Hispanic heritage month 2015

Hispanic Heritage Month 20015 Reflection Tomás Ávila October 15, 2015 As Hispanic Heritage Month 2015 celebration (0915/15-10/15/15) comes to an end, with the release of the http://www.latinocommerceri.com/ “an initiative to strengthen the entrepreneurial ecosystem for Latino businesses to prosper in Rhode Island” after five years of discussion, planning, development and three administrations, it gives me great satisfaction that our Latino business community has finally received its due attention and inclusion in Rhode Island Economy.

Our Rhode Island Latino future is very Bright, and Governor Gina Raimondo’s understanding of Economics and Latino Entrepreneurship gives me confidence that this is just the start towards equitable opportunities to fully engage in the state economy and the creation of jobs, wealth and increased tax contribution to the state coffers. A sample of the future ahead was the Hispanic Heritage Month celebration organized by Our Secretary of State Nellie Gorbea along with all Rhode Island elected Latinos, which was very well attended by Latinos and others.

Like the Nation, the face of Rhode Island is changing rapidly; Communities of color are now the driving force in the state’s population growth and essential to the state’s economic success. Further, the population of the state is aging. Rhode Island is becoming a much more diverse state. While overall population has been flat, the population of people of color has increased rapidly in the State: Latino at 44 percent, Asian/Pacific Islander at 28 percent, and Black at 22 percent. By 2040, 40 percent of the state’s population will identify as a race other than White, and this shift in racial and ethnic diversity can lead to significant economic growth within the state. The state’s Latino-owned businesses already shown high levels of growth within the State’s economy, and the shift in demographics represents a tremendous opportunity for Rhode Island in the coming decades for increased business diversity and innovation.

Figures from the U.S. Census Bureau 2007 Survey of Business Owners show, Rhode Island Latino-owned business jumped from 3,415 in 2002 to 5,764 in 2007, an increase of 68.8%.

Over the same time period, revenues increased by 115.4%, from $213.7M in 2002 to $460.4M in 2007. Over the past census decade (2000-2010), Rhode Island’s Latino population grew 44%, adding almost 40,000 residents. Hispanics are leading the growth of the multicultural consumer sector, which also includes African Americans and Asians, of course. In fact, according to the Latinum Network, by 2026 multicultural consumers could represent 33 percent of total expenditures in the United States, potentially adding $2.7 trillion to the American economy. Half of that growth in spending, 15–16 percent, could come from Hispanics alone.1 According to former Commerce RI Executive Director Keith Stokes in 2010, the Rhode Island Latino community has achieved the three main economic development ingredients to

participate in the greater Rhode Island economy: demographic growth and expansion, consumer market growth, and entrepreneurial business development. Such achievements have been recognized by the business community and its time Rhode Island government recognizes it as part of the state’s economy, and with the launching of www.LatinoCommerceRI.com government has recognized our Latino-owned businesses.

As it has been very well documented, small businesses are the lifeblood of Rhode Island’s economy. As the national economy has continued to recover it has become even clearer how important Latino-owned businesses and entrepreneurship are for the nation and the state economic growth. By the same token Small business success is never easy, and through www.LatinoCommerceRI.com Rhode Island helps Latino Entrepreneurs and business owners by providing easier access to information about funding for small businesses, increasing access to services, pertinent policies and decreasing bureaucracy, and marketing Rhode Island Latino owned businesses throughout the country and around the world.

Entrepreneurship is intimately related to economic development and vital to the progress of any economy, and Latino entrepreneurship can help Rhode Island’s communities by providing jobs, conducting business locally, creating and participating in entrepreneurial networks, and investing in community projects. In addition to creating businesses that hire people, Latino entrepreneurs also pay taxes and contribute to an increase in demand for products and services that in turn support other jobs and businesses with indirect and induced economic impacts.

As the 38 Studio saga has shown, our elected leaders ideas of how to approach economic development needs to change. If we have learned anything the past decade, it is that we can’t depend on short term fixes and one shot wonders or our ability to predict economic winners and losers. Instead, we need to think longer term, about systems that can respond to changes we can’t predict, and focus on education and training that can meet the demands of a changing economy, and provide the skills people need to thrive.

Certainly we need to learn from the past...but not be so beaten down by past mistakes that we are unwilling to invest in our own future, and www.LatinoCommerceRI.com is good investment in the future of Rhode Island's economy and a new approach to the state's economic development.

I conclude with President Barack Obama call on his Hispanic Heritage month proclamation, “let us renew our commitment to honoring the invaluable ways Hispanics contribute to our common goals, to celebrating Hispanic culture, and to working toward a stronger, more inclusive, and more prosperous society for all.”

Happy Hispanic Heritage Month 2015 Source: 2015-2035 Rhode Island Economic Development Plan: Rhode Island Rising: A plan for people, places and prosperity. Rhode Island Statewide Planning, 2014