Ethnic and Racial Groups in Urban Communities in Crisis.

The A.I.C.C. Seminar did not specifically address itself to the Puerto Ricans and so the reader may ask what is the relevance of the Seminar to this particular group of newcomers? Why has the summary of its proceedings been included in an issue of the Review which was written before he seminar took place and which is allegedly dedicated to Puerto Ricans' experiences and prospects? Simply stated, the relevance of the Seminar for this group of newcomers rests with: 1. its repeated emphasis on power as opposed to ethnic culture in the analysis of inter-group relations in the city, an emphasis which echoes the theme of Joseph P. Fitzpatrick's position paper, "Puerto Ricans in Perspective"; 2. its sharp focus on groups' needs of a nexus of institutions to insure their proper power position, a focus reminiscent of the Puerto Rican Conference mentioned in Clarence Senior's article, "The Puerto Ricans in New York: A Progress Note"; 3. its statements of the Bilingual Education Act of 1968, which has the potential to vastly affect the Puerto Ricans; 4. its call for new services for newcomers, services which will revolve around community organization and maximal participation of the newcomers themselves in programmatic efforts to ameliorate their position. This call is, in our opinion, to be sounded by the Puerto Ricans, as well as other ethno-racial groups, if their progress on the mainland is to continue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]