Production and distribution of city club forums and ideastream Public media are made possible by PNC and the United Black Fund of Greater Cleveland, Inc.. Good afternoon and welcome to the City Club of Cleveland.

All you beautiful people, It is so great to see you here today at the City Club where we are devoted to conversations of consequence that help democracy thrive.

Today is Friday, January 10th.

My name is Dan Moulhrop.

I'm the chief executive here, and it is our first forum at the City Club for 2025.

Welcome back to all of you.

Our forum today is part of our Local Hero series, which is presented in partnership with Citizens and Enbridge.

This series spotlights local champions here in northeast Ohio, whose hard work changes the way we view ourselves and our community.

It also changes our community for the better.

We are pleased to be able to recognize and celebrate today.

Victor Ruiz.

Who?

Yes.

Yes.

I'm so.

I love you, Victor.

It's so great to have you.

Victor, as I think all of you know, just last week wrapped a 15 year tenure as president and CEO of Esperanza, Inc.. Esperanza is located on Cleveland's West Side.

And for the last 40 years, they just celebrated their 40th anniversary last year as work to improve the lives of Latino youth and their families through education.

Greater Cleveland has one of the fastest growing Hispanic and Latino populations in the state, and with that increased needs for services and opportunities.

Victor himself came to Cleveland 42 years ago from Puerto Rico, and during his tenure at Esperanza, he helped to transform the lives of thousands of northeast Ohio families.

He's a champion of the Latino and Hispanic representation and has held numerous leadership roles in the community, serving as chairman of the Board of trustees for Cuyahoga Community College Force for applause.

And he also sits on the editorial board of The Plain Dealer and Cleveland.com and was a member of Cuyahoga County executive elect Kris Ronan's transition team.

He's, of course, the county executive now.

Today, we all have the privilege to hear more about Victor's contributions to northeast Ohio.

What we can envision for Esperanza is next.

40 years and and some lessons in leadership, I'm sure, as well.

Moderating our conversation today is a great friend of the city club, Keisha Gonzalez.

She's senior director of Social Impact Investing in Economic and Community Development at the Cleveland Foundation.

Please join me in welcoming both of these wonderful leaders.

Just a quick reminder before we start, If you have a question for our speaker and you're listening on WKSU or watching us online, you can text that question to 3305415794.

And our staff will work it into the program.

Take it away.

Keisha, thank you so much.

Awesome.

Well, first of all, thank you, everyone, for for being here with us today.

Such an exciting and monumental moment in time for our community here in northeast Ohio.

And first of all, Victor, just an extension of gratitude.

The Latino community in Cleveland is better because of you.

I am here because of the work you've done at Esperanza.

And I'm sure many in this room today have benefited from the amazing work that Esperanza has put before us in our neighborhoods.

So thank you so much.

Huge gratitude there.

Thank you.

I want to jump right in just because there's so much to talk about and our time is limited.

So just to jump right in, Victor, locally and nationally.

Right.

You're recognized as a trailblazer in advancing the conditions for educational outcomes in our community.

And as we look to carry this conversation with an eye to the future, I really want to spend some time understanding who are you, what has brought you to this work and how has it influenced your impact across Northeast Ohio over the past 15 years and beyond?

Keisha and I want to recognize Keisha as an Espinosa alumni and you know, she brings it up often.

But I remember interviewing Keisha for her scholarship and 15 years ago.

Right?

Same age as my son.

Yeah.

So this is full circle, as you said.

And I want to thank my family and friends who are here.

Despite some board members who are here, the wonderful staff representatives who are here, the new CEO of Esperanza, Margaret Sanchez, who and of course, my wife of 31 years, Danielle.

So, yes, well, you know, going back, I would start by saying that the work of Esperon has always aligned to who I am and my values.

I came here at the age of five with my mom and my brother and, you know, we had no choice.

We had to come here.

And, you know, I think some of the points I'll bring up there really align is one I I've always said this on me and the poster child for all things public.

I am a I was a beneficiary of our country's wonderful social safety net, from education to housing to the free cheese line.

You know, I did it all and within that, though, there was a almost a dogged belief by my mom that that was just a tool and that the ultimate aim was independence and self-sufficiency, and that the only way to get there was through education.

There was nothing else education.

