2012 Billboard Latin Music Awards
Celebrities talk about the upcoming election at the 2012 Billboard Latin Music Awards.
In the midst of the glitz and glamour of the Billboard Latin Music Awards in Miami, Fox News Latino asked deep questions while celebrities sashayed across the red carpet.
While most of the media was interested in ‘what are you wearing?’ And ‘how do you feel tonight?’ We struck a different chord with the celebrities. We asked: ‘What are your views about the role of Latinos in this year’s election?’ And they loved it!
We were praised for elevating this important matter and the artists were quick to open their heart and share their perspectives.
Emilio Estefan was quick to mention his participation in a call with the White House on Friday, and Wilmer Valderrama, who is actively involved with the organization Voto Latino, got extremely passionate about the growth trends of our community and his dissatisfaction with the Arizona law. R&B recording artist, songwriter and record producer, Akon talked about the importance of unity and the power of minorities sticking together to make a difference and let their voices be heard.
La diva de la banda, Jenni Rivera, was equally passionate to motivate Latinos to get involved.
You may wonder, why did we get political on the red carpet? Because our voice, our community and our influence is paced to make a critical difference on the race to the White House. A cover on TIME Magazine, controversies over the Arizona Law, a potential vice presidential candidate, Marco Rubio and many more, are at the core of our conversations. Even for celebrities who are doing voter drivers and attending meetings at the White House.
Latinos represent a potential 21.7 million eligible voters, according to the Pew Hispanic Center; however of those eligible in 2010 only 6.6 million actually headed to the polls; a number that can mark a historic difference in this year’s election. This disconcerting 30 percent or 15 million gap has been recognized by many organizations like Voto Latino; which is touring with the Mexican band Maná as part of their ‘Drama Luz’ tour; and other celebrities like Jennifer Lopez, Ricky Martin, Jon Secada and Shakira have joined various functions at the White House in efforts to amplify and raise issues of our community.
If celebrities, who travel weekly, sleep four hours a day and carry an agenda of 20 priorities are taking the time to get involved politically, why are we not all doing the same? Just as we follow their gossip and fashion trends, let’s realize that nothing is more fashionable than setting our own political trend in America this year… just as they are. Click here and get registered!
Lili Gil is Hispanic business strategist and cofounder of XL Alliance, a cultural marketing firm. She is a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader and serves as a regular contributor to Fox News Latino. You can follow Lili on Twitter @liligil.
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