National Council of La Raza
Encyclopedia
The National Council of La Raza
(NCLR) is a non-profit
and non-partisan
advocacy
group in the United States
, focused on improving opportunities for Hispanic
s. It is sometimes confused with La Raza Unida
. According to the organization's website, it is "the largest national Hispanic civil rights and advocacy organization in the United States" and "serves all Hispanic subgroups in all regions of the country". NCLR receives funding from philanthropic
organizations, such as the Ford Foundation
and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, as well as corporation
s such as Citigroup
and Wal-Mart
. NCLR serves millions of Americans every year in 41 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico by working with its affiliate network of nearly 300 community-based organizations located throughout the country. The NCLR is headquartered in Washington, D.C.
and has eight regional offices in Atlanta, Chicago
, Los Angeles
, New York, Phoenix
, Sacramento
, San Antonio, and San Juan, Puerto Rico
. Janet Murguía
currently serves as President and Chief Executive Officer of NCLR.
NCLR’s policy team also works on a range of similar issues including civic engagement, criminal and juvenile justice, wealth-building, housing, education, health, and that for which they are most well known, immigration. The organization advocates on behalf of Hispanics in the United States by conducting research and informing policy-makers about how proposed or existing legislation affects the Latino community.
, and Dr. Ernesto Galarza. The resulting reports showed that Mexican Americans needed more organized advocacy groups to work on their behalf at both the local and national level.
As a result, Gallegos, Samora and Galarza founded the Southwest Council of La Raza (SWCLR) in Phoenix
, Arizona
, in 1968. SWCLR was given financial support from the Ford Foundation, the National Council of Churches
, and the United Auto Workers
, and the organization received 501(c)(3) status later that year.
In 1973, the SWCLR became a national organization, changed its name to the National Council of La Raza, and moved its headquarters to Washington, D.C. Early disagreements among the organization's leadership caused the Ford Foundation to threaten to withhold funding, resulting in President Henry Santiestevan's resignation and the election of Raul Yzaguirre
.
In 1973, the NCLR bylaws were amended to require equal representation of women on the board of directors.
Beginning in about 1975, the NCLR began expanding its focus to include the issues of non-Mexican American
Latino
s. This policy was made official in 1979. By 1980, the NCLR was funded almost entirely by the federal government.
When the Reagan Administration
slashed social funding, the NCLR was forced to cut back the scale of its operations. As a result, the organization began focusing on national policy and concentrating its efforts in Washington, D.C. After the 1996 Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act
, state governments exerted more control over the disbursement of welfare funds, which led to the development of the NCLR's Field Advocacy Project to influence decisions at the state and local levels.
” it means “the people,” or “the Hispanic people of the New World” — people of Chicano
(i.e. Mexican American
) and Mexican
descent and the Hispanic
world, as well as mestizo
s who share Native American
or national Hispanic heritage. . The concept of inclusiveness was initially promoted by Jose Vasconselos as part of the phrase and title of his essay, "La Raza Cosmica
", the mixing of white, black, and native, in the Western Hemisphere.
talk radio
host George Putnam
, call NCLR exclusionary in its approach to civil rights. Republican congressman Charlie Norwood
of Georgia's ninth district criticized congressional earmarking of four million dollars for NCLR housing initiatives. Anti-illegal immigration websites, such as American Patrol
and The American Resistance
, accuse NCLR of encouraging illegal immigration to the United States.
NCLR responds to critics by stating that it has never been racially or ethnically exclusionary, has never supported the notion of a “Reconquista
” or “Aztlán
”, has never used, and unequivocally rejects, the motto “Por La Raza todo. Fuera de La Raza nada" [often translated as "For the Race, everything, outside the Race, nothing"], has supported numerous measures to ensure that all Americans have the freedom to choose where to live, and that its programs are covered by civil rights laws administered by independent agencies at the federal, state, and local level. NCLR wrote a letter to Rep. Norwood explaining that funding is given to a subsidiary of the organization called the Raza Development Fund which provides funding for affordable housing, health care centers and educational facilities.
