Simply because of its proximity. Latin America should always be considered a priority region for the United States. The political and economic problems of the region manifest themselves in problems which affect our country and our future here at home: illegal immigration. narcotics trafficking. As flisten to Members speak about the impact of immigration and drugs in our country. I cannot help but think our efforts to combat these problems at their root are insufficient. With 50 percent of Latin America and the Caribbean living below the poverty line. we will not see a decline in illegal immigration as long as the economic outlook to our south remains depressed. Similarly. we cannot expect a decline in the drug trade when the reality for many poor and rural farmers is that cocoa is the only crop by which they support and feed their families. We need to create an alternative.
Identified stereotypes
Associating Latin Americans with illegal immigration and drug trafficking.