LATINO LOS ANGELES’ S“ POWER COUPLE” REFLECTS ON THE U. S. ANNIVERSARY AND THE LEGACY OF THEIR IMMIGRANT FAMILIES

›› BY: PABLO SCARPELLINI | LOS ÁNGELES

Born in Watts, Raúl was the son of a foundry worker from Zacatecas who melted hot iron to make sewer pipes. María was raised in Lincoln Heights and Highland Park, daughter of immigrants from Jalisco who found community in the neighborhood church. Neither of them grew up with much. But both learned, from an early age, that giving was more important than receiving.

María adds a forwardlooking perspective:“ The 250th anniversary is a moment for reflection on where we have been and where we are today, but what inspires me most is where we want to go. I am very optimistic about our future. I believe we are navigating a period of change and that we will come out the other side stronger.”

Married for 37 years— he a lawyer, she a CPA— Raúl and María Salinas are one of the most influential couples in Southern California’ s Latino activism. Both graduates of Loyola Marymount University— where they met raising funds for Latino student scholarships— they have built bril-

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PUBLISHED BY liant careers without ever losing sight of the neighborhood they came from.

Raúl, managing partner of the largest minority-owned law firm in the country( FBT Gibbons) and former City Attorney of South Gate, has founded and chaired dozens of nonprofits.

Among his most significant achievements is persuading the LMU president to create an endowment fund that today is worth millions and finances generations of Latino students. He has also built more than 36 homes in Baja California for families in need, alongside Loyola High School students— a tradition he maintains even though his own children are no longer enrolled there.

María, for her part, was one of the founders of HOPE— Hispanas Organized for Political Equality— a pioneering organization in ad-

This country was built on the backs of immigrants. Part of the work that María and I have done our whole lives is precisely to work in those communities, to help the less fortunate.”

— Raúl Salinas