Training new voters in Carroll County

It will be several days before the final numbers are in, but the Georgia Secretary of State’s Office is reporting an upsurge in new voter registrations. Early estimates put the number of new voters at approximately thirty-five thousand. But, training new voters on how to use those electronic voting machines falls to local community organizers. And, that can be a challenge because some -- including newly minted American citizens -- may not be as computer savvy as their younger counterparts.

Gila Gonzalez is with Latinos United of Carroll County. Days before last year’s presidential primary, Gonzalez took a group of first time voters to visit their local polling place.

"I got them into the hall, before the primaries, and showed them and they were able to see it. and I was explaining to them how it worked, that they had to touch the screen, from to the inserting of the card, until the moment that they would be finished."

Percentage wise, while the greatest jump in first time voters has been in the Hispanic community, the smallest gain was seen in the Asian American community with less than 500 new voters registered since 2004. In the African American community, the number of new voters has increased nearly forty thousand since 2004.

Hispanic caucus announces legislative priorities

Georgia's Hispanic legislators hope that 2008 will be an easier year for them than 2007 was. At a breakfast this morning, they told Latino leaders that the General Assembly should focus on issues that affect everybody... not just on immigration.

Last year, the caucus fought bills that would make English Georgia's official language, and toughen penalties for driving without a valid in-state license. Representative Tony Sellier of Fort Valley hopes the assembly will move beyond what he calls the 'anger rhetoric' to solve
real problems. He says, "My focus is not on immigration. That's federal. My changes are education, transportation, water plans.

Jerry Gonzales, head of the Georgia Association of Latino Elected Officials, says other, non-Hispanic legislators, should agree, "Latino voting strength in Georgia as of November 2007 is at 93,000 strong, and that can make a difference in a competitive statewide election, so legislators need to be careful what they do."

Gonzales intends to further increase voter registration among Georgia's Latinos.

Carrolton County commissioner slammed over slur against Hispanics

A county commissioner has prompted calls for him to apologize after using a derogatory term for Hispanics during a meeting.

But Carroll County Commissioner Bill Head stands by his use of the word "wetback" and said he will not apologize.

During a work session Tuesday, Head, 82, said the county needed more jail space because of criminals from nearby Atlanta and "the wetbacks from down south."

None of the other commissioners commented on Head's remarks during the work session or the following business meeting. But Commissioner John Wilson now says Head's use of the term was "inappropriate" and that he should apologize to Hispanics.

"Many of them are here legally ... To me it's no different than saying a racial slur to a black person; it's the same principle," Wilson said. "I thought he was out of line."

Head told the Times-Georgian his remark was referring only to illegal immigrants.

"Wetbacks can come from anywhere," Head told the newspaper. "They can come from Cuba; they can from any of the (Caribbean) islands; they can come from Mexico. Anyone is a wetback if they're illegal."

He also said he would not apologize.

"I am very forward in what I think and what I say and I will not back up one bit," Head said.
Dr. Jorge Gaytan, a professor at the University of West Georgia and president of the Hispanic Business Council of the Carroll County Chamber of Commerce, said he was not surprised by Head's comments.

"In my six-and-a-half years here, I have met several individuals who are racist, but they hide under the anti-immigration face," Gaytan said.

Carrollton is about 40 miles west of Atlanta.

Minority spending power is growing, says a new UGA study

A new University of Georgia study shows that minority buying power in Georgia is skyrocketing.

UGA's Selig Center for Economic Growth just released its annual report on minority buying power. Georgia is now the third largest consumer market for African Americans, who have an estimated $58 billion in disposable income.

The state is also the 10th largest market for Hispanics, whose after-tax spending potential is nearly 14 billion dollars.

According to UGA economist Jeff Humphreys, Georgia's numbers reflect the impressive growth nationwide: "The Hispanic market is really huge. It's larger than the entire economy of Mexico. The African-American market is about equal in size, and the Asian market is coming on strong. If you're looking for fast-paced growth in the domestic consumer market, this is where the action is. "

In addition, Georgia is the third fastest-growing state in the country for Asian buying power.

English labs for north Georgia immigrants

A Northeast Georgia school system is addressing a growing Hispanic population by creating English language labs. Access North Georgia.com reports that Hall County will use a $2.6 million-dollar loan to create labs at two middle schools and three elementary schools. Students from other county schools will have access to the labs as well. According to the latest U.S. Census figures, Hall County has one of Georgia’s largest concentrations of Hispanics, or 25% of the county. Officials say the English labs in Hall County will be ready for the start of school in August.