Nation’s oldest Latino civil rights group kicks off convention on Strip

The oldest Latino civil rights organization in the U.S. on Wednesday kicked off its yearly national convention on the Las Vegas Strip, welcoming officials, experts and entertainers to discuss topics that affect the growing demographic, such as health care, education, and economic empowerment.

The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) convention, in its 95th iteration, runs through Saturday at Caesars Palace.

“We’re the nation’s oldest civil rights organization,” LULAC CEO Juan Proaño told the Las Vegas Review-Journal this week. “We’re also the country’s largest Latino membership organization.”

Proaño said LULAC has more than the 140,000 members and 500 councils serving in hundreds of U.S. cities.

The four-day convention, themed “Empowering the Next Generation,” will feature panels, immigration and soccer clinics and a job fair.

Attendance is free for most of the convention, LULAC said.

It also will steer off the tourist corridor for community events.

LULAC helped organize off-Strip events, such as a partnership with Tyson Foods in which 30,000 pounds of protein will be donated to the local Three Square Food Bank Thursday morning.

“We are deeply grateful for their donation as we continue our work to feed our neighbors throughout Southern Nevada,” wrote Beth Martino, president and CEO of the food bank, in a statement.

Martino said food insecurity was on the rise in the community where one in seven people “faces uncertainty about where their next meal is coming from.”

On Thursday afternoon, U.S. Census Bureau Director Robert Santos will host a presentation about the Latino demographic and the “complexities of Latino identity.”

LULAC noted that Santos is the first Latino to hold the position.

Convention speaker and head of the U.S. Small Business Administration, Isabel Casillas Guzman, on Friday will tour local small businesses alongside Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., who also was scheduled to appear at the convention along with Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford.

Las Vegas Mayor Carolyn Goodman and Nevada State University President DeRionne Pollard also were scheduled to speak at the convention.

Later that day, Chicano actor and comedian George Lopez will be honored with a LULAC “Lifetime Achievement Award.”

Other discussions will center around the Latino vote, climate change, diversity, immigration and artificial intelligence.

Proaño highlighted the economic and cultural contributions from Latino population in the U.S., but also some of the wage disparities in the workforce.

He also noted LULAC’s legal resources when an injustice occurs.

“We will litigate, we will challenge any legislation and or executive orders that will (infringe) on the rights of Latinos” and other minority populations,” Proaño said.

Contact Ricardo Torres-Cortez at rtorres@reviewjournal.com.