National Council of La Raza

Origins

The impetus for the NCLR was a small group of Mexican Americans in Washington, D.C., who in 1963 organized as the National Organization for Mexican American Services (NOMAS). This group of advocates, which included a young man from Texas named Raul Yzaguirre, approached the Ford Foundation for funding to establish an organization that could provide technical assistance and organizational structure for the Mexican American community. Although interested, the Ford Foundation confessed to a lack of understanding of the Mexican American community and its needs.

In 1966, the Ford Foundation hired three Mexican American leaders, Dr. Julian Samora, Dr. Ernesto Galarza, and Herman Gallegos, to travel the Southwest and identify how the foundation could help Mexican Americans. Within 9 months after the three consultants returned from their research travels, with a recommendation to establish an organization, the Southwest Council of La Raza (SWCLR) was incorporated in Arizona in 1968. Herman Gallegos was installed as the founding executive director, and Maclovio Barranza was the first chairperson of the board. In December 1972, SWCLR became a national organization and changed its name to National Council of La Raza; in 1973, the organization moved its headquarters to Washington, D.C.

The term la raza was introduced by a Mexican scholar and visionary by the name of José Vasconcelos, in his book La Raza Cosmica. Although the term has been mistranslated to mean “the race,” a more accurate translation is “the people.” Vasconcelos referred to the “cosmic people,” those who share a mixture of races, cultures, and religions inherent in Latin America. La raza is an inclusive concept that is conducive to interaction and gathering of all peoples.

In 1974, Raul Yzaguirre became the national director for NCLR, marking the beginning of an enduring and stable leadership that would project the organization to the strong national status it holds today. Yzaguirre led the organization for 30 years, during [Page 935]which time the organization was influential in providing the Latino perspective on countless legislative issues. Upon Yzaguirre's retirement in 2004, Janet Murguía stepped into the role of president and chief executive officer of NCLR. With a degree in law and experience as former deputy director of legislative affairs and senior White House liaison to the Congress, Murguía was well prepared to be the official spokesperson for the NCLR and to lead the organization into the next era.

NCLR Today: Mission and Programs

NCLR is a nonprofit, private, nonpartisan advocacy organization with offices in Atlanta; Chicago; Los Angeles; New York; Phoenix; Sacramento; San Antonio; and San Juan, Puerto Rico. The organization is governed by a board that has been constructed for success, including representation from all Latino subgroups and all geographical regions of the United States, with approximate division by gender. According to its charter, 12 of the board members must represent affiliates. The organization is also guided by a corporate board of advisers (CBA), which is made up of senior executives from twenty-five major corporations. Originally conceived to address the needs of the Mexican American community, the board took a major step in 1979 to expand the scope of representation and assistance to all Latino subgroups.

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