Advocating for the rights and interests of the Hispanic-Latino community takes a village. Fostering partnerships creates a united front to address challenges and achieve sustainable solutions.  Few organizations, like the Hispanic Federation, have been at the forefront of addressing issues ensuring that the voices of the community are heard and represented. Founded in 1990, the nonprofit membership organization, seeks to empower and advance the Hispanic community, support Hispanic families, and strengthen Latino institutions through work in education, health, immigration, civic engagement, economic empowerment, and the environment. Roberto Valdez Jr., Midwest Director for Policy at the Hispanic Federation was a guest on the program “3 Questions With…” hosted by Hugo Balta, publisher of IL Latino News. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ChmG8a291fg The Hispanic Federation boasts its effectiveness lies in its depth of relationships with Latino communities and strength of connection with grasstops and grassroots stakeholders. "Our goal is to connect with partner and member organizations to elevate their voices," said Valdez. "We also [...]

As the country commemorates the life of Martin Luther King Jr.; his work in advancing the causes of African Americans – we tend to forget how he also inspired Latinos in their fight for equality. Among the hundreds of thousands who were present for Dr. King’s iconic “I Have a Dream” speech at the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom in 1963 were Latinos. Gilberto Gerena Valentín, the then president of the Puerto Rican Day Parade, was recruited by Martin Luther King Jr. to get the Latinx population to turn out for the March on Washington. King had asked Gilberto Gerena Valentín, the then president of the Puerto Rican Day Parade, to get the Latino population to come out. “Martin Luther King Jr. invited me to Atlanta, Georgia to discuss the march that was being organized, and I went there with a strong team,” Gerena told El Diario NY. [...]

As the clock strikes midnight to ring in the new year, you might see Latinos throughout Illinois doing their best to eat 12 grapes before the clock finishes tolling. Or you may see them running outside with their suitcases in hand. Or tossing water out the front door. These are just some of the traditions that help ensure prosperity, love, and travel — among other things —in the new year. Here are 12 things that many Latinos will do to ring in the new year  Photo by Nataliya Vaitkevich Eating 12 grapes. Each grape represents a month of the year. With each grape, a wish is made. But be sure to eat the grapes before the clock strikes 12:01 a.m. What you wear matters. In Mexico, people will wear either red or yellow underwear on New Year’s Eve. Wearing red means you will find love in the new year. But if [...]

JOLIET - “We want people to know that it exists, our museum exists, and we want to be inclusive of all of Route 66 that we can,” Ron Romero, founder and executive director of the “Illinois Rock & Roll Museum on Route 66,” told The Pantagraph. “… There’s a lot of great music history here in Illinois, throughout the whole state, and nobody has really recognized that yet, so we just got lucky. We came around at the right time.” Romero was interviewed earlier this year about “Gigantar,” a giant guitar that stretches 24 feet high and weighs approximately 1,600 pounds. Retro Rock Roundup Gigantar is one of the finishing touches Romero is putting on the museum in Joliet that has yet to make its debut despite the project starting in 2019. Only the gift shop is open to the public. “I don’t think there’s been enough attention on [...]

CHICAGO — When South Side Chicago native Jose M. Muñoz was in his early 20s, every decision he made was to keep a roof above his newborn daughter’s head. “If it meant that I had worked a job that, you know, didn't necessarily pay me a fair wage or didn't provide enough for me, I still took it. I took abuse in different ways,” Muñoz said. Despite working multiple jobs to try to pay rent, Muñoz often ended up sleeping out of his car, at a friend's house, and occasionally at work. The Latino Policy Forum and Illinois Latino News (ILLN) are partnering to create a 2-year long public awareness campaign that will illuminate the most common form of homelessness experienced in the Latinx community, which is through ‘doubling-up’ or when a person temporarily lives with others. La Casa Norte, a homelessness resource non-profit, which Muñoz is now the [...]

In the past year, Chicago has made international news as asylum seekers from Ukraine and Venezuela desperately seek refuge in the Windy City. More recently, the press has rightfully covered the dishearteningly unequal treatment received by these two groups of migrants.  Such stories from Chicago remind us that migration is inherently political in character, injustices among diasporic communities are real, and representation itself often informs a group’s well-being. Given these latest headlines, a current exhibit at Chicago’s Museum of Contemporary Art feels particularly timely. Titled entre horizontes: Art and Activism Between Chicago and Puerto Rico, the survey show features 17 artists, each of whom maintain a relationship with both Chicago and Puerto Rico.  Having opened in August 2023, entre horizontes—best translated as “between horizons”—will run through May 5, 2024. Curated by Carla Acevedo-Yates, the ambitious exhibition features an “intergenerational group of artists with ties to Chicago” who work in [...]