Question

One study of Puerto Rican owned grocery stores and restaurants found that such small businesses can serve their communities far beyond selling food (Delgado, 1996). They can:

1. Furnish credit and cash checks when necessary.

2. Provide information about community issues and events.

3. Supply information about what’s going on in their homeland.

4. Provide informal counseling to people in crisis.

5. Furnish information about relevant, available social services.

6. Help community residents interpret and fill out government forms.

Provide “cultural connectedness to the homeland through the selling of videotapes, publications,” etc. (Delgado, 1997, p. 447).

Describe and discuss in what ways these activities seek to achieve personal and social empowerment for community residents.

Answer 1

Note: This response is in UK English, please paste the response to MS Word and you should be able to spot discrepancies easily. You may elaborate the answer based on personal views or your classwork if necessary. Also, since I do not have the book, you will have to add content from the book wherever necessary.

(Answer) More often than not, a sense of social empowerment arises from a sense of community. When a group of individuals is united in a cause, it gives them a sense of belonging which translates into strength and empowerment.

For instance, when a community of individuals are given something as simple as similar t-shirts to wear at the time of a protest, they get a feeling of belonging and unity. If this were to be replaced by common community services, events, counseling, participation in civic and government activities, it would be helpful for the community to nurture a sense of unity and integration.

In the case of the Puerto Rican store, the shop functioned as a platform for individuals to come together and formulate ideas and actions that would be beneficial to the members of this society. It became more than just a grocery shop. It became a sanctum for members to have their problems solved and their needs taken care of through the community.