When Rose Amador took over as the director of San Jose nonprofit ConXión to Community 43 years ago, it was a flailing organization on the brink of shutting down. Through Amador’s grit and determination, the organization survived budget deficits, a housing market crash, the pandemic and current grant cuts. Her steady hand helped the nonprofit...
Silicon Valley Latina wage gap worst in nation
Latinas in California experience the greatest wage gap in the nation — and it’s unlikely to change soon with the federal government stripping the country’s social safety net. That doesn’t bode well for Latinas in Santa Clara County who haven’t seen much upward movement in wages over the last few years, despite having the largest...
Santa Clara County declares public health crisis for Latino residents
Latinos in Santa Clara County suffer from higher rates of poverty, lower rates of high school graduation and more deaths from diabetes than other groups. Officials want to find ways to close that gap. The Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday unanimously declared a public health crisis for Latino residents, and is committing...
Santa Clara County homeless Latinos fall through safety net
Despite Latinos making up a large portion of the Santa Clara County’s homeless population, the group tends to be invisible. The Latino homeless population has exploded over the years. In 2007, Latinos made up 28% of Santa Clara County’s homeless residents, peaking at 47% in 2022 — they’re now 40% of the homeless population, according...
Santa Clara County Latino health report exposes major gaps
The number of Latino residents dying by suicide has gone up 48% over the last 15 years while making up half of Santa Clara County’s homeless population — and they’re reporting more instances of unfair medical treatment than any other demographic in the county. These are just a sampling of the findings from a massive,...
Silicon Valley Latino leader dies at 90
Alcario Castellano, the grocery-clerk-turned-lottery-winner who used his fortune to reignite Silicon Valley’s communities of color, died Saturday at his home in Saratoga. He was 90. What began as a $141 million California Lottery jackpot in 2001 became, in time, a modern parable. A wave of excitement that fateful day between Castellano and his wife, Carmen,...
Silicon Valley Latinas face the greatest wage gap disparities
Latinas in Silicon Valley have the largest pay gap of any large metropolitan area in California. Latinas had a median annual per capita income of $34,400 in 2022, compared to white males who made a median income of $102,000, according to a recent report by Hispanas Organized for Political Equality (HOPE). For every dollar a white male...
San Jose cultural leader’s death shocks community
Chris Esparza always wanted to run a nightclub in his hometown of San Jose, friends and business partners told San José Spotlight — and not only did he make it happen, he went on to shape the city’s cultural image through decades of event organizing within the growing Mexican American community. Esparza, 57, died unexpectedly...
San Jose Latino leaders criticize Biden for border policy
Latino leaders across San Jose are saying President Joe Biden’s recent executive order closing the border to migrants is a step in the wrong direction for the nation’s immigration policy and immigrant communities. Those who work with asylum seekers fleeing violence such as San Jose nonprofit Amigos de Guadalupe said migrants can’t wait years for...
Silicon Valley Latino icon Victor Garza leaves a lasting legacy
Victor Garza, founder of La Raza RoundTable and a Santa Clara County Latino community icon, died this morning, multiple community leaders confirmed to San José Spotlight. He was 86 years old according to his personal Facebook page. Latina Coalition of Silicon Valley executive director Gabriela Chavez-Lopez said she learned of Garza’s death during a Race...