Pioneer: (noun)
A person who is among those who first enter, venture, or settle into region, thus opening it for occupation and development by others.
A person who is among those who first enter, venture, or settle into region, thus opening it for occupation and development by others.
Anthony (Tony) Affigne
In 1982, Tony Affigne decided to run for office as one of three Latinos in Rhode Island running at that time. In 1985, he became the first Latino to run for Governor.
Julieta Castellanos
Julie Castellanos's remarkable story embodies what Latinos and Latinas endured yet persevered as new immigrants to this country in the 1970s and 80s ....
Osvaldo Castillo
Today, the community has changed a lot because it is larger. I see more bilingual people working in government offices, and back in the early days there was none of that. I also speak better English, but I still feel bad for the people who are just arriving to this country because they still have to go through what I went through ...
Bernardo Chamorro
In 1955, Angel “Tato" Cosme quit school after the ninth grade to help his mother earn money for the family. He left the poverty of his home in Puerto Rico and traveled to New England, and eventually settled in Rhode Island.
Grace Díaz
In 2004, Grace Diaz was elected to the Rhode Island House of Representatives and made history as she became the first Dominican-American in the country elected for this post.
Jay Giuttari
The Colombian population in Rhode Island owes its beginnings to one gentleman who, in the early 1960s, had an insightful and innovative idea: Jay Giuttari, whose father owned Lyon Fabrics, a textile mill in Central Falls.
José González
My main goal then, was to give back to the Latino community by going into social work. But I had a moral dilemma. In social work you sometimes provide too much support, and don’t educate people into becoming independent. And you have this realization that the best way you can help the Latino community is by educating them ...
Roberto González
Roberto González moved to Rhode Island from New York City in 1969 with his brother, José. After being invited here to visit, their mother decided to bring the family (including a third brother) to raise them in what she felt was a safer environment. Roberto eventually became the first Latino Judge in Rhode Island - sworn into the Providence Housing Court in 2004 ....
Francisco Litardo
In the summer of 1974, Cuban minister Rev. Pedro Ortiz walked the streets of Rhode Island, knocking on the doors of local churches. He was there on behalf of the American Baptist Church, tasked with finding congregations willing to host Spanish-speaking services. It was Calvary Baptist Church that opened its doors to him.
Victor Mendoza
The best thing that I did, my best performance is when we founded the Coalition of Hispanic organizations because that was the agency that gave respect to the community. That was the agency that put the name Hispanic high in the state ...
Alberto Moronta
I began cutting hair at a place called "The Talk of the Town," located on Oxford Street. All the Hispanics started coming there so I can cut their hair, so it was then that I decided to open my own business. In 1986, I opened Alberto's Hair Salon on Broad Street.
Col. Oscar Pérez
Col. Oscar Pérez, a Colombian immigrant made history when he became the first Latino Chief of Police in Rhode Island.
Manuel Rivera
In 1980, Manuel Rivera decided that he would run for office when threw in has hat to run for two races: House District 19 and Senate District 9. According to research, this was the first time any Hispanic had run for office in the State of Rhode Island.
Miriam (Salabert) Gorriaran
Tessie Salabert and her sister, Miriam, were born in Cuba. The two girls and their brother, Eduardo, were sent to the U.S. on April 10, 1961 as a result of “Operación Pedro Pan (Operation Peter Pan).” Tessie was 11 years old , Miriam was 14 years old and their brother was eight. ....
Enrique Sánchez Mora
Enrique Sánchez Mora was born in Piaxtla, Puebla, México. In 1988 he opened Sánchez Market on Atwells Avenue in Providence, the first Mexican grocery store in Rhode Island.
Angel Taveras
Angel Taveras was raised in Providence by a single mother and attended the public schools. In 2000 he was unsuccessful candidate for the 2nd Congressional District and in 2011 ran and was elected first Latino mayor in the City of Providence ....
Acelia "Ada" Terrero
Ada Terrero made some of the best cakes her friends and neighbors ever had. So when she started selling her creations from her Providence home, she immediately had orders for numerous parties and weddings. Little did she know that she was launching the first Latin-American bakery in Rhode Island.
Anastasia Williams
Rep. Anastasia Williams is of Panamanian heritage. In 1991, she made history as the first Hispanic and first Latina to a political office in Rhode Island when she was elected to represent District 9 in the Rhode Island House of Representatives.
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The History of Latino Community Activism
When Latin Americans first began to arrive in Providence in the 1950s and 1960s, the very small community was met with minimal recognition on the part of the bureaucracy...
