A Record Number of LGBTQ+ Latinos Hold Elected Office in the U.S.

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1. The Theme to Spotlight: Pride Among America's Elected Officials

In recent years, the number of Latinos voted for public office in the United States who identify as part of the LGBTQ+ community has tripled.

• That 224% growth since 2017 among Hispanics is higher than that of other demographic groups; Overall, the number of lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans or queer people in elected office increased 68%, according to data from the LGBTQ+ Victory Institute.

Why it matters: Latino communities represent an increasingly significant proportion of voters in the United States. The increase in people of LGBTQ+ Latino descent in public office highlights the diversity within those Latino communities.

Joe Vogel, Uruguayan-American who was elected state delegate from Maryland last November, campaigning in April 2022Bill O'Leary/The Washington Post via Getty Images

More details: The Victory Institute, which trains those who want to run, says there are 165 openly LGBTQ+ Latinos in elected office at the federal, state and local levels this year.

• Among them is Ritchie Torres, a Democratic representative from New York who in 2020 was elected as the first African-Latino and openly gay federal congressman.
• This year Alicia Kozlowski, of Mexican and Chippewa descent, was the first non-binary person to be voted into the Minnesota legislature. In addition, Jessie Fuentes, of Puerto Rican and queer origin, was elected in March as a Chicago councilor.

In his own words: "Having gone to a school where I was one of the few Latinos or the few gay kids exposed me to the importance of feeling represented," says Joe Vogel, a Democrat who has served as a state delegate to Maryland since January.

• "It's no coincidence that I emphasize these different identities when working as a legislator," adds Vogel, from a Uruguayan Jewish family. "I spearheaded, for example, legislation to address a rise in hate crimes" with a special commission, Vogel says.

Yes, but: Coming to elected office reflecting those Latino and LGBTQ+ identities doesn't mean those issues alone will be a priority, says Lorena Austin, a state-Democratic representative from Arizona who identifies as gender non-conforming.

• "One of the issues I keep most mindful of is strengthening education because it affects so many facets of our communities," Austin tells Axios Latino, adding that he wants to improve the state education budget.
• Austin celebrates LGBTQ+ activists who have gone before him for helping to open doors and pave pathways. "20 years ago I don't think it would have been possible for me to come out when I was young. We've come a long way," he says.

2. A milestone in the James Beards

Two Latina chefs were awarded James Beard medals Monday at a ceremony that recognized the diversity of cuisines in the United States. One of the winners is a Puerto Rican in the first time the awards recognize someone from Puerto Rico.

Chefs Natalia Vallejo (left) and Marissa Tapia with their James Beard medalsMonica Eng/Axios

Details: The James Beards are known as the culinary Oscars. This year at least 17 Latin chefs or restaurants were finalists in several of the 24 categories.

• Yali Tortilleria, in Kansas City, Missouri, was named America's best pastry or bakery for 2023. "Thank you for recognizing the humble tortilla," Marissa Tapia, co-owner of the establishment, said during the ceremony in Chicago.
• Puerto Rican Natalia Vallejo was named the best chef in the southern region of the U.S. for her work at Cocina al Fondo, an establishment in San Juan that offers dishes always using locally grown products available according to season.

In her own words: "It is an honor to be here representing Puerto Rico, the culinary identity of my country and Puerto Rican women," Vallejo said at the ceremony, in an entire speech in Spanish.

• "It is a source of pride that our cuisine, our traditional food, has not succumbed to the political, historical, economic or natural inclemencies that we have had to live," Vallejo added. "For this reason, this award is an endorsement; We receive it as a direct impulse to that celebration of the dignity and particularity of our gastronomy, "he concluded.

Overview: This year's ceremony came after the James Beard Foundation underwent an audit and made changes to its voting process, following criticism that the previous system tended to nominate the same people, who were mostly non-Hispanic white men.