And that was pounded and drilled into me for my whole life.

So, you know, I, I understood that.

And I took advantage of all the educational opportunities that I had.

Couple that with eventually a recognition that our public social safety net is always under attack, always.

And that if it wasn't for that, I would not be here.

So how does that align?

Esperanza So, you know, Dancer original regionals and I need to read my notes on this.

I want to read the I keep the original articles of Incorporation of Esperanza so close because the original purpose that our founding individuals, visionaries really are just still very relevant today.

So couple of things.

One.

First of all, it's called the Cleveland Hispanic Scholarship Fund.

And one of the original the purpose was to encourage and promote intellectual and academic development of the greater Cleveland Hispanic community.

And another one is to lessen neighborhood tension and combat deterioration in the greater Cleveland Hispanic community.

And here's the important part By motivating community involvement in the education of its student members and by instilling in the community the value of education as a means to achieve self-awareness and self-fulfillment.

So they tied that back to my personal values education, independence, self-sufficiency.

You know, it all really intersected extremely well here.

And, Victor, remind us when these words were brought together, 1981.

Amazing.

Well, 81, 82, the organization was incorporated in 83.

So do they still stand strong today?

Mr..

Still strong today.

Actually, thank you so much for a sharing a part of you and your childhood and what brings you here to us today?

Because we've all reaped the benefit of what you bring to the table.

So thank you.

I want to go a little bit deeper into your experience and your contributions to Northeast Ohio's Latino community.

Our community and our history is not a recent one.

And we're constantly changing.

And we've evolved drastically, particularly over the past ten, 15 years as we look to the future.

What are some important seeds of knowledge that we need to plant today in order to secure the future and the continued prosperity and momentum for the Latino community across northeast Ohio?

Yeah, you know, I think one of the challenges we have is really defining what Latino, Latino, Latina means.

Absolutely.

And what are the ties that bind us?

Language alone is not enough.

So I think the work that we need to continue doing is, you know what?

What is our identity?

And within that identity, understanding that there isn't just one thing that defines us.

There's a lot different histories.

There's different, you know, ideologies, experiences.

So how do we bring all of those things together to create a vision for our community that allows us to have that diversity and individuality but still be able to thrive together?

Absolutely.

And to kind of go a little bit deeper into that based on your experience in your 15 years and beyond working in northeast Ohio.

You know, oftentimes we are stuck with the conundrum of being looked at as a monolith.

While we can explore that ourselves as a community, we can elevate those differences.

How do we educate others and how do we bring others along with us as we're exploring a lot of internal difficulties as a Latino community?

A lot of things that we have to heal from, grow from, but we also have to bring others with us to sort of dispel that idea that we are a monolithic population.

You know something?

I'll touch on later is we need to engage with the broader community.

And I think, you know, as I think back in my career and, you know, and we touched on this in our debrief, some of the challenges I had, you know, one of the things I always heard was Espinosa gets everything this way.

And I say, Yeah, but what you're not seeing is that I think every corner of Cleveland, Ohio and beyond, and I think we can't just sit in our corners and expect people to come to us.

We need to go out and engage in the broader work of the community and help the broader community understand the value that we bring and what we need to continue being successful.

So I think if I was a little bit off script, so jumping in.

So your time at Esperanza has introduced a what I consider to be a re-imagination of the conditions necessary for there to be excellence in education.

And this really is evidence of Esperanza growth from just providing scholarships to really thinking about what it means to treat the whole family's educational and workforce needs in order for the children to be successful.

As you think about the future of Esperanza, as you think about new leadership, as you think about the conditions within our community and the new leadership that's rising, what's on the horizon for the future?

Yeah, you know, and I'll I'll before I go there, you know, go back to the start of your question is why it's important to treat the whole child and the whole family is, you know, one of the you know, I did things I came to the table was that, you know, providing students the idea of a scholarship is not enough.

Absolutely.

So the organization was founded to promote post-secondary education and incentivize it through a scholarship.

That's important.

But you also need to do all the other work, which as a community, we've done really well understanding what the wraparound needs are and that you cannot serve the child without serving the whole family.

I always said that a family can be the greatest asset, will also be the worst asset, so that serving the needs of the entire family are critical for success for all members.

In terms of what's on the horizon, I am not going to steal Margaret's thunder, but I think some things we can agree on.