NCLR also denies supporting illegal immigration, reiterating its support for effective and reasonable border security and immigration-law enforcement. Its website states that it “has repeatedly recognized the right of the United States, as a sovereign nation, to control its borders. Moreover, NCLR has supported numerous specific measures to strengthen border enforcement.” In a speech in San Diego, NCLR CEO Janet Murguía stated: "First, as a sovereign nation, the United States has the right to determine who comes and who stays. . . [It also] has a right to consider enforcement at a variety of levels, including border enforcement, interior enforcement, and workplace enforcement. . . We support enforcement...[because] as Americans, we recognize it's the right thing to do."
La Raza
In the Spanish language the term Raza translates to "race". Its meaning varies amongst various Spanish-speaking peoples. For instance, in Spain, "Raza" may denote specifically Spanish and often of a something or someone of a European Christian heritage. The Francoist film Raza, from 1944, which...
(NCLR) is a non-profit
Non-profit organization
Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...
and non-partisan
Non-partisan democracy
Nonpartisan democracy is a system of representative government or organization such that universal and periodic elections take place without reference to political parties.-Overview:...
advocacy
Advocacy
Advocacy is a political process by an individual or a large group which normally aims to influence public-policy and resource allocation decisions within political, economic, and social systems and institutions; it may be motivated from moral, ethical or faith principles or simply to protect an...
group in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, focused on improving opportunities for Hispanic
Hispanic
Hispanic is a term that originally denoted a relationship to Hispania, which is to say the Iberian Peninsula: Andorra, Gibraltar, Portugal and Spain. During the Modern Era, Hispanic sometimes takes on a more limited meaning, particularly in the United States, where the term means a person of ...
s. It is sometimes confused with La Raza Unida
Raza Unida Party
Partido Nacional de La Raza Unida is an American political party centered on Chicano interests. The party was termed La Raza in reference to the Mestizo people. During the 1970s the Party campaigned for better housing, work, and educational opportunities for Mexican-Americans...
. According to the organization's website, it is "the largest national Hispanic civil rights and advocacy organization in the United States" and "serves all Hispanic subgroups in all regions of the country". NCLR receives funding from philanthropic
Philanthropy
Philanthropy etymologically means "the love of humanity"—love in the sense of caring for, nourishing, developing, or enhancing; humanity in the sense of "what it is to be human," or "human potential." In modern practical terms, it is "private initiatives for public good, focusing on quality of...
organizations, such as the Ford Foundation
Ford Foundation
The Ford Foundation is a private foundation incorporated in Michigan and based in New York City created to fund programs that were chartered in 1936 by Edsel Ford and Henry Ford....
and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, as well as corporation
Corporation
A corporation is created under the laws of a state as a separate legal entity that has privileges and liabilities that are distinct from those of its members. There are many different forms of corporations, most of which are used to conduct business. Early corporations were established by charter...
s such as Citigroup
Citigroup
Citigroup Inc. or Citi is an American multinational financial services corporation headquartered in Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States. Citigroup was formed from one of the world's largest mergers in history by combining the banking giant Citicorp and financial conglomerate...
and Wal-Mart
Wal-Mart
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. , branded as Walmart since 2008 and Wal-Mart before then, is an American public multinational corporation that runs chains of large discount department stores and warehouse stores. The company is the world's 18th largest public corporation, according to the Forbes Global 2000...
. NCLR serves millions of Americans every year in 41 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico by working with its affiliate network of nearly 300 community-based organizations located throughout the country. The NCLR is headquartered in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
and has eight regional offices in Atlanta, Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, New York, Phoenix
Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix is the capital, and largest city, of the U.S. state of Arizona, as well as the sixth most populated city in the United States. Phoenix is home to 1,445,632 people according to the official 2010 U.S. Census Bureau data...
, Sacramento
Sacramento
Sacramento is the capital of the state of California, in the United States of America.Sacramento may also refer to:- United States :*Sacramento County, California*Sacramento, Kentucky*Sacramento – San Joaquin River Delta...
, San Antonio, and San Juan, Puerto Rico
San Juan, Puerto Rico
San Juan , officially Municipio de la Ciudad Capital San Juan Bautista , is the capital and most populous municipality in Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States. As of the 2010 census, it had a population of 395,326 making it the 46th-largest city under the jurisdiction of...
