Part 8Closing Remarks

Together we thrive: Overcoming barriers and building stronger communities.

Our Collective Strength

A key theme that emerged throughout discussions with community members, experts, and decision-makers—and that reappears in different ways across each chapter—is the importance of “el tejido social”—the social fabric that binds us together. Our ability to navigate the barriers we face in housing, health, education, and economic opportunity is shaped not only by structural inequalities but also by the strength of our collective networks.

This sense of belonging and mutual support, intrinsic to our identity, is crucial to overcoming the challenges we face. It is where our resilience resides, and through this bond, we create pathways to new opportunities.

As illustrated in the examples throughout this report, each of our personal stories serves as a connecting thread that brings these themes together. Our interactions with each other and with the systems that affect us shape our identity and contribute to a more prosperous future for Georgia. We grow up here, work here, buy our first homes here, make friends here, fall in love here, and watch our families thrive here—we live here. Our priorities, values, and experiences are woven into the intricate tapestry of the Latino community that enriches Georgia’s cultural and economic landscape.

Table of Contents

As we continue contributing to the state’s progress, it is essential that our voices are heard, our needs are met, and our potential is fully recognized by policymakers and service providers. Whether tackling barriers to education or improving access to healthcare, our strength lies in our ability to work together and uplift each other. However, to address the structural needs of Latinos in Georgia, solutions must be comprehensive, recognizing how these systems intersect and the disproportionate impact they have on our community.

Moving forward, we invite each one of us to build on our collective strength and advocate for changes that extend and expand policies and circumstances so all of us who live in Georgia can attain our aspirations for educational, economic and social advancement.

The following recommendations outline steps that can help ensure Georgia’s Latino community has the resources, opportunities, and support needed to thrive—and to continue driving the state’s progress.

Rec0mmendations

  1. Expand the types of documents accepted as “ID” across programs, services, and any situations where identification is required. In Georgia, a driver’s license is the default form of ID needed to qualify for programs such as disaster relief or to sign up for nonprofit services. In order to obtain a driver’s license in Georgia, individuals must provide a Social Security number and demonstrate lawful immigration status. State agencies, nonprofits, businesses, and other organizations should accept a broader range of documents to verify someone’s identity. Prior to 2000, a wider variety of IDs were accepted, including expired passports, student IDs (for both college and K-12), driver’s licenses from any state or country, consular ID cards, and employment IDs.
  2. Include standardized language access provisions in state-sponsored and federally-funded services and programs. Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination in programs receiving federal funds based on race, color, or national origin and is enforced by the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights (OCR). The OCR defines language access as a way to ensure effective communication for individuals with limited English proficiency (LEP) and those who are blind or deaf/hard-of-hearing. This mandate is not waived during emergencies.
  3. Repeal provisions restricting lawfully present immigrants’ eligibility for federal assistance programs. The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA) bans lawfully present immigrants from accessing federal assistance programs by allowing states to adopt more punitive restrictions. These restrictions can also prevent states or localities from using their own funds to create more inclusive programs. While PRWORA doesn’t affect funds once they’re transferred to nonprofits, it limits access to critical services for immigrants and deters those with varied documentation from seeking programs they qualify for. Many Latino families, for example, were excluded from safety net programs during the COVID-19 pandemic, missing out on federal funds meant to provide food and housing.
  4. Include language access and cultural competence as key considerations in private philanthropy grants for ‘general’ populations to ensure inclusive programs. Philanthropic grant agreements often require grantees to affirm non-discrimination, non-partisanship, and proper use of funds according to IRS standards.Philanthropy can help ensure inclusivity by mandating language access when applicants mention they serve “People of Color”, “immigrants”, “low-income” or “all populations” to ensure Latinos and immigrants have real access to these programs and services. The improvement in language access and cultural awarenessshould be matched with intentional investments to ensure the hiring, design and implementation of programs and services are reflective of the communities served.
  5. Enact housing policies strengthening tenant rights and defining standards for a safe and healthy home. Housing policies are, in great part, health and wellbeing policies. While some progress has been made, specific language budgetary appropriations must be secured to underwrite oversight mechanisms and penalties for lack of compliance. Low-income and diversely documented Georgians should be allowed to have a good quality of life and not be so easily bullied out of their homes. HB404 does not define a “habitable” property enough.
  6. Provide quality K-12 education for English Learners and affordable higher education for all students living in Georgia. These investments are critical building blocks to forge a strong economy and a qualified workforce, raise productivity and creativity, and stimulate entrepreneurship and technological breakthroughs. Strong accountability mechanisms for both investments and efficacy of methods and efforts should be a priority for the state. A failure to invest in Latino education is a failure to invest in Georgia’s future workforce.
  7. Expand protections for workers, including agricultural workers. Ensuring the welfare of workers is not only a good social policy but also a good fiscal policy. It ensures fairness in the labor market, prevents exploitation, enhances productivity, and provides sustainability to industries that rely heavily on people. Safe working conditions (including heat protections) benefit both workers (less injuries and illness) and employers (less absenteeism, lower turnover rates, and disruptions of operations).
  8. Reconsider how community wealth-building programs and investments are designed and deployed. Funders and business support organizations (BSOs) must align funding and initiatives with real needs assessments to better support entrepreneurs and address revenue and growth opportunity gaps. Tracking impact, not outputs, is key to understanding what works and does not work for those in commercial activity. Efforts like a clearing house of information on how to find capital, business, support, mentorship, and other resources by type of business or entrepreneur (e.g., artists) have been consistent recommendations from those we interviewed.
  9. Expand Medicaid in Georgia. This will help cover a gap of an estimated 400,000 Georgians who currently do not qualify for financial support to purchase health insurance in the limited ACA marketplace. Current enrollment data shows that alternative efforts with similar intentions have not been successful.
  10. Reduce barriers to accessing state and local public funding by streamlining processes. Emerging community organizations, individuals, and families lack the time, capacity, and resources to navigate the complex administrative processes required to access taxpayer funds. From disaster relief to safety net enrollment, complex applications prevent our community from securing the financial public investments we need and have been paying into.
  11. Upgrade data collection standards to accurately reflect who is in the state. The largest population growth in the state is of the multi-racial population. Updating labels to reflect multi-racial and multi-ethnic communities is critical for the public and private sectors. These communities are frequently invisible in key data sets or are misrepresented, greatly diminishing our ability to understand and better design, plan, and document programs. Without thorough, culturally appropriate data collection, we cannot disaggregate the information enough to understand the impact across segments of Georgia’s population.

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