One is that as a community we are redefining what it means to educate people, you know, and redefining what success means.

And that is evolving that, you know, for my generation, success was college.

You know, that's not necessarily the case for everyone.

We have to create the environment where that's the direction someone wants to go in.

They have that access to it.

So expanding what it means for people to learn what it means for people to be successful, I think that's important.

I think the other thing is, you know, Esperanza is a great model.

It's been kind of guarded and, you know, 2015 Clark area, it's time to grow.

It's time to go past and it's time to expand the borders also.

So in other words, so I think as we look at what is the future of Esperanza, I would say grow, grow.

It's working, continue expand, are expanding how we serve people.

And also understand that learning is a lifetime journey.

So how do we provide opportunities for all of us?

And whatever journey when our lives were in?

Certainly fabulous.

And I love that idea of kind of the expansion and growth of Esperanza was reached.

Well, we love to have you at home.

And Clark faltered totally understand the future of opportunity.

And Clark Fulton will always be home, right?

Oh, absolutely.

But it doesn't mean that we can do more.

I don't want the councilwoman saying, hey, we're like, I'm a hoarder.

Don't get me in trouble with this.

I'm going to cause a riot.

Oh, my goodness.

So kind of to kind of carry on of our conversation here.

You know, one of the most powerful impacts of your tenure at Esperanza has been your ability to elevate what's going on here at home to state and national levels.

From your vantage point and within the context of the current state and national politics, what form and function must organizations like Esperanza?

So thinking about our Latinx serving organizations as a whole?

What functions will it be take to continue to advance the conditions for a community within the dynamics we're living in today?

Yeah, great question.

You know, when when I started, you know, we had this horrible graduation rate of 70% of our youth were dropping out and what we realized was that this is not the family's problem.

This is not just our problem.

This is a whole community's concern.

And we weren't able were bold enough to say, no, wait a minute, this affects the country as a whole.

Right.

And that not only were we going to raise awareness to it for whoever was listening, but we needed to create those partnerships and support systems to to help address that.

So so that's why that's important, is that what impacts our community here should matter to everyone.

And then in terms of what we have to do excuse me, is we need to be active in promoting that.

Again, going back to this idea of it's not going to come to us.

So for us, it was active.

Only one is accepting the responsibility that we have to address this and that we have to do whatever it takes.

And then being active and out there, creating coalitions, building partnerships, bringing resources to help address it.

And what was that journey like?

The coalition building.

It was easy because we are all here.

We're here today still.

Right?

Word this need to continue to build coalitions and roundtables and collective bodies of work.

It is not easy work.

No, it's not.

And what did you learn in that process?

Well, what I learned, unfortunately, and I think we know this, is that sometimes you get more love outside of your home than you do.

And this is true.

And that's why it was important to build those national coalitions while.

So when I brought a unidos, you ask National Council of La Raza say, Hey, here's our partner or the local people listened to as multiple strategies, but it's really, again, finding whoever.

Talking to as many people as you can and then bringing in those partners to build your coalition of people who believe in what you're saying.

And then you eventually bring those people in that are.

And I love that you brought up the work that you've done with the house up, because I think there's an important facet that we often forget in doing this work, be it through Esperanza or any other Bipoc led and serving organization, is that sometimes we do have to leave home for a moment and bring those lessons back here.

And I think that you guys are a shining example of that.

So I love that you elevated that.

Something else that I did want to ask is you talked about the importance and the elevation of our value as a community and which is why we need to we needed to invest in the educational outcomes in the community.

Can you speak a little bit to the work that you have done to build compelling narrative about the value of our community to the workforce sector, to enterprise is to the higher education system, because I think there's often a space or a disconnect that we feel that there's a sense of not belonging or not being part of what's that journey been like and your influence in that space?

No, thank you.

You know, I think the first thing is, you know, demanding that people recognize that we exist and that we are beyond the numbers.

Oh, they're only they're only, you know, 8% of the voting bloc.

You know, they're only 10% of the school population.

You know, that 8% is 5000 children.

Right.

So I think getting people to acknowledge that we exist is hard but critical.

And then you're able to help people understand the value that we bring.

And why we are important for me is we have home grown, bilingual, highly educated talent that wants to stay here and it's cheaper than you recruiting halfway around the world.

