The salience of Proposition 187 is fading with economic populism and assimilation of younger, U.S.-born voters.
Pro and con Proposition 187 activists in Los Angeles on Aug. 10, 1996. While the proposition to deny state services to illegal immigrants was ruled unconstitutional, it catalyzed a generation of Latino voters and politicians.Thirty years ago this fall, California’s Latino voters coalesced into a multigenerational ethnic voting bloc for the first time in response to a draconian, citizen-led initiative targeting immigrants who were in the state illegally.
The reverberations of Proposition 187 established certain perceptions, both real and mistaken, about the nation’s fastest-growing voter group. Foremost among the misconceptions was the belief that immigration would be the primary lens through which Latinos would always see the world. The salience of Proposition 187 for Latinos is finally fading. The economic populism and assimilation of younger, U.S.-born Latino voters is overwhelming the concerns of naturalized immigrant voters.But old memories die hard for politicians. To this day, many Democrats retain an obsessive focus on issues specific to the concerns of the undocumented even though the overwhelming majority of Latino voters are both U.S.
The state’s dire housing crisis affects Latinos more than any other group. Latinos struggle to obtain science and technology degrees from our public universities even though high tech is the homegrown industry providing most of the state’s livable wages. Latino students entering California community colleges are more likely to be placed in remedial courses. Latinos are more likely to do gig work and less likely to be in unions.
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