Introduction
The
word corazón means
“heart” when translated literally from Spanish, but like many
Spanish words the cultural meaning is more complex. Corazón
is an endearment used among family
members and loved ones. Corazón
de mi vida conveys a deeper message—“you are the center of
my life.” This concept is the focus of a new initiative to
inform Latino families about the importance of placing their young
children in child safety restraints. The public information
messages and outreach strategies to Latino families utilize the
concept (loosely translated) this way:
“You are the center of my life, and I love
you so much that I will…
…put you in a car seat.”
…put you in the backseat.”
…wear my own seat belt.”
Corazón
de mi vida was developed by the National Latino Children’s
Institute in partnership with the National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration (NHTSA) and Nationwide Insurance. The remarkable
partnership brought together the best thinking about what works in
the Latino community with resources from the public and private
sectors.
Corazón
de mi vida was tested with diverse Latino populations in
eleven cities. In every city, a community-based organization took
the lead in carrying out the project.
Preliminary findings for the Corazón de mi vida project indicate that Latinos will become more
conscious of child passenger safety, buckle up their children in
correctly installed safety seats and use their own
seat belts when they
receive safety information through culturally heartfelt messages
delivered by trusted family members or community leaders.
The
Issues
The death rate from motor vehicle crashes for Hispanic children
between ages 5 and 12 is 72 percent greater than for non-Hispanic white children. This continues to
be the leading cause of death for Hispanics under 24 years of age.
It is also the third-leading cause of death for Hispanics
of all ages, surpassed only by heart disease and cancer, according
to statistics compiled by the National Highway Traffic
Administration (NHTSA).
Research reveals that the Latino community
is the second most vulnerable passenger group when indifference or
cultural beliefs take hold and counter the use of child and
passenger restraints. During recent years the significance of this
problem has been emphasized in data presented by NHTSA.
According to the Johns Hopkins School of
Public Health, Hispanics have lower rates of child safety
seat use than non-Hispanic Whites.
It also reports that among teenagers, young Latinos (ages 13–19
years) are most at risk from death in motor vehicle crashes.
Hispanics ages 21–25 have the second-highest rate of
traffic injury.
The Latino extended family structure,
coupled with poverty, can create difficult situations when it
comes to using child safety seats.
Safety seats are expensive, and they take up space. Many Latino
families are large and some work in businesses that require
trucks, and this may be the only family vehicle. Accommodating the
whole family in a small car or truck poses problems. Only the most
expensive trucks can accommodate more than two persons in seats,
and since elders ride in the most comfortable seats, some children
ride in the bed of the truck. Frequently, mothers hold the youngest
child in their lap, thinking this
is the safest place for them.
In addition to space and economic considerations,
religious and cultural views can be misinterpreted when it
comes to passenger restraints. Phrases such as “Lo
que Dios quiera,” (Whatever God wants) and “De
todos modos cuando me tocque me voy”
(If you are meant to die,
you will) suggest that using seat belts and child safety seats is
irrelevant. Some persons have even said that it can invite
disaster, because “you are tempting fate.”
A
Model with Cultural Values
Corazón
de mi vida reaches the Latino community using appealing culture-based
materials combined with four unique community activities. The
materials include a variety of hangers, tags, bumper stickers, lotería games and a video. Findings from the pilot test
indicate that although the Corazón
de mi vida materials provide information in an easy-to-use
manner and offer innovative reminders to buckle up, the materials
alone are not enough to change behavior. Parents and family
members indicate that commitment to passenger safety practices is
more likely to occur when the materials are used in combination
with at least one of the outreach activities. The greatest
improvement in Latino safety behavior occurred when all four
activities were held within the community, and when respected
leaders of the community as well as family members reinforce the
messages. Corazón de mi
vida activities include the following:
Parent
Plática
Gatherings are hosted at Head Start and childcare centers,
churches, clinics and community centers to discuss child passenger
safety and common attitudes. Culturally
based materials are distributed and participants watch a
demonstration of the correct installation of a safety seat.
Frequently, participants receive a gift
voucher for a safety seat to be distributed at a safety seat clinic.
The conversations at these events are real eye-openers. This is a
primary place to gather data.
Press Conference
Communities are encouraged to use special days to promote
media coverage for child passenger safety. In most cities, the
press events are held on Valentine’s Day (which coincides with
Child Passenger Safety Week) and or April 30 El Día de los Niños Celebrating Young Americans. Community
leaders, safety experts, elected officials and concerned citizens
offer information and testimonials. City proclamations are
read, followed by demonstrations of correct installation.
Safety
Seat Blessing
This activity can be held in conjunction with any of the
other three events. It is usually a very moving spiritual ceremony
that results in personal commitments to protect children. A
religious leader blesses the seats to be distributed and reminds
parents that they have been entrusted with their child’s
well-being.
Safety
Seat Clinic
Usually held on a
Saturday, this event encourages families to drive up to a
checkpoint to test the installation of their safety seats.
