OREGON'S LGBTO NEWSMAGAZINE
JULY 1, 2011
2 1 _ J» ]
Pride In Stride
Poder Latino holds integral position in LGBTQ community
For the past 15 years, the individuals at Poder
Latino have put their best foot forward to help out
those less fortunate. As a nonprofit organization, the
group produces colorful, sassy and scintillating
showcases, all devoted to raising funds for one per
son in the community per year who, for one reason
or another, is in need.
Israel Cruz, 37, has been with Poder Latino for
the past six years, and as the organization’s president,
he can attest that though their fundraising capaci
ties and scope aren’t as large as other nonprofits, the
mission is just as big. Through events like the Sun
day Latino Nights at Embers and their annual Mr.
and Miss Gay Poder Latino pageants, Poder Latino
links the community to LG B T Latinos, lots of drag
and even more music. Proceeds from this year’s
events will help ease the medical costs of April
Bablo, a Portland resident who’s been diagnosed
with cancer.
“We look for the person who needs it the most,”
says Cruz, emphasizing that beneficiaries need not
be Latino, or LGBT.
Portland Latino Gay Pride chair David Martinez
says Poder Latino is an important part o f the Latino
LG B T community, noting that several Mr. and Miss
Gay Poder Latino titleholders have performed dur
ing past Latino Gay Pride festivals.
“They do a great job of bringing [the] community
out,” Martinez says. “For some people, it’s the only
chance they get to have fun, let loose and be among
the Latino LGBT community, both Spanish speak
ing and with similar life experiences.”
M artinez cites the particular cultural impact of
Poder Latino’s annual pageant productions.
“They challenge the strict Latino gender roles and
cultural expectations, and broaden our communi
ty’s understanding of who we are,” Martinez
explains.
W ith this year’s pageants slated for the fall at
Embers—dates could not be confirmed as of press
time— Cruz and Poder Latino hope to continue their
philanthropic efforts, and welcome all to take part.
“W e’re a Latino organization, but we’re open to
help anywhere,” Cruz says. “If people want to join
us, too, you don’t need to be Latino. As long as you’re
willing to help, everybody’s welcome.”
For more information about Poder Latino, andfor up
dates on this year's Mr. and Miss Gay Poder Latino,
search “Poder Latino Oregon” on Facebook.
— R yan
J. P rado
Voice of the MAX
Enrique Andrade is going places, along with you
Those who aren’t native Spanish speakers might not realize this, but the voice
of the Spanish announcer on the Portland MAX light rail is incredibly sexy.
That voice— the one that tells you “puertas a la derecha— belongs to Enrique
Andrade, 38, a voice artist and an active member in Portland’s LGBTQ_Latino
community.
“The sexy voice, th at’s a gift, I guess,” Andrade says when asked about the
compliment. “I haven’t explored the [phone sex] lines— I would rather sound
sexy in a commercial or on a public transportation system.”
In addition to Andrade’s work for transit agency TriM et, which runs the
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