LEAD Summit XIV
Friday, October 3, 2025
"Telling Our Stories - Our Way, Our Voice: Latino Representation in the Arts, Media, and Education”
8:00 am - 3:00 pm
Santos Manuel Student Union South
California State University, San Bernardino
LEAD Summit XIV 8 1/2" x 11" Flyer (coming soon)
Conferencia en la Universidad de Cal State San Bernardino
El 3 de Octubre se llevará a cabo la conferencia Latino Education and Advocacy Days, mejor conocida por su sigla en inglés como LEAD, que se traduciría como Día de Defensa de la Educación Latina. Esta actividad se desarrollará en el Centro de Estudiantes Manuel Santos, de la Universidad Estatal de California en San Bernardino (CSUSB)
El objetivo de la cumbre será promover y crear conciencia sobre la gravedad de la crisis que la educación latina enfrenta actualmente, y fortificar el desarrollo intelectual, cultural, y personal de los maestros, administradores, líderes y estudiantes de nuestras comunidades.
Todas las presentaciones se efectuarán en inglés, pero habrá intérpretes calificados de traducción simultánea a español disponible todo el día.
Theme
Lea la versión en español - Tema.
With diverse ancestries and countless stories, Chicanos/Latinos come from rich traditions expressed through storytelling, lyric poetry, riddles, jokes, testimonios, foods, textiles, murals, dichos/sayings, humor, ceramics, sacred texts, architecture, important social justice and advocacy work, folk prayers, cantos and incantations, songs, and across many other media and formats. As epic and wonderous as any other civilizations, we have read and learned about. But despite this, think back to your American History, Literature, or Art Appreciation class days - or any class for that matter. Were Latinos, our Indigenous ancestors (the original peoples of the Americas), or those descended from the enslaved African diaspora with unique Black, Latino, and U.S. American identities found and reflected in your textbook? Probably not, or very little, or if so, perhaps (mis)represented. Bold truth: our stories remain invisible and underrepresented in the daily curriculum, history books, literature, museums, heritage sites, in Hollywood, and so forth... Our stories are missing their rightful place in American stories. It's so bad that often any visibility whatsoever can feel like a win.
Telling Our Stories - Our Way, Our Voice shifts Latinos away from the margins to the center, to better focus on the past, present, and hopes for the future. These stories, OUR stories, bear witness to the difficulties and hardship some of us have faced. These are the invisible stories made visible. What joy to share our human condition. Then to add color to our stories and how these colors that a story contains can change people’s hearts and minds or, even give motivation to those who need it. When our stories are respected and integrated, from classroom settings to the little and large screens, we all benefit. All are given the opportunity to hear new stories and experience diverse ways of learning. What a missed opportunity to not explore the incredible impact Latinas and Latinos have had on the United States for generations. The Latino presence in America spans centuries, our ancestors for millennia, predating Spain’s and European colonization of what is now the United States, and we have been an integral part of shaping our nation since the Revolutionary War. We are even older than America. We are not only part of America, but we also changed it!
Representation matters! Latinos and Latinas continue to shape our nation as business owners, activists, artists, public servants, and more. From serving as the most decorated veterans in the United States military, having fought in every major war throughout American history, to being champions in the fight for human and civil rights, Latinas and Latinos remain strong leaders and changemakers. It’s crucial to make sure that our histories, journeys, achievements, lived experiences, triumphs, legacies, contributions, and aspirations are showcased, and that everyone has a voice. Positive representation, interpersonal contact, and exposure reduce cultural stereotypes of underrepresented groups. Positive representation in educational curricula, materials, and social media provide joy, wellness, validation and support, and can be helpful in increasing self-esteem - especially for people of marginalized groups (particularly youth). Lack of representation negatively impacts these same. Community leaders, advocates, and scholars have declared mottos like "it's hard to be what you can’t see" or "you can't be what you can't see”, asserting that people from minoritized groups do not pursue career or academic opportunities when they are not positively exposed to such possibilities. Current movements pushing for increased integration of ethnic and cultural studies are valuable in developing a critical consciousness that is culturally relevant and meaningful to family-, student-, and community lives. In this way, representation allows us to personally connect to school, potentially making educational pursuits more meaningful.
Chicano/Latino representation in the Arts, as Chicano/Latino Art itself, are of fundamental importance due to their role in helping form and redefine our repertoire of identities, the multiple communities we straddle, and explore the experience of living between cultures, histories, and languages. Our voices, as an expression of Social Justice, are used to express cultural values, protest, and challenge dominant voices. Our Arts has spurred political activism, including support for farm workers' rights, civil rights, labor equity, and anti-war movements. In Education, our stories serve to educate generations about U.S. and international history. The cultural influence is felt across many facets, from art, fashion, typography trends . . . to street art, tattoos, photography, and film. Music too has been a connector for our communities, creating a voice for the injustices endured and a bridge between identities. The contemporary term of Artivism is an expression of Chicano/Latino art combined with activism, in so much as an artivist is an artist whose work is a reflection of his, her, or their activism. Do a basic Google search and chances are you'll find the word Artivism linked to Chicano / Latino movements, and for numerous decades.
