We highlight 10 Latin women who shine in their specialties in 2022

Women of Latin origin stand out for their many achievements and contributions to American society.

From the sciences to the arts, sports, social causes and entrepreneurial endeavors, Hispanics are a dynamic force with great potential.

According to official data, by 2021, Latinas were already the largest group of female workers in the US, second only to non-Hispanic white women.

With more than 12 million, Latinas represent 16% of the female workforce, a number that will continue to grow according to projections from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

And while wage inequality, and the impacts of COVID-19, have hit them especially hard, the Pew Research Center notes that more Hispanic women have attended college than men in the community: 45% vs. 39%.

On International Women's Day, we present ten Latinas who lead important projects, succeed in their careers, create jobs and make significant social and artistic contributions in the United States.

1. Patty Rodriguez

"Patty's legacy gives many young Latinas an incredible role model," said Los Angeles Councilmember Nury Martinez in declaring February 18th 'Patty Rodriguez Day in LA', one of many recognitions that has received this Latina, proud daughter of Mexican immigrants. 

Patty Rodriguez during her speech at the mitu TACO Challenge, held on May 7, 2016 in Los Angeles, California.Rachel Murray / Getty Images

Rodriguez has a range of talents that have led her to be a writer, radio producer, and entrepreneur.

She is the co-founder of Lil' Books, an independent publisher of bilingual children's books, and for 17 years she was a part of the radio show

from which she said goodbye in February.

In 2014, she created a jewelry line called 'MALA', which is inspired by her Mexican-American roots.

Two years later, she launched a campaign for the cosmetics company MAC to create a collection dedicated to singer Selena Quintanilla.

He is now preparing a new project with a focus on immigrant families, together with his partner and friend, Erick Galindo, with whom he created Sin Miedo Productions in 2021 with the aim of telling diverse and inclusive stories on podcast, television and film.

"Los Angeles, you have made this girl's dreams come true, they are dreams she never imagined she could even dream of," Rodriguez replied to the councilwoman, defining herself as a "daughter of immigrants who carries her dreams in her heart and on their shoulders. 

2. Maria Varela

This Mexican-American photographer captured some of the key moments of the civil rights movement in the United States, being one of the few Latinos involved in the struggles of the 1950s and 1960s,

. 

Photographer Maria Varela during an interview at her home in Albuquerque, New Mexico, in 2017. Russell Contreras / AP

Varela grew up in Chicago but now lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

He is now 81 years old, and historians and art museums have only recently begun to take his work into account, as the role of Latinos in historical events becomes increasingly clear.

"Your legacy can take interesting turns, 50 or 60 years later," she has said.  

In 1963, Varela went to work in Selma, Alabama, on a program to teach voters their rights.

At the time he was doing a literary project and realized that there were no images of black people.

His mentor suggested that he dedicate himself to photography to give that material to academic and literary spaces.

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Varela later photographed activist Cesar Chavez, members of the United Farm Workers, and social activist Reies López Tijerina, who fought to reclaim dispossessed Hispanic land in New Mexico.

He also got photos of the organization of the 1968 Poor People's March, which Dr. Martin Luther King planned to bring attention to poverty.

3. E. Carmen Ramos

"Isn't it super powerful to think that that was achieved? That someone like me, a woman born to migrant parents, is now in charge of it?" said E. Carmen Ramos, an Afro-Latino curator, when she was appointed to lead the art and conservation department of the National Gallery of Art, in an interview with Noticias Telemundo.

That gallery, located in Washington DC, contains more than 150,000 works (including a sculpture garden).

Latino and Latina curators and art historians have founded and directed important Hispanic institutions, but the appointment of Ramos, who is a Dominican-American artist, is an example of the arrival of Hispanics into more mainstream and mainstream spheres, and in the table where decisions are made. 

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Ramos says that with appointments like his, "Latinx artists can expect greater visibility for their work, have expectations that there is greater respect and understanding of the edges and nuances of the meanings of their works."

4. Maria Elena Bottazzi

The prestigious 56-year-old microbiologist never forgets her land.

Her face softens as she, in the midst of complex scientific terms, speaks of Honduras as if she had left Tegucigalpa yesterday.

María Elena Bottazzi, a Honduran microbiologist who directs the Texas Children's Hospital Vaccine Development Center. Texas Children's Hospital

“It never crossed my mind to look for a job in a multinational.

I am Central American and doing non-profit projects is my way of

”, she says with a wide smile in an interview with Noticias Telemundo.

Together with Dr. Peter Hotez, Bottazzi led the team at the Texas Children's Hospital Vaccine Development Center that created the Corbevax vaccine for COVID-19, a patent-free drug that received emergency authorization for use last month. in India. In addition, she was recently nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.

"Our goal has always been to develop and manufacture cheap and durable vaccines to contribute to global health," he says.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, Bottazzi and his team decided to use all the knowledge they had cultivated during decades of research to develop a drug that would be "free for everyone".

“

”, she points out.

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5. Jennicet Gutierrez

Gutiérrez is a Mexican activist in favor of the rights of transgender and immigrant people, mainly trans migrant women detained in the United States.

She resides in Los Angeles and was one of the founders of

. 

Jennicet Gutierrez, center, founder of La Familia: Trans Queer Liberation Movement at the LA Pride ResistMarch held in West Hollywood, California in 2017. Chelsea Guglielmino / Getty Images

"There are still many challenges, because all women suffer many attacks. I value the interest in understanding the trans community and we must continue working for our rights in the United States, there is still a lot of discrimination and deaths," Gutierrez explains in an interview with Noticias Telemundo .

In June 2015, he drew national attention by heckling Barack Obama at a celebration of LGBTQ achievements by asking him to stop the detention and deportation of immigrants from the community.

