Volume 2, Number 3 - March/April 1999

University of Illinois, Chicago/Illinois Hispanic Safe Communities (UIC/IHSC) is a statewide coalition focusing on the Hispanic communities of Illinois, housed at the Midwest Latino Health Training and Policy Center and funded by the Illinois Department of Transportation. An important UIC/IHSC objective was to define the injury problem by using local data. Department of Public Health data indicated that Hispanics were killed in traffic collisions at a rate double that of their representation in the population-but there was not much other data available. Yolanda Mariño, the program's coordinator, reported that the project staff "decided to use focus groups, which gave us a much better understanding of what's going on in a particular Hispanic community." These focus groups revealed that while Hispanics in Illinois are concerned with traffic safety, the issue is often overshadowed by concerns with gangs and violence. The research also revealed that few of the participants had any formal driver's education and that a substantial number were actually driving without a license.

Mariño gave us one example of how the immigration experience affects traffic safety. She explained that some immigrants learned to drive on rural roads in their countries of origin that "are very bumpy, so you can't drive fast. They come to Illinois where the roads are paved and smooth, and they can drive very fast. They don't realize how dangerous this can be."

She also pointed out that the Hispanic community is actually a diverse collection of cultures. She explains, "The only place in the world we are Hispanics is the United States. Everywhere else, we are seen as having a particular nationality: Mexican, Guatemalan, Ecuadorian . . . " Hispanic cultures differ in dialects, customs, and beliefs. Each Hispanic community also differs in its immigration experience. Mariño reports that "some communities are better developed than others. Older Hispanic communities that have been in Illinois for 60 years will have established organizations through which we can work. Newer communities do not have these organizations, and present a greater challenge. Hispanic immigrants may not be literate in Spanish or English. Many do not read newspapers or watch English-language TV, so merely translating literature into Spanish will not reach them."

UIC/IHSC and its local partners are reaching out to the Hispanic audience in several ways. They have found that youth soccer events are effective venues for reaching Hispanics. An effective educational event was held in conjunction with the "Scoop the Loop" antique car rally in Waukegan; UIC/IHSC and its partners provided traffic education activities for entire families attending the popular event. For example, police officers walked adults wearing "Fatal Vision" goggles, which simulate various blood alcohol levels, through a "sobriety course," while community volunteers helped children draw pictures with traffic safety themes.

For more information on UIC/IHSC, contact Yolanda Mariño, UIC/IHSC, 2407 Ridgeway Avenue, Evanston, IL 60201. Telephone and fax: (847) 492-8233.

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