Communities & Banking is a quarterly publication geared for lenders and community development practitioners. It offers insightful articles on topics in community development and fair access to credit, with a focus on innovative research and effective programs and partnerships within New England.

Communities & Banking magazine focuses on

• community development
• economic sustainability
• low- and moderate-income New Englanders

Communities & Banking magazine reaches

• all the banks in New England
• funding organizations
• nonprofits doing community development
• policymakers

Communities & Banking magazine aims to be the central forum for the sharing of information about low- and moderate-income issues in New England.

Editor: Caroline Ellis
Graphic Design: Julie Weinstein
Editorial Board: Patricia Allouise, Heather Brome, Marques Benton, Katharine Bradbury, Prabal Chakrabarti, Tom DeCoff, Ann Eggleston, Jane Katz, Andrew Olszowy, Robert Tannenwald

Download Communities & Banking, Summer 2008

PDF format, 4MB, 32Pages. Cover illustration: Joe Guidry.

Contents:
3 Immigrants’ Contributions in an Aging America
by Dowell Myers, University of Southern California
Two great demographic forces are shaping our future: the swelling ranks of retirees (without comparable increases in native-born workers) and growing numbers of immigrants. Forward-looking immigration policy should recognize America’s increasing need for workers, taxpayers, and purchasers of baby boomer homes.

6 Transnationalism: Living in Two Worlds
by Peggy Levitt, Wellesley College
Many immigrants vote, invest, and support families back home while starting businesses, establishing churches, and joining parent-teacher associations in the United States. Today savvy organizations recognize this growing transnationalism and collaborate across borders to reduce problems in two countries simultaneously.

10 The Impact of Immigration Raids on Children
by Randy Capps and Rosa Maria Castañeda, The Urban Institute
A study into immigration raids’ effect on children produced numerous recommendations, many of which were adopted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Among the recommendations: granting arrestees access to intermediaries to inquire about children; improving telephone access; and not moving parents far away.

13 Linking Institutional Investors to Communities
by Anna Steiger, Federal Reserve Bank of Boston
Public pension funds, insurance companies, foundations, and universities increasingly pursue community investments because they deliver on twin goals: high financial returns and economic growth in underserved areas. Since 2000, mission-related investments have grown at a 19.5 percent compound annual rate.

16 The Golden Years Dilemma
by Kai-yan Lee, Federal Reserve Bank of Boston
With 3.2 million baby boomers eligible to retire this year, how many will be able to meet daily financial needs and still preserve home equity? The author advises seniors to plan carefully and learn about the many forms of assistance available.

20 Native American Bank: Banking the Unbanked
by Jon Swan
In 2001, 21 tribes formed Native American Bancorporation, the first nationally focused tribal bank. A Chippewa Cree and former assistant vice president of commercial lending explains why NAB’s understanding of tribal law has helped the bank serve customers better.

24 Demographic Trends in New England at Mid-Decade
by Kenneth M. Johnson, Carsey Institute, University of New Hampshire
Thanks to immigration and natural increase (more births than deaths), New England has compensated for some loss of population. Nevertheless, a net outflow is a concern to policymakers. The author helps them parse the data and think about implications.

28 We Just Knock on Doors
First Person with Pedro Arce, Chief Executive Officer of Veritas Bank
C&B talks to Pedro Arce, CEO of Veritas Bank. Veritas, a new bank, will work with community groups on development projects and serve the 70 percent Latino population of Lawrence, Massachusetts, in ways that might not be practical for large regional or national banks.

31 Letters to the Editor

Visit Communites & Banking Official Website

Immigrants’ Contributions in an Aging America
By Dowell Myers, University of Southern California

Debates about immigration in America have been backward looking, emphasizing trends of the last 10 years, not the future.1 In the decade ahead, much will change— immigrants and the rest of us included. The preoccupation with matters of legal status, important as they are, have distracted us from the larger question of whether we need immigrants in the first place.

For that answer we must look more closely at American society itself. My research has projected two major sets of changes in the decade ahead. One entails the growing length of settlement by immigrants who arrived after 1970—and their burgeoning upward mobility, which is well under way. The other vector of change centers on the aging of the baby boom generation and the many changes it portends for the economy. How do immigrants fit into the overall picture of change in America?

U.S. Needs Are Changing Dramatically

We cannot begin to gauge the value of immigrants until we better understand ourselves. In recent debates, it seems that most Americans have judged immigrants relative to the needs of today, or even 1980 or 1990. Immigration reform, however, is always about the decades ahead, and we need to make that the primary reference point.

Demography holds certain advantages over other forms of forecasting, especially in contentious political debates. Few can argue with the central premise of demographics—people get older one year at a time. The baby boom generation, born in 1946 to 1964 and now 78 million strong has just begun to turn 62 this year and file for Social Security benefits. ...

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