Commission releases data to highlight the state of minorities in Nevada

By Camalot Todd

Friday, Jan. 25, 2019 | 2 a.m.

Infant mortality rates are nearly double for African-Americans in Nevada compared with other ethnicities in the state. One-third of Native American children are part of families that live below the federal poverty level. One-fifth of Hispanics in the state are without health insurance. A quarter of Pacific Islanders are homeowners, compared with 65 percent of whites.

These are just some of the racial and ethnic disparities unfolding in the Silver State, according to findings by the Nevada Commission on Minority Affairs.

The commission operates as a central advisory body and unveiled the information this month at the Nevada State Business Center. It hopes to use it to inform and educate the public and other stakeholders, as well as facilitate conversations in the community and educate resource partners to address disparities, whether that’s through public policy or nonprofit efforts.

“The importance, I think, is bringing expertise and wisdom of different individuals in addressing gaps and needs of the minorities throughout the state,”said Marcel Schaerer, Deputy Director for Nevada’s Department of Business and Industry. “We can basically become this hub of minority data that matters to Nevada.”

There are seven subcommittees that hyperfocus on areas where discrepancies in outcome exist for minorities. Those include education, health, housing, workforce development, economic development, legislative and political power and community liaison. They examine data spanning the past decade from multiple government agencies and research organizations. Here are some of their findings:

This story originally appeared in the Las Vegas Weekly.