|
Hispanics Making Impact in CNY OpEd By Kofi Quaye
Concurrently, she was the head person in charge of the University College of Syracuse University. During her term as the president of the Syracuse Common Council, she remained the top contender for the Democratic Party for leading city and county elective positions. The Syracuse Cooperative Federal Credit Union was set up in 1982 to provide an alternative source of financial services to the Syracuse community, targeting those who had been turned off as a result of their negative experiences with traditional banks. It filled a vacuum and many signed on as members. With a couple of branches in Syracuse, both located in community centers in the inner city neighborhoods, it has emerged as one of the busiest credit unions in Syracuse. I was among the first to join. It had no Hispanic members at the time. That was back in the day, almost three decades ago But that has changed within the past few years. About ten years ago, the first Hispanic was hired at the credit union at the head office on Wescott Street. Not long afterwards, another Hispanic person appeared on the scene, followed in rapid succession by others. Today, the majority of the staff at the different branches of the credit union are Hispanics. Twenty years ago, I signed my initial contract with the Post Standard. I became one of two African/African-American distributors of the newspaper with the largest circulation in Central New York. There wasn’t a single Hispanic working in the Circulation Departnent, which is responsible for ensuring that all subscribers of the only morning newspaper in Syracuse are provided with a hassle-free delivery service. Again, about ten years ago, one Hispanic applied for a job as a delivery person and was employed. Within months, a couple more Hispanics came on board. It continued; the numbers of Hispanics increased rapidly and now years later, the majority of the people delivering newspapers at the Post Standard at the East Branch are Hispanic. A few years ago, Hugo Acosta decided to launch the CNY LATINO, a newspaper geared towards the Hispanic community in Central New York. It was set up as a bilingual newspaper, but its focus was primarily on the Hispanic population. The last time I checked it out, which was a couple of months ago, its appearance suggested that it has made considerable progress. Its pages were full of advertisement. One advertisement stood out. It was a full page announcing items on sale and other special deals at the Price Chopper chain. The ad appeared to have been made especially for that particular newspaper; it was in Spanish. What
has occurred in Syracuse reflects a national trend. The Hispanic
population has grown in most cities in the United States. A number
of major cities have Hispanic mayors and other elected and appointed
officials in positions that give them the power and authority
to act in ways that impact the lives of the people in the communities
in which they live. So far, Hispanics and African-Americans in Syracuse have succeeded in co-existing in a positive manner. Unlike other cities where quite often, distinct lines of demarcation exist that define areas populated by Hispanics, Syracuse has remained wide open in terms of population densities. While it is true that the Near West Side may have a considerably heavier concentration of Hispanics than other areas, Hispanics live in various sections of metropolitan Syracuse. Have they taken jobs that could be had by African-Americans, a question once asked all over the country? Not necessarily, unless you just want to blame the loss of jobs on immigrants. I do know from firsthand experience, though, that the Post Standard and the Syracuse Cooperative Federal Credit Union actively pursue fair employment practices and have made efforts to hire and keep employees from all races. In many ways, the presence of Hispanics impacts on all of us. The credit union is no more different than when it was serviced by an all-white team with an occasional African-American in the background. But the service has remained consistently good with what appears to be a majority of Hispanic employees. The Post Standard gets delivered on time, also with what appears to be a majority of Hispanics. The bottom line is; business goes on as usual and everybody is happy, or appears to be.
---------- Kofi Quaye has been a Syracuse resident for more than 30 years. He is a writer, author and publisher. Over the years, he has been involved with the publication of several African American focused newspapers in Syracuse. |
November
2, 2011 - Not too long ago, Bea. Gonzalez was the most powerful
female politician in the city of Syracuse. As the first Hispanic
president of the city council, she was the number one person in
line to step into the mayor’s seat, in the event situation
requiring an immediate replacement of the mayor.