Seven Hispanics who have been gamechangers in their chosen fields are featured in the Clear Channel Outdoor (CCO) national digital out-of-home campaign, "Unidos: Inclusivity for a Stronger Nation."
Timed to coincide with Hispanic Heritage Month, the campaign includes entertainment legends Selena Quintanilla and Gloria Estefan as well as Baseball Hall of Fame inductee Roberto Clemente. The campaign also educates the public about pioneers in science, politics and social justice -- like civil rights activist Cesar Chavez; the first Latina Supreme Court Justice, Sonia Sotomayor, and the first Hispanic woman to travel to space, Ellen Ochoa.
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To get the project rolling, CCO's Executive Diversity Advisory Council (EDAC) recommended a list of potential individuals to be featured. From there, extensive research was done on each nominee, along with identfying different symbols associated with each person that could be featured in the advertising creative.
"For Sotomayor, we feature the gavel, that symbol of authority and responsibility. For Gloria Estefan, there's a microphone, and we added palm trees to represent Miami [where Estefan resides with her family]," said CCO's Corporate Art Director, Daniel Herrera.
The Chavez design features a green version of the black Aztec eagle, which is seen on the United Farm Workers union flag.
On the corner of each campaign asset, Herrera designed a logo emulating papel picado, an elaborate decorative banner often used in festivals and celebrations throughout Latin America, which reads "Celebrando Hispanic Heritage Month."
"The bright, effervescent Hispanic community was definitely my inspiration behind this," Herrera said.
He's noticed a rise in the use of Spanglish in media, and that hybrid vernacular often used in bilingual Hispanic households is reflected in the "Unidos" campaign. Herrera also noted the rise of Hispanics in media roles, and how that's impacted language and sensibilities. "It's our community making its way through a world that, for a while, felt we didn't belong, and now we're doing ads specifically to celebrate people like