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$1.38 Million to Groups Organizing Families to Fight for
Basic Services and Human Rights
(click here to view press
kit)
SEATTLE, WA (July 28, 2005) – In an effort
to infuse necessary funding into the fight for
basic human needs for safety, economic opportunities,
the Marguerite Casey Foundation announced $1.38
million to organizations spanning four counties
in the Rio Grande Valley.
“Without question, this region of Texas
is in dire need of resources and of families
willing to take the lead in changing conditions
they face,” says Luz Vega-Marquis, President/
CEO of the Marguerite Casey Foundation. “It
is a region where the larger effects of globalization
and state political systems affect low-income
families in severe and often caustic ways.”
“These organizations are both cornerstones and trailblazers in this region
of Texas,” says Luz Vega-Marquis. “The situation in these four border-counties
demands developing new strategies in funding low-income families to create grassroots
change.”
The four counties of Cameron, Hidalgo, Starr
and Willacy are characterized by high rates of
poverty, and high rates of unemployment and underemployment.
The region has long been an agricultural and livestock dependent area,
and the limited employment gains made recently
are in construction, retail and health care services.
The U.S. Census Bureau reports that the region
has the lowest level of educational attainment
in the United States.
“Factors cited are lack of qualified teachers,
low income, high dropout rates, and language
barriers. Communities on both sides of the border
are facing acute problems related to inadequate
social services and infrastructure, low wages
and high unemployment creating an environment
where human rights and women’s rights are
suffering,” says Vega-Marquis. “Rapid,
unplanned growth is causing devastating environmental
impacts, including water shortages and pollution.”
“The rise of colonia communities reflects
the rapid unplanned growth along the U.S./Mexico
border,” says Vega-Marquis. The Texas Water
Development Board estimates that 400,000 Texans
live in more than 1,500 colonias in the state,
an estimated 200,000 of which are living in these
four counties. Colonias can be found in Texas,
New Mexico, Arizona and California, where Texas
has both the largest number of colonias and the
largest colonia population.
In 1994, the four-county region was declared an
Empowerment Zone, resulting in an infusion of
government and private funding over the past
ten years estimated at more than $400 million.
The involvement of Marguerite Casey Foundation
at this time would make a significant difference
by leveraging more resources to the area and
encouraging community organizations to integrate
activism and organizing into their programs.
Marguerite Casey Foundation began funding in
Texas and other southern states in 2002, “We
at the Foundation have found the perseverance
of Texan families inspiring. Our own course of
action follows our promise to ask questions,
listen to communities about their needs, and
act according to those wishes. It is clear that
these organizations required additional support
to continue their social change efforts.”
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