Occasionally the murmurs would reach Grandma's ears. "¿Qué le importa? (What of it?)" she would fume. "I am not raising wives; I am raising young women."

In those days in el barrio, daughters were supposed to learn cooking, cleaning and embroidery. Yet Grandma used to say, "These are my girls, not maids." Despite her limited education, she sent all her children off to college and careers.

Having grown up surrounded by strong, educated Hispanic women, I'm troubled that today's young Latinas constitute an at-risk population. The government and the community bear equal responsibility.

Latina teens have the highest rate of attempted suicide of any adolescent group — roughly 15%. Why? They are often caught between the conservative values of their parents and the freewheeling ways of contemporary society. They end up feeling isolated and hopeless. Mental health care isn't always an option because of financial constraints, limited bilingual resources and the stigma it carries.

A teen pregnancy epidemic envelops these same girls, and Latinas fare the worst among ethnic groups. About half will become pregnant before age 20.

About two-thirds of Latino teens are children of immigrants, likely to be raised in traditionally Catholic households where birth control and abortion are taboo. These young Latinas also face confusing identity issues; they're expected to fulfill customary gender roles — helping their parents, tending to siblings.

Despite red flag after red flag, not enough is being done to help this vulnerable population. In the short term, this will play out in individual tragedies and a steady uptick in disturbing statistics. In the long term, society as a whole will pay as these trends explode along with the booming Hispanic population.

So what can be done? With increased awareness, the same cultural forces that often serve as barriers to Latina teens — family bonds, religious beliefs, community ties — can be used to help them succeed.

We've recognized what ails these young women. Now it's time for Latino advocacy groups to step forward and ensure that our society — indeed, our government — treats this crisis with the proper urgency.

More than ever, I appreciate Grandma's legacy of independent, capable women. She simply wanted the best for her daughters and refused to let tradition stand in their way. Today's Latinas deserve no less.