Join us on Thursday, May 30, 2024 at 4PM for a discussion on:
The Southeast Los Angeles (SELA) region is often unfairly labeled as the "corridor of corruption," with a population of under a million Latinos living in the region, a new group of leaders are finding ways to collaborate, speak with a unified voice and co-create new initiatives as the community re-envisions the region addressing challenging economic and social conditions and a challenged past.
SELA's approach goes beyond rhetoric; they are actively involved in catalyzing tangible change. Through their efforts, they are uplifting the region, nurturing emerging leaders and pioneering a model for regional cooperation that places community voices at the forefront. As part of this growing movement, CALÓ News, in partnership with the SELA Collaborative will be reporting on the region as part of a new initiative.
Join us in May as our next Diálogo will focus on the social, economic, environmental, and political challenges facing Southeast Los Angeles and the promise of rebirth.
Reception to follow 6-8pm.
Light refreshments will be served.
Speakers and Panelists
Dr. Ciriaco “Cid” Pinedo
President & CEO
Mexican American Opportunity Foundation
Dr. Pinedo guides the organization and its dedicated team in realizing its vision of being the preeminent provider of comprehensive human services that empower families to attain self-sufficiency and contribute to a dynamic community. Dr. Pinedo was previously the President and CEO of Children's Fund, which helped children experiencing poverty, abuse, and neglect. He is the former President of the Hope through Housing Foundation, Chief Operating Officer of National CORE, and Associate Superintendent of Business Services and Economic Development at Chaffey College.
Dr. Wilma Franco
Executive Director
SELA Collaborative
Dr. Franco serves as the founding Executive Director of the SELA Collaborative. The Collaborative’s mission is to help strengthen SELA Communities, build collective power, and encourage innovation to drive regional systemic change. She was inspired to lead the work of the Collaborative given its core values and commitment to the Southeast LA region by way of creating a collective approach to serving the region through nonprofit capacity building, civic engagement, and data and research.
Christina Sanchez
Vice President of Public Affairs
AltaMed Health Services
Christina Sanchez is the Vice President of Public Affairs at AltaMed Health Services, where she has led the development of the Public Affairs department since 2021, overseeing public relations, media initiatives, and corporate social responsibility. With over 25 years of experience in broadcast media communications, particularly in Spanish language public affairs, she previously served as Public Affairs Director for Univision’s KMEX-TV, Channel 34. A two-time Emmy award winner, Christina was also a senior partner at Milagro Strategy Group. She has a long-standing connection with AltaMed, having collaborated with their experts during her news career and consulted for the AltaMed Art Collection during its tour in Mexico in 2018.
Emma Hernandez
Chief Executive Officer
Southeast Community Development Corporation
SCDC is a nonprofit organization that focuses on digital equity in the Southeast area of Los Angeles County. As CEO, Emma has brought needed resources such as; Adult digital literacy classes, Connecting SELA residents to low-cost Internet, Assistance for SELA residents with obtaining the $30 Affordable Connectivity discount and Provided 500 AT&T hotspots with one year of service for K-12 just to name a few.
Eddie Martinez
Executive Director (He/Him/His)
Latino Equality Alliance
The mission of Latino Equality Alliance (LEA), is to advocate for safety, equity, and wellness for the Latinx Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer + community. Eddie is a co-founder of LEA and served on the board for six years before stepping down to serve as the first executive director in 2016. He has more than 20 years of non-profit management and civic engagement experience including 18 years of tenure with The Wall Las Memorias Project, an HIV/AIDS organization in Los Angeles. He studied business marketing at Long Beach State University. Eddie is currently serving as the Los Angeles ambassador for the Johnson & Johnson Health Equity Innovation Challenge and was recently appointed by Supervisor Janice Hahn to serve on the first LGBTQ Commission for the County of Los Angeles. Mr. Martinez is also a council member for the City of Huntington Park.
David R. Hernandez
President & CEO
NightFlare
Southeast Los Angeles' first multimedia conglomerate. He is a filmmaker/musician from Huntington Park, CA and a community leader working alongside artists and organizations from his SELA community and LA County. His work ranges from being the film production producer/director for the SELA Arts Festival. Worked with the City of Lynwood, City of Huntington Park, Metro Los Angeles, Turnaround Arts, LACMA, LA Promise Fund, more and is currently the media partner for the SELA Collaborative which together launched the campaign "Our SELA Region" which highlights how non-profits and SELA cities work together to bring positive change. He produced and created the first Filmmakers Mixer December 2023 bringing SELA & East LA filmmakers together to network and showcase some of their work and is currently working on bringing SELA its first official International film festival.
Arturo Carmona
President
Latino Media Collaborative
Arturo Carmona serves as the Managing Partner of Tzunu Strategies and heads the Latino Media Collaborative. He has appeared in in media outlets such as MSNBC, ABC, CNN, Time Magazine, The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, Univision, Telemundo, USA Today, NPR, La Opinion, and many others. Hispanic Magazine honored him with the Hispanic Achievement Award. He is the current Sr. Strategy Advisor to ImpreMedia and served as a Digital Media and Strategic Communications Advisor to the Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador for President campaign (Mexico) and the Deputy Political Director for the Bernie Sanders for President campaign. He was the Executive Director of Presente.org and as the founding Executive Director of the Council of Mexican Federations (COFEM).
Esperanza Guevara
Managing Director
Latino Media Collaborative
Earlier this year, Esperanza joined LMC as its Managing Director. In this role, she oversees the organization's operations, fundraising, and program development. Previously, Esperanza served as Deputy Director of Policy and Advocacy at the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (CHIRLA). She has also worked for the offices of U.S. Congressman Jimmy Gomez, Tony Cárdenas, and worked on various electoral campaigns. Esperanza received a B.A. from Stanford University in Science, Technology, and Society and is also a 2012-2013 Congress-Bundestag Youth Exchange fellowship recipient.
Martin Albornoz
General Manager
Caló News
Martin Albornoz was most recently General Manager of Brehm Communications, where he managed over 20 newspapers and websites across the Southwest. He was also publisher of several wine tourism magazines in Napa, Sonoma and the Central Coast. He has worked on the digital teams at the Orange County Register, Las Vegas Review Journal and Southland Publishing. He helped launch L.A. Forward, a pioneering public media website and was the co-founder and publisher of L.A. Alternative and the groundbreaking Frontera Magazine. Born in East L.A., raised in Southeast L.A. and learned punk rock in Hollywood.
About the
Series
The Dialogo Series is a regular convening space launched by the Latino Media Collaborative and CALÓ News for open discussion, conversation and dialogue within our community on the most pressing issues. Open to the public, we envision a meeting of the minds, with panel discussions led by the leading thinkers and policy makers, one-on-one interviews with emerging and established leaders, as well as seminars to educate, enlighten and entertain.
We want to create discourse and a hotbed of new ideas within the Latino community of Greater Los Angeles. Our topics will range from the state of media in L.A. to healthcare issues to politics to wealth and prosperity. Discussions will be led by leading experts in their fields, as we seek robust audience participation, making sure that everyone has a voice in this conversation.