Time to Take a Stand: Anti-Immigrant Bias is Hurting all Latinos

By Gustavo Gisbert

Principal, Korn Ferry

This is the second in a four-part weekly series from the Korn Ferry Latino Think Tank celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month 2019.

Part 1:The Real Cinco de Mayo is in September

A playground. A soccer field. A retail store. These three very different public places have something in common: they have been scenes of a recent rise of anti-Latino behavior that have shaken Latinos like me to the core.

In the first scene Esmeralda Bermudez, an LA Times reporter, was enjoying an afternoon with her 5-year-old daughter at the La Mirada playground in Los Angeles. As they were having a mamá-hija interaction in Spanish, a stranger approached her demanding that she should speak English to her daughter. The woman claimed that Esmeralda was “confusing the poor girl” by speaking Spanish to her. “You don’t need to worry about my child,” Esmeralda replied. “She speaks English, Armenian, and Spanish, and she is learning a fourth language. How many languages do you speak?” Placing a hand on her hip, the women countered: “I speak English, that’s what matters”. Emotionally shaken by the encounter, Esmeralda wrote about it that night on Twitter.

The story went viral within a few days, and Esmeralda was overwhelmed by the sheer number of responses from Latinos and other immigrants who had experienced similar clashes.

The story of the second scene is mine. On a sunny Sunday afternoon, I was playing soccer with a group of friends in Cincinnati, Ohio. My team consisted of mostly professional Latinos from Colombia, Peru, Venezuela and the US. We were winning the game 4-0, and we mixed up our play with encouraging shouts in Spanish. About halfway through the game after a good dribbling run by my Peruvian friend JC that ended up in another goal, a White defensive back from the other team who had grown frustrated --he missed the tackle that allowed the goal-- pushed JC and told him to “Go back to Mexico!”. For several uncomfortable seconds everyone in the field fell silent, including his own teammates, who timidly looked elsewhere as they tried to remain neutral. Fortunately, the referee red carded the player for his racist behavior, and he had to leave the game.   

The third scene happened in El Paso, Texas- the horrific shooting in Walmart on August 3rd that killed 22 people. Before driving around 650 miles to deliberately attack Latinos, the shooter published a manifesto railing against the “Hispanic invasion of Texas.” This, despite the fact that Texas was part of Mexico until 1848 and has always had a sizeable Mexican population. 

These stories are just three manifestations of a surge in anti-immigrant and anti-Latino sentiment since Trump’s election that is having impact on most Latinos regardless of their socioeconomic, immigrant, or native-born status. Politicians like Trump are using polarizing --often dehumanizing-- rhetoric and policies to obtain short-term political gains, dividing people by creating a sense of risk and portraying members of a minority group as the cause of the fears, anxieties, and setbacks of the majority.

There is ample evidence of this anti-Latino rhetoric surge: in a recent Pew Hispanic Research poll, nearly four-in-ten Hispanics said they have experienced at least one of four incidents of discrimination in the past year because of their Hispanic background. They have been called offensive names (16%), been told to go back to their home country (20%), been criticized for speaking Spanish in public (22%), or experienced other forms of discrimination or unfair treatment (24%). In short, like me and Esmeralda, almost half of Latinos in the US have recently experienced explicit mistreatment.

The effects on Latinos' sense of physical and psychological safety, as well as feelings of belonging in American society, are devastating. Almost half of Latinos (47%) say their overall situation in the U.S. has deteriorated in the past year (up significantly from 15% in 2013). Sixty-two percent of Latinos say they are dissatisfied with the way things are going in in the country right now – the highest level since the great recession a decade ago.

However, the faulty logic of the anti-Latino rhetoric has a long-term negative societal cost, not only for Latinos: According to research from Drs. Belinda Campos and Leo R. Chavez, anti-Latino rhetoric hurts all Americans. The costs come in the form of disintegration of the societal fabric and a sense of disconnect from people deemed “other” which leads to unwillingness to work together. This hurts business performance, decreases team trust and productivity, and causes long-lasting psychological, sociological and financial damage.

While there are a growing number of advocates in the legal, government, and community arenas, corporations also need to take this reality into account because it is affecting their Latino workers --whether they be blue or white collar-- as well as their overall inclusion efforts. Corporations need to ensure Latinos are socially and professionally integrated into their organizations and teams, and being supported to do their best work despite what’s happening outside.

Here is a list of actions individuals and organizations can take to prevent anti-Latino behaviors and disrupt the faulty logic behind the emerging anti-Latino narrative.

· Be knowledgeable about Latino realities. The most recent data from Pew Research Center tell us that only 30 percent of the 60 million Latinos in the U.S. today are foreign-born, and less than half of those (about 8 million or less) are undocumented. In other words, while only 13% of Latinos in the U.S. are undocumented, anti-immigrant sentiment is hurting all Latinos.

· Share how Latinos are a powerful force turbocharging America’s new mainstream economy. Here are some facts about America’s Latino factor: Hispanics in the US currently have $1.7 trillion in purchasing power and growing. By 2020 Latinos will make up 74% of the growth in new workers. Latino-owned businesses have increased 31.6% since 2012 – more than double the growth rate of all businesses across America (13.8%). U.S. Latinos are young and contributing disproportionately to America’s productivity and economic growth.

· Foster an inclusive and respectful culture. Highlight the importance of belonging for all groups in your workplace and its role in psychological safety and well-being. Intentionally shape spaces where everyone can bring their whole selves to work and do their best work. Celebrate and become an ally of Latino resource groups or affinity groups. Work with managers and leaders to reduce the barriers and headwinds some groups may face. Be proactive and intentional about sponsoring, mentoring and coaching Latinos in your workplace.

· Take a stand and provide clear expressions of support. On the rise of polarization and anti-immigrant rhetoric, be intentional about your language and your positions. Bishop Desmond Tutu captured the power of this stance: “If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor.” As a leader, act with determination like that referee with the red card -- not tolerating any behavior or comment that can harm any individual in your organization. Don’t be like the teammates of the defender who timidly looked away.

These kinds of actions are already being taken by a growing number of people. In the midst of the concerning findings of the Pew survey mentioned above, there was also good news. While expressions of prejudice have increased against Latinos, so have the expressions of support from many people. The same survey found that almost four-in-ten Hispanics (37%) heard expressions of support because of their Hispanic/Latino background.

To all my non-Latino friends and colleagues, become part of this counter-trend. We need you to stand with us.

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Special thanks to my colleagues: Andrés Tapia and Susana Rinderle and my niece Oriana Van Praag for encouraging me to write this piece, as well for their revisions and contributions. Gracias totales!!!