With many Latinos in the mainstream blogosphere feeling snubbed by President Elect Obama passing over Bill Richardson as Secretary of State, the focus is shifting to who are the other Latinos in Obama’s cabinet, feeling that a Latino in the cabinet will mean that our interests are looked out for. Apprently no one learned from Alberto Gonzales’s time that having a Latino in and of itself doesn’t guarantee a damn thing.

Another Latino in the Obama White House is Cecilia Muñoz, senior vice president for the Office of Research, Advocacy, and Legislation at the National Council of La Raza (NCLR). She was named as Director of Intergovernmental Affairs, coordinating the White House’s relations with local and state governments.

Muñoz appointment is being praised, not just because she is Latino and a mujer, but also because of her role in what is seen as the largest national U.S. Latino civil rights organization and it is hoped that her advocacy experience will move with her into the White House.

That is not to say that Muñoz position, or any other Latino in the Obama administration gets a free pass. NCLR has had it’s own issues, being accused of mainstreaming much of the debate on immigration for example, as a way to make it more acceptable to a wider public and of co-opting the work of grassroots organizations working on the ground within Latino communities.

Via / Racism Review