That's been the narrative.

Yeah, it's still not easy.

It's still not easy.

Again, I'm seeing progress, but I think as Clevelanders, who we love to go outside, recognizing that that talent is here and what is the work that we need to do for that talent to recognize their value when they're joining the workforce and when they're approaching and pursuing opportunities in the workforce?

You know, I think I always tell our our students is that our diversity, our bilingualism, the way we speak Spanish, wherever you're from, that's our superpower.

It is.

And that, you know, finding you know, it's not going to be always easy, but clinging to organizations that support you to help you make it through those rough patches is important.

So that's why it's important for organizations like Espinoza to extend beyond getting that bachelor's degree, connecting to career opportunities, internships, fellowships to continue providing that support.

That's why our urges employee resource groups are so important in our companies, because once they're in these institutions, they have a support system there.

So we absolutely and one of the biggest things that I know about myself as I'm entering my mid thirties is this realization, is this realization of we were never taught to monetize those superpowers.

That's right.

And how to ask to be compensated.

Appropriate and to take up space because those skill sets are a value add.

So I love that that the Esperanza is where it continues to elevate beyond continuing beyond completing their bachelor's degree and really saying how are you navigating the workforce and connecting them to the appropriate network.

So I'd love to hear that.

So I'm going to transition over to I don't want to quite call it our last question, but I think to me it's one of our most powerful questions that we're going to close out with.

It is so hard is questioning to come up last night.

We are all we are all aware, right, that if you want to go fast, you go alone.

And if you want to go far, you go together.

At this moment in time, our people are experiencing a paralyzing fear of erasure and demonization within the American narrative.

What advice do you have to communities of color to remain resilient and continue to advance in La Lucha and the fight?

Because it's it's it's something that's so ingrained in us that we have to live in a state of resiliency and fight.

But it feels like it's getting harder and harder as a narrative and storytelling continues to develop.

Yeah, it was your hardest question and it really did keep me up last night, but it was such a thought provoking question.

So and you said something in our call the other day that kind of helped me with this and I said, Where you're going?

So I have three, three references, one bad bunny, right?

Yeah.

His his new album, Debating how much photos I should have taken.

More pictures.

HAMILTON Another bodega right?

Who lives, who dies?

Who tells your story?

And Coco greatest animated.

Remember me?

Right.

And the thread that connects all of these is intentionality and action.

I should have taken more photos.

Who's telling my story and who's remembering me?

So I say that because erasure happens when you let it happen.

And for us to ensure that our community is not erased, we have to be active in telling our own story and demanding that people hear it.

So with that, I have a call to action for our community is we need to get back to a time when we're sitting around the table together talking about our community.

Not that we have to always agree, but at a minimum we're acknowledging each other and the work that we're doing and ensuring that the duration doesn't happen.

That was a you're going to get me crying today.

I kind of thought our last few minutes together, I want to make sure that we leave space for you to share what's on your heart.

Thank you, Victor.

You've had a long legacy here with Esperanza.

You have an even longer legacy left.

Yes.

To influence, hopefully to influence northeast Ohio and beyond.

And also for our community.

What's on your heart these days and what and what do you think it's going to carry you to?

You know, I just I want to continue the work of helping our people and our and our people is broad is all of us.

Right.

So I'm going into this transition with a uncharacteristic calmness, You know, check in on me.

In six months, I'm going to set the reminder.

But, you know, there's a lot of work to be done.

And I just want to plug in where it makes sense, including helping leaders like you, you know, take take the baton and and carry the work forward.

So, again, I'm going you know, we have a grandson.

He's one plus years old and we're enjoying him, you know, kind of hoping I take my health a little more serious, you know, with with a little more time.

Maybe so.

So, yeah, I'm just kind of I'm going into this with an open mind.

Well, thank you so much for closing us out.

Sitting What's on your heart?

We are, again, just so excited to have had this time with you and to be able to dive in a little bit deeper to kind of what you see for the future of our community.

Victor So thank you for your service and thank you for all the time that you shared with us across the community.

Thank you, Keisha.

Yeah, absolutely, Victor.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Great question.

Well, what's my.

And I think with that, we'll be transitioning.

Yeah, I forgot to give.

