Congressional Hispanic Caucus Members Urge President Biden to Nominate a Latino to the Federal Reserve
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) members, led by Senator Bob Menendez, sent a letter urging President Biden to nominate a highly qualified Latino American to the Federal Reserve's Board of Governors. In the letter, members emphasized the historical lack of Latino representation on the Federal Reserve – it has never had a Latina or Latino serve on the Board of Governors or as president of a regional Federal Reserve Bank.
"Despite being the United States' largest and fastest-growing minority population, Latinos have been persistently underrepresented at the Federal Reserve," wrote the group of 34 CHC members to President Biden. "As you consider nominees to fill the vacancy on the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, we strongly urge the Administration to nominate a qualified Latino candidate to fill this position."
"The Federal Reserve Board must reflect the diversity of the country and communities who are impacted by their decision. The nomination of the Federal Reserve's first Latina or Latino governor would be a step forward to increase Latino representation and would add valuable and diverse insight to matters that impact the financial well-being of our communities," said CHC Chair Nanette Barragán."Senator Menendez has championed Latino diversity at the highest-levels throughout his career and this remains a priority for our Caucus. Our communities must be well represented, especially in roles where key decisions are being made that impact the everyday lives of Latinos."
In the letter, members highlighted that only five percent of the Federal Reserve's overall workforce identifies as Hispanic or Latino. "The current leadership of the Federal Reserve System does not reflect the country that it serves, and failure to nominate a Latino to the Board of Governors in light of this new vacancy will only perpetuate this continued injustice," added CHC members.
Joining Sen. Menendez (D-N.J.) in signing the letter are Sens. Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), and Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), alongside Reps. Nanette Barragán (D-Calif.-44), Pete Aguilar (D-Calif.-33), Nydia Velázquez (D-N.Y.-07), Joaquin Castro (D-Texas-20), Sylvia García (D-Texas-29), Adriano Espaillat (D-N.Y.-13), Jesús G. "Chuy" García (D-Ill.-04), Juan Vargas (D-Calif.-52), Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.-03), Henry Cuellar (D-Texas-28), Delia Ramírez (D-Ill.-03), Rob Menendez (D-N.J.-08), Vicente Gonzalez (D-Texas-34), Tony Cárdenas (D-Calif.-29), Ritchie Torres (D-N.Y.-15), Raúl Grijalva (D-Ariz.-07), Darren Soto (D-Fla.-09), Veronica Escobar (D-Texas-16), Jimmy Gomez (D-Calif.-34), Grace Napolitano (D-Calif.-31), Norma Torres (D-Calif.-35), Robert García (D-Calif.-42), Linda Sánchez (D-Calif.-38), Raul Ruiz, M.D. (D-Calif-25), Lori Trahan (D-Mass.-03), Salud Carbajal (D-Calif.-24), Jim Costa (D-Calif.-21), Teresa Leger Fernandez (D-N.M.-03), Andrea Salinas (D-Ore.-06), and Yadira Caraveo (D-Colo.-08).
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