LULAC CLOSES HISTORIC 2026 NATIONAL CONVENTION IN FORT WORTH WITH LANDMARK MEMBERSHIP REFORMS, BROAD CIVIL RIGHTS COALITION AND UNIFIED OPPOSITION TO THE SAVE ACTHundreds of delegates and members from across the United States and Puerto Rico convene for four days of plenaries, workshops, and panels; LULAC adds its first LGBTQIA+ representative to its national board, expands ranks to digital associates, and honors three towering figures of the Latino civil rights movement.FORT WORTH, TEXAS — The League of United Latin American Citizens concluded its 2026 National Convention on Saturday after four days of deliberations, elections, policy actions, tributes, and programming that members called among the most consequential in the organization's 97-year history. Thousands of attendees from across the United States and Puerto Rico convened at the Fort Worth Convention Center from June 17 through June 20 for a wide array of plenary sessions, workshops, forums, town halls, and panel discussions — alongside the formal business of the organization, including the election of national officers, adoption of resolutions, and amendments to the LULAC policy platform. For the first time in its history, LULAC created a position for an LGBTQIA+ representative on its National Board of Directors, a milestone members described as long overdue and reflective of the organization's evolving constituency. Delegates also approved expanding LULAC's membership categories to formally recognize online associates, opening the organization to a broader base of supporters who engage with its mission across digital platforms. 
Among the resolutions adopted, delegates voted to formally oppose the SAVE Act, federal legislation that critics say would erect documentary barriers to voter registration and restrict millions of lawfully eligible Americans from casting ballots free of intimidation, creating a disproportionate impact on Latino voters and other voters of color under policies advanced by the Trump administration. "This convention takes place at a historic moment, when LULAC and the communities we serve face some of the most daunting social, legal, and civil rights challenges in a generation," said Roman Palomares, LULAC National President and Chairman of the Board. "Let there be no mistake: we will not be silent. We will not retreat. We will not diminish our work. The voices, votes, and dignity of Latino Americans are not negotiable, and LULAC will continue to defend them with everything we have. We rededicate ourselves to the values of our democracy enshrined in our constitution, celebrated in our 250th anniversary this year." LULAC Chief Executive Officer Juan Proaño pointed to the alliances forged in the months leading up to the convention as a defining feature of the year. 
"What we presented this year is the largest coalition of civil rights organizations in the history of the United States and in the history of LULAC," Proaño said. "We are uniting communities of different lived experiences, viewpoints, and priorities under a common purpose: protecting and upholding the civil rights enshrined in the Constitution of the United States of America. This is the all-inclusiveness that gives our movement its strength." The convention opened Wednesday, June 17, with the Fort Worth Welcome Celebration, hosted by LULAC National and the Fort Worth Host Committee, chaired by Joanna Cardoza, LULAC District 21 Director for the Arlington–Fort Worth area. U.S. Sen. Ruben Gallego of Arizona, Texas state Rep. Salman Bhojani of House District 92, Fort Worth City Manager Jay Chapa, Fort Worth City Council member Jeanette Martinez, and Fort Worth Hispanic Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Ericka Garza were among those welcoming members to North Texas. Earlier that afternoon, LULAC partnered with Tyson Foods and the American Federation of Teachers for LULAC Gives Back, a service initiative under which Tyson Foods donated 40,000 pounds of protein to address food insecurity in the Fort Worth community, and the AFT contributed more than 1,000 books and LEGO sets for children, families, and educators. Thursday's program opened with a plenary on emerging Latino leadership, followed by parallel tracks running across the LULAC Women's Conference, LULAC Youth Conference, LULAC Academy for young adults, and the main convention floor. 
