Catholic Charities In the News
December 29, 2008 - WWL-TV
Public Safety No. 1 Concern for Hispanic Community
By Jill Hezeau
Nilton Martinez's shop has changed a lot over the years. First it catered to Spanish music lovers and now it helps send money to loved ones in other countries.
“We had at least three good years after Katrina that it was just booming,” he said.
And now he is starting to see another change. “Now in the past few months, we’ve seen a decline, a lot of people going back to their countries because of the slow economy we are having,” he said. But experts say there is still a much larger population of migrant workers post-Katrina. The New Orleans Economic Development Office puts that number around 50,000, others say it is too hard to tell
“The numbers are very difficult to pinpoint,” said Martin Guiterrez from Catholic Charities. “We still say that the range of the population is somewhere between 100 and 150,000. That’s a big range, but that’s the fact. We really don’t have an idea how many we have. We do know that many of the families that moved after Katrina established roots here. We have more businesses opening every month catering to the Latino community.”
Those businesses like Martinez's can be seen all along Williams Boulevard in Kenner, while Guiterrez works with migrant workers both legal and illegal through Catholic Charities across the metro area.
“Before Katrina we used to serve 3,000 clients and our numbers basically tripled since Katrina. The demand is much greater than the supply and the resources we have,” said Guiterrez.
And one of the biggest issues he says is public safety.
“The police department has a lot to learn about the Latino and migrant population community. And the community, the migrant population, also has a lot to learn why things happen the way they do,” he said.
This week, he is meeting with NOPD Superintendent Warren Riley to discuss how the department can better address the issues that face the Hispanic community.
“A year ago the number of robberies was really out of control in Orleans Parish. I think things have gotten much better,” he said.
Things have gotten better and certainly busier for NOPD Officer Jansen Valencia. He works in Public Affairs as a translator for the NOPD and he says more are needed.
“It’s actually a very big problem because the language barrier has caused a lot of people not to report certain things,” said Valencia. “If you’re a victim, it doesn’t matter your status, you’re a victim and we are here to help you,” said Valencia.
And it is help Martinez says is desperately needed and he is also offering some advice of his own: “If you are living here in this country and you know the language, and you want to make a better living, do think about becoming a citizen.”
New Orleans Police said a small percentage of the migrant workers do commit crimes but add they tend more to be victims. The NOPD says it is reaching out to the Hispanic community not only through Catholic Charities but also on Spanish radio to tell them how to avoid being an easy target to criminals. Their advice: travel in large groups and to not carry a lot of money.
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