WASHINGTON, April 29, 2010 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The National Association of Hispanic Journalists condemns the depiction of people of color and immigrants in the Boston Herald's cover package on April 27 unfortunately titled, "Mass. Cracks Down on Illegals".
The Boston Herald's story is available at http://bostonherald.com/news/politics/view.bg?articleid=1250373
We believe the cover image of three people of color with the words "No Welfare," "No Tuition," and "No Medicaid" stamped across their foreheads reinforces racial stereotypes that have long been a trademark of unfair coverage of our communities. Not only do such depictions unfairly single out minorities as recipients of such services, but it also gives the impression that only people of color are undocumented immigrants.
We disagree with the Herald's assertion that the photo illustration and accompanying package has no racial or anti-immigration undertones. While a sidebar did focus on the struggles of a single undocumented immigrant, we find the overall racially-charged imagery and language tied to this package unacceptable.
We further question the use of the motive behind this cover. Federally restricted from receiving Medicaid or welfare and not afforded in-state tuition in Massachusetts, undocumented immigrants are not receiving any of these government benefits as it is. We are concerned that such images and headlines send false messages to the public and contribute to the heated rhetoric that encourages people to use Latino and immigrant communities as scapegoats for the many economic challenges the country faces.
Our objections with the depiction of immigrants did not stop with the Herald's cover. To justify a headline on the inside pages touting "No habla ingles? No welfare" and the use of terms like "anchor babies" as simply reflecting the views of a columnist does not change the fact that it is racially derogatory language.
We reiterate our opposition to the use of the word "illegals" in headlines and stories. Using "illegals" as a noun in this way is grammatically incorrect and crosses the line by dehumanizing and criminalizing the person, not the action they are purported to have committed.
We understand that one staffer involved in the execution of this package has a Latin American background, but that does not change our position on this issue. The fact that others involved in the newspaper's editorial process did not perceive how offensive and unfair the cover would be for many surely points to a lack of diversity of backgrounds and perspectives among the publication's decision makers.
We appreciate the Herald responding to our inquiry on this issue and invite Herald management to sit down with representatives from both our national board and our local NAHJ New England chapter to further discuss how to accurately depict Latinos and people of color in the media. We believe instances like this one highlight the importance of diversity within newsrooms.
Founded in 1984, NAHJ's mission is to increase the percentage of Latinos working in our nation's newsrooms and to improve news coverage of the Latino community. NAHJ is the nation's largest professional organization for Latino journalists with more than 1,400 members working in English and Spanish-language print, photo, broadcast and online media. NAHJ is a 501 (c)(3) tax-exempt non-profit organization. For more information, visit www.nahj.org.
The National Association of Hispanic Journalists logo is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=7410