Latinos Deserve Full Economic Citizenship
*There’s good information here, couched in a blatant ad for MasterCard, but the point is a good one. I may have written a different headline, and I would have tried to dissuade the use of “economic citizenship” as a gimmick for clicks. Still, the numbers speak for themselves. Payroll cards, in general, are worth a second and third look, but only if they pave a way toward the creation of true wealth among Latino families: homeownership, savings, investments in their own business or education … If not, they’re just another money-making product for the banking industry. VL
By Julie Stav, Huffington Post Latino Voices
As the political campaign season heats up, candidates are engaging in the now familiar debate about immigration reform and creating paths to citizenship for immigrants. The debate is very tangible for many in the Latino community – its outcome will determine whether families can stay together, how children will grow up and where people can work.
[pullquote][tweet_dis]Nearly half of Hispanic households in the United States have no or limited access to traditional banking services.[/tweet_dis][/pullquote]This focus on legal citizenship is important, but it’s only part of the story. For Latinos, obtaining full economic citizenship is just as critical.
[tweet_dis]Regardless of their legal status, far too many hard-working Latinos are operating outside of the financial mainstream. [/tweet_dis]Nearly half of Hispanic households in the United States have no or limited access to traditional banking services, according to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. Almost one in five have no bank account at all. Instead, these financially underserved Latinos rely on costly alternative financial services like check-cashing centers and money orders. As a result, they are more vulnerable to fraud and theft, and have no access to modern conveniences like electronic bill pay or the online marketplace. [pullquote]”… achieving full economic citizenship doesn’t have to wait for politicians to act.”[/pullquote]The good news is that, unlike legal citizenship, achieving full economic citizenship doesn’t have to wait for politicians to act. Economic citizenship – full financial inclusion in the U.S. and world economy – is available to every Latino. All that’s needed are the right financial tools and educational outreach.
Advancements in electronic payment technology, in particular, are making low-cost tools more widely available, helping Latinos and other financially underserved individuals become first-class economic citizens. For example, a growing number of employers are giving their employees the option to be …
This article was originally published in Huffington Post Latino Voices.
