Esperanza is happy to announce the launching of the “Yo Soy La Cara: Pride through the Lens” photography contest. Last year, Esperanza introduced the “Yo Soy La Cara” community pride campaign during which we encouraged community members to show their pride by sharing selfies with the hashtag #YoSoyLaCara (I am the face) on social media. This year, we’re back during Hispanic Heritage Month with this unique opportunity to show what pride means through the lens of our youth.
“There are 54 million Hispanics in the United States with the highest youth population than any other ethnicity. These youth are the future of Hispanics in America; their stories are quintessentially American,” says President and CEO of Esperanza Rev. Luis Cortes, “In the face of harsh portrayals of immigrants in the current sociopolitical landscape, we are called to create a space for positive expression for Latino youth, and we’re making it happen through this campaign.”
Contestants are encouraged to submit their photos and a short registration at Esperanza’s Facebook page, www.facebook.com/EsperanzaUSA. The contest runs from September 15th to October 15th. There will be three categories of winners: Best Selfie, Best Portrait (of one or more people), and People’s Choice. A panel of judges including Photographer Tony Rocco, Journalist Ana Gamboa, and Philadelphia Latino Film Fesitval Director Marangeli Mejia, will choose winners who best exemplify Latino pride through composition and creativity in the Best Selfie and Best Portrait categories. Voting for the People’s Choice selection will begin September 15th and will close on October 21st. All winners will be announced on October 22nd.
The winner of each category will receive a cash prize of $500 and will be featured on Univision 65, Mega Radio, and Al Dia News, as well as Esperanza’s website and social media.
“Esperanza is excited to once again share Latino pride across Philadelphia & the Delaware Valley,” says Esperanza’s Vice President of Media and Marketing Josue Duarte, “We know that Latinos are not a monolithic group of people. We have different ideas as to what pride means and what it looks like in our communities. More than a dozen organizations representing Philadelphia’s diverse Hispanic ethnicities have already partnered with us to give young people the opportunity to show what pride means to them.”
Partners include: the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant and Multicultural Affairs, Univision 65, Mega Radio, Al Dia News, Esperanza College, Esperanza Academy, Aspira, Acción Colombia, Argentinos en Filadelfia, Mexican Cultural Center, Taller Puertorriqueño, Hunting Park Business Association, Hunting Park Community Collaborative, the Philadelphia Latino Film Festival, Afrotaino, and the Village of Arts and Humanities.
###
Esperanza, the premiere Hispanic Evangelical faith-based network in the country, was founded in 1987 by the Reverend Luis Cortés Jr. and the Hispanic Clergy of Philadelphia and Vicinity. With a national network of over 13,000 Hispanic congregations, faith and community based agencies, Esperanza is a leading voice for Hispanics in America. To read more, please visit www.esperanza.us