Families with vouchers receive safety seats if they don’t
already have one. Parents and children receive bumper stickers and
other materials to remind them to buckle up.
The messages and activities of the Corazón de mi vida program connect personally with each
participant. They work because:
·
They center on the value of the family as the reason
to practice passenger safety.
·
The messages build on the oral traditions of the
Latino community, utilizing rhymes, riddles, dichos
(sayings) and finger games as reminders.
·
Family gatherings and cultural celebrations are the
key outreach tools. El Día
de los Niños,
birthdays, El Día de los
Muertos and Mother’s Day are
recommended for special events such as safety seat clinics.
·
Both Spanish and English are used to convey
information.
·
The messages build on what families are already
doing right.
·
Strategies are targeted to different ages and roles
so that everyone who lives in the household can reinforce the
message.
·
Information is relayed through trusted community
organizations as well as family members and friends.
·
The Hispanic media plays a significant role in
getting the message out.
The
Pilot Test
Twelve community-based organizations were
invited to participate in the development and pilot testing of the
Corazón de mi vida materials and strategies. Each organization was
a previous winner of La
Promesa de un Futuro Brillante, selected for its exemplary work on behalf of young Latinos. Additional pilot tests were
conducted in El
Paso and Del Rio.
Each program participated in a training
session with NLCI staff and received a video on how to organize a Corazón de
mi vida blessing,
press conference, safety seat clinic and plática.
Nationwide Insurance provided funds for pilot site travel to the
training as well as child safety seats and mini-grants to cover
expenses for the events.
Most of the activities were conducted in
conjunction with El Dia de
los Niños Celebrating Young Americans or Child Passenger
Safety Week. All events were held at a well-known site in the
Latino community.
·
Nine programs held a parent plática to discuss
child passenger safety.
·
Ten programs held a blessing and child safety seat
giveaway plus a checkup.
·
851 families participated in the pláticas.
·
1,003 families
participated in the safety seat clinics
Results
Although half the 1,003 families
participating in the safety seat inspections had installed safety
seats in their vehicles, 99 percent of the seats failed
inspection. Some were installed in the front seat, some had very
loose straps, others were the wrong-size seats for the child or
were damaged and too old. At some sites 100 percent were installed
incorrectly.
Of the 1,003
vehicles that participated in the inspection clinics, 461
infants/children arrived without a safety seat. Children in the
vehicles rode in a parent’s lap or in a hand-held infant
carrier. These families received a new safety seat and were given
instructions on how to install it correctly.
Most of these families were made aware of
the need to protect their children at one of the parent pláticas
held at the pilot site and had received vouchers for a new seat.
This group was also the most committed to spreading the word about
child passenger safety. Eighty-six
percent (86%) said they would be willing to attend another plática
or child passenger safety event. Sixty-five percent (65%)
were very concerned for their families and said they would bring a
relative to the next event.
Following is a summary of findings and
recommendations for action.
|
ISSUE
|
FINDING
|
RECOMMENDATION
|
|
Getting
the word out
|
The Latino community is not
getting information about child passenger safety.
Traditional messages and communication systems used for the
general market are not reaching Latinos.
This is evident from the large
number of children arriving at the events without a safety
seat and the 99% failure rate for those who brought their
seats to the events for inspection.
|
The Latino community has its own
vehicles for communication, and these must be used in order
to reach the community.
Nontraditional
outreach strategies such as those in the Corazón de mi vida model
need to be used to make the connection with Latinos. Latinos
must see themselves appropriately represented in messages,
materials and events.
|
|
The
best messengers
|
Parents participating in NLCI
focus groups said that they get most of their information
about raising their children through a friend or relative.
Very few mentioned pediatricians or books. Those enrolled in
parenting programs such as Avance described how much their
knowledge had been expanded as a result of the program.
|
Latinos are more likely to use
information presented by a relative, trusted friend, a
service provider with which they have a relationship or
through an event sponsored by an organization they trust.
Future outreach efforts
conducted by NHTSA must take into account the informal
communication patterns in the Latino community.
|
|
Where
Latino families get child passenger safety information
|
Most participants found out
about the Corazón de
mi vida events through word of mouth or fliers handed to
them personally at organizations they trust (childcare
center, Head Start, etc.)
Parents participating in the
focus group were asked where they would go to get child
passenger safety information. They responded:
43.5% family
17.9% parenting class
10.2% friends
10.2% television
10.2% newspaper
5% radio
2% personal research
|
Traffic safety messages need to
be targeted to all extended family members with
encouragement to spread the word about safety restraints to
other members of the family.
Special events should include
the whole family in order to reinforce messages.
|
|
Where
to hold events
|
There
is a great deal of mistrust of government or large
institutions in the Latino community. This is due to
historical experiences in the United States and other
countries.
