Miami, FL– Democratic presidential candidates Senator Hillary Clinton and Senator Barack Obama will be among the speakers at the 2007 Annual Conference of the National Council of La Raza (NCLR), the largest national Hispanic civil rights and advocacy organization in the U.S., which will be held July 21-24 at the Miami Beach Convention Center in Miami, Florida. Other speakers include Florida Governor Charlie Crist, Wal-Mart President and CEO Lee Scott, Representatives Lincoln Diaz-Balart (R-FL) and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), City of Miami Mayor Manny Diaz, and the Rev. Al Sharpton.

“The Hispanic community is poised to make a major difference in next year’s election, especially in Florida. We look forward to hearing from presidential candidates from both parties, as well as other prominent leaders in government and business, on their vision for our community and our country,” said Janet Murguía, NCLR President and CEO.

The NCLR Annual Conference is the single largest gathering of its kind in the Hispanic community. More than 23,000 community organization leaders, activists, and volunteers; elected and appointed officials; members of the corporate, philanthropic, and academic communities; senior citizens; college students; and youth are expected to participate this year.

Beloved Sesame Street character Elmo and Nina, host of PBS KIDS Sprout’s The Good Night Show, will open Latino Expo USA, sponsored by State Farm Insurance Companies, a popular feature of the Annual Conference with more than 300 exhibits from leading Fortune 500 companies, Hispanic-owned businesses, nonprofit organizations, colleges and universities, and government agencies. The Expo will also feature a Homeownership Fair which assists interested persons with information and advice on every step of the homebuying process and a health fair presented by PhRMA and local community health organizations offering free health screenings and information.

The Town Halls at this year’s Conference will focus on increasing civic participation among our young people, the obesity crisis in our community, and the status of Hispanics in the debate over accountability and reform in the educational system.

The need to better integrate Latinos into the political process through citizenship and voter registration will also be a key focus of this year’s Conference. With support from ConAgra, NCLR will co-host a naturalization workshop with the, ya es hora ¡Ciudadanía! (Now is the time – Citizenship!), South Florida campaign, the Miami Herald, El Nuevo Herald, and Univision. At the kick-off event, Murguía, Univision anchor Maria Elena Salinas, and Florida State Representative Juan Zapata announced the launch of ¡ya es hora! (Now is the time!), the most comprehensive Latino civic engagement initiative in recent history which seeks to dramatically increase Latino voter participation in both the presidential primaries and the general election. For more information, see visit NCLR’s website at www.nclr.org/yaeshora.

“No issue will be more important at the 2007 NCLR Annual Conference than how to strengthen the Latino community’s voice in our political process and increase the presence of Hispanics at the ballot box,” continued Murguía.

Other Conference workshops provide attendees with the opportunity to receive the latest information on key issues such as education, voting, homeownership, juvenile justice, immigration, economic and community development, children’s health, and nonprofit management.

Every year, NCLR concludes the Conference by honoring individuals and organizations for their contributions to, and work on behalf of, the Latino community at its Awards Gala. This year’s Gala honorees are Maggie Rivas-Rodriguez, Associate Director of the Center for Mexican American Studies at the University of Texas at Austin, recipient of the Ruben Salazar Award for Communications; Emilio Estefan, Jr., recipient of the Maclovio Barraza Award for Leadership; Paul Chavez, President and Chairman of the National Farm Workers Service Center, Inc., recipient of the Graciela Olivarez La Raza Award; and Henry G. Cisneros, recipient of the President’s Award.

The lineup of special events also showcases the finest in Hispanic entertainment including performers such as Elvis Crespo, Luis Fonsi, Miles Peña, and Fanny Lu. The workshops, Town Halls, and Latino Expo USA are free of charge and open to the public. For all other events, there is a registration fee. For media registration, please visit a www.nclr.org/pressregistration, and for all other information, please visit www.nclr.org/conference.

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