HISPANICS 2ND LARGEST KIDS GROUP.

Byline: Rachel L. Jones Knight-Ridder Tribune News Wire

Hispanics have become the largest group of children in the country after non-Hispanic whites, the Census Bureau reported Monday, in an announcement that placed a spotlight on their urgent social and economic needs.

According to the bureau, there are 12 million Hispanic children living in America, up from 9.8 million in 1990. That compares with 50.8 million non-Hispanic whites and 11.4 million non-Hispanic blacks.

Hispanic children are more likely than whites or blacks to lack health insurance, more than twice as likely as whites to drop out of school, and more likely than blacks or whites to live in poverty when someone in the household works, federal statistics show.

To deal with all of that, Hispanic child-welfare advocates announced plans Monday for an aggressive self-help strategy aimed at attracting attention to, and research on, the unique problems of Hispanic children.

``For many years, we have heard that growth trends would someday mean that Hispanics would be the second-largest population group in the nation,'' said Jane Delgado, president and CEO of the National Coalition of Hispanic Health and Human Services Organizations, a national group of Hispanic health-care and social service providers.

``For Hispanic children, that day has arrived, and it is time to address this critical mass of children who desperately need services,'' Delgado said.

The median age of the nation's Hispanic population is 26 years, compared with a median age for non-Hispanic whites of 35.5. In 2040, Hispanic children are projected to represent one in four children younger than school age.

Because statistical data on Hispanic health, education and access to services have been scant at best, the coalition announced the formation of six Growing Up Hispanic Policy Centers, which will gather information on the serious needs of Hispanic children.

The centers - which are in Denver; Miami; New York; Albuquerque, N.M.; San Antonio and Los Angeles - will assess and track needs of Hispanic children, and hope to release data by the end of this year, Delgado said.

Too often, Hispanic children are lumped together in the catch-all ``minority category,'' she said.

But by grouping children of different ethnic backgrounds, many of their unique concerns get erased, said Robert Ortega, assistant professor at the University of Michigan's School of Social Work in Ann Arbor.

Ortega, author of a study released last week on Latino children in the child-welfare system, said that too often, service providers tend to ``take pieces of the Latino child and leave the rest behind.''

``You can't supply English classes to a child who may have to dodge gunfire on his way to school, or whose parents are struggling to survive on minimum wage,'' Ortega said. ``We need more collaboratives that address all the needs of these children.''

The needs of Hispanic children were vividly highlighted in a study sponsored by the coalition:

Hispanic children have a higher death rate from injuries and accidents than non-Hispanic blacks or non-Hispanic whites.

More Hispanic high school children say they fear attack when going to and from school than blacks or whites.

A far larger share of preschool Hispanics suffered measles infections than non-Hispanic blacks or non-Hispanic whites.

Hispanic children also face greater health challenges.

Approximately 31 percent of the children of working Hispanic adults are uninsured, compared with 20.1 percent of black children and 12.1 percent of white children. Also, Hispanic children are least likely to see a physician, according to the coalition.

Often in Hispanic communities, language barriers create problems for child welfare officials, Ortega said.

Also, because society often views the Hispanic community through a prism of stereotypes, an atmosphere of distrust erodes communication and understanding.

For example, though a majority of impoverished African-American children live in homes headed by a mother only, census figures found that 64 percent of Hispanic families with children under 18 are headed by two parents, both of whom often work long hours in minimum-wage jobs.

FACTS ABOUT U.S. HISPANIC COMMUNITY Here are some basic facts about America's Hispanic community:

Hispanics represent 10 percent of the U.S. population, including Puerto Rico, and 10 percent to 38 percent of the population in eight major states.

The median age of the Hispanic population is 26, compared with a median age for non-Hispanic whites of 35.5 years.

In the year 2040, Hispanic children are projected to represent one in four children younger than school age.

Two-parent families remain the most common family structure for Hispanics, with approximately seven of 10 Hispanic children living with two parents.

Hispanic children are less likely than their non-Hispanic peers to take advantage of educational opportunities. For example, 14.2 percent of the Hispanic children are enrolled in Head Start, compared with 38 percent of blacks, despite the fact that similar numbers of Hispanic and black children live in poverty.

While Hispanics are as likely as other racial and ethnic groups to be working, one in four Hispanic families live in poverty, compared with one in 10 non-Hispanic families.

More than one in four Hispanic children younger than school age are uninsured - more than twice the rate for non-Hispanic white children.

Overall, Hispanic children are less likely than non-Hispanic blacks to have a chronic medical problem.

SOURCE: Knight-Ridder Newspapers

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