Members of New Jersey’s Latino communities have lost faith in the “empty promises” of Republicans and Democrats. They have created an action committee to strengthen the community’s political vision.

Latinos in New Jersey are sick of politicians who campaign on slogans like “I care about Hispanics very much.” They’re tired of unfulfilled promises and of the failure of social development programs.

“The Democrats take it for granted that we will vote for them. The Republicans have ignored us for years. It is time for them to pay attention to us, and for this reason we have created the Political Action Committee (PAC),” explained Martín Pérez, the head of Alianza del Liderazgo Latino (Latino Leadership Alliance), an umbrella organization for New Jersey’s Latin political groups.

The PAC, and the idea that Hispanics can be a potent political force, has been dismissed as a utopian project for several years. But now it is a reality.

In New Jersey there are 1,220,000 Hispanics, 14.2 percent of the population, according to the census figures. They outnumber Blacks (1,150,000). These statistics virtually gave birth to the PAC.

“We will support those candidates that represent our interests. They do not have to be Latinos. It’s about us taking our seat at the table to make decisions. It’s a clear message that we are not going to be obligated to any one political party or candidate. Our support must be gained through actions in our favor,” stated Pérez.

María Teresa Feliciano, another leader at Alianza del Liderazgo Latino, said that they are going to reward friends and punish enemies. “We are going to make candidates responsible for what they have promised and judge them on their actions, not promises,” said Feliciano.

“For years we have listened to candidates who learn to say ‘buenas noches’ or ‘buenos días;’ ‘I like Latinos;’ ‘I went to the Dominican Republic on vacation;’ ‘Your countries are so beautiful,’ and so on. What is important is what they are doing for Latinos, the rest doesn’t interest us. We are not falling for it,” said Feliciano.

How can you guarantee a candidate’s promise after an election? Martín Pérez explained that there is an agenda and a definite method to follow-up with candidates. “We are going to create a report card like they have in schools. The legislators, and any other elected official, will have to demonstrate which laws they have proposed in favor of our community and how they voted on specific projects. If they said ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ to initiatives that harm or benefit us,” said Pérez. He confirmed that ‘grading’ was already underway.

The PAC will create a leadership academy, where community representatives can educate themselves about the political system, their rights and how those can be exercised for the betterment of their group. The idea is that Latino politicians evolve from the community and not be placed there by the traditional political parties. It will establish political education and voter training campaigns. It will develop political alliances with other minority groups, like Blacks, Jews, Koreans, South Asians, and working class movements. “We will make enemies, but we will also make friends, and friends are who interest us,” said Feliciano.

Dozens of Hispanic organizations, community leaders, doctors, lawyers, teachers and other professionals met on September 25th to launch the PAC of New Jersey.

For more information, or to learn how to become a part of the PAC, call Vilma Pérez at 732-932-1263.