NEWS AND PROFILES CONNECTING THE LATINO AMERICAN COMMUNITY IN MINNESOTA March 2016 Issue 345 www.latinoamericantoday.com THE HEALTH OF LATINOS IN MINNESOTA Obesity, Diabetes, Colon and Prostate Cancer, Heart Disease—leading health issues for Latinos LA SALUD DE LOS LATINOS EN MINNESOTA La obesidad, diabetes, cáncer del colon y la próstata, enfermedad del corazón—los principales problemas de salud entre Latinos Community News 2 March 2016 LATINO AMERICAN TODAY WWW.LATINOAMERICANTODAY.COM Health Disparities in Minnesota’s Multicultural Communities By Claud Santiago lthough Minnesota has long been one of the Ahealthiest states in the country, almost 15% of Minnesotans tend to experience much worse health in several areas. Overall, Populations of Color, Hispanics, Asian Americans, African Americans, Africans and Native Americans experience shorter life spans, higher rates of infant mortality, higher inci- dence of diabetes, heart disease, cancer and other diseases, and poorer general health. Prevention can improve health in these communities and help man- On The Cover age health care costs. The Health of Latinos in Minnesota La salud de los Latinos en Minnesota Minnesota must work to eliminate health dispari- ties by expanding access to affordable health care, strengthening the health care workforce, investing in prevention, and improving data to more accurately document health disparities. Health disparities are defined as the difference in the burden of diseases and health status that exist among specific population groups. They are closely linked with social, economic and environmental conditions. Founded 2013 Health disparities may affect certain populations based on gender, age, ethnicity, socio-economic status, geog- Member of Minnesota Multicultural Media Consortium raphy, sexual orientation, disability or special health care needs. Health disparities occur among groups that National Foundation of Hispanic Owned Newspapers have persistently experienced historical trauma, and discrimination. These groups experience worse health or Minnesota Newspaper Association greater health risks than other populations. Published by Aguilar Productions Inc. Richard Aguilar, President Any effort to reduce health disparities must first identify where gaps exist. In our current health care system, Contributors data collection is fragmented; information on race, ethnicity, or primary language is not always collected; and Amalia Moreno-Damgaard, Award-winning Author, Chef, & Entrepreneur data is often not readily available to policy makers and the public. Michael Gonzalez Wallace, Author and Health & Fitness Guru Marci Malzahn, Banking Executive and Founder of Health reform would make sure that qualified health plans in an Exchange provide culturally and linguistically Malzahn Strategic appropriate communication and health services. There will also be an emphasis on training health profes- Scott Foreman, Photographer www.roadworkphotography.com sionals to improve their cultural competence. The Minnesota Business Partnership, an organization made up Online of Minnesota’s largest employers recently issued a report of the healthcare system in Minnesota...it stated Gisela Aguilar Design “increasing ethnic diversity will challenge our local healthcare system, which must address different underlying Gisela Aguilar health needs and bridge cultural and language barriers.” Latino American Today 204 Emerson Avenue E. St. Paul, MN 55118 Phone 651-665-0633 Fax 651-665-0129 Email [email protected] Web Call Us to Advertise! www.latinoamericantoday.com 651-665-0633 Nota: Editoriales, articulos y anuncios que aparecen en este periódico representan el punto de vista de el (ellos) autor (es) y no necesariamente reflejan la opinión, punto de vista o modo like us on facebook de pensar de LATINO AMERICAN TODAY facebook.com/latinoamericantoday o de su personal. Latino American Today distributes 15,000 copies on a monthy basis. Education WWW.LATINOAMERICANTODAY.COM LATINO AMERICAN TODAY March 2016 3 MINNESOTA’S MINORITY STUDENTS ARE GETTING A RAW DEAL By Senator David Hann The first key is to put parents back in the driver’s seat. Research shows students perform better when their parents take an active role in their wo-thirds of Latino students are not education. Treading proficiently. Latino students are One way we can do this is by giving parents more control over which graduating high school at rates far below school their child attends. Too many children are trapped at underper- that of their white counterparts. For stu- forming schools, but often there is little families can do. To address this, dents who are learning English as a sec- Republicans propose creating Education Savings Accounts. These ac- ond language, their chances of doing well counts will function like scholarships, making it easier for Latino parents in school are even smaller. to send their children to a better school. This is no fault of theirs. The system is fail- We can improve opportunities for Latino students, but we should also ing them. raise our expectations. That means requiring every student to be