1 big thing: Latinos, voting rights and MLK

Exhibition of Martin Luther King Jr "A dream of equality" at the Museo Memoria y Tolerancia in Mexico City. Photo: Miguel Tovar/LatinContent via Getty Images

2. Traffic cams and bias 

A red light camera in Queens, New York. Photo: Lindsey Nicholson/Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images

3. Latinas more at risk of diabetes from toxins

 Illustration of a person with their head in their hands, sitting against a larger-than-life stethoscope.

4. A dose of justice in Guatemala

Achí women outside the Guatemala City courtroom where a trial over sexual violence between 1981 and 1985 is underway. Photo: Johann Ordóñez/AFP via Getty Images

5. Stories we're watching 

Buenos Aires at a standstill with record-high temperatures and power grid outages. Photo: Anita Pouchard Serra/Bloomberg via Getty Images

6. 🧑‍🎤 1 smile to go: From religion to rap 

Today we talk about how “forever chemicals” hurt Hispanic teens, a long-awaited Central American trial and potentially biased traffic cams.

Send us any feedback (quejas, sugerencias, chismes) by replying to this email. Sign up if you aren’t yet subscribed, and remember you can read the Spanish version here.

This newsletter, edited by Astrid Galván, is 1,298 words, about a 5-minute read.

Latino

Red wooden block with Latino in colors engraved on it.

Keep tabs on the stories that most affect the U.S. Latino community on both sides of the border, a collaboration with Noticias Telemundo. Weekly - Thursdays

Axios Latino

National

The man accused of killing 23 people at an El Paso Walmart in 2019 will plead guilty to federal hate crime charges, his attorneys said in court filings over the weekend. 

The big picture: Federal prosecutors announced last week that they would not seek the death penalty in the hate crimes case against Patrick Crusius. A judge on Monday set a new arraignment hearing for Feb. 8. 

Catch up quick: Crusius had initially pleaded not guilty to 90 counts under federal hate crime and firearm laws. 

But Crusius' attorneys on Saturday filed a motion seeking a new arraignment, saying he planned to change his plea to guilty. The federal trial is currently scheduled for next January. 

Police say Crusius confessed to authorities that he was targeting Mexicans when he drove 10 hours from Allen, Texas, to El Paso to carry out the shooting on Aug. 3, 2019.

He posted a racist screed online shortly before the shooting, according to prosecutors.

What to watch: Crusius' trial in state court on capital murder charges has not been set. State prosecutors in El Paso say they still intend to seek the death penalty. Crusius has pleaded not guilty to the state charges. 

Crusius' attorneys did not immediately respond to Axios' requests for comment.

The U.S. Attorney's Office declined to comment. 

El Paso Walmart shooting suspect to plead guilty to federal hate crimes

A new arraignment hearing for Patrick Crusius has been scheduled for Feb. 8.

A crowd of people hold candles at night during a vigil for the victims of a mass shooting in El Paso, Texas, in 2019. 

A candlelight vigil at a makeshift memorial for victims of the mass shooting in El Paso, Texas. Photo: Mario Tama/Getty Images

El Paso

Latin America and Latinos

The man accused of killing 23 people at an <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="El Paso Walmart in 2019" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2023/01/17/el-paso-walmart-shooting-crusius-death-penalty" data-vars-content-id="6354dab4-c4cc-46e0-b580-67709e9a90b6" data-vars-headline="El Paso Walmart shooting suspect to plead guilty to federal hate crimes" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2023/01/17/el-paso-walmart-shooting-crusius-death-penalty" target="_self">El Paso Walmart in 2019</a> will plead guilty to federal hate crime charges, his attorneys said in court filings over the weekend. The big picture: Federal prosecutors announced last week that they would not seek the death penalty in the hate crimes case against Patrick Crusius. A judge on Monday set a new arraignment hearing for Feb. 8.

China is becoming the most formidable rival America has faced, and the risk of confrontation with Russia, North Korea or Iran still looms. Authoritarians are rising, the chaotic Afghanistan exit revealed the limits of U.S. power, and the pandemic, climate change and other critical challenges continue to pose grave threats.

World

Federal prosecutors on Tuesday announced they will not seek the death penalty for the man accused of killing 23 people and wounding 22 others at an El Paso Walmart in 2019. 

The big picture: Patrick Crusius has been charged with 90 counts under federal hate crime laws. Crusius, whose federal trial is scheduled to begin in January 2024, has pleaded not guilty. He could still face the death penalty in state court. 

Federal prosecutors faced a Tuesday deadline to say whether they would seek the death penalty. 

Police say Crusius confessed to authorities that he was targeting Mexicans when he drove 10 hours from Allen, Texas, to El Paso to carry out the shooting on Aug. 3, 2019.  

