Nurturing leadership among Latino population is the key for overcoming a cultural difference between newly arrived Latino immigrants and local community members in rural Minnesota, according to a study by Minnesota State University, Mankato.

Tuesday, January 08, 2002

Nurturing leadership among Latino population is the key for overcoming a cultural difference between newly arrived Latino immigrants and local community members in rural Minnesota, according to a study by Minnesota State University, Mankato.

Being a bridge between the two groups, the leaders can reduce cultural tension and contribute to the positive development of the community, the report says.

The study, conducted by a 12-member research team with support from a Latino advocacy organization, interviewed 269 Latino and non-Latino residents in seven rural Minnesota cities: Albert Lea, Long Prairie, Owatonna, Pelican Rapids, St. James, Willmar and Worthington, trying to identify how those communities have been dealing with the Latino population.

Latino is the largest minority group in each of the communities, occupying 4.3 percent of the total population in Owatonna and 23.8 percent in St. James.

In Albert Lea, the Latino population consists of 1,740 people among 18,356 residents and is the fifth-largest number of Latinos outside the Twin Cities in Minnesota.

While many of the research participants recognized Latinos as a significant workforce and valued the multiculturalism brought to their town, tensions stemming from a cultural difference and discrimination are also evident, according to the report.

The Latino respondents described discrimination and poor treatment by schools, law enforcement offices and employers.

&uot;Small-town attitudes,&uot; which refers to a cultural ethnocentric perspective observed among the white majority, in the regions increases the tension and feelings of exclusion, the study pointed out.

The research also found a &uot;split&uot; among the Latino community between Latinos settled down in the community for a long time and those who arrived recently, and considers the divide &uot;make(s) it difficult to develop a consistent response to the need of Latinos.&uot;

As a way to get over the problem, the report encourages communities to integrate Latino members into local community leadership positions.

The leaders can build cultural bridges within the community, provide positive role models for young Latinos and help reduce the overall cultural tension in the community, the study said.

In Albert Lea, the Latino leadership has been emerging in fields like social services and public offices, according to Linda Lares of Community Action.

&uot;It is true that the Latino population here has a wide range of spectrum, and some pockets exist between the newcomers and the old residents,&uot; she said. Lares thinks that eliminating a sense of fear and disrespect toward other groups – mutually, including the majority white population – is needed.

County employee Yolanda Martinez recognizes the newcomers tend to stay among themselves, and has been trying to connect them with other members in the community. &uot;The newcomer Latinos are overly misrepresented because of cultural differences and the language barrier,&uot; she said.

Jose R. Duenes, chemical abuse prevention specialist at the Chemical Dependency Center, admits the organization’s client base has a disproportionately large number of Latinos. Most of them are newly migrated residents, he said.

But he said the higher risk can be attributed to an unfamiliarity with customs and language, not to ethnicity itself. He believes that alienating the newcomers does not bring any solution. &uot;If you close the door to them, things only get worse,&uot; he said.

&uot;The sooner communities recognize the bicultural tensions and issues in their community as community-wide challenges instead of problems caused by the presence of Latinos, the sooner they will begin positively meeting those challenges,&uot; the report concluded.