reading proficiently by third grade. By expecting results before promoting stu- Experts always stress the importance of Senator David Hann dents to the next grade we can reduce the dropout rate, improve test education, yet the achievement gap has per- scores, and make sure every child has the tools they need to perform sisted for decades. Every year elected officials talk about how shameful well in school. it is, but every year they resist any meaningful change. It’s tragic that we have failed so many students with our inaction, but Republicans know we can close the gap and put all children—particu- with the Republican education plan and some outside-the-box thinking larly minority children—on the road to a bright future. we can finally put every student on the path to prosperity. One the key panels at the Latino Education Achievement Gap Summit in St. Paul. The Policy Leaders panel :( L to R ) Sen. David Hann ( R ) District 48, Rep. Sondra Erickson ( R ) District 15A, Sen.Melissa Wiklund ( D ) District 50, Regina Seabrook, Rochester Public Schools, Valeria Silva, Superinten- dent of St. Paul Public Schools, and Elia Bruggeman, Deputy Education Of- ficer, Minneapolis Public Schools. Thanks to these leaders for their candid discussion, and their strategies and ideas. Community News 4 March 2016 LATINO AMERICAN TODAY WWW.LATINOAMERICANTODAY.COM Keep the American Dream Alive Greg Ryan Pledges Support for the Immigrant Business Community By Claud Santiago isiting El Bravo Mexican VRestaurant on Rice street off of University Avenue in St. Paul, Greg Ryan candidate for U.S. House of Representatives in the 4th District, pledged his support for the Hispanic business community and commends their great achievements and the important role they play in the Twin Cities economic growth. With Ryan for this visit is Rick Aguilar, a Twin Cities business leader Pete Bravo, Greg Ryan, and Rick Aguilar and one of the founders of the Minnesota Hispanic Greg Ryan with Pete Bravo, owner of El Chamber of Commerce, Bravo Mexican Restaurant and Chair of the Saint Paul Area Chamber of Commerce in the year 2000. Ryan commented that “ Multicultural busi- ness owners Hispanic, Asian American and other immigrant groups have transformed the University Avenue cooridor from what in the 1970s had become a decaying urban wasteland, home to closed businesses and board- ed up storefronts, to the thriving commercial district it is today.” Immigrant business owners are realizing the American Dream and Ryan is on a mis- sion to make sure that the dream stays alive. His vision for Minnesota is to help small businesses like those on University Avenue grow and cre- ate more jobs. Ryan commented to Aguilar on the “wonderful ecomomic development that has happened in this area.” “ The enterprise and hard work of the Immigrant business owners has produced positive results for University Avenue,” Ryan commented. Greg Ryan feels that the University Avenue corridor with the addition of the new Green Line Light Rail system represents an important change for St.Paul and offers new opportunities for the Immigrant business community in the 4th district. Many business corridors in St. Paul, like Payne Avenue and Cesar Chavez Street have seen Hispanic immigrants take advantage of the “American Dream” and the chance to open their own businesses and create jobs in the community. Ryan know that they need less regulations and lower taxes to be able to grow. Ryan understands the importance of the immigrant communities and what they can contribute to Minnesota’s economy. In his own words Ryan stated “I want to keep the American Dream alive for the immigrant communities and make Minnesota a state where business thrives and immigrants get the opportunity to contribute and make a difference.” Community News WWW.LATINOAMERICANTODAY.COM LATINO AMERICAN TODAY March 2016 5 Know Your Value By Marci Malzahn I recently spoke at Encourage Her Network, a women’s networking group that focuses on promoting and connecting women in business. The topic was “Know Your Value.” When Shannon Johnson, founder of Encourage Her Network, gave me the title for their Signature Event, I was immediately inspired because it meant two things to me. First, the title implies that each person is valuable and second, that each person needs to know their value. As the keynote speaker, I felt the responsibility to remind the women of how valuable they are and also to tell them why. So I decided to focus on four key areas: Know Your Value as an employee, as an employer, as a leader, and as a person. But before I get into each of those areas, let me describe the word “value” and “valuable.” The Webster’s Dictionary defines the word “value” as s a noun to mean “relative worth, merit or importance; monetary or material worth.” As a verb, value means “to calculate the monetary value of something, to consider with respect to worth, excellence, usefulness, or importance, to regard or esteem highly.” So what determines if something is valuable? In regards to material things, it’s what people are willing to pay for the specific item, product, or service.