• But the new standards are not without controversy: Last week they were the target of controversy over a new system of ethical vetting of nominees that some experts say lack transparency.

3. Dismantling language barriers in the climate fight

A global network of volunteers is making more materials dealing with the climate emergency and the fight against global warming available in more languages thanks to an artificial intelligence model.

Why it matters: It's a fusion of technology and climate activism that is part of projects that want to remove some of the barriers non-English speakers face in becoming part of the global climate movement.

• For example, the reports of the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change are considered the most important, and are only officially available in Arabic, English, Spanish, French, Mandarin Chinese and Russian.

News boost: The group Climate Cardinals, led by young people and made up of more than 9,000 volunteers in 40 countries, teamed up this week with Google and its Translation Hub tool. The idea is to facilitate the translations that Climate Cardinals has been doing for a while of documents such as those of the UN panel.

Illustration: Gabriella Turrisi/Axios

In his own words: "For too long the international climate movement has been inaccessible to many people who don't speak English," said Sophia Kianni, an Iranian-American activist who co-founded Climate Cardinals, in announcing the partnership with Google.

Namely: Google's Translation Hub uses artificial intelligence to automatically translate digital documents, which can then be edited and enhanced by human translators.

• The platform currently works in 135 languages.

4. Miles Morales ranked No. 1 in cinema

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, a film in which Latino animation artists collaborated in a key way and whose protagonist is a young Afro-Latino, hit theaters last weekend and became the second best opening of the year.

Miles Morales in a scene from "Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse"Sony Pictures Animation

Details: The film, a sequel to Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018), is being celebrated for pushing animation to new horizons. Artists from Puerto Rico, Mexico, Argentina and other countries helped make that happen.

• The film was No. 1 at the U.S. box office, grossing $120 million. That's three times as much as Into the Spider-Verse had in its opening weekend in 2018.
• Worldwide, the film grossed $208 million in movie tickets sold.

Overview: Initial analyses of ticket-buying audiences show that audiences were considerably diverse: 34% identified as Latino or Hispanic; 27% as non-Hispanic white; 22% as black and 17% as Asian, according to surveys made in US cinemas by the PostTrak group and reported by the specialized media Deadline.

• Latinos in the U.S. are very cinephiles and an important group of ticket buyers, but they are usually not represented equally on screen or behind the camera. Spider-Verse is an exception both ways.

4. Summary of key news in Latin America and the Caribbean

1. Morena, the party of Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, achieved a historic triumph this weekend when its candidate was elected as governor of the State of Mexico, in the hands of the Institutional Revolutionary Party for more than seven decades.

• Delfina Gomez, Lopez Obrador's former education secretary, will be the first woman to govern the country's most populous state.

What does Morena's victory in the State of Mexico mean for thousands of women in the country?

June 6, 202302:04

2. Former Panamanian President Ricardo Martinelli was elected this weekend to be the 2024 presidential candidate of the conservative party Realizing Goals.

• Martinelli is awaiting a verdict in a just-concluded money laundering trial. He also faces other money laundering charges for his alleged role in the bribery scandal that the construction company Odebrecht gave to officials in several Latin American countries. Martinelli denies all the allegations.

5. 🙃 The world upside down

A Peruvian engineerhas turned heads in northern Lima with a house that looks like it was built upside down.

Details: Smith Ponte Caballero tells Telemundo that he designed the building's façade as an allusion to Peruvian politics.

Engineer surprises by building an upside-down house to make a social protest

May 29, 202302:23

• Peru has had half a dozen presidents over the past six years, in part because of clashes with Congress, and nearly all of the Andean nation's recent presidents are or have been under investigation for various crimes.
• Neighbors say the house has become iconic and they use it as a landmark when giving directions.
• And while the front of the building is upside down, the interior is normal; It consists of 10 apartments with tenants.

Thanks for reading! We returned on Thursday.

If you want to share your experiences or send us suggestions and comments, send an email to axioslatino@axios.com.

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