What the heck is a "Hispanic job" anyway? 🤔 In Miami, *every* job is a Hispanic job?
I was born and raised in the county of Dade, where being a light-skinned Latin American man meant that I really didn't experience racism or job discrimination to much extent.
BUT when you hear a presidential candidate saying new immigrants are "taking Hispanic jobs" you hear on full blast the racial hierarchy that exists in the US. Trump wasn't talking about Senior Software Consultants, after all.
When I left Miami, I was forced to understand very quickly that just applying for jobs with my name meant I was already behind someone with a white-sounding name in Tennessee, or in looking through remote positions around the country.
Because when Trump talks about immigrants "taking Black jobs" and "taking Hispanic jobs" he's not reflecting that the thousands of Venezuelans, Cubans, and Haitians trying to come to the US are the same Black and Hispanic and Afro-Latin people who BUILT MIAMI as teachers, doctors, construction workers, community activists, engineers, landscapers, and everything else that needed doing.
When he's talking about specific Hispanic jobs he's reflecting his vision of a racial caste system where Hispanic people aren't software consultants, or doctors, or UX designers, or politicians.
It's not a popular vision, to be honest. Most Americans are repulsed by the legacy of Jim Crow, or what they've learned of the caste system in India.
But breaking it apart doesn't happen on its own. It happens through lifting each other up. It happens by sowing our own crops and reaping our rewards.
It comes through building the largest network and community of Latin American professionals in the country, like we have with Techqueria.
I don't think it's a coincidence that after joining Techqueria I was able to start getting warm referrals for remote positions and joined Test Double.
There might be a backlash against #dei and politicians might say "DEI" with the hard R now, but our work doesn't stop just for that.
Techqueria is turning 5 years old this year and the community needs to come together in good times and in bad and that means supporting TQ now. If you've got $5, now's the time to throw down.
Donate if you can if not find someone you can because EVERY job is a Hispanic job. EVERY job is a Black job.
You can donate here
https://lnkd.in/eGb35SZJ
#DiversityEquityAndInclusion #LatinxInTech #LatinInTech #Programming #SoftwareEngineering #SoftwareConsulting #MiamiTech #Miami #Florida