide services to Hispanics in your community, we ask you to visit our Service Providers section and Join Our Network.

We are also seeking to expand our network of community-based promoters, who can reach the Hispanic community directly and provide a bridget between the community and local service providers.  If you are interested or know someone who might be, please visit our Promotores section and contact us at info@accesohispano.org if you are interested.

If you are interested in providing any level of financial support to help us continue and expand our activities, please visit our donation page or contact us directly.

Thank you for your support and referrals!

Acceso Hispano Presentation and training

December 11, 2008

to

December 12, 2008

Acceso Hispano Presentation and training