At the first ever meeting of the Latino Action Council held on Wednesday, December 8, 2021, Mi Casa Resource Center® agreed to join other nonprofit Latino organizations across Colorado to work together to improve conditions and opportunities for the people they serve. The new coalition will support legislation and public policies to benefit Latinos across Colorado.
At its first meeting, the Council’s planning committee focused on several local, state, and Federal public policy goals. Examples included creating employment, education, and business pathways for Latinos, improved educational opportunities for Latino children, better access to health care, affordable housing, assistance for Latino families hit hardest by the COVID-19 pandemic, and greater opportunities to become U.S citizens, including non-citizens serving in the U.S. armed forces.
“Mi Casa Resource Center® has joined the Latino Action Council because we believe that when Latino organizations act collectively, we increase our political influence,” said Angeles Ortega, CEO of Mi Casa. “By acting together, we can do more to help improve laws and government policies that limit opportunities for Latinos in the communities we serve.”
Mi Casa Resource Center® believes in the potential of all people to achieve their educational, professional, and entrepreneurial goals. We educate, train, and support youth and adults on their path to economic success. We are a change-making organization committed to advancing family prosperity.
Fifteen nonprofit organizations attending the meeting serve on a planning committee for the Latino Action Council. Committee members come from three regions of the state:
Northern Colorado and Western Slope
Alianza Latinx—Latinx Alliance (ALLA)
Centennial BOCES
Hispanic Affairs Project (HAP)
Latino Coalition of Weld County
League of United American Citizens (LULAC)
Southern Colorado
American G.I. Forum of Colorado
Colorado Latinos Vote
Compañeros: Four Corners Immigrant Resource Center
Pueblo Voter Registration Project, Inc.
San Luís Valley Immigrant Resource Center
Denver Metro Area
Mi Casa Resource Center®
NEWSED Community Development Corporation
Movimiento Poder (formerly known as Padres y Jóvenes Unidos)
Servicios de La Raza
Tepeyac Community Health Center
Besides the planning committee, an additional 25 nonprofits across the state have affiliated with the Latino Action Council. “We know that there are at least 124 nonprofit organizations that are governed by and serve Latino communities across Colorado” said Milo Márquez, staff director of the Latino Action Council. “We are still reaching and inviting more Latino nonprofits to join,” he said.
Márquez is employed by the Colorado Latino Leadership, Advocacy, & Research Organization, also known as CLLARO. “CLLARO has a long history of working with other Latino organizations to address shared concerns” said Dr. Mike Cortés, executive director of that organization. CLLARO led Latino organizations’ efforts to protect Latino communities of interest during this year’s redrawing of voting districts by Colorado’s new Congressional and State Legislative Redistricting Commissions.
Colorado’s population of Latino voters is growing. The 2010 U.S. Census found that one out of five Coloradans are Latino. In 2021, the number of Latinos is approaching one out of four. The Colorado State Demographer estimates that Latinos will be one out of three by 2050.
“CLLARO is committed to collaborating with other Latino organizations – both large and small – on legislative and policy issues that matter to us all,” said Cortés. “The Latino Action Council represents a multi-year strategy designed to permanently change the balance of power between Latinos and the rest of Colorado’s electorate and political establishment.”
The new coalition is nonpartisan. It is organized to help identify issues of concern to local Latino communities in three regional chapters. The Council is designed to promote collaboration among Latino organizations in nearby areas on joint advocacy objectives and make it easier for member organizations to ask for help from others addressing similar problems in their communities. Activities planned for Latino Action Council members include hosting joint meetings with elected public officials and candidates for public office and sharing information on proposed legislation and policy proposals. Plans also include a statewide convention where candidates for public office will be invited to speak on issues of concern to Latino communities.
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The Latino Action Council (LAC) will monitor public policy problems and identify action opportunities for the network’s affiliates on issues of major importance to Latinos. LAC will also offer basic training to boards and leaders of member organizations on rules, strategies, and tactics for nonprofit organizations on public policy advocacy. The Colorado Latino Leadership, Advocacy, & Research Organization (CLLARO) led the formation of this network. It is facilitating and staffing LAC. Incorporated in 1964 as LARASA, CLLARO has a history of working with Latino organizations – small and large — across Colorado with shared concerns. CLLARO is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, nonpartisan organization. CLLARO’s mission is to empower Latinos in Colorado through leadership development, advocacy, and policy research to strengthen Colorado. www.cllaro.org
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