At midday Thursday, the Rev. Dr. Frederick "Freddie" Haynes III, senior pastor of Friendship-West Baptist Church in Dallas and the Democratic nominee for Texas's 30th Congressional District, addressed LULAC's youth and young professionals on the significance of Juneteenth. LULAC was honored to include his presentation on such an important occasion. The quest for freedom is of importance to all communities of color. Still, Juneteenth commemorates a historic moment in our nation's Black community. LULAC is proud to stand in this moment with our brothers and sisters and to say: your freedom is our freedom. Your love of this observance is reflected in our own embrace of Juneteenth, because the quest for freedom is never-ending. Generation after generation, we must fight to defend the significance of freedom and the importance of Juneteenth in the history of the United States and Puerto Rico. The 2026 Women's Hall of Fame Luncheon, moderated by Emmy Award-winning journalist Nancy Leal, drew featured speakers including Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers; Skye Perryman, president and CEO of Democracy Forward; Maya Wiley, president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights; LULAC National Vice President for Women Lupe Torres; and President Palomares. 
Civil rights and democracy programming anchored Thursday afternoon. In a fireside chat titled "Why Fascists Fear Teachers," Weingarten discussed federal pressure on public education, including cuts to Head Start, proposed restructuring of the U.S. Department of Education, school voucher expansion, and immigration enforcement near schools. Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO and national director of the Anti-Defamation League, addressed extremism and the connections between antisemitism and anti-Latino hate in a session titled "United Against Hate." A subsequent plenary, "The Fight for Civil Rights: Law, Policy, and Community Action," brought together Wiley, Perryman, Texas state Rep. Ramón Romero Jr., and Senior Staff Attorney Jennifer Thelusma of the Southern Poverty Law Center's Democracy Voting Rights Team. The Women's Conference convened concurrent sessions on Latina political empowerment, mental wellness, economic opportunity, and leadership in higher education. Panels featured former San Antonio City Councilwoman and past LULAC National Vice President for Women Lourdes Galvan; former LULAC National Vice President for Women Elisa Tamez Rosales; attorney Regina Montoya; Dallas College Trustee Diana Flores; Texas state Rep. Cassandra Garcia Hernandez of House District 115; LULAC National Women's Commissioner Ginny Mendez; LULAC National Immigration Committee Chair Lydia Guzman; immigration attorney Claudia Arévalo; and S.A.I.D. founder Carmen Lucia Gonzalez. The LULAC Youth Conference offered programming on parliamentary procedure under the LULAC Constitution, financial literacy, mental health, and sports as a vehicle for community leadership. Speakers included LULAC National Youth President Aiden Roach; LULAC National Vice President for the Southwest Ray Mancera; Houston Astros Spanish-language play-by-play broadcaster Francisco Romero; Dallas Cowboys Spanish-language broadcaster Luis Perez; and Christopher Delafuente of Corazón San Antonio. OneMain Financial executives Paola Garcia Abbo and Daniel Garza led the LULAC Academy financial literacy session for young adults. 
Thursday evening, LULAC convened "Pride, Power, and Belonging," its LGBTQIA+ gathering, moderated by Javier "JC" Cantu, chair of the LULAC National LGBTQIA+ Committee, and featuring LULAC National Historian Dr. Cynthia E. Orozco, LULAC DC State Director Jesse Garcia, LULAC Dallas Rainbow Council President Martin Saenz, and LULAC National Educational Service Centers Dallas Director Ray De Los Santos. At the LULAC Youth and Young Adult Awards Reception, U.S. Rep. James Talarico, Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate from Texas, addressed members on the road to the 2026 midterm elections. Friday's plenary programming opened with a joint LULAC and National Association of Hispanic Journalists panel on Latino representation in news media, government pressure on the press, and misinformation. The session was moderated by NAHJ Deputy Executive Director Gilbert Bailon, with LULAC Chief Content Officer Arleen Aguasvivas, WFAA-TV investigative reporter and NAHJ Dallas–Fort Worth Chapter President Rebecca Lopez, and former CBS News national correspondent Nidia Cavazos. A signature Friday plenary, "Beyond the Ballot Box: Courts, Elections, and Latino Representation," examined voting rights, redistricting, and the integrity of the 2026 midterm elections. The discussion was moderated by Ambassador Norman Eisen. It featured Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes, Nevada Secretary of State Cisco Aguilar, and Fair Fight Action CEO Lauren Groh-Wargo. 
