Latinx Studies: Recent Research

This report by Human Rights Watch is based on analyses of publicly available data from the US Sentencing Commission and other agencies, as well as interviews with individuals charged with illegal entry, their families, attorneys, prosecutors, judges, and representatives of humanitarian and advocacy organizations.

This report by the Puerto Rican Agenda, a volunteer coalition and think tank interested in keeping the issues of Puerto Ricans and other Latino groups at the forefront for policy makers in Chicago, tries to capture the present conditions in the Puerto Rican community through different aspects of community life: housing, economic development, education, health, youth and justice, culture, women, and the non-profit sector.

A recent study by the Moffitt Cancer Center in Florida, published in the November supplement of the Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved found that when compared to whites, Hispanics were nearly twice as likely to report a fear of being a guinea pig, and a lack of trust in health care professionals would contribute to unwillingness to participate in cancer screenings.

An analysis of Census data conducted by the National Partnership for Women and Families shows that on average, women in the United States are paid just 77 cents for every dollar paid to men. For Latinas, this disparity is much worse. Overall, Latinas in the United States are paid just 60 cents for every dollar paid to men and just 55 cents for every dollar paid to white, non-Hispanic men.

The National Transgender Discrimination Survey measured transgender experiences of discrimination. This factsheet attempts to examine the impact of anti-transgender and anti-immigrant bias with individual and structural racism. Results of this new analysis showed that Latino/a transgender people are disproportionately impacted by social stigma and economic factors.

A study by researchers at Iowa State University published in the Family and Consumer Sciences Research Journal indicates the acquired eating habits of Hispanic children plays a role in the difficulty Hispanic mothers face, as children are quickly exposed to American eating habits at school and in the homes of friends, as well as influenced through the media.

A new study, published in the journal Family Relations, from the University of Illinois explored the well-being of immigrant Latino families living in six Central Illinois counties. The research team conducted extensive interviews with 120 immigrant Latino parents, primarily mothers. Most of the study participants had been born in Mexico, had lived in the U.S. an average of 12 years, had limited formal education and spoke little English. All families had at least one child under age 18. More than 46 percent of the families were living in poverty, with annual household incomes of less than $20,000.

This report from the Center for American Progress takes a close look at the economic benefits of enacting the DREAM Act. They present an analysis to understand what would happen if the United States were to grant a pathway to legal status to an estimated 2.1 million eligible youth in our country by passing the DREAM Act. Overall, the reoprt finds that the passage of the DREAM Act would add $329 billion to the U.S. economy and create 1.4 million new jobs by 2030, demonstrating the potential of the proposed law to boost economic growth and improve the nation’s fiscal health.

This new report by the Civil Rights Project at UCLA shows that segregation has increased seriously across the country for Latino students, who are attending more intensely segregated and impoverished schools than they have for generations. The segregation increases have been the most dramatic in the West. The typical Latino student in the region attends a school where less than a quarter of their classmates are white; nearly two-thirds are other Latinos; and two-thirds are poor. California, New York and Texas, all states that have been profoundly altered by immigration trends over the last half-century, are among the most segregated states for Latino students along multiple dimensions.

Sensis, a cross-cultural advertising agency, and the digital agency White Horse have released a three-part report comprised of both qualitative and quantitative research that explores how Hispanics handle in-store mobile experiences and what retailers are doing to actively engage Hispanic smartphone users.

This report from the Pew Hispanic Center examines the Hispanic populations in the United States’ 10 metropolitan areas with the largest number of Hispanics. It also contains detailed information on the next 50 largest metropolitan areas by Hispanic population.

A new study from The Education Trust, shows that institutions across the country are producing stronger outcomes for Latinos. The report outlines strategies used by the colleges making great strides in improving their outcomes for Latino students. The report covers only the top 25 institutions making the highest gains in Hispanic graduation rates and in closing the graduation-rate gap between Hispanic and white students from 2004 to 2010.

A new report from the College Board finds that more than 7 out of 10 Latinos who took the SAT are not adequately academically prepared for college success. Latinos made up the largest group of first generation college goers in 2012. According to the report, 62 percent of Latino SAT takers are the first in their families to go to college.