Okay, so now that I have the script, which I left on the chair, we're about to begin the audience Q&A for our live stream and radio audience.

I'm Keisha Gonzales, senior director of Social Impact Investing and Economic and Community Development at the Cleveland Foundation and the moderator for today's conversation.

Today, we're hearing from Victories who completed his 15 year tenure as president and CEO of Esperanza Inc last week.

We welcome questions from everyone.

City Club members guest as well as those joining the live stream at City Club Dawg or live radio broadcasts at 89.7 Ideastream Public Media.

If you'd like to tech text questions for Victor, please text at 23305415794.

That's 3305415794.

In the city club, staff will try to work it into the program.

May we have the first question, please?

Hi there.

I'm going to read one of our text questions.

Is our first question How has gentrification on the near West Side affected the Hispanic community in the 25th and Clark Avenue area?

Therefore, Keisha, we may want to talk to you this or definitely thought you can kick it off.

Well, you know, I'll share with you, you know, when I look at it from education systems perspective, I don't think we've seen an impact.

Our schools are still full.

Right.

From a, you know, leader of an organization who was responsible for kind of looking at it from a broader perspective, from what is the cost of our rent to all these other things.

You know, it is a concern.

And, you know, nonprofits who are program oriented, you know, have this struggle always, you know, are we landlords or we focus.

So it's definitely a concern.

It's a major strategic priority for Esperanza to think about place and where we belong and ensure that we are not displaced.

So yeah, I think what's really critical about what's going on in Clark Fulton right now is that we have to acknowledge the fact that beyond just addressing the economic dynamics of gentrification, which are often very familiar to us, there were also addressing the psychological dynamics of gentrification and making sure that our people moving forward into the future as the markets change and opportunities to create wealth start to surface for us, that we are still feeling like our culture is vibrant, that we can hear it, we can taste it, we can see it, and that that tangible sense of community is still living at that intersection.

Right.

So, you know, we continue to do the work, right, to preserve the conditions for folks to have a life well lived in Clark Fulton.

But what is most important is the work of Esperanza Hispanic Business Center.

Metro West can be a development organization to make sure that the dynamics of that culture and that vibrancy lives in perpetuity.

Thanks for letting me join that question.

No, this is your this is and congratulations of doing all the wonderful work you do.

Thank you.

A merle Johnson, former member of the State Board of Education.

And for many, many decades, there has been a national movement on to dismantle public education.

And that was pretty evident in Project 2025, where the plan is to actually get rid of the Department of Education and people of color will be the ones who are hurt the most by that.

So my question is, what are you doing?

What are organizations that you're a member of?

Anything that you're doing?

I always agree with your statements when you respond in the editorial sections of the Cleveland.com.

So I know that you believe in public education.

So what are you doing to try to save it?

That's the best way I can put that.

Yeah.

Thank you.

My seventh grade teacher, by the way.

Oh, I don't know.

Know?

She wanted me to say that, and I. Charles early in middle school.

You know, Ms.. Johnson, that enough?

We're not doing enough.

And I think going back to the question you asked earlier around, what is the future of Esperanza?

I think of advocacy at a more, you know, systemic government type level is is critical because that dismantling is happening, chipping away for years.

So, yeah, the straight answer is not enough.

And I would say that Cleveland, we kind of basically say, well, we are outnumbered at the state level and we kind of put our hands up and don't fight more.

So I think it's a fight that Cleveland and other similar school districts and urban centers need to take on together.

Can you hear me?

Great.

I'm so high.

Victor, You have been a transformational leader for a lot of us in this room.

So my first question, because we're like maybe too quick, who's a transformational leader in your life?

And then what would you say to young, young Latinas trying to just make it?

We're just trying to go through their careers, learn and grow, like see a lot of my peers in here.

What would you tell us on our journey as well, and what type of qualities should we look for in those mentors that are going to take us further and help us grow?

Right.

Thank you.

First, you know, I always say it's my mom, you know, and I think I talked about, you know, a transformational leader.

You know, I single mother, 1.3 jobs and go into Tracy, you know, and you know, her dream was to get a degree never happened.

So I think that was one of the things that you know, so so when I think about what are the qualities of a transformational leader from, you know, hard work, values driven, courageous.

So that's that's it for me.

