By Frank Gómez

December 27, 2005

For most Americans the mid-2001 Census report on Hispanics was a “wake up call.”  Hispanics, at 38.8 million, had become our largest minority.  Those numbers, from the 2000 census, were already outdated and inaccurate when announced.  Because the Latino population is growing faster than any other part of the population, and the Census accounted for neither its historic undercount nor the millions of undocumented Latin Americans in the U.S. 

Analysts have slowly come around to recognize that the Hispanic population today, including Puerto Rico, the undocumented and the traditional undercount, easily – and conservatively – surpasses 50 million!  And Latino purchasing power is expected to be at $1 trillion in about 2 years!

“Wow!,” some would exclaim on recognizing the influence Hispanics have and will have in our society.  In fact, “Hispanics Wow!¨is the name of a new fact book unveiled recently in Washington that is chock-full of insights that confirm, surprise and even astound.  Hence its name.  The fact that a surprising book about surprising facts should be published now illustrates that Hispanics are shaping American society in countless ways.

With up-to-date information on demographics, political representation, market growth, spending power, cultural impact and other areas, this almanac is a “must read” for anyone interested in the Latino phenomenon (that would be just about everyone).  It is a ready reference for marketers, advertisers, journalists, editors, politicians, government officials – literally anyone who wants to know more about this burgeoning population. 

“Hispanics Wow!” is the first such study published by Diversity Best Practices of Washington, DC, although it has produced other such reports on women and African-Americans.  “We are excited about this book,” says company president Edie Fraser, “because its facts and figures illustrate the dynamism of a group that is shaping our society as few have done in our history.”

The Coca-Cola Company was one of several sponsors of the publication.  “At Coca-Cola, we believe it is critical to build our ‘Cultural IQ,’ that is, an understanding of the communities, practices and cultures in every market in which we operate,” says Rudy Beserra, Vice President, Latin Affairs, at Coca-Cola.  “The Hispanic Wow! Facts is an important primer for every leader in business, government, education and at other entities, to help build their cultural IQ, and we are pleased to have had an opportunity to make this publication happen. 

LatinInsights, an experienced New York-based research and strategic communications company, collaborated on the project, offering numerous trend projections and other data.  In the foreword of Hispanics Wow!, LatinInsights president Marcela Miguel Berland, asks what marketer can fail to pay attention to the reality of a $1 trillion market.  And looking at recent electoral victories, she asks what candidate for political office can afford to ignore Latino political clout.  She adds comments about the explosion in Hispanic media, both print and electronic, saying that Hispanics Wow! provides answers to the “wake up call.”

To be sure, the Hispanic phenomenon HAS attracted a lot of attention since the 2000 census – studies, books, articles, speeches…  But no one has captured the data in such well-organized, understandable and useful fashion.  Any smart politician, journalist, marketer, advertiser, academic, editor, news producer or what have you needs to have one nearby. 

“We not only got today’s data down,” says Fraser.  “We even ventured into forecasts.  The fact is that Latinos are growing so fast and positively influencing so many areas that today’s predictions are no longer valid tomorrow.  So we are already planning for another edition at the end of next year.”

Frank Gómez, a frequent contributing columnist to HispanicVista.com (www.hispanicvista.com),  is a retired Foreign Service Officer and corporate executive, and long-time Hispanic activist, author and commentator.  He can be reached at fobe14@yahoo.com.