He posted a racist screed online shortly before the shooting, according to prosecutors. 

His trial in state court on capital murder charges has not been set. 

State of play: President Biden on the campaign trail pledged work “to pass legislation to eliminate the death penalty at the federal level."

In July 2021, Attorney General Merrick Garland ordered a moratorium on federal executions while the Justice Department reviewed its death penalty policies and procedures.

Garland said in a memo that "serious concerns" have been raised about the use of the death penalty, "including arbitrariness in its application, disparate impact on people of color, and the troubling number of exonerations in capital and other serious cases."

No federal executions will be scheduled while the review takes place, the DOJ said. 

Feds won't seek death penalty in El Paso Walmart mass shooting case

Patrick Crusius has been charged with 90 counts under federal hate crime and firearm laws.

A woman leans over a makeshift memorial outside a Walmart in El Paso where a man fatally shot 23 people and wounded 22 others

A makeshift memorial for the mass shootings victims in El Paso, Texas, August 2019. Photo: Mario Tama/Getty Images

Federal prosecutors on Tuesday announced they will not seek the death penalty for the man accused of killing 23 people and wounding 22 others at an <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="El Paso Walmart " data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2020/04/27/el-paso-walmart-mass-shooting-victim-dies" data-vars-content-id="76f92331-fea9-4b5f-b0e2-cf87ee4192ba" data-vars-headline="Feds won&#x27;t seek death penalty in El Paso Walmart mass shooting case" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2020/04/27/el-paso-walmart-mass-shooting-victim-dies" target="_self">El Paso Walmart </a>in 2019. The big picture: Patrick Crusius has been charged with 90 counts under federal <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="hate crime" data-vars-click-url="https://www.justice.gov/usao-wdtx/pr/texas-man-charged-federal-hate-crimes-and-firearm-offenses-related-august-3-2019-mass" data-vars-content-id="76f92331-fea9-4b5f-b0e2-cf87ee4192ba" data-vars-headline="Feds won&#x27;t seek death penalty in El Paso Walmart mass shooting case" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.justice.gov/usao-wdtx/pr/texas-man-charged-federal-hate-crimes-and-firearm-offenses-related-august-3-2019-mass" target="_blank">hate crime</a> laws. Crusius, whose federal trial is scheduled to begin in January 2024, has pleaded not guilty. He could still face the death penalty in state court.

President Biden has made the COVID-19 crisis and a post-Trump return to national unity and traditional democratic ideals his top priorities. From vaccinations to stimulus to schools, Biden is seeking bipartisan compromise while showing a willingness to use executive authority and bare Democratic majorities in the U.S. House and Senate to implement his policies. Republican leaders are navigating deep party divisions over if and how to move beyond former President Trump.

Politics & Policy

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development says it is making $5.5 million in grants available to Hispanic-serving higher-education institutions for research on housing and community issues.

Driving the news: HUD announced Thursday that the grants will go to schools to establish research centers that will study housing and community development. 

Details: The research will take in equity in rental and housing markets, tenant protections, affordable transportation and other areas. 

Nationwide, there are roughly 559 Hispanic-serving institutions, which are defined as higher-ed schools where 25% or more of students are Latino. Most are tw0- and four-year colleges. 

Applications for the new grants are due by May 18. 

Between the lines: Hispanics account for more than half of the nation's population growth in the past decade, but the government lacks critical information about their access to housing programs and experiences with renting and buying homes, Solomon Greene, HUD’s principal deputy assistant secretary for policy development & research, told Axios. 

The research these grants will fund "will expand our knowledge and improve our programs" for Latinos, Greene added.

What they're saying:  “Hispanic institutions of higher learning often serve as leaders within their communities, driving priorities and economic development,” HUD Secretary Marcia L. Fudge said in a statement.

"The funding availability we’ve announced today will strengthen efforts for these institutions to expand opportunities for underserved communities and promote equitable community development.”

 Subscribe to Axios Latino to get vital news about Latinos and Latin America, delivered to your inbox on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

First look: HUD announces grants for Hispanic-serving institutions

The grants will fund research that focuses on equity in rental and housing markets, tenant protections and other areas.

Illustration of a dollar sign made out of house keys.

Affordable housing

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development says it is making $5.5 million in grants available to <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Hispanic-serving higher-education institutions " data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2021/09/22/hbcus-higher-ed-federal-dollars-public-health" data-vars-content-id="8bf5f4ad-7e5c-4a56-a2ca-418b85d47aad" data-vars-headline="First look: HUD announces grants for Hispanic-serving institutions" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2021/09/22/hbcus-higher-ed-federal-dollars-public-health" target="_self">Hispanic-serving higher-education institutions </a>for research on housing and community issues.Driving the news: HUD announced Thursday that the grants will go to schools to establish research centers that will study housing and community development.