. Janet Murguía
Janet Murguía
Janet Murguia is a prominent civil rights leader in the United States. She grew up in Kansas City, Kansas but now lives in Washington, D.C. and works as a renowned advocate for the Latino community...
currently serves as President and Chief Executive Officer of NCLR.
Work
NCLR works on a variety of different issues affecting the Latino community in the U.S. such as health, housing, education, workforce development, and youth leadership. NCLR’s Institute for Hispanic Health works to reduce the incidence, burden, and impact of health conditions such as diabetes, heart disease, cancer, and HIV/AIDS. The NCLR Homeownership Network operates in 20 states and provides counseling on purchasing a home and managing the investment after purchase. NCLR also has both early childhood and secondary education programs which stress literacy, college preparation, and parent involvement. The organization’s education programs also address the needs of Latino and English language learner students through a network of community-based charter schools. In addition, NCLR works to increase employment opportunities for Latino youth through its Escalera program. Youth leadership is also stressed in the Líderes initiative that links youth development organizations around the country into one national network. Through all these programs, NCLR provides technical assistance to its network of community-based organizations around the country working on the same issues.NCLR’s policy team also works on a range of similar issues including civic engagement, criminal and juvenile justice, wealth-building, housing, education, health, and that for which they are most well known, immigration. The organization advocates on behalf of Hispanics in the United States by conducting research and informing policy-makers about how proposed or existing legislation affects the Latino community.
History
In the early 1960s, a group of young Mexican Americans in Washington, DC formed the National Organization for Mexican American Services (NOMAS). The organization existed primarily to provide technical assistance to Hispanic groups and bring them together under one umbrella. NOMAS presented a proposal to the Ford Foundation to conduct a study of Mexican Americans, which ultimately led the foundation to finance two studies. The first was conducted by the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), while the second less academic study was conducted by three Mexican Americans, Herman Gallegos, Dr. Julian SamoraJulian Samora
Dr. Julian Samora was a Mexican American teacher, scholar and community activist who helped to pioneer the field of Latino Studies....
, and Dr. Ernesto Galarza. The resulting reports showed that Mexican Americans needed more organized advocacy groups to work on their behalf at both the local and national level.
As a result, Gallegos, Samora and Galarza founded the Southwest Council of La Raza (SWCLR) in Phoenix
Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix is the capital, and largest city, of the U.S. state of Arizona, as well as the sixth most populated city in the United States. Phoenix is home to 1,445,632 people according to the official 2010 U.S. Census Bureau data...
, Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
, in 1968. SWCLR was given financial support from the Ford Foundation, the National Council of Churches
National Council of Churches
The National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA is an ecumenical partnership of 37 Christian faith groups in the United States. Its member denominations, churches, conventions, and archdioceses include Mainline Protestant, Orthodox, African American, Evangelical, and historic peace...
, and the United Auto Workers
United Auto Workers
The International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America, better known as the United Auto Workers , is a labor union which represents workers in the United States and Puerto Rico, and formerly in Canada. Founded as part of the Congress of Industrial...
, and the organization received 501(c)(3) status later that year.
In 1973, the SWCLR became a national organization, changed its name to the National Council of La Raza, and moved its headquarters to Washington, D.C. Early disagreements among the organization's leadership caused the Ford Foundation to threaten to withhold funding, resulting in President Henry Santiestevan's resignation and the election of Raul Yzaguirre
Raul Yzaguirre
Raul Humberto Yzaguirre is an American civil rights activist. Currently a life member of the Council on Foreign Relations, he previously served as the president and CEO of the National Council of La Raza from 1974 to 2004. On November 30, 2009 he was nominated by President Barack H...
.
In 1973, the NCLR bylaws were amended to require equal representation of women on the board of directors.
Beginning in about 1975, the NCLR began expanding its focus to include the issues of non-Mexican American
Mexican American
Mexican Americans are Americans of Mexican descent. As of July 2009, Mexican Americans make up 10.3% of the United States' population with over 31,689,000 Americans listed as of Mexican ancestry. Mexican Americans comprise 66% of all Hispanics and Latinos in the United States...
