F r o n t   L i n e The Latino Scene by Liz Nichols It has been over two months since members of one of the university's major Latino groups, La Sociedad Hispanica, split to form the organization El Pueblo in an attempt to focus more specifically on the political aspect of Latino culture. A contentious September 26 follow-up article that appeared in the Cavalier Daily gave a cursory description of the agenda of El Pueblo, emphasizing the uncertainty of the U.Va. Latino leadership and a reaction that was "less than harmonious." The media coverage resulted in a depiction of a hostile cleavage that would eventually serve to fragment the interests of the diverse Latino community at the university. According to El Pueblo founding member Debora Freitas, "It was blown out of proportion." Member Carolina Espinal agrees, "People outside of LSH called it a schism." What was lost in the initial drama of the splinter announcement was recognition of the very advantageous role that a CIO such as El Pueblo could potentially play in addressing the overwhelmingly varied concerns of the Latino community. While Latinos currently comprise only three percent of the U.Va. student body, they come from backgrounds that are arguably more diverse than any other minority group on Grounds. From first-generation Americans to a multitude of international students from Brazil, Argentina, and other Latin American countries, there is no one cultural mold dominating the Latino student community. Freitas maintains that political advocacy is a unifying factor in these disparate cultural groups: "If you know anything about Latin America, you know that politics is very intertwined with culture, more so than in any other culture that I've studied ... To completely ignore the political aspect is ridiculous." Though the sheer diversity of the Latino population means that all political viewpoints within the group cannot be adequately addressed (one of the chief complaints of El Pueblo's critics), there should be a mechanism for Latino political mobilization available for students that want to take an active role. Furthermore, while the Hispanic population percentage is comparatively small, it is substantial enough to allow for an even greater diversity of groups to be contained under the general "Latino" heading. Freitas says that members of La Sociedad Hispanica have said publicly that "they do not feel comfortable being the representative for the whole Latin American community." Groups such as the Society for Hispanic Professional Engineers, the Latin American Student Association, La Voz Latina, and La Sociedad Argentina reflect a varied array of cultural and economic viewpoints, and more could conceivably be formed without exhausting the array of relevant Latino issues. Though Freitas admits there is difficulty in obtaining funding as a minority group (which may be the most logical argument for consolidation of Latino student organizations), there is room for multiple and varied orientations. In the words of Espinal, "We want to create a new perspective." In the months since its inception, El Pueblo has worked to put to rest concerns that it is in direct competition with groups such as La Sociedad Hispanica. It has done an excellent job, with a programming agenda clearly collaborative in scope. El Pueblo's cooperative nature is reflected in the fact that most of its roughly 20 members are also involved in other Latino groups on Grounds. Its successful Wake Up Week panel addressing Latin American stereotypes in education was well attended and broadly supported. Members of El Pueblo participated in last month's Culturefest at Newcomb Hall, an activity sponsored by La Sociedad Hispanica. Members also regularly turn out for the social events that form the crux of LSH's programming. In addition, the cornerstone of El Pueblo's spring agenda is the formation of a coalition of eight Latino organizations on Grounds that will work towards furthering Latin American visibility in all sectors of university life. Two members from each group (including both CIO and administrative organizations such as the Latino Student's Admissions Committee) will work to broaden representation of the student body and formulate a cohesive agenda for political and social activities. The coalition aims to bring relevant speakers to Grounds and plans to host a regional conference for similarly themed groups up and down the East Coast. There is already talk of planning for Hispanic Awareness Week, which will take place during the week of March 16. Members hope to continue bringing inspirational Latino speakers to Grounds, as they did earlier in the semester with representatives from the National Council of La Raza and the Latino Civil Rights Task Force. It's difficult to conceive how such proactive leadership could fragment the Latino community: open lines of communication will certainly ensure that each group benefits from the formation of groups such as El Pueblo. Freitas agrees: "El Pueblo was needed. It's been needed for a very long time. It is not a division."

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