Race Relations in El Paso, El Paso, TX 1998
Partners:
In this largely Hispanic town on the Mexican border, the media partners opened a conversation on race, immigration and language with a series built around a poll of 1,008 residents in English and Spanish.
The first step the partners took was to convene a panel of academic and civic leaders, who met almost weekly through December and January of 1997, crafting the language of the poll’s questions. For example, a question on bi-lingual education was changed from “Do you favor ending bi-lingual education?” to “Do you support bi-lingual education?”
The poll was conducted in February 1998 by interviewers who spoke both English and Spanish. The results were reported in an eight-part series called “Attitudes and Answers,” that began May 10, 1998. The poll found areas of agreement between Anglos and Hispanics but showed a major rift on the issues of affirmative action (most Hispanics supported it while most Anglos opposed it) and language (79 percent of Anglos favored making English the official language of the United States while only 42 percent of Hispanics felt that way).
On May 13, the partners held a town hall forum attended by 160 people, who agreed that though relations between Anglo and Hispanic El Paso residents are generally good, there lingered a subtle racism that was worthy of examination and discussion. Bob Moore, now executive editor, said both the poll and the forum provided the framework for people to feel comfortable discussing the issues.
Contacts:
Robert Moore
Executive Editor
El Paso Times
PO Box 20
El Paso, TX 79999
Phone: (915) 546-6145
Email: bmoore@elpasotimes.com
Kevin Lovell
General Manager
KVIA-TV (ABC)
4140 Rio Bravo Drive
El Paso, TX 79902
Phone: (915) 496-7777
Email: kevinl@kvia.com