The more but that's the most important, you know, in terms of advice to young people, you know, you know, it's really it's getting over your self-doubts, I have admired your impact in the way that you have been, the way the Latino rate has succeeded under your leadership as a Latina in the workforce.

If I want to have the impact that you have had, what is the number one piece of advice?

I right.

I have a job.

I'm ready in the workforce.

What do I need to be doing to make sure I can have the impact that you have had in our community?

Oh, that's a good one.

Well, she ask you questions to you know, let me back up a point because I have my notes because Dan told me not to look at my notes, but point, you know, when I when I got to Esperanza, I had the it was a combination of this powerful purpose.

And at the time, a board who entrusted me to get us there.

Right.

So I was allowed to make a lot of mistakes, a lot of mistakes.

And so I the only answer I can think of right now is don't be afraid to make mistakes, to speak up, to call things out when they're not right, to demand what is right for you.

And going back to that fear, you have to have almost like this naive courage to you that you're like, I'm just going to do it regardless of what the cost, cause I'm not telling you to take that for everything, right?

I'm thinking more around advocating for yourself, advocating for your community, advocate for your values, because those are all grounded in what's right is overcoming this fear of because in our culture, what are we told?

Don't speak up, don't rock the boat.

It doesn't come with a straight, you know, put your head down right.

We have to overcome those things.

Hello.

Hello.

I'm Kamini Gratz.

I am a board member of Esperanza, and I'll put you on the spot.

Victor, to think about an example that brings to life the power of mentoring.

But the reason for that, so I'm giving you a preview, is because think in this room, there is a broad spectrum of awareness and engagement with Esperanza.

Some of us are deep in through 12, 13 years.

For me, some of us are just getting familiar with the organization, and mentoring is one of many avenues to learn the stories of the people that Esperanza serves and to get hooked and to feel the passion and resilience and determination of the Latino Northeast Ohio people.

And so I'm curious if you can talk about the transformational nature of mentoring either at the high school or college level that Esperanza brings to the table as a way that anybody that is not currently actively engaged with Esperanza, they can dip their toe with as little as one hour a month.

Thank you.

Can be surprised.

You can ask for money either, you know.

And let me start off by talking about our mentoring model.

Our mentoring model, basically rejected all the quote unquote best practices around mentoring.

Mentoring had this box and including it doesn't matter who your mentor is, as long as you're a caring individual.

Yes, we need you to be caring.

But sometimes I want someone who looks like me.

So I want someone who's gone through the same experiences as me.

Oh, and by the way, just because you don't have a college degree doesn't mean that you can't add value to my life.

So that has been, I think, really focusing on individuals who care and can provide value to our students is really important.

And I'm going to pick on someone, Elisa, someday.

Well, one of our bright stars has been with us since age 11 or 12, went through our programs, started working, brilliant young woman who has this hunger and desire and an openness and a hunger for mentoring.

And I see her changing every day.

And one day you will be writing her a check.

I know you will be.

She has she aspires to be a fundraising expert to bring resources to our community.

And under the mentorship, continued mentorship of Margaret, I know it'll happen.

So at least I've seen her evolution.

So.

So I do have two questions for you.

Sorry about the note today.

The first one is, in your opinion, how good or bad is like the cultural mix that we bring.

Like for example, I've been hearing a lot about Puerto Ricans complaining about Americans coming over and putting their own taking away that culture, like putting hotels or whatever and basically gentrifying it.

But also on the other side here in the States, just how people complain about, like talk in English because you're in the states, or maybe don't do this custom because we're not used to it.

So how would you say is it positive or negative to have that like cultural mix between the Latino people and like American or like Native people?

And then my second question would be I'm a filmmaker and I believe in the impact of like media.

So are collaborating with like the Cleveland Film Commission or any sort of commission or program to be like showing the Latino people in the culture or like the media here in Cleveland.

Those are my two questions.

I think you've found.

Tina Okay, great.

You know, I think you bring up a great point, and I think it all boils down to a respect and cultural humility and recognizing that when you're in someone else's home, you are a guest.

And I think what's happening in Puerto Rico is that not that we don't want others, is that when you're in our home, you respect our home, particularly what belongs to us, our land, our.

And if you saw, you know, a tourist who burned down three businesses because they refused to serve alcohol.

