COLORADO, USA — The Diversity, Equity, and Inclusivity (DEI) Council of Colorado is kicking off Hispanic Heritage Month with a free virtual event Tuesday where attendees will be able to hear from community activist Guadalupe Briseño.
In 2020, Briseño was inducted into the Colorado Women's Hall of Fame for her activism during the 1969 Kitayama Carnation Strike.
As the organizer for that movement, Briseño and her fellow protesters protested the poor working conditions they were subjected to at the floral plant. Briseño said some of those conditions included long hours with no overtime pay and working in a humid and muddy floral nursery, that would often lead to health issues.
Co-founder of the DEI Council Shereen Hill said Tuesday's event is an opportunity for an intimate conversation with Briseño about what motivates her to courageously be part of a solution to a problem she sees.
"It’s an opportunity that we felt as a council brought forth a story that is about Colorado history that frankly none of us really have heard," Hill said. "It wasn’t in my history books. I’m a native, and I had never heard this story about a powerful woman who in 1969 took on an organization that was very unfair in their labor practices."
Another member of the DEI Council of Colorado, Elena Guerrero Townsend, said, "If there’s any part of you that you want to make a change, and you listen to Lupe’s story, that will give you even more power to do that. And if you don't, or never thought about making a change, I think listening to her story, you're going to want to."
The event is happening Tuesday from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. over Zoom. You can register for the event here.
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