March 30, 2023 The Newspaper Serving LGBT Los Angeles

Mi Centro, at home in the center of Latino LA

BY TROY MASTERS  Boyle Heights, home to one of the most densely populated neighborhoods in the city of Los Angeles, is more than 90 percent Latino.  It is also home to the nation’s largest Latino LGBT community, a community that has until now been served by the Los Angeles LGBT Center in Hollywood.

Enter Mi Centro, a new LGBT Center focused soley on the needs of the city’s spanish speaking and Latino LGBT community, a collaborative effort of the Los Angeles LGBT Center and  a Latino Equality Alliance (LEA).

Mi Centro will provide bilingual services for gay Latinos at its Clarence Street facility, also offering immigration and housing support, legal services, transgender support services, youth and senior programming, family counseling and empowerment programs.

Mi Centro’s home, shared with LEA, is a renovated warehouse at 553 S. Clarence St. (it’s a 15-minute walk from the Mariachi Plaza) and housed within City Labs Boyle Heights.  City Labs is a collaborative space for creative groups and nonprofits like Leadership for Urban Renewal (LURN), a group that focuses on low-income communities.

Though the Hollywood LGBT Center continues to provide Latino-specific services, residents on the Eastside will benefit from a more locally focused and tailored experience.   

Mercedes Marquez, a lesbian who serves as a board member of the Los Angeles LGBT center and Latino Equality Alliance, said of the new space. “…this (Boyle Heights) is our cultural home. This is our community of joy and celebration and sorrow.”

Out gay State Sen. Ricardo Lara (D-Bell Gardens), said at the recent dedication of the new center “Finally, we get a little piece of heaven on the Eastside for us to be able to be who we are.”

Angel Ortiz, 19, a gay teen who lives “on the streets” of Boyle Heights, says he is excited he no longer has to travel so far. “I can’t afford to go (to Hollywood) because I don’t have a car and sometimes I am homeless.”  Ortiz says he left Guatemala when he was 14 and immigrated with his parents.  “My whole family knows I am gay but it’s not easy for me.  They are very religious and my mother cries all the time.  She leaves prayer cards everywhere, like in my pockets.  One time she packed a bag and set my things on the streets, more than one time; she gave me no money or food, just a bible and my boy clothes.  I just went to sleep at my Tia Felicia’s house but she said I had to leave because her husband did not understand.  I just feel bullied all the time.”

Lorri L. Jean, the chief executive of the Los Angeles LGBT Center, told the Los Angeles times that she hoped that having a center in Boyle Heights would embolden people to be open about their sexuality and gender identity in their own neighborhood.

“Some are going to love it, others aren’t. But we’ve always been really good neighbors.”

in LOCAL, NEWS
Related Posts

Long Beach Businesses with LGBTQ Flags Vandalized

March 24, 2023

March 24, 2023

By Susan Payne Three businesses in Long Beach have reported windows smashed in with one common denominator: visible LGBTQ symbols. ...

Newsom Calls Huntington Beach City Council Decision ‘Rank’

March 24, 2023

March 24, 2023

By Susan Payne Huntington Beach garnered disapproval from Governor Gavin Newsom on its recent decision to ban the flying of...

California’s Affordable Housing Crisis Disproportionately Impacts LGBTQ Adults, UCLA Study Finds

March 24, 2023

March 24, 2023

New Report by the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research highlights the connection between lack of affordable housing, delayed access...

Santa Monica Place Invites LGBTQIA+ Artisans to Apply for Made With PRIDE Marketplace

March 21, 2023

March 21, 2023

Partnering with Streetlet, the marketplace will take place each weekend in June and showcase local goods made in Southern California....

Gus Kenworthy’s Gay Kiss Scene in ‘80 for Brady’ Cut Out

March 14, 2023

March 14, 2023

By Susan Payne “80 for Brady,” a 2023 comedy/drama film that follows a group of longtime friends who want to...

Abbey Founder Declares Drag is Not A Crime

March 14, 2023

March 14, 2023

By Susan Payne “Drag is not a crime.” In solidary with drag performers, David Cooley, founder of The Abbey Food...

Grants Available for Long Beach LGBTQ-Owned or Allied Restaurants

March 14, 2023

March 14, 2023

By Susan Payne LGBTQ-owned or allied restaurants in Long Beach are invited to apply for Grubhub’s Community Impact Grants ranging...

U.S. Food and Drug Administration Moves to Ease Restrictions on Blood Donations from Gay and Bisexual Men

March 9, 2023

March 9, 2023

The City of West Hollywood is getting the word out that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued proposed...

Board of Supervisors Approves Motion to Fly Progress Pride Flag in LA County Offices

March 9, 2023

March 9, 2023

Flags will be flown at Los Angeles County facilities where American and California flags are flown each year ​​Los Angeles...

Donatella Versace Visits the Los Angeles LGBT Center

March 9, 2023

March 9, 2023

Hosts master class with CFDA designers This week, the Los Angeles LGBT Center welcomed Donatella Versace, the Chief Creative Officer...

Versace Partners With CFDA on LGBTQ-Focused Initiative

March 6, 2023

March 6, 2023

By Susan Payne Donatella Versace is launching a masterclass at the Los Angeles LGBT Center on March 6 in partnership...

Suspect Pleads Guilty to Killing Los Angeles-Born Gay Man in 1988

March 6, 2023

March 6, 2023

By Susan Payne Last month, an Australian man pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the 1988 death of an American who...

Bill Introduced for K-12 Statewide Gender-Neutral Restrooms

March 6, 2023

March 6, 2023

By Susan Payne A bill to require K-12 schools in California to provide appropriate and equitable access to gender-neutral restrooms...

UCLA’s New Volleyball Coach’s Gay Journey Reaches Full Circle

March 1, 2023

March 1, 2023

By Susan Payne Playing volleyball in a West Hollywood gym is where Alfred Reft became comfortable with his sexuality, alongside...

Girl Scouts Make Sales at WeHo Bars

March 1, 2023

March 1, 2023

By Susan Payne A Glendale, California Girl Scout has found a new market for cookie sales in West Hollywood.  In...