That year she was named to

list

.

"

," he said in an opinion piece published in the Blade media.

In 2018, she was included in the collection

, which honors women and nonbinary people who are rewriting American history.

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13, 202002:04

"We must fight for the dreams of trans migrants who arrive in this country with nothing, fleeing violence because they are very vulnerable," says the activist.

6. Rosanny Zayas

When she was a girl, Rosanny Zayas already dreamed of being the recognized and admired actress she is today.

“We are an immigrant family, we are Dominicans.

It seemed like something very difficult to do,” says the young New Yorker of Dominican origin in an interview with Noticias Telemundo.

Actress Rosanny Zayas at Build Studio in New York on December 16, 2019. Gary Gershoff / Getty Images

Zayas portrays Sophie Suarez on the Showtime series

Q.

The series has helped many people of Latino origin who identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual, trans or

see their relationships normalized on screen, something that is still a rarity on television today.

“Coming from the Hispanic culture, I know so many stories that are very scary.

Know?

If you come out to your family, or if they find out without you telling them, there's a chance you won't be considered part of the family anymore,” says Zayas.

But on the show, she learned that "

." 

7. Diana Lorena Taurasi

The athlete of Argentine descent is recognized as

.

In June 2017, she became the leading scorer in WNBA history, and in previous years she had already been selected as one of the best players in the league.

Diana Taurasi, an American athlete of Argentine descent, celebrated her Olympic gold medal in women's basketball on August 8, 2021, in Saitama, Japan. Eric Gay / AP

Along with Sue Bird, in each Olympics she played (from 2004 to 2021) she won a gold medal, being the only basketball players with 5 gold medals.

In 2021, her fans chose her as the GOAT of the league. 

Taurasi was born in California, the daughter of an Argentine mother and an Italian father, and has valued being part of both cultures, with great enthusiasm for her Latin roots.

"

," he said in an interview with ESPN.

She is feisty, ironic and daring, like her when she steadfastly refused in 2012 to comply with a regulation on uniforms to play in the Euroleague that she felt was an insult to women. 

"The game, the court, the locker room, being a teammate, I love every aspect of it. I don't just experience it when I'm in the gym, I experience it every day. It's part of me," she says in an interview on her page. Web.

Taurasi and his wife Penny Taylor were instrumental in the revival of the Phoenix Mercury team.

He is still active and has gained recognition from other athletes such as Kobe Bryant who called him the "White Mamba", he also participates in Space Jam 2 giving voice to that character.

Taurasi is an example of what determination and talent can achieve.

He is a force of nature.

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8. Gregoria Flores

In 2006, Gregoria Flores fled the Afro-indigenous town of Triunfo de la Cruz, in Honduras, after receiving death threats for working as an activist for indigenous rights and resources.

She had been told that she had seven days to live.

“I started helping immigrants in my community because I know how difficult it is to go through an asylum process.

I had to flee to save my life and that of my children," says Flores in the US, who also experienced the challenge of adapting to a new country and overcoming the language barrier because he did not speak English.  

Now, the activist lives in the Bronx, in New York, where she uses her experience to support and guide other recently arrived migrants as the executive director of Garifuna Community Services and within the New York Mennonite Immigration Program (NYMIP).

"The challenge for immigrant Latina women is greater because they are the ones who take care of the children, the home and family security," said Flores, who has played a fundamental role in receiving families in the midst of the crisis caused by the crossing of children. unaccompanied migrants at the border. 

9. Ellen Marie Bennett

Born and raised in Los Angeles, Bennett defines herself as "half Mexican, half English" and has used the powerful mix of her roots to build Hedley & Bennett, a clothing brand that has become popular for its kitchen aprons that helped make a project that started with only 300 dollars became a millionaire company.

Ellen Bennett, CEO of Hedley & Bennett, at Ditroit Taqueria in Los Angeles, California on April 30, 2019.Greg Doherty/Getty Images

"I never forget where I come from: my Mexican mother, raised me as a single mother. I just think of all the people who put so much time and effort into giving me a good enough life so that I could find my own path. No matter what, there's always another day, another chance," he said in an emotional interview with The Cut.

She is very active in networks and has just become a mother, so she has shared with her audience all the challenges of having a baby and continuing to carry a brand forward.

Last year she published

, a book in which she shares all the lessons she has learned as an entrepreneur.

She says that she is a fan of cleaning the fridge and keeping it organized for the week and she likes to read stories in Spanish to her son Nico, because she wants him to be bilingual.

She has 7 chickens in her yard and a pig named Oliver.

"Life is a scary, magical, crazy thing that we're all a part of, and we can't forget that it's a beautiful thing. It's just getting started. Don't compare yourself to other people and think they've got it all figured out. It's just not true. We all have our own journey", he usually says in his meetings with the press. 

10. Anjelah Johnson-Reyes

Johnson-Reyes

He is a fourth-generation Mexican-American who has gained massive popularity for his

work and podcasts.

Also, he is promoting his new book:

.

Anjelah Johnson during her appearance at Move In The City in Sydney, Australia, in 2018. Hanna Lassen / WireImage

Although he does not speak Spanish fluently, he tends to claim his Latin roots and is a permanent reference in many of his shows.

"There's definitely more of a connection with the Latino audience. I think people are very proud and my wins are their wins, so it's fun, exciting and I'm honored," she said in an interview with Entertainment Tonight.

In addition to her acting career, she was a

for the Rams, and has just participated in a FOX reality show called

, where she finished second in the contest. 

“I am honored to be a role model for other Latinas and for women in general, but at the same time, I always encourage people to do their projects and do them well,” she explains.

The journalist Juanita Ramos collaborated in this report.