So and the same thing here.

Right.

The language and the rhetoric that we hear here is disrespectful.

It's dehumanizing.

So it all boils down to how do we respect each other wherever you are so that that's and then your other around, I'll just broadening it, broaden it to the arts and then hand it off to Keisha again, is we have a very robust and vibrant art scene in our community and always looking for ways to expand that.

So I don't know, because you've really led a lot of these efforts.

Yeah, it's it's a hard space, right?

In Spanish, we say, like, you need a job right when you exist and you straddle two worlds.

You're not from here, nor north, nor are you from there.

You know, one thing that I kind of always stand on is do not allow these types of sentiments and these types of instances of violence form an erasure.

Right?

Always stand on your culture, always stand on your language.

And always extend an invitation to learn.

Right.

And going to the point that Victor just made is that there are a plethora of opportunities across Cleveland and across northeastern Hale to welcome others to really understand what is the richness and value of our culture and what we bring to value here across Cleveland and across northeast Ohio.

You know, the gentrification issue in Puerto Rico is is one that is becoming emotionally tied more and more over time to those of us who were born here in the States like myself.

Right.

So one of the one of the things I'd like to encourage younger in in this case Puerto Ricans, is to try to try to make it back home.

So to make that direct connection with the land chart, to try to understand your roots.

And as always, land is power whether you're here in Cleveland or you're somewhere else if you are able to, and compelled to explore what it means to start to build some roots back on the island, I think that is a really powerful statement to be able to kind of send to kind of the wave of gentrification happening across the island.

Thank you and good afternoon, Victor.

I want to once again, on behalf of all of us here, thank you for what has been an amazing career and an amazing contribution to this community.

You spoke earlier about coalitions and the need for communities to come together and form coalitions with the rising political climate that we're looking at right now and the negative impact anticipated on a number of minority communities.

What kinds of coalitions might you suggest need to be formed and what issues do you think we really need to take a look at?

Thank you.

Thank you, Sir.

Charles Dancy Yeah, that's a great question.

You know, I think we need to I find that we we have a lot more in common many times than we have differences and that when one group is targeted and attacked, that doesn't mean the rest of us are safe.

So I think, you know, I mentioned public education is under attack definitely at the state level, and it's coming at the federal level as well.

Some of our basic, you know, basic civil rights.

So in terms of, you know, I think one coming together to understand how we're all impacted and having those conversations is critically important.

And we're not we're having those conversations in silos.

But if we bring them together, that makes us a bigger and broader group of people going after these things.

So I the the the the pessimism, he said there's a lot of things coming down that are going to impact a lot of us.

And I think it's just a matter of sitting down with each other, recognizing that we are going to be impacted, that we are targets.

All of us.

And how does how do we come together to combat that?

And I think during our we got together to talk about our questions for today.

We talked about convergence points, like what does it mean to think about the aligned agendas and the Black API?

Letting Native communities, we all have our autonomous agendas right as communities that we want to advance, but how do we come together and identify?

What are the convergence points that make us stronger at the state and national level to be able to truly drive system changes?

So there's so many entry points, and I do agree with you on the pessimists point.

There is a lot like we're bracing ourselves.

Yes, winter is coming.

So hi, my name is Lorraine and I have a question for you.

Based on the call to action that you did.

Yes.

Earlier.

So that really is directed into individuals when you think about it, as you stand here and you're the listener, I can't help but think about the moment in time in terms of where we are in history, the challenges, the opportune eighties, this region has always been a warrior.

Once it sets its mind and puts innocence and intentionality and gets things done.

So this region is all about succeeding and kind of going through barriers.

With that in mind and your call to action, what is it that you would say to institutions?

So as you look at the people here and their networks and the tentacles in how far they reach and all the people that are online, it is a vast powerhouse in here.

So I'd like you to take a moment and just kind of inspire.

What would you tell people here to go out and do in terms of the institutions they work with?

And some of those will be enlightened and some of them will need opportunity to be enlightened.

So when you think about your response, I'd like you to kind of address those that are enlightened and those who can join that group.

Yeah, from an institutional perspective.

Thank you.

So you're putting it on me.

Thank you, Lorraine.

Lorraine Another one of the significant and critical people in Esperanza is history.

