Researchers from UNO’s Office of Latino/Latin American Studies recently released a report focused on the demographic makeup of Latinos throughout the city of Omaha.
Dr. Lourdes Gouveia is the Director of the Office of Latino/Latin American Studies at UNO. She says they used data from the US Census Bureau’s 5-year American Community Survey for the report.
She says the two main issues they wanted to look at were the dispersion and diversity of Latinos in the city.
Gouveia says the report also helps dispel some common misconceptions about Latinos in Omaha.
She says not all Latinos are only Spanish speakers and not all are laborers.
"Not only are there important differences in education and economic indicators such as income and poverty, but there is also a general correlation. The farther west you go, usually the better the socioeconomic status the Latino population has.”
Gouveia says the report also tries to raise some questions as to what these differences may imply.
She says although the majority of Omaha’s Latino population still lives in South Omaha, 44% have dispersed throughout the city.
To view the report in either English or Spanish, the website is www.unomaha.edu/ollas.