TO YOU.
>> THANK YOU.
>> AND AS ONE OF ONLY THREE
STATES THAT LOST RESIDENTS IN
THE CENSUS, ILLINOIS IS LOSING
ONE SEAT IN CONGRESS AS WELL.
WERE IT NOT FOR THE LATINO
POPULATION, ILLINOIS' POPULATION
WOULD HAVE DIPPED EVEN MORE.
AMANDA IS BACK WITH MORE.
>> YES, THE LATINO POPULATION IN
ILLINOIS HAS BEEN GROWING SINCE
THE 80s.
IT JUMPED FROM 2010 TO 2019 BY
ROUGHLY 9%.
WE DON'T KNOW EXACTLY WHAT
ILLINOIS' LATINO POPULATION IS
NOW.
THE NUMBERS FROM LAST YEAR'S
ONCE IN A DECADE CENSUS AREN'T
COMPLETE YET.
BUT THE ROUGH ESTIMATION IS THAT
THERE ARE APPROXIMATELY 2.2
MILLION LATINOS WHO LIVE IN
ILLINOIS.
MAKING UP THEREFORE 17% OF THE
STATE'S 12.6 MILLION RESIDENTS.
ADVOCATES LIKE ROBERTO VALDEZ
ARE WORKING TO MAKE SURE THAT
TRANSLATES TO POLITICAL POWER.
AS ILLINOIS LEGISLATORS ARE
SCURRYING TO DRAW NEW MAPS THAT
WILL DETERMINE THE BOUNDARIES OF
CONGRESSIONAL AND STATE
LEGISLATIVE DISTRICTS FOR THE
DECADE TO COME.
DEMOCRATS HAVE PROMISED THE MAPS
WILL BE FAIR AND EQUITABLE.
>> AND SO IF YOU REALLY LOOK AT
EQUITY AND YOU LOOK AT THE WAY
THAT DISTRICTS ARE DRAWN, YOU
DIVIDE THE AMOUNT OF DISTRICTS
THROUGHOUT THE STATE KEEPING IN
MIND THE POPULATION OF THE
LATINOS IN THE DISTRICT YOU
WOULD ACTUALLY LOOK AT 45 TOTAL
LATINO MAJORITY DISTRICTS IF YOU
DIVIDED OUR POPULATION AMONGST
THE AMOUNT OF DISTRICTS
AVAILABLE.
>> DIVVYING UP ILLINOIS'
POPULATION INTO DISTRICTS LIKE
THAT IS NOT AS SIMPLE.
IT IS NOT AS IF LATINOS ALL LIVE
IN ONE SPOT.
BUT THE LATINO POLICY FORUM IS
ASKING THAT IN AREAS WHERE
LATINO RESIDENTS ARE
CONCENTRATED, LEGISLATORS HAVE
AN EYE TOWARD DRAWING DISTRICTS
THAT ARE AT LEAST 50% LATINO.
WHEN DEMOCRATS DREW THE LAST MAP
THE ONE IN EFFECT NOW THEY
FAILED TO DO ENOUGH OF THAT
VALDEZ SAYS.
GRISELDA VEGA SAMUEL AGREES.
>> WE ABSOLUTELY THINK THAT
LATINOS ARE UNDERREPRESENTED.
BOTH IN THE LEGISLATURE AND AT
THE CONGRESSIONAL LEVEL.
>> SHE SAYS THE LEGISLATURE
SHOULD BE REFLECTIVE OF THE
STATE'S DEMOGRAPHICS.
POLITICAL POWER AND
REPRESENTATION THEY MATTER.
>> REALLY ULTIMATELY FOR US THE
LATINO COMMUNITY SHOULD BE ABLE
TO PICK THE ELECTED OFFICIAL OF
THEIR CHOICE.
AND SO WHEN YOU DO THAT, YOU
KNOW THAT SOMEONE HAS YOUR BACK.
AND THAT IS SPECIFIC TO SCHOOLS,
HOSPITALS, THE ROADS THAT ARE IN
YOUR HOME, RIGHT, CRIME,
EVERYTHING, RIGHT.
IT IMPACTS EVERYTHING.
>> AMANDA IF ILLINOIS
LEGISLATORS DO DRAFT MAPS WITH
MORE MAJORITY LATINO DISTRICTS
WHERE COULD THOSE BE?
>> THAT IS ACTUALLY A REALLY
INTERESTING QUESTION FOR A
COUPLE REASONS.
ONE POPULATION SHIFTS THE LATINO
POPULATION IS INCREASING IN THE
SUBURBS.
SO THE LATINO POLICY FORUM SAYS
LEGISLATOR SHOULD LOOK TO AREAS
NEAR O'HARE, ELGIN AND WAUKEGAN.
