Sep 13, 2013 - NHLA Congratulates Five New Kennedy Center Honorees

Honorees Include Two Latinos in First Announcement Since Center Announced a New Selection Process to Reflect America’s Diversity

Washington, D.C. – On September 12, the Kennedy Center announced that they would be honoring five American artists, including two Latinos -- Carlos Santana and Martina Arroyo – with the 2013 Kennedy Center Honors. The announcement comes after a campaign by members of the National Hispanic Leadership Agenda (NHLA) to bring attention to the lack of inclusivity and recognition of Latino artists in the Center’s Honors selection process. After this campaign, the Kennedy Center announced that it would not only review its Kennedy Center Honors Process in order to better reflect the diversity of American culture, but also form a Latino Advisory Committee to establish a more open and collaborative engagement with the Latino community.

Hector Sanchez, Chairman of the National Hispanic Leadership Agenda and Executive Director of the Labor Council for Latin American Advancement said, "We congratulate the five Kennedy Center honorees announced this week. Each of the honorees has contributed to the shaping of American culture, and we thank them all for their contributions. We are pleased that our efforts and ongoing dialogue with the Kennedy Center have produced a crop of honorees that better reflects the changing American landscape. Latinos and other minorities have had meaningful, lasting impacts on the arts, and the Kennedy Center’s announcement is recognition of their legacy.”

Felix Sanchez, Chairman of the National Hispanic Foundation for the Arts, stated: “This announcement by the Kennedy Center doubles the number of Latinos who have ever received this prestigious award - one of the nation’s highest cultural honors. Latinos have a profound influence in this country and particularly in the arts. We have a powerful advocacy that yields substantial changes, and it is vital that all of our contributions to this great nation are recognized.”

“NCLR, the National Hispanic Leadership Agenda and other Latino organizations have long advocated for greater diversity in this prestigious program,” said Janet Murguía, President and CEO, NCLR. “And we commend the Kennedy Center’s leadership for making the changes necessary in the selection process that resulted in the broad diversity of this year’s class of honorees.”

“The recognition by the Kennedy Honors of the legendary Carlos Santana and Martina Arroyo is, to state the obvious, long overdue. A Mexican and Afro-Boricua, these two musical giants vividly represent the diversity not only of Latinos but of the broader American community. By finally including Latinos, the Kennedy Honors is closer than ever to being a truly representative American institution,” said Angelo Falcón, National Institute for Latino Policy (NiLP), New York, NY

“The National Conference of Puerto Rican Women celebrates with great enthusiasm this year's Kennedy Center honorees especially guitarist Carlos Santana and opera singer Martina Arroyo, whose story will inspire us all,” said Vilma Colom,  National President , NACOPRW, Inc. “We applaud the Kennedy Center for recognizing two Latinos who have contributed profoundly to the arts in the United States and the world.”

“We applaud the Kennedy Center for including two outstanding Latinos among its awardees this year. The Kennedy Center is finally recognizing the exceptional contributions of Latinos to the arts in this country. However, this would not have been possible without the leadership of the National Hispanic Foundation for the Arts, and its President, Felix Sanchez, who advocated tirelessly for the inclusion of Latinos in the awards, which garnered with the support of the NHLA and the entire Latino community,” said Ronald Blackburn Moreno, President of ASPIRA.

“The Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU) commends the 2013 Kennedy Center Honors for selecting Carlos Santana and Martina Arroyo, two exceptional artists in two different musical genres that have vastly enriched American culture over the decades,” said Antonio R. Flores, President & CEO, Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities. “Their extraordinary legacy in the performing arts transcends our national boundaries and reaffirms the unparalleled diversity of our country across the world. To honor them echoes the invaluable contributions of Hispanic Americans to the culture and life of this great nation. HACU applauds the Kennedy Center for its brilliant selection of outstanding honorees.”

“The HNBA is very pleased to see the that the Kennedy Center is recognizing these two outstanding honorees and we hope that this high distinction continues to reflect the rich cultural diversity in the arts," said the Hispanic National Bar Association (HNBA) National President Miguel Alexander Pozo, Esq. "The HNBA congratulates the NHFA and the NHLA, in particular, for their leadership in advocating for Latinos and for the recognition of their contribution to the arts and involvement in the Kennedy Center Honors program.”

Ms. Arroyo and Mr. Santana are being honored with one of the most important cultural recognitions in our great nation. Before this year’s announcement, only two of 187 honorees – Placido Domingo and Chita Rivera – were of Latino origin. Ms. Arroyo and Mr. Santana are the first honorees of Latino descent since 2002.

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