Well, you know, I think we need going back.

You know, I think one of the things that plagues us is the belief that our work, our theory of change are our organizations narrative, is the only thing out there, and I think for our institutions is really recognizing that there isn't just one way of getting things done and opening up to the idea that I may have to lose something.

It may not be necessarily resources, but it could be an approach right.

This organization does it better than me.

That's really hard, right?

Because especially for organizations and in leaders of organization, as we are charged with, this is your responsibility.

And sometimes it's a, you know, get go out and get what you can and forget about everyone else.

So I think recognizing that we have to really think differently about what it means to serve our community and accepting that it may not always be me there or it may not be my organization, but putting that community interest top of mind and in a way that's easier said than done.

We've been talking about it for a long time and it does take a few people to raise their hand and say, I'm ready.

You know, you know, I'm ready to start these conversations.

And by the way, that comment was more specifically directed to our Hispanic community, which you probably got that because we haven't been at the table together.

And we talked about this when I said especially post-pandemic, we we've gone from getting together regardless of the conversation was good or not.

There was an acknowledgment we've gone through this indifference where we don't even acknowledge each other and we've siloed ourselves in a way where we're seeing individuals success, but we're not seeing that alignment and convergence where that success could be even greater.

MARGARET Good afternoon, everyone.

Margaret Santos and I would like to thank everybody for having Esperanza and being so interested in what we do.

I want to thank Kiesha and of course, our dear former president and CEO of Esperanza.

Victor, I want to thank you because three years ago when I arrived, you were the first two that I spoke with and you were so welcoming.

I came from Broward County.

What you are living now in right now in Cleveland.

I lived it in the year 2000 where we were only 13% and growing.

The Latino community in Fort Lauderdale, Broward County, which is now composed of 35 cities.

So by saying that and in following your comment, we need to work together for a common cause.

We are citizens of Cleveland and we have to care for everyone because we are all contributors of this city.

We all pay taxes.

We all spend money.

We agree buying power.

And we all need to take care of our own students education.

Yesterday I had the pleasure to have a visit from the Immigration Coalition who is taking a group of teachers and going to different organizations.

She's here.

If you please, could stand up, if you would like that group of teachers that she's taking from different schools and going to different nonprofit this to learn about what they are doing to make it a better world here in Cleveland.

So please come together.

This is about all of us who make this great city greater Cleveland.

So I also want to thank YWCA who welcome me.

Helen is here, and of course, Tri-C. Renee Richardson don't know she's present, but I want to thank her because all of them welcome me into this wonderful city where my husband and I decided to retire.

You have our commitment, our staff and all of us, if we work together, we're going to make this a great Cleveland.

Thank you.

Final thoughts?

It's not walking the plank.

Yeah.

You all will see me next week.

Yeah.

No, thank you.

And good.

Damn.

Thank you.

And thank you for your commitment to ensuring that our community's voice is heard.

Victories.

Casey Gonzales, thanks so much.

And thank you all for joining us today.

Forums like this one are made possible thanks to generous support from individuals like all of you.

And indeed, not just like all of you, but all of you have done something great.

If you would like to learn more about becoming a guardian of free speech, you can do so at City Club Dawg Forum today.

As I mentioned earlier, as part of our local Hero series presented in partnership with Citizens and Enbridge.

Thanks to both of those organizations for their continued support of our region's leaders.

The City Club would also like to welcome students joining us from E!

Hovey Career Center in Milan, Ohio.

Welcome to all of you.

Great to have you here today.

We'd also like to welcome guests at tables hosted by Cuyahoga Community College, the Cleveland Foundation, Esperanza Incorporated and citizens.

Thank you all for being here.

Next Friday, January 17th, we'll hear from Margaret Mitchell, who three years ago moved into the national spotlight as the CEO of YWCA, USA, one of the oldest and largest women's organizations in the nation.

We have a ton of other great stuff planned for 2025.

Check it all out at City Club, dawg.

Thank you all so much for being with us today.

Victor, Keisha, thank you again as well.

Our forum is now adjourned.

Have a great weekend.

For information on upcoming speakers or for podcasts of the City Club, go to City Club, Dawg.

Production and distribution of City club forums and ideastream Public media are made possible by PNC and the United Black, Fond of Greater Cleveland, Inc..