The
Latino community is more likely to attend a safety event at
a familiar site in their neighborhood.
|
Safety
events should be planned at the local Head Start center,
clinic, multiservice center, neighborhood store or park,
rather than across town at large institutions such as
hospitals, which have been used for outreach in the past.
|
|
Availability
of funds
|
Latino
nonprofit organizations are the most underfunded
group in the country, receiving less than 2% of
philanthropic dollars (Hispanics in Philanthropy 1998), yet
they are the most trusted group to inform the Latino
community.
|
Latino organizations must have
additional funding or sponsorship in order to provide child
passenger safety information. This is not a service for
which they are typically funded. Without a sponsor, they
cannot provide the service.
Information
and training on how to apply to state agencies and
legislatures for funding of safety activities in the Latino
community must be provided to Latino nonprofit
organizations.
|
|
Necessary
promotion
|
Many
Latino nonprofit organizations are very effective in
providing direct services to the Latino community, but they
lack the clout to command the attention they need from
funding sources. Frequently hospitals and similar
institutions with large safety training budgets and
resources ask Latino nonprofit groups to help get the word
out about safety to the Latino community.
|
Large
institutions and state and city governments need to be
encouraged to create partnerships with Latino
community-based organizations and to make funds available to
them for costs associated with safety activities. Small
organizations cannot join partnerships if their overhead
costs are not covered.
|
|
Connecting
with families
|
Information is not getting to the Latino
community through traditional channels, i.e.,
pediatrician’s offices, hospitals, etc.
The large number of children
arriving at inspection clinics without a safety seat
suggests an enormous gap in access to information about what
children need.
|
Every organization that planned
an event for El Día
de los Niños connected with parents who typically might
not have attended a traditional planned safety seat checkup.
El Día de los Niños can
become a much more effective center for child passenger
safety activity with additional support from each target
community.
Special events and holidays
should be carefully explored for every opportunity to
connect with Latino families.
|
|
Immigrants
|
New
residents of the United States do not know the laws and may
not be familiar with the latest information on child
passenger safety.
There
are new clusters of immigrants living in communities where
Spanish-language services are not readily available, such as
North Carolina and Arkansas.
|
Future projects should include
special outreach activities and messages for immigrant
groups.
Materials and
cultural outreach training must be made available for
organizations that have little experience in working with
Latinos. The families served by these organizations must be
familiarized with child passenger safety and state laws.
|
|
Gender
issues
|
Most participants in events
along the U.S.-Mexico border were
women and said they were the responsible party for
installing car seats in their home. Some felt this was
considered a woman’s job because it was a “family
type” task.
The
issue of fathers not using seat belts for their own safety
was a prominent topic of conversation in several cities,
particularly Denver. Almost all participants said they
wished their spouses could attend a plática or event.
|
A strategy
targeting Latino fathers, brothers and uncles must be
developed in order to create lasting behavior change in the
Latino household. Everyone must be responsible for the
family’s safety.
|
|
Adequate resources
|
Every
event held by La Promesa programs had limited safety seats
and ran out before all needy families received one. In some
cases, event coordinators were able to collaborate with Safe
Kids and other groups to distribute and inspect seats. In
one community, other safety groups became a competing entity
and pulled technicians from the event to support events they
considered “more important.”
|
It is not enough
for national Latino organizations to have agreements with
NHTSA. A national partnership agreement should be developed
among the parties that hold the largest number of resources
for safety seat campaigns and national Latino organizations
that can effectively reach the Latino community.
|
|
Developing
a national strategy
|
More booster seats were needed
when the events took place at Head Start childcare centers
because of the large number of older preschool children.
These seem to be natural sites for informing Latino parents
with children 4 years of age.
|
A national strategy must be
developed for reaching Latino children through the entire
Head Start network. Initial meetings were held last year
with officials from the Administration for Children and
Families, Department of Health and Human Services. Since the
change of administration, no further effort has been made.
NLCI and NHTSA should introduce the Corazón
de mi vida program to the new administration.
|
Corazón de mi vida
Pilot Sites
Raquel
Oliva, Executive Director
Avance Rio Grande Valley , McAllen, TX
Becky
Cervantes, Executive Director
Avance San Antonio, San Antonio, TX
Celine
Woznica, Director
Child-to-Child Program, Alivio Medical Center,
Chicago, IL 60608
Shari
Schwartz, Program Manager
Focus on First Graders, El Paso I.S.D., El Paso, TX
Steve
Stewart, Evaluation Coordinator
LARASA, Denver, CO
Maggie
Cervantes, Executive Director
Mariposa Program, New Economics For Women,
Los Angeles, CA
Adelina
Fritz
Parent Child, Inc., San Antonio, TX
Eva
J. Rosas-Amirault, Director
Plainfield Bilingual Day Care Center, Plainfield, NJ
Arturo
Lopez, Transportation Director
Texas Migrant Council, Laredo, TX
Lety
Navarro
Yakima Valley Farm Workers Clinic, Grandview, WA
This
project is possible with funding from
U.S.
Department of Transportation
People Saving People