AND IT'S INTERESTING ONE OF THE
RUBS WITH ILLINOIS' PROCESS
LETTING LEGISLATORS DRAW
BOUNDARIES, INCUMBENTS WILL BE
TEMPTED TO PROTECT THEIR OWN
SEATS.
WHAT MIGHT IMAGINABLY LATINO
DISTRICTS MEAN THAT ARE NOW
GIVEN IMAGEDY BLACK IS AN
OVERRIDING QUESTION.
IN THE STATE LEGISLATURE THERE
SHOULD BE SPACE FOR 20 MAJOR
LATINO DISTRICTS.
>> IF THE LEGISLATURE DRAWS A
MAP AND THERE IS LESS THAN 20
LATINO MAJORITY DISTRICTS, 15
HOUSE BY SENATE WE WOULD DEEM
THAT MAP INEQUITABLE.
>> MALL DA IS NOT GOING THAT FAR
GIVING ESTIMATES WHILE THE
LEGISLATURE IS ASKING FOR GROUPS
TO SUBMIT DRAFT MAPS.
THEY SAY IT'S IMPOSSIBLE UNTIL
THE CENSUS DATA COMES IN.
>> THERE HAS BEEN MOVEMENT AND
THERE IS A SHIFT AND SO WHILE WE
UNDERSTAND THAT THAT IS WHAT HAS
HAPPENED THAT IS WHY WE NEED TO
BE VERY DATA TO MAKE SURE THAT
WE SEE WHERE THAT GROWTH HAS
HAPPENED OR THAT SHIFT HAS
HAPPENED.
>> ONE OF THE LEGISLATORS
LEADING THE REDISTRICTING
PROCESS IS STATE SENATOR OMAR
AQUINO.
HE REPRESENTS CHICAGO'S SECOND
DISTRICT.
>> I'M SITTING HERE TODAY AS
BEING LUCKY ENOUGH TO REPRESENT
MY NEIGHBORS AND MY COMMUNITY.
BECAUSE OF THE FACT THAT WE HAD
ORGANIZATIONS AND PEOPLE HAD TO
SUE SO LATINX MEMBERS HAD A
PLACE IN OUR STATE AND HAD
REPRESENTATION.
AND WE'VE GONE FROM ZERO IN 1980
TO IN 2021 WE HAVE I THINK A
TOTAL OF 16 MEMBERS IN THE HOUSE
AND THE SENATE RIGHT NOW.
THAT ARE PART OF THE LATINX
COMMUNITY.
>> NOW, WHILE A LOT OF GOOD
GOVERNMENT GROUPS SAY THAT AN
INDEPENDENT COMMISSION WOULD BE
BETTER SUITED TO DRAW THE MAPS
THAN SELF-INTERESTED
LEGISLATORS.
OMAR AQUINO SAYS THE GENERAL
ASSEMBLY IS BEST FOR THE JOB.
>> AND I BELIEVE THAT THE WAY TO
GET IT RIGHT TO HAVE A FAIR MAP
THAT SHOWS OUR GREAT DIVERSITY,
IS MAKING SURE THAT IT'S DONE IN
A PUBLIC PROCESS.
AND BY DOING IT AS A LEGISLATIVE
PROCESS THAT IS THE MOST OPEN
AND PUBLIC PROCESS I BELIEVE
THAT THERE IS.
>> BEFORE WE GO, WE WANT TO MAKE
CLEAR NONE OF THE ADVOCATES ARE
SAYING THAT DISTRICTS DRAWN TO
INCLUDE A MAJORITY OF VOTING AGE
LATINOS SHOULD OR MUST BE
REPRESENTED BY LATINO OFFICIALS.
THAT IS UP TO VOTERS.
BY THE WAY, WE'VE BEEN FOR
DISCUSSION ON STATE LEGISLATIVE
SEATS IN THIS DISCUSSION.
BUT BRANDIS AS YOU NOTED,
ILLINOIS IS LOSING A SEAT IN
CONGRESS.
RIGHT NOW THERE'S ONLY ONE
ILLINOIS U.S. HOUSE DISTRICT THE
FOURTH REPRESENTED BY
CONGRESSMAN JESUS CHUY GARCIA
AND THAT IS IMAGINABLY LATINO.
BUT LATINO ADVOCATES SAY PER THE
POPULATION THERE SHOULD BE TWO
DISTRICTS SO THAT IS ANOTHER
POLITICAL SQUEEZE AND YOU CAN
HEAR FROM CONGRESSMAN GARCIA
ABOUT THAT ON THIS SATURDAY'S
"CHICAGO TONIGHT: LATINO