Hispanic mentality and how it can go against the "American Dream"

I'll first say that before this is misconstrued into some attack against Hispanics I'll make it clear it's not. Hispanics are an incredibly diverse group of cultures and countries as such my perspective comes only as a Puerto Rican. Honestly, in my opinion Hispanics are among the hardest working people in the world.

In fact, Hispanics pose the greatest threat to the Democratic party in the country. It may seem irrelevant but consider the fact that many Hispanics are inherently conservative. Religion plays a major role in the society and as expected many of the ideals in the Hispanic community align with those of conservative Republicans. So why is it that most Hispanics vote for the Democrats in metropolitan areas? Well part of the reason is that they feel a sense of familiarity with the African American community. Both tend to have the same social issues and both tend to vote for the same parties as a result. The other issue is rampant racism on the end of conservative Republicans. If they took the opposite stance on the immigration issue with the same fervor they take on other issues they could increase the number of voters on their side greatly. However old habits die hard and thankfully for the Democratic party the chances of swaying the Hispanic Majority are slim.

Given the fact that we have a large pool of hard working people in the United States that seem to want to chase the ideal" American dream" why would I say there's a conflict then? The difference is in the end goals and aspirations for each group. An old friend of a friend was a grumpy old conservative man that used to tell me: "If you're unemployed and you find a job in retail you can work your way up the company to earn $150,000 a year. All it takes is hard work!"
The Hispanic community from my experience seems to take a more pragmatic approach of "Let's earn as much money as we can right now". Often parents are more interested in increasing potential future earnings from their children. The parents themselves are often more concerned about working as many jobs as needed to save up a sizable chunk of money. This savings spree may even mean wearing dirty clothing and skimping on basic necessities.  Hispanic parents also many times expect their children to return the favor of being brought up and expect that their children will take care of them when they are no longer able to work.

In a way, they're breaking free from the "American Dream" and following the worst case scenario. The Hispanic community prepare themselves for a future with no Social Security benefits, no pension and no nest egg large enough to see them through old age. They don't expect a college degree will really do anything unless you're a doctor. Thus the goal here seems to be set expectations as low as possible to the point any change from that encounters great resistance. If you're a Puerto Rican kid going to college your parents may hound you to do something with your life that will secure their "retirement".  Not being around your family and off in another state will take its toll as you'll be seen as uncaring and loving if you're not there all the time. Because of this many teenagers in an already vulnerable and violent environment like those found in many low income neighborhoods  in the country start out with very low goals. I have only met one other Puerto Rican graduate student in the sciences throughout all of the conferences and hundreds of people I've talked to. Call it sampling error if you like but even the programs for undergraduates that specifically take minorities rarely see them.

As I write this I look at the current statistics and outcomes for the PhD and I am becoming quite disheartened. My department is threatening cuts to degree programs that may end with me once again moving further away to find a doctoral degree. My entrepreneurial skills are slipping as I struggle to find an ideal market to bump into while doing my research at school. On top of all of this as a Puerto Rican I suppose I'm a bit different from most as my parents support my distance from home. However my father needs a lung transplant and I recently found out one of my nieces needs to be removed from her incompetent mother. If I had taken another path in life things may have been different. I would have the money and time to take care of my niece and perhaps pay for my fathers needs as well. At this point I can't help but think that the pessimistic Hispanic mentality may have helped me had I listened to it instead of romanticized versions of the "American Dream". To make things worse, you know that one Puerto Rican graduate student I know? They recently got hit with hard times on the way to their degree as well. It got to the point that I had to involve the authorities as there was a plan to commit a school shooting by this person. Thankfully that situation was handled in time and defused before anyone was hurt.

But I can't help but ask myself, how many times are we going to lie to these kids? How many times are we going to pluck hopefuls from the ghetto and send them down college career paths that are dead ends? I remember watching science demos from famous institutions at my school. I also remember people urging minority students to go into science as it'll be a great way to explore the world. They were right in some respects, science in my opinion is the best career option for someone that wants to wake up eager to go to work every morning. But most of the scientists in my field I know made it to where they are though wealthy parents or a wealthy spouse. I have neither of those and am not going to be as lucky in the end. It's morally wrong to give these kids in the ghetto the illusion that they can build a career out of the sciences and never return to "the hood". I remember once talking to a college career counselor that told me "Wherever you end up after college, it'll be better than here". As I think back that was the bigger lie I've ever been told as I face in essence deportation from the suburbs back into the "hood". If only we would tell these minority kids the real risks of going to college instead of sugar coating it because we're afraid they'll drop out like the majority. Sometimes I can't sleep at night knowing there are "timebombs" of students that will one day snap from hopelessness and do something horrible on a University campus.

Here's to hoping I win the lottery and intervene in time........