Latino
Latino
The demonyms Latino and Latina , are defined in English language dictionaries as:* "a person of Latin-American descent."* "A Latin American."* "A person of Hispanic, especially Latin-American, descent, often one living in the United States."...
s. This policy was made official in 1979. By 1980, the NCLR was funded almost entirely by the federal government.
When the Reagan Administration
Reagan Administration
The United States presidency of Ronald Reagan, also known as the Reagan administration, was a Republican administration headed by Ronald Reagan from January 20, 1981, to January 20, 1989....
slashed social funding, the NCLR was forced to cut back the scale of its operations. As a result, the organization began focusing on national policy and concentrating its efforts in Washington, D.C. After the 1996 Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act
Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act
The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 is a United States federal law considered to be a fundamental shift in both the method and goal of federal cash assistance to the poor. The bill added a workforce development component to welfare legislation, encouraging...
, state governments exerted more control over the disbursement of welfare funds, which led to the development of the NCLR's Field Advocacy Project to influence decisions at the state and local levels.
Definition of the phrase "La Raza"
In the context that NCLR uses it, “La RazaLa Raza
In the Spanish language the term Raza translates to "race". Its meaning varies amongst various Spanish-speaking peoples. For instance, in Spain, "Raza" may denote specifically Spanish and often of a something or someone of a European Christian heritage. The Francoist film Raza, from 1944, which...
” it means “the people,” or “the Hispanic people of the New World” — people of Chicano
Chicano
The terms "Chicano" and "Chicana" are used in reference to U.S. citizens of Mexican descent. However, those terms have a wide range of meanings in various parts of the world. The term began to be widely used during the Chicano Movement, mainly among Mexican Americans, especially in the movement's...
(i.e. Mexican American
Mexican American
Mexican Americans are Americans of Mexican descent. As of July 2009, Mexican Americans make up 10.3% of the United States' population with over 31,689,000 Americans listed as of Mexican ancestry. Mexican Americans comprise 66% of all Hispanics and Latinos in the United States...
) and Mexican
Mexican people
Mexican people refers to all persons from Mexico, a multiethnic country in North America, and/or who identify with the Mexican cultural and/or national identity....
descent and the Hispanic
Hispanic
Hispanic is a term that originally denoted a relationship to Hispania, which is to say the Iberian Peninsula: Andorra, Gibraltar, Portugal and Spain. During the Modern Era, Hispanic sometimes takes on a more limited meaning, particularly in the United States, where the term means a person of ...
world, as well as mestizo
Mestizo
Mestizo is a term traditionally used in Latin America, Philippines and Spain for people of mixed European and Native American heritage or descent...
s who share Native American
Indigenous peoples of the Americas
The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
or national Hispanic heritage. . The concept of inclusiveness was initially promoted by Jose Vasconselos as part of the phrase and title of his essay, "La Raza Cosmica
La Raza Cósmica
Published in 1925, La Raza Cósmica is an essay written by late Mexican philosopher, secretary of education, and 1929 presidential candidate, José Vasconcelos to express the ideology of a future "fifth race" in the Americas; an agglomeration of all the races in the world with no respect to color or...
", the mixing of white, black, and native, in the Western Hemisphere.
Controversy
Some critics, such as conservativeConservatism
Conservatism is a political and social philosophy that promotes the maintenance of traditional institutions and supports, at the most, minimal and gradual change in society. Some conservatives seek to preserve things as they are, emphasizing stability and continuity, while others oppose modernism...
talk radio
Talk radio
Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often feature interviews with a number of different guests. Talk radio typically includes an element of listener participation, usually by broadcasting live...
host George Putnam
George Putnam (newsman)
George Putnam was an American television news reporter and talk show host based in Los Angeles. He was known for his catchy phrase "See ya at ten, see ya then" intro prior to a broadcast of the news.-Biography:...
, call NCLR exclusionary in its approach to civil rights. Republican congressman Charlie Norwood
Charlie Norwood
Charles Whitlow Norwood, Jr., D.D.S. was an American politician and dentist, serving as a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from 1995 until his death...
of Georgia's ninth district criticized congressional earmarking of four million dollars for NCLR housing initiatives. Anti-illegal immigration websites, such as American Patrol
Glenn Spencer
Glenn Spencer is an American political and illegal immigration activist.In the 2000s Spencer gained media attention, most notably from Lou Dobbs of CNN, when he converted his ranch on the Arizona and Mexico border into a hi-tech security zone complete with infrared cameras, aerial drones and motion...
and The American Resistance
American Renaissance (magazine)
-Cancellation of 2010, 2011 conferences:In February 2010, following protests to hotel management of several hotels, which Jared Taylor claimed included some death threats, American Renaissance's biennial conference was canceled...
