Latino Voters Could Tip Scales in Senate Elections – Only a few days before the November 4th elections, Latino voters could again make history, electing a record number of Latino congresspeople and depositing a decisive vote in six Senate races and 12 governor’s races. At the same time, if the frustration with President Obama for deferring action on deportations translates into reduced turnout at ht epolls, Democrats could pay a high political price. That’s what the latest surveys show, reports José López Zamorano from Washington, D.C.
From the Fields to Top College – In the struggling farmworking town of Parlier, in California’s San Joaquin Valley, the Ramírez family stands out. All four Ramírez siblings attended the prestigious University of California at Berkeley. That’s no small accomplishment for a farm working family living in one of the poorest cities in California, and one of the least educated in the country. Today, the oldest Ramírez sister is an award-winning landscape architect, and her three siblings are teachers, educating the next generation. Zaidee Stavely visited two of the sisters, who live near their hometown, to see how the Ramírez family beat the odds. This feature story is part of American Graduate, Let’s Make it Happen!, a public media initiative to address the drop out crisis, supported by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
Dump Closed in Tijuana – After years of complaints, a dump in Tijuana, a Mexican city on the border with California, a dump which many nearby residents say has caused death, cancer and birth defects was finally closed. But what has happened with families that were affected by the dump? Are they still sick? And has the site been studied to determine the level of toxic substances? Manuel Ocaño reports from the border.
