Turn Up the Volume, Draw Outside of The Lines. Hispanic Star Week Will Keep Telling The Latino Story.

When kids are little, they are innately creative.? When given a coloring book and a crayon, they often take free flight across the page, coloring outside the lines, experimenting with color, exploring space and boundaries, really.? Given a blank page, they are even freer to create something they want, rather than simply fill what is there.?

Now why am I thinking of that?? For years, we have leveraged Hispanic Heritage Month to make it the most robust, most public, most effective way to garner attention for the Latino community, engage Corporate America in our pursuit of progress, and raise awareness across the nation of our contributions to our country.???

And it works.? Phenomenally.? Our concentrated focus has not simply raised our profile, it has helped organize and unite our community and it has clearly galvanized the corporate world to develop a Latino strategy that will help them achieve greater growth as the US Hispanic population continues to grow and drive economic power.?

I always feel exhilarated by the coming together of so many companies and organizations, and individuals, who make Hispanic Heritage Month both a celebration and an effective campaign that has a real impact on Latinos in the U.S.

But I started to think that it is a pity that come October 16th, when HHM? shuts down, while we certainly continue to pursue our agenda of prosperity, power and progress, we lose the ever-present momentum of focusing attention on our community.???

And that’s when I started thinking about coloring outside of the lines.? We must, of course, continue to support Hispanic Heritage Month with all our passion and continued efforts and resources.? It is our most leverageable moment and a proven path to changing minds and hearts.? Every year, it gets better and bolder.? It is the most successful method we have found to tell our own story. But this is just one month every year.?

I began to think, what would happen if we innovate a little, draw outside the lines of the month, and create new opportunities to shine a spotlight on us.? It is not like we hibernate the rest of the year – all of us involved in advancing the Latino community are doing this throughout the year.??

That is how we envisioned the creation of Hispanic Star Week, set to turn New York into a focal point of Latino pride and progress.? Early December is already when the Hispanic Star Gala by We Are All Human takes place.?

That same week we have the Hispanic Leadership Summit at the United Nations, which attracts Latino leaders across the country and we spend two days discussing priorities for the community, finding ways to cooperate, collaborate and create change on a widespread scale.?

Our plan now is to build on these existing activities and use this week to celebrate, activate, and communicate our unity and pride.? The Hispanic Leadership Summit, that has brought together leaders from many sectors to set a Hispanic agenda in motion, will now expand to two and a half days.?

?First up, a day dedicated to building on the advances we have? The Hispanic Promise is the first and only national pledge that over 300 companies have made to commit to creating inclusive environments.? The new in-person Summit will be a way to supercharge its elements, build community, share practices, meet vendors, and forge alliances. Then, a day will be dedicated to understanding the Hispanic consumer — the essential key to future corporate growth —? and time spent on insights into Hispanic perceptions.? The final day is dedicated to community, and a way for the profit, non-profit and public sectors to find a way forward together on behalf of the Hispanic community.

Most of all, we hope to inspire others — media companies, festival organizers, all who wish to join this effort, to make their own imprint on the week.? I think of Latino film festivals.? Galleries that showcase Latino artists.? The fashion world, paying its tribute to Latino designers.? What about Latino theater, writers, musicians?? Artists and artisans? Chefs and restaurants???

Invisibility remains a barrier to progress.? Letting others write our narrative often distorts who we are, what we have achieved, and where we are setting our sights for the future.? But imagine a week that would generate so much interest.? A week that would not only tell our story but showcase our creativity, our innovative and entrepreneurial spirit?? A week that would spotlight our leaders, our successes, our impact?

If you have ideas, let me know.? If you can support this effort, let me know. If you want to seed it in your own industry or creative community, let me know.? If we are successful, this can become a model that is replicated across the country.? Let’s think ambitiously and out-of-the-box.??

Because, with Latinos, everything is possible.?