The growing presence of Latinos should be reflected in all forms of media, especially television and film. From studios to talent agencies to trades, the representation of Latinos is low in virtually all decision-making positions that determine content narratives and influence hiring decisions. Latinos are underrepresented in many aspects of the media industry, including on-screen roles, writers' rooms, and showrunner positions. According to Latino Donor Collaborative’s 2022 Latinos in the Media Report, U.S. Latinos purchased 29 percent ($2.9 billion) of all box office tickets in 2019. Yet in 2022, in terms of on-screen roles, Latinos were only 3.1% of lead actors in TV shows and 5.2% of lead actors in films. Latinos were between 2% and 5% of writers' rooms in TV and streaming. Latinos were 1.5% of showrunners in TV shows. In terms of director positions, Latinos were only 1.3% of directors in TV shows and 2.6% of directors in films. Other aspects of the media industry where Latinos are underrepresented include newspapers, periodicals, books, and directory publishers, representing only 8% in this subsector. Most theatrical film directors are White at 68%.
The lack of Latino representation in the media is problematic because it has most often led to inaccurate portrayals of not just our cultures but the unique Latino and American identities in the U.S., with cultural specificity. For example, Chicano/Latino characters remain often portrayed and stereotyped negatively as drug dealers, unauthorized ("illegal") immigrants, or one-dimensional characters. Our stories deserve to be seen. Our stories need to be told. Latinos drive box office sales, stimulate our economy, produce and direct incredible works. We also need Latinos in front and behind the cameras, not just standing behind box office ticket windows. When we are accurately depicted in the media, the world can see that we are diverse peoples and communities involved in all sectors of society.
Integrating OUR stories in schools and education support social changes through a commitment to inclusion, equity and social justice. Chicano/Latino/Ethnic studies across the entire span of the PK-12 and Higher Education is important in education for a number of reasons, including combating stereotypes, addressing the exclusion of our histories and negative portrayals in traditional schooling and curricula, and challenging our own colonial mindsets. Our stories ensure diversity and help ensure that teachers and faculty are more diverse. They help develop critical thinking skills and encourage students to think broadly about issues such as race, ethnicity, class, and gender. Our stories also prepare students for careers - be it in journalism, public relations, education, community outreach, policy analysis, or law to name a few. Moreover, while school board members of all backgrounds can promote and implement equitable policies, Latino members can have a distinct ability to engage with a district's Latino community, including in some cases being able to communicate directly with families. Our stories also identify the flaws in academic systems, introducing improvements to help better our chances at success, and fighting to initiate these improvements.
We have the power to change things, to influence and build opportunities across these barriers. Some stories need to be recovered and taken back. We can set the record straight. History lesson: if we don’t write our own stories someone else will. The world is diminished in some way if our stories aren’t shared and made available to everybody. And representation, alone, is not the final goal; instead, it should merely be one step toward equity. More must be done that is intentional in ensuring that our children and students always feel seen and validated. By providing our community with authentic representations of ourselves and others they can relate to, we can potentially save future generations from a lifetime of feeling underrepresented or misunderstood.
There is no collective democracy unless all of us can understand and appreciate how our histories and cultures are shared. Confronting our past and affirming our present, makes way to our shared future. In short, freedom and justice are won with the pen, the lens, the brush, the voice, the body, and the imagination. Storytelling is our heritage! Our stories are our struggles, our resistance, our strengths. The best way to tell Our stories is to do it ourselves - Our Way, Our Voice.
Join Us
California State University, San Bernardino is pleased to announce the Annual Latino Education and Advocacy Days (LEAD).
- Are you ready to make a difference in the Latino community?
- Are you ready to connect with and be part of Latino educational leadership?
- Are you ready to find cross-sector solutions to improve the education and lives of all students?
- Raise Your Hand, Step In, and Get Involved!!!
- Latino Education is the economic imperative of our time, and the civil rights issue of our generation.
- Latino students disproportionately bear the crux of the educational crisis, and is where the greatest improvements and most fundamental changes must be fared.
Please join us for our annual assembly, as we convene key stakeholders: teaching professionals and educators, researchers, academics, scholars, administrators, independent writers and artists, policy and program specialists, students, parents, families, civic leaders, activists, and advocates. In short, those sharing a common interest and commitment to educational issues that impact Latinos.
Conference Location: Santos Manuel Student Union Event Center (unless otherwise noted).
(Complimentary Parking Lot D Preferred)
Únete a nosotros
La Universidad Estatal de California en San Bernardino se complace en anunciar los Días Anuales de Educación y Defensa Latina (LEAD).
- ¿Estás listo para marcar la diferencia en la comunidad latina?
- ¿Estás listo para conectarte y ser parte del liderazgo educativo latino?
- ¿Estás listo para encontrar soluciones intersectoriales para mejorar la educación y la vida de todos los estudiantes?
- ¡¡¡Levanten la mano, intervengan y participen!!!
- La educación latina es el imperativo económico de nuestro tiempo y la cuestión de los derechos civiles de nuestra generación.
- Los estudiantes latinos cargan desproporcionadamente con el quid de la crisis educativa, y es donde deben lograrse las mayores mejoras y los cambios más fundamentales.
Únase a nosotros en nuestra asamblea anual, mientras convocamos a las partes interesadas clave: profesionales de la enseñanza y educadores, investigadores, académicos, académicos, administradores, escritores y artistas independientes, especialistas en políticas y programas, estudiantes, padres, familias, líderes cívicos, activistas y defensores. .
En resumen, aquellos que comparten un interés y compromiso común con los temas educativos que impactan a los latinos. Lugar de la conferencia: Centro de eventos de la Unión de Estudiantes Santos Manuel (a menos que se indique lo contrario). (Se prefiere estacionamiento de cortesía)