The plenary "Change Is a Choice" assembled the leadership of the Latino civic engagement coalition that anchored much of LULAC's work this past year: CEO Proaño, Mi Familia Vota President and CEO Héctor Sánchez Barba, Latino Victory Project President and CEO Katharine Pichardo, and UnidosUS Senior Director of Political Campaigns Rafael Collazo. Friday afternoon's town hall, "Where Do We Go From Here?" featured immigration advocate and digital creator Carlos Eduardo Espina in a direct conversation with members on organizing, civic engagement, immigration enforcement, and the defense of constitutional rights. The 2026 Presidential Awards Banquet on Friday evening drew a roster of national figures. Ambassador Norman Eisen, former U.S. Ambassador to the Czech Republic, former White House ethics counsel, and co-founder and executive chair of the Democracy Defenders Fund, delivered the keynote address on the state of American democracy and the rule of law. Featured speakers included Scott D. McCoy, deputy legal director of the Southern Poverty Law Center and a former Utah state senator; Dr. Juan Andrade, co-founder and president of the U.S. Hispanic Leadership Institute and a recipient of the Presidential Citizens Medal and Mexico's Ohtli Award; Noel Candelaria, secretary-treasurer of the National Education Association, the nation's largest labor union; Texas state Rep. Ramón Romero Jr. of House District 90, chair of the Mexican American Legislative Caucus and the first Latino to represent Tarrant County in the Texas Legislature; and Nevada Secretary of State Cisco Aguilar. U.S. Rep. Delia Ramirez of Illinois, the first Latina elected to Congress from the Midwest, delivered a legislative address by video. 
The evening included reflections from three LULAC members on the organization's impact on their lives and communities: Lu Johns-De La Garza, LULAC National Research and Policy Coordinator; Lidia Martinez, Texas LULAC Deputy State Director for the Elderly and a longtime voter-registration organizer; and Tonia Reyes Uranga, president of the LULAC Long Beach Council and a former two-term Long Beach city councilmember. The banquet recognized three towering figures of the Latino civil rights movement. LULAC conferred its Lifetime Achievement Award, in memoriam, on Richard Sambrano of San Elizario, Texas — a U.S. Army veteran, educator, and longtime mediator for the U.S. Department of Justice who authored LULAC's landmark civil rights manual and was named National Mediator of the Year and LULAC National Man of the Year. His daughter, Norma Hennessy, accepted the honor on his behalf. Dr. Rosa Castro Feinberg was honored in memoriam for a five-decade career as an educator, scholar, and advocate for English language learners. In 1986, she became the first Hispanic woman elected to the Miami-Dade County School Board, and she helped shape Florida's landmark 1990 LULAC Consent Decree, protections that continue to safeguard English language learners today. Mari Corugedo, LULAC National Vice President for the Southeast, accepted the recognition. 
LULAC also presented a Special Presidential Medal in honor of Master Sgt. Roy P. Benavidez, recipient of the Congressional Medal of Honor. On May 2, 1968, near Loc Ninh, South Vietnam, Sgt. Benavidez answered a distress call from a 12-man Special Forces team surrounded by enemy forces and, over the course of six hours and despite sustaining 37 wounds, repeatedly braved enemy fire to rescue his comrades and recover classified documents. President Ronald Reagan presented him with the Medal of Honor in 1981. His daughter, Yvette, accepted the medal on his behalf. "This is what a 21st-century civil rights organization looks like," Palomares said. "Rooted in our history, expanded in our membership, and unflinching in our mission." # # # About LULAC
The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) is the nation's oldest and largest Latino civil rights organization. Founded in 1929, LULAC is committed to advancing the rights and opportunities of Latino Americans through advocacy, community building, and education. With a growing network of councils nationwide, LULAC remains committed to its mission of protecting and empowering millions of Latinos who contribute daily to America's prosperity. For more information about LULAC and its initiatives, please visit www.lulac.org. |
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