Published: 2008
Total Pages: 5
Get eBook
The Department of Criminal Justice, North Carolina Central University, in cooperation with the Strategic Studies Institute, U.S. Army War College, conducted a colloquium titled "Opportunities for Engaging Minority Communities in Securing Our Nation" on February 11, 2008. The conference, held at The Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, attracted over 75 participants and attendees, who addressed methods for successful engagement by security and public health agencies with Latino, Muslim, and at-risk communities. Participants included community, state, and regional leaders from the communities of interest, law enforcement agencies, health service providers, homeland security agencies, and educational institutions. This publication presents key insights from that colloquium. Successful engagement of minority communities by community, state, and national security agencies requires cultural understanding and appreciation for diversity within and among the agencies and willingness by agency leaders to initiate contact, either directly or through mutually-trusted agents. Understanding generational differences within minority communities is important for successful engagement, especially for long-established communities that continue to receive new members from foreign locations. Security agencies must have the ability to communicate effectively with minority communities to establish mutual trust and successfully engage their members. Disadvantaged and at-risk communities, with or without minority populations, are especially vulnerable to disasters and require particular attention when planning for mitigation, response, and recovery. There is a long and honorable tradition of service by minorities in securing their nation; that service must continue to be recognized as the basis for continued participation and leadership by minority members.