Diversity in Brief — June 11 Edition
Potential of Hispanic Voter Block Doesn't Translate to Turnout
Although there are 21 million eligible Hispanic voters this year, only about 10 million are registered, and even fewer are engaged enough to vote, The New York Times reports. This has prompted a rise in organizations actively working to encourage more voter registration among Hispanics and increase turnout at the polls in November, including national group Mi Familia Vota (My Family Votes).
Even with predicted low turnout among Hispanics, the rising population is still an earmark in this year's presidential campaign as President Obama and Republican hopeful Mitt Romney battle for their votes.
Read more here.
Maryland to vote on same-sex marriage; "˜El HuffPo' site launches in Spain; and more.
Potential of Hispanic Voter Block Doesn't Translate to Turnout
Although there are 21 million eligible Hispanic voters this year, only about 10 million are registered, and even fewer are engaged enough to vote, The New York Times reports. This has prompted a rise in organizations actively working to encourage more voter registration among Hispanics and increase turnout at the polls in November, including national group Mi Familia Vota (My Family Votes).
Even with predicted low turnout among Hispanics, the rising population is still an earmark in this year's presidential campaign as President Obama and Republican hopeful Mitt Romney battle for their votes.
Read more here.
Maryland To Vote on Same-Sex Marriage
An "unofficial" tally of signatures indicated that a referendum on same-sex marriage will appear on the ballot in Maryland in November, The Washington Post reports.
By Thursday, elections officials had validated 70,039 signatures, exceeding the 55,736 needed to put the measure on the ballot, according to the Maryland State Board of Elections website.
If the numbers hold, Maryland voters will be asked if they want to uphold a law passed this year that allows gay nuptials, according to The Post.
The measure, which was signed by Democratic Gov. Martin O'Malley in March, narrowly passed the House of Delegates after falling short in that chamber the year before.
Read more here.
"˜El HuffPo' Site Launches in Spain
The Huffington Post has announced the launch of a new Spanish-language site targeting Spanish readers. El Huffington Post will be a partnership with the Spanish newspaper El PaÃs, the website announced on its blog on Thursday.
The new site, which will be run by Spanish journalists, will include a mix of news and blogging similar to the one familiar to the U.S. HuffPo's readers.
Read more here.
Life-Expectancy Gap Between Races Shrinks
White men and women born in the United States today will probably still outlive black men and women by about three to five years, but the life expectancy gap between races is shrinking, The New York Times reports.
Between 2003 and 2008, the gap declined by about a year for both genders, according to a new report in the Journal of the American Medical Association, The Times reported on Thursday.
The gap in life expectancy between U.S. blacks and whites has reached the lowest point ever recorded, according to the report.
Read more here.
GOP House: No Abortions for Detained Undocumented Immigrants
The House approved a $46 billion Homeland Security Department spending bill that includes a provision that would bar its Immigration and Customs Enforcement arm from providing abortions to the undocumented immigrants they detain, Fox News Latino reports.
The provision, proposed by Rep. Robert Aderholt, R-Ala., would block ICE from using agency funding to provide abortion services for detainees with exceptions in cases of rape, incest or if the life of the mother is endangered.
However, an ICE spokeswoman said the agency has not paid for abortions since it was created in 2003, according to the news report. Despite the bill's passage on largely party-line vote in the Republican-led House, there is little chance the measure will make it through the Democratic-controlled Senate.
Read more here.
Report: Ethnic Diversity Raises Property Values in Southern California
Researchers at the University of California-Irvine believe that ethnic diversity raises home values and lowers crime rates in Southern California communities, the Huffington Post reported.
The researchers studied immigration, ethnic diversity and home-value data from census data and crime reports from the area over a 50-year period.
Previously, cities with more ethnic diversity and immigration saw higher crime rates, according to the HuffPo article. Within the past 10 years, however, communities with more ethnic diversity had less crime.
In terms of housing, the dynamic between ethnic diversity and home values also seems to have changed. Previously, ethnic diversity was correlated to slower home appreciation. That no longer seems to be the case in Southern California, the researchers found.
Read more here.
Maryland To Vote on Same-Sex Marriage
An "unofficial" tally of signatures indicated that a referendum on same-sex marriage will appear on the ballot in Maryland in November, The Washington Post reports.
By Thursday, elections officials had validated 70,039 signatures, exceeding the 55,736 needed to put the measure on the ballot, according to the Maryland State Board of Elections website.
If the numbers hold, Maryland voters will be asked if they want to uphold a law passed this year that allows gay nuptials, according to The Post.
The measure, which was signed by Democratic Gov. Martin O'Malley in March, narrowly passed the House of Delegates after falling short in that chamber the year before.
Read more here.
"˜El HuffPo' Site Launches in Spain
The Huffington Post has announced the launch of a new Spanish-language site targeting Spanish readers. El Huffington Post will be a partnership with the Spanish newspaper El PaÃs, the website announced on its blog on Thursday.
The new site, which will be run by Spanish journalists, will include a mix of news and blogging similar to the one familiar to the U.S. HuffPo's readers.
Read more here.
Life-Expectancy Gap Between Races Shrinks
White men and women born in the United States today will probably still outlive black men and women by about three to five years, but the life expectancy gap between races is shrinking, The New York Times reports.
Between 2003 and 2008, the gap declined by about a year for both genders, according to a new report in the Journal of the American Medical Association, The Times reported on Thursday.
The gap in life expectancy between U.S. blacks and whites has reached the lowest point ever recorded, according to the report.
Read more here.
GOP House: No Abortions for Detained Undocumented Immigrants
The House approved a $46 billion Homeland Security Department spending bill that includes a provision that would bar its Immigration and Customs Enforcement arm from providing abortions to the undocumented immigrants they detain, Fox News Latino reports.
The provision, proposed by Rep. Robert Aderholt, R-Ala., would block ICE from using agency funding to provide abortion services for detainees with exceptions in cases of rape, incest or if the life of the mother is endangered.
However, an ICE spokeswoman said the agency has not paid for abortions since it was created in 2003, according to the news report. Despite the bill's passage on largely party-line vote in the Republican-led House, there is little chance the measure will make it through the Democratic-controlled Senate.
Read more here.
Report: Ethnic Diversity Raises Property Values in Southern California
Researchers at the University of California-Irvine believe that ethnic diversity raises home values and lowers crime rates in Southern California communities, the Huffington Post reported.
The researchers studied immigration, ethnic diversity and home-value data from census data and crime reports from the area over a 50-year period.
Previously, cities with more ethnic diversity and immigration saw higher crime rates, according to the HuffPo article. Within the past 10 years, however, communities with more ethnic diversity had less crime.
In terms of housing, the dynamic between ethnic diversity and home values also seems to have changed. Previously, ethnic diversity was correlated to slower home appreciation. That no longer seems to be the case in Southern California, the researchers found.
Read more here.