Later this week, the nation’s premiere organization of Latino political leaders known as the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO) will convene in Los Angeles for their annual conference. Some high-level officials in the Obama administration will also be in attendance.
The annual conference will include a keynote speech by NALEO’s former president, Adolfo Carrion Jr., who is now the White House Urban Affairs czar, and another by Cecilia Muñoz, now director of the White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs, formerly of the National Council of La Raza. Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa will also attend, following his announcement that he will not run for governor of California.
Diverse topics will be discussed including green jobs with Nancy Sutley, chair of the White House Council on Environmental Quality. Panels will include discussions on education, health care and immigration reform. The conference will also be an opportunity for mentoring for up-and-coming Latino elected officials.
The biggest issue at the conference will be a discussion about the 2010 U.S. Census with Department of Commerce Undersecretary Rebecca Blank. This year there has been a big push for a complete count of Latinos, who have been historically undercounted. NALEO is particularly interested in the issue of the census because of its purpose to draw electoral district boundaries and apportion political representation.
The Latinovations staff will be on-site at the conference blogging and conducting interviews with elected officials. Stay tuned for the latest reports.
I’m curious, how many latino senators are there in the US? And what percentage of the population is latino?
Sorry the questions are so serious…couldn’t think of a way to jazz them up…
also, i wrote something about how difficult it is for chinese american actors in Hollywood…what’s it like for Latinos? I can think of Freddy Rodriquez and John Leguziamo off the top of my head…but Leguziamo always seemed to be undersold a bit. I think he could play quite a big range of characters if given more of a chance, and he’s probably had a bigger chance than most…
Thank you for your question.
There are currently two United States Senators who are Latino (Both are Cuban American): Senator Bob Menendez, a Democrat from New Jersey, and Senator Mel Martinez, a Republican from Florida. However, Senator Martinez plans to retire when his term ends next year. Former Florida Speaker of the Assembly Marco Rubio has announced his intention to run for Martinez’s seat.
It’s estimated that between 13 and 15 percent of the US population is Hispanic.
As for the role of Latinos in Hollywood, I would hope that some of our readers who are involved in the industry will share their thoughts.