Building a better future for our state's growing Latino population.
That was the goal of a major event in Hartford on Saturday - the first Puerto Rican and Latino Policy Agenda Summit, which organizers say sold out.
"It should have happened a long time ago, but I'm certainly glad it's happening now," said Lisa Werkmeister-Rozas.
Werkmeister-Rozas is a professor at UConn's School of Social Work. She and her colleagues organized this event.
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"We're really excited. We're seeing a lot of people showing up. And for us, hopefully, it's an opportunity to begin a conversation on how to develop a collective agenda for the state," said UConn professor Charles Venator-Santiago.
Before the summit, organizers went around the state to New London, New Haven, Hartford, and Waterbury to understand the needs of Puerto Ricans and Latinos.
These listening sessions helped organizers see some of the problems they face every day in Connecticut.
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"Those include high rent burdens and high mortgage burdens. Puerto Ricans are paying an upwards of 50 percent of their salary towards rent or housing burden," said Venator-Santiago.
Venator-Santiago says fewer Puerto Rican and Latinos are going to college. He went on to say that while Latinos make up a fifth of Connecticut's population, a majority don't participate in politics.
"I really want Latinos to understand that we have a place, and we have a voice, we just need to make it stronger and more unified," said Werkmeister-Roza.
Housing, health, education, civic engagement, and linguistic justice were the five main topics discussed in front of participants, state and local leaders on Saturday, with the goal of improving legislation and the quality of life for Latinos in Connecticut.
