LA community honors Latino leaders during El Mitote

Community members, city-elected officials, organizers and immigrant rights advocates gathered at the Los Angeles Historic Park in Chinatown on Friday, October 2, as part of El Mitote, a celebratory event organized by the Latino Media Collaborative. 

The event brought together people from all corners of Los Angeles to celebrate the lasting impact of Latino excellence in the city’s public service, advocacy and civic leadership. 

In a time when cities have been hit with growing federal immigration enforcement activity and ICE operations have resurged in Southern California, El Mitote looked to foster an evening of hope and reflection of the ongoing progress to protect Latinos, who make up about 47% of the entire city population. 

The theme behind the event was "Surviving through the Storm,” which, as Arturo Carmona, publisher of CALÓ News and president of the Latino Media Collaborative, explained, looked to recognize the resilience of Angelenos throughout some of the most challenging times of the city in recent years. 

"We're super excited to celebrate with Latinos from all walks of life. We are living in a real precarious situation because our federal government has dedicated itself to dividing our communities and to promoting economic injustice, environmental racism and all sorts of issues that are impacting communities,” he said. “We're here today to take a pause on that and the work that we do every day, celebrate and recognize our leaders that uphold our community.” 

The highlight of the event was the formal recognition and honoring of five outstanding members of the Latino community who, through their professional careers, have dedicated themselves to creating a lasting impact for Agelenos. 

The honorees of this year's El Mitote included Benjamin A. Torres, president and chief executive officer of CD-Tech; Berenice Núñez, senior vice president of AltaMed; Martha Diaz Aszkenazy, published by the San Fernando Valley Sun; Elizabeth Martinez, senior vice president of strategic partnerships at Meruelo Enterprises; and Hugo Soto-Martinez, one of 15 council members in the City of L.A.

At city hall, Soto-Martínez (District 13), the son of Mexican immigrants and a street vendor, has worked on introducing and passing policy in protection of L.A.'s immigrant community. In February 2025, he introduced five proposals in the city council to strengthen labor and immigration protections against federal enforcement actions, workplace raids and mass deportations. He has also been a constant advocate of the L.A. sanctuary city ordinance and pushed for physical and policy safeguards on city-owned property to restrict unauthorized federal ICE access.

“As we work every single day at city hall, the thing I would like to see is Latinos having a voice [and] feeling powerful. We come to this country, we work hard, we do so many things, but we don't really flex the power that I think we should, the economic power that we have,” he said. “It's time to rise up.”

At AltaMed, Núñez has led the health organization's policy, advocacy and legislative agendas through the launch of its first-ever civic engagement programs, including “My Vote, My Health,” an initiative intended to strengthen civic health and community power among underserved communities in California. With more than two decades in the health care sector, she has worked in improving access and outcomes for Medicaid-eligible and underserved populations like Latinos and immigrants. 

"I'm in the business of making sure that folks are healthy, that communities are healthy, but also that we affect the issues that are making our communities sick and that for us in AltaMed includes civic engagement," Núñez said at Friday’s event. 

Also honored at El Mitote was Torres, whose work with CD-Tech, a nonprofit organization, has focused on addressing issues of racial equity and economic justice in low-income areas of South Central L.A. Through education, training and community organizing strategies, CD-Tech supports the leadership of young Black and Brown people to increase their social capital and economic opportunity through inclusive democratic and power-building training. 

“While we work hard, struggle and resist, we also need to take time to build community, celebrate and honor ourselves [as well] as honor the people who've come before us, who've taught us to create systemic change so that we can continue to empower our communities and live with dignity and honor,” he said. “Whether you can vote or engage your neighborhood, whether you are involved in your church or in the community and schools, please take the moment to engage with other people, to develop your capacity as a leader … but even more importantly, become a model for resistance and change for the entire country to learn from. We have to become more progressive and more committed to transforming the conditions that exist in our communities.”

Because of her leadership at San Fernando Valley Sun, Diaz Aszkenazy received the Governor’s Award for Outstanding Woman-Owned Business and was named Latina Entrepreneur of the Year by the Latin Business Association. As an honoree, she talked about the hard work that goes behind the San Fernando Sun, which has been publishing bilingual stories continuously since 1904. Today, the weekly publication continues to inform valley residents with editorials, general news and impactful stories that connect thousands of people. 

“This is a bilingual newspaper that brings all your stories to life,” she said. 

Martinez was raised in El Monte by her widowed mother and five siblings. Apart from being chair on the Adventist Health White Memorial Charitable Foundation board at Adventist Health White Memorial, she has also built her career on relationships and community service at Meruelo Enterprises, a company that provides strategic consulting and business support services to construction, engineering, hospitality, television, radio, food services and sports companies, among others. 

“When I got the call informing me that I was being honored at El Mitote, I was honored. [Mitotera] is actually not a bad thing. When you really look at it, it's someone who speaks up and does not stay quiet. If a mitotera makes things happen, then that's me,” Martinez said. 

Martinez said being a Latina in L.A. today fills her with pride. “We have a strong voice. Our culture and our voice are something I’m very proud of and I use it,” she said.