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Dr. Pedro Antonio Noguera is a professor of education at the University of California, Berkeley. He is also past-president of the Berkeley School Board. Originally presented to the Latino Think Tank on Violence Prevention, Charles R. Drew University, Medical School in 1991, this analysis (© 1996) is published here by In Motion Magazine as a series of hyper-linked articles which can be downloaded in segments. All sections can be reached from this page, or readers can follow from one section to another. Footnotes will open to a new window and therefore can be left open for easy reference. © 1996 The portrait of Dr. Noguera is by freelance photographer Kathy Sloane (kataphoto@aol.com). © 1996
The first thing that must be recognized when we discuss violence in Latino communities is that it is a problem primarily concentrated among young males. Disproportionately, both the victims and the perpetrators of violence in the Latino community, are males, generally between the ages of 16 and 30.(1) Additionally, violence among Latinos is primarily an urban phenomenon. In cities possessing significant Latino populations, the rates of violence are substantially higher than in suburban and rural areas.(2) Furthermore, incidents of violence are far more likely to occur in low income, economically depressed areas. Again, both the victims and the perpetrators share common characteristics in that they are most likely to be low income and poorly educated.
For many years now, violent crime has been on the increase in the United States. For Latinos in particular, the increase has been dramatic. Nationwide, Puerto Rican males have the highest homicide rate in the country (114.2/100,000).(3) This is an alarming statistic, not only because of the relatively small size of the Puerto Rican population, but also because so little attention has been given to the problem. While the high homicide rates among young African American males has been considerable attention recently, there has been no comparable outcry about the extent of this problem among young Puerto Rican males.
The chart below (4) illustrates trends with respect to the homicide rate among segments of the Latino population. Data for this study was based upon Latino immigrants rather than the U.S. born population due to continuing problems in identifying the Latino population through census data, and the resulting unreliability of that information. Despite this limitation, the trends illustrated below are informative.
| Area | Latino | Males |
| New York City | Puerto Ricans | 114.2 |
| Whites | 26.0 | |
| Blacks | 97.0 | |
| Dade County | Cubans | 82.8 |
| Whites | 31.9 | |
| Blacks | 145.5 | |
| California | Mexicans | 52.0 |
| Whites | 18.0 | |
| Blacks | 87.1 | |
| Texas | Mexicans | 88.9 |
| Whites | 22.4 | |
| Blacks | 98.1 |
The charts demonstrate quite clearly that there is substantial differentiation among the Latino population, based both upon nationality and region. While Mexicans, Cubans and Puerto Ricans have homicide rates that exceed those of the white population in all of the regions identified, only Puerto Ricans in New York City have a homicide rate that exceeds that of Blacks. Moreover, even within the Mexican population there are regional differences; Mexicans residing in Texas are nearly twice as likely to be victims of homicide as compared to Mexicans residing in California.
The suicide rates among the Latino population are almost equally alarming. Cubans in the Dade County area of Florida, have one of the highest suicide rates in the country (30.2/100,000). This fact is particularly noteworthy given that the Cuban population does not demonstrate many of the characteristics that are normally associated with tendencies toward suicide (i.e. high incomes, high levels of education, high degree of alienation and isolation, etc.) For Latinos generally, only Mexicans residing in California have a lower suicide rate than either Blacks or Whites. While self inflicted death is generally not seen as a major problem among Latinos, the trends represented on the chart below indicate that perhaps it should be.
| Area | Latino | Males |
| Dade County | Cubans | 30.2 |
| Whites | 26.4 | |
| Blacks | 12.6 | |
| New York City | Puerto Ricans | 23.0 |
| Whites | 15.6 | |
| Blacks | 11.3 | |
| California | Mexicans | 10.3 |
| Whites | 25.1 | |
| Blacks | 17.2 | |
| Texas | Mexicans | 14.1 |
| Whites | 23.2 | |
| Blacks | 9.8 |
In addition to homicide and suicide, Latinos are disproportionately more likely to die as a result of an accident (highest among Mexicans residing in Texas); are more likely to be incarcerated for violent crimes; are more likely to be victims of violent crimes; and our children are more likely to be expelled or suspended from school as a result of violent or disruptive behavior. (6) Violence is clearly a major problem for the Latino community, and most trends indicate no sign of reduction in the near future.
