United We Celebrate: The Latino Inaugural Ball 2009 Event
By: Joanne | January 20, 2009 | Category: General
Last night my colleague Leilani Martinez, a Bilingual Web Content Manager for GobiernoUSA.gov, attended the Latino Inaugural Ball. Here's her report...
Yes, I admit it, as a Hispanic and as a long-time resident of D.C., the capital not only of the U.S., but also of all kinds of receptions and networking events, I’ve attended many Latino social networking events since I first moved here over 10 years ago. Fortunately, I’ve not only attended many of them, but I’ve also helped organized quite a few. But nothing compares to the celebration I attended on Sunday, January 18, at Union Station here in Washington, D.C. The Latino Inaugural Gala 2009 was a festivity like no other as Latinos this time came together to celebrate a night of history in the making as the voices of Hispanics everywhere were heard in unprecedented numbers in this presidential election.
The party felt at times more like a “Premio Lo Nuestro” event, the Hispanic equivalent of the Grammy Awards, than an Inauguration Ball as top-notch Latin artists were the center of attention…and to be honest, the red carpet occupied most of my time and energy as the GobiernoUSA.gov official correspondent for the night.
At 5:30 pm I got to the event, and after registering as a media representative, I sat down for a couple of minutes to study the media advisory and tip sheet. The list of confirmed artists was impressive. So I realized right away that I needed to be ready for the long list of celebrities and politicians who were set to walk down the red carpet…as ready as I could be with my Kodak Zi6 video recorder, Canon digital camera and BlackBerry World Edition. My strategy was not to try to compete with Univision, MTV Latino or CNN en español, but to befriend them. However, I was also determined that I was going to do whatever it took to take a great shot of Jennifer Lopez, better known as J. Lo (especially after the twins!), Alejandro Sanz, a singer from Spain, and my personal favorite, and of course, Shakira. So before the red carpet started I decided to walk around and mingle with my media colleagues. I joked with them and for a moment, I actually thought that we were all a big happy family until the red carpet started. One of the first person to walk down was Geraldo Rivera, followed by Angelica Vale, a very famous Mexican actress, David Archuleta (the kid who almost won American Idol), Lila Downs, and many others. Things were pretty under control until the infamous couple came around. We all started to jump over bags and get on chairs (me included!) as there was no way we were going to miss the opportunity…not only because it was J. Lo and Marc Anthony, but also because all these artists were there talking about and celebrating the election of President Barack Obama.
After the red carpet was done and after finally realizing that I could
barely walk due to how numb my feet were from working all those hours,
I turned around and saw a sea of people, a very diverse group of people
all dressed up and so excited about being there. I took the opportunity
to ask people to share with me their stories and their thoughts. A
young invitee, Carlos from NY, told me that he took the train down to
D.C. to come to this Gala as he wanted to be part of this celebration (http://www.youtube.com/wat
See other videos taken at the event:
Chris, co-producer of Mambo for Obama Ball: http://www.youtube.com/wat
For all videos, visit http://www.youtube.com/vie
For all pictures, visit http://www.flickr.com/phot
Permalink
| View Comments [4]
| 
E-mail This Entry
| Tags:
ball
gobiernousa.gov
inaugural
joanne
latino
leilani
obama
president
Bookmark and share: 
About social bookmarking
RSS Feeds
E-mail Updates
Comment Permalink
Reflecting and thinking of the concept of uniting and celebrating "the Latino way" is very well said and appropriate (and way long overdue if you ask me), particularly in an election where 72% of Latinos voted for President Obama.
Latinos - their past, present, and future contribution to American society and potential are and have been easily taken for granted, forgotten or simply underestimated amidst their growth. I think that for the first time, Latinos have genuinely felt what the majority of America has felt with both the candidate and now President Obama – a feeling of hope and realization that we have a very big stake in this country. A sense of inclusion and knowing that if we “ponernos las pilas”, we can make an authentic difference in leading purposeful lives for our future generations. Simply put – a call to action.
Ego is a huge obstacle in accomplishing goals and reaching dreams. It is with anticipation that I look forward to seeing Latino celebrities not only celebrate as they did in this gala, but maybe, just maybe (or at least I hope), can take their own roles as public figures in engaging in worthwhile causes that make positive impacts within the Latino community. We need it.
We are at the cusp of a transforming society and as Latinos, whether we like it or not, are and will be in the midst of this change. We need to be ready and embrace this change. Although the Latino Inaugural gala had similarities with “Premios Lo Nuestro”, I am glad to see that as a community, there was union and solidarity in this historic moment. Certainly a moment to celebrate.
Comment Permalink
Comment Permalink
Comment Permalink