, accuse NCLR of encouraging illegal immigration to the United States.
NCLR responds to critics by stating that it has never been racially or ethnically exclusionary, has never supported the notion of a “Reconquista
Reconquista (Mexico)
The term Reconquista was popularized by contemporary Mexican writers Carlos Fuentes and Elena Poniatowska to describe the increased demographic and cultural presence of Mexicans in the Southwestern United States....
” or “Aztlán
Aztlán
Aztlán is the mythical ancestral home of the Nahua peoples, one of the main cultural groups in Mesoamerica. And, by extension, is the mythical homeland of the Uto-Aztecan peoples. Aztec is the Nahuatl word for "people from Aztlan".-Legend:...
”, has never used, and unequivocally rejects, the motto “Por La Raza todo. Fuera de La Raza nada" [often translated as "For the Race, everything, outside the Race, nothing"], has supported numerous measures to ensure that all Americans have the freedom to choose where to live, and that its programs are covered by civil rights laws administered by independent agencies at the federal, state, and local level. NCLR wrote a letter to Rep. Norwood explaining that funding is given to a subsidiary of the organization called the Raza Development Fund which provides funding for affordable housing, health care centers and educational facilities.
NCLR also denies supporting illegal immigration, reiterating its support for effective and reasonable border security and immigration-law enforcement. Its website states that it “has repeatedly recognized the right of the United States, as a sovereign nation, to control its borders. Moreover, NCLR has supported numerous specific measures to strengthen border enforcement.” In a speech in San Diego, NCLR CEO Janet Murguía stated: "First, as a sovereign nation, the United States has the right to determine who comes and who stays. . . [It also] has a right to consider enforcement at a variety of levels, including border enforcement, interior enforcement, and workplace enforcement. . . We support enforcement...[because] as Americans, we recognize it's the right thing to do."
See also
- Esteban E. TorresEsteban Edward TorresEsteban Edward Torres is a politician from the state of California. Torres was born in Miami, Arizona to Rena Gómez. His father was a miner who was deported to Mexico in the 1930s despite being an U.S. citizen....
NCLR-HarvardJohn F. Kennedy School of GovernmentThe John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University is a public policy and public administration school, and one of Harvard's graduate and professional schools...
Mid-Career Fellowship Program - LNESC
- LatinoLatinoThe demonyms Latino and Latina , are defined in English language dictionaries as:* "a person of Latin-American descent."* "A Latin American."* "A person of Hispanic, especially Latin-American, descent, often one living in the United States."...
- American GI ForumAmerican GI ForumThe American G.I. Forum is a Congressionally chartered Hispanic veterans and civil rights organization. Its motto is "Education is Our Freedom and Freedom should be Everybody's Business". AGIF currently operates chapters throughout the United States, with a focus on veteran's issues, education,...
- SVREP
- LULAC
- MALDEFMexican American Legal Defense and Education FundThe Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund is a national non-profit civil rights organization formed in 1968 to protect the rights of Latinos in the United States...
- La RazaLa RazaIn the Spanish language the term Raza translates to "race". Its meaning varies amongst various Spanish-speaking peoples. For instance, in Spain, "Raza" may denote specifically Spanish and often of a something or someone of a European Christian heritage. The Francoist film Raza, from 1944, which...
- The Bronze RaceBronze raceBronze race is a term used by early 20th century Latin American writers of the indigenista and americanista schools to refer to the mestizo population that arose in America with the arrival of European colonists and their intermingling with the New World's indigenous Native American...
- MEChAMEChAM.E.Ch.A. is an organization that seeks to promote Chicano unity and empowerment through political action. The acronym of the organization's name is the Spanish word mecha, which means "fuse"...
External links
- Official site
- NCLR Q&A
- Video Documentary on the National Council of La Raza (Voices of Vision)