Washington, DC—NCLR (National Council of La Raza), the largest national Hispanic civil rights and advocacy organization in the United States, today condemned the assertions made by some members of the media that the outbreak of swine flu is linked to immigrants.

“As an organization that works to improve health outcomes for all Americans, we believe that Americans are right to be concerned about reports of swine flu outbreaks in Mexico, California, New York, and Texas. The administration's declaration of a public health emergency this weekend was a prudent, routine step,” said Janet Murguía, NCLR President and CEO.

“Public health experts are unanimous about key measures required in situations like this,” Murguía continued. “If affected individuals are driven underground and deterred from seeking treatment or reporting their illness, it will hamper the authorities' ability to accurately track the disease's progress or develop the most effective vaccines. Once an outbreak is identified, its containment is dependent on having as many people as possible adhere to protections the government might authorize, such as reductions in public events or closures of public facilities. Open, inclusive communication through the media and community organizations is essential to the success of such strategies, which may be undermined if some population groups are excluded.”

“It's unfortunate that certain individuals with an obvious axe to grind are shamelessly exploiting a public health emergency for their own purposes. It's not surprising that some are implying that all immigrants are a threat to our health—that's standard fare on the hate group circuit. Ironically, the very act of attempting to demonize and stigmatize entire groups, and even entire countries, is likely to impede these and other critical steps that the authorities are taking to protect all Americans from the spread of the flu,” concluded Murguía.

For more information on the swine flu and what can be done to protect against it, visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s website at http://www.cdc.gov/swineflu/key_facts.htm.

For more information visit www.nclr.org.

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