Jesse Garcia and other members of Dallas' newest League of United Latin American Citizens chapter are trying to become more visible among their peers in Texas and across the country.
Orientations
Ian McCann & Brandon Formby
To help raise money to send members to both state and national LULAC conventions, they're having a party tonight.
The event is primarily a social one, Garcia says, with free appetizers at the Fairmont Hotel. Garcia says out politicians including Dallas County Sheriff Lupe Valdez and Dallas City Council candidate Joseph Hernandez plan to attend.
Garcia says the council he and a few others started last summer – Gay LULAC – is the only one in the country to focus on GLBT Hispanics. The council has since grown to 20 members. Half of the membership isn't Hispanic, Garcia says, and nearly half isn't gay.
The point is to bridge divides that may exist between gay people and Hispanics. Hector Flores, a former national LULAC president, and other leaders have been supportive, Garcia says.
"If we're going to be for civil rights, we have to be for rights for all," he says. "We're going to hopefully be given some speaking time at the state and the national conventions."
Garcia says Gay LULAC members have partnered with Lipscomb Elementary in Old East Dallas and are planning a book drive for the school. But there is a focus on the "gay" in its name, including how and what words to use when parents talk about gay people with their children.
"We're showing the whole Hispanic community that we're there with them," Garcia says.
For more information about Gay LULAC, visit www.gaylulac.org.
E-mail Ian and Brandon at imccann@quickdfw.com or bformby@quickdfw.com.
What: Gay LULAC party
When: 6 to 8 tonight
Where: Fairmont Hotel, 1717 N. Akard St.
Cost: Free, with free valet parking
