Workforce Language Services

This Citizen Times articles cites the typical problems that law enforcement and public safety agencies face when working with Latinos: language barriers and fear and distrust of the police.  But the Asheville PD is atempting to counteract the fear of police in a novel way by working with Latino youth and regularly attending community group meetings:

One of the ways Martinez said APD has tried to stem that attitude toward police is through a workshop created for Latino students. The purpose is to familiarize youngsters with law enforcement, show them what police do and build relationships with APD members.

“If you get the kids, you’re tapping into the next generation to spread the word that we’re here to help,” Martinez said. “If you get them younger, they’ll carry that message along with them.”

Regular attendance at Latino Steering Committee meetings is another way APD and other agencies foster relationships with the Hispanic community. The committee brings together representatives of agencies who serve immigrants from Spanish-speaking countries in an effort to pool their resources and be more effective.

Both the Sheriff’s Office, the Asheville PD, and Fire Department are making efforts to recruit Spanish-speaking Latinos.  What I like about their approach is that they’re not simply trying to recruit Latinos to fulfill a diversity quota, but because they’re finding that Spanish-speaking Latinos might truly be interested in a public safety career but haven’t thought about it until recruitment efforts come their way.

Of course, as with any article about the Hispanic community and efforts to serve them better, we find several comments about pandering to the “illegals.”  Many even go so far as to accuse Dan Padilla, who has been a firefighter for 24 years, of being an “illegal.” 

To read the entire article, click here.