The Rainbow PUSH Coalition and Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, Sr. announced on July 13 that Special Adviser for UNICEF and Hispanicize 2018 co-chair Claudia Gonzalez Romo will be the recipient of the organization’s 2017 Rising Hispanic Leadership Award.
“Claudia is a firm believer in the power of uniting the Latino community and is somebody whose track record and skills are needed to lead Latinos forward in the times we’re living in,” Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, Sr. who on Friday will formally present the award to Gonzalez Romo at the Women’s International Luncheon of the Rainbow PUSH Coalition and Citizenship Education Fund’s 46th Annual International Convention in Chicago said. “She has the ‘it’ and the passion to potentially be that unifying leader the Hispanic community needs.”Gonzalez Romo will be presented with the award at the Women’s Luncheon on Friday, sharing the stage with U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, U.S. Congresswoman Maxine Waters of California, and music legend and icon Aretha Franklin.
“It is an honor to receive this award. Throughout my professional career, it has been evident that unless the underlying idea that we are all human is accepted and recognized, society cannot advance,” Gonzalez Romo said. “As a proud Latina, I realize how important it is for the Hispanic community to unite within itself and with other groups that have similar experiences as us, such as the African American community. This collaborative effort allows for a better opportunity to fight discrimination and bias to allow us to flourish and advance.”Gonzalez Romo has been newly appointed as the Special Adviser to UNICEF, vacating her previous role as the Global Chief of Public Advocacy at UNICEF held since 2014.
Gonzalez Romo was recently named co-chair of Hispanicize 2018, the national event for Latino trendsetters and newsmakers that will launch a study of Latino diversity in Silicon Valley in 2017, has many fans.
“Claudia is used to being behind the scenes, working on behalf of the most vulnerable and voiceless, so in many ways this recognition marks her coming out,” Manny Ruiz, founder of Hispanicize Media Group, said. “Now that I’ve collaborated with her, I can see why everyone considers her a force to reckon with and somebody who I sincerely believe might be that Latina – yes LATINA! – leader our community needs to galvanize us. She’s got the chops and the perfect motives to be a major leader for Latinos.”Gonzalez Romo, a former Mexican-Swiss diplomat, previously managed communications and advocacy for the Special Adviser for the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and Climate Change in the Executive Office of the Secretary General of the United Nations.
Claudia has led PR, brand and marketing for some of the world’s biggest global organizations including the World Economic Forum, the UN Refugee Agency and the Global Fund to fight AIDS, TB and Malaria.
