Prometheus 6   

Hispanics in U.S. Report Optimism
By SIMON ROMERO and JANET ELDER

A new survey of the nation's Hispanics finds they are far more optimistic about life in the United States and their children's prospects than are non-Latinos, despite the fact that many are much poorer and many do not intend to gain the full benefits of citizenship.

The New York Times/CBS News poll found that nearly 70 percent of foreign-born Hispanics say they identify more with the United States than with their country of origin. Still, many continue to send money to family members even though they rarely visit their home countries.

Sixty-four percent of Latinos said there was no specific instance when they felt discriminated against because of their ethnicity. Those who said they had had such an experience said it involved employment or a general sense of exclusion.

The finding was in sharp contrast to that of the poll's non-Hispanic blacks. Seventy-three percent of them said they had experienced discrimination, while 25 percent said they had not.

Much of the optimism expressed by Latinos appears to be related to the fact that most, 57 percent, said they were immigrants. Just 39 percent said they were born in the United States, making it clear that the expectation of better economic circumstances for themselves and their children was inherent in their decision to uproot their lives and come to the United States.