The Latino community in Philadelphia represents a colorful tapestry of culture and pride from around the world. This Hispanic Heritage Month a community organization is working to build community pride by promoting a very popular trend – the selfie.
“#YoSoyLaCara”, translated to English mean, “I am the face”. It’s a new campaign encouraging residents to promote Philadelphia Hispanic community pride by posting selfies via social media, including Twitter, Facebook and Instagram with that hashtag.
Danny Cortes, Executive Vice President of Esperanza, explains, “We believe in the power and the value of Latinos and the contributions they make to the city of Philadelphia, but specifically in our own community.”
Banners are mounted on fences throughout the area of the Hunting Park and 5th streets corridor region of north Philadelphia where influential members of the community are displayed.
Cortes tells us, “These are the faces of the people who get up every day, who work hard, who create business, who clean the streets, who send their children to our schools and who dream along with us about a better America and a better place.”
Hunting Park residents and retired small business owners, such as the Hunters who have lived in this neighborhood for almost 50 years, are convinced that this initiative encourages cooperation and unity, which they say are key to improve the place they call home.
Catalina and George Hunter say, “Teamwork, working together instead of being an individualist. Use the team work system, it works… you can’t wrong with team work.”
Monica Parrilla, President of the Hunting Park Business Association, agrees.
Parrilla says, “We are all one big family, you know. We live here, we work here, we consume here, and now we have something that we can all do together.”
In this neighborhood, a selfie may have a whole new meaning.
Perfecta Oxholm, Executive Director of Esperanza Housing and Economic Development Division, tells us, “Take advantage of this opportunity to improve the community by engaging the community. We are using social media to engage the community while improving the community.”
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