Data: Reproduced from Pew Research Center ; Chart: Axios Visuals

Kids' mental health is now parents' biggest concern, according to a new study from the Pew Research Center.

The big picture: Gone are the days of parents sitting up worrying about their kids getting into fights, or trouble with drugs and alcohol. Social media and the pandemic have ushered in a new dimension to parents' already challenging jobs.

By the numbers: 40% of parents said they are extremely or very worried that their kids will struggle with anxiety or depression. 

35% felt the same about their kids being bullied.

Concerns over their kid getting shot were further down the list at 22%. 

What they're saying: Layla Sarquis, affiliate faculty at the Chicago School of Professional Psychology, said kids were already struggling with the way social media has changed our interactions. 

Pandemic lockdowns, which cut many kids off from a lot of their normal socialization, exacerbated some of those pressures.

"I think it was a situation that was building momentum," she said.

Kids' mental health is parents'  top concern

Social media and the pandemic have made things harder.

Mental health

Health

Reproduced from Pew Research Center; Chart: Axios Visuals

It's not just your abuelita — many Hispanic parents worry a lot more than other parents about certain things, according to new data from Pew Research Center. 

The big picture: Being a parent was already hard. But social media and the pandemic have made parenting a minefield.

Details: Last fall, Pew conducted an online survey of 3,757 U.S. parents — 872 of whom identified as Hispanic — with children younger than 18. 

Hispanic parents said they worry just about the same as all other parents when it comes to their kids' mental health, which Pew found was the overall top concern. 

But when it comes to concerns about their kids getting in trouble with police, getting pregnant, getting shot or having problems with drugs or alcohol, they worry at almost twice the rate as the rest of parents. 

By the numbers: 48% of Hispanic parents said they worry about bullying, compared to 35% of all parents.

43% of Hispanic parents said they worry their child will be kidnapped or abducted, compared to 28% of all parents. 

There's a variety of reasons for those differences, experts tell Astrid. 

For one, Latinos often practice collectivism over individualism: They prioritize the family over themselves, which leads to a lot of worrying.

"We're loving, we are warm, we express solidarity — that can go the other way," says Layla Sarquis, affiliate faculty at the Chicago School of Professional Psychology. "And we tend to over-worry. We tend to assume responsibilities that are not ours. We tend to be fixers because of that collectivistic nature."

But Latinos also contend with structural racism and marginalization, says Manuel X. Zamarripa, co-founder of the Institute of Chicana/o/x Psychology in Austin, Texas. 

Zamarripa points to police violence against Latinos as one of the factors that may affect a parent. 

Yes, but: Hispanic parents find their roles rewarding and say being a parent is a crucial part of who they are. 

39% of Hispanic survey respondents said parenting is enjoyable all of the time, while 45% said it's rewarding all of the time.  

Meanwhile, 25% of all parents found it enjoyable all of the time and 36% said it was rewarding all of the time.

Subscribe to Axios Latino to get vital news about Latinos and Latin America, delivered to your inbox on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

Bullying tops Latino parents' worries

A new Pew Research Center survey reveals Hispanic parents said they worry at nearly twice the rate of other parents.

Hispanic and Latino Americans

It&#x27;s not just your abuelita — many Hispanic parents worry a lot more than other parents about certain things, according to new data from P<a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="ew Research Center." data-vars-click-url="https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2023/01/24/parenting-in-america-today/" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2023/01/24/parenting-in-america-today/" target="_blank">ew Research Center.</a> The big picture: <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Being a parent " data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2022/05/31/parents-schools-uvalde-baby-formula-race" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2022/05/31/parents-schools-uvalde-baby-formula-race" target="_self">Being a parent </a>was already hard. But <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="social media" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2023/01/11/social-media-children-teenagers-mental-health-tiktok-meta-facebook-snapchat" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2023/01/11/social-media-children-teenagers-mental-health-tiktok-meta-facebook-snapchat" target="_self">social media</a> and the <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="pandemic" data-vars-click-url="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/05/opinion/pandemic-normal.html" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/05/opinion/pandemic-normal.html" target="_blank">pandemic</a> have made parenting a minefield.

Astrid Galván

Stories

Kids' mental health is parents' top concern

Bullying tops Latino parents' worries

El Paso Walmart shooting suspect to plead guilty to federal hate crimes

First look: HUD announces grants for Hispanic-serving institutions

Feds won't seek death penalty in El Paso Walmart mass shooting case

Newsletter editions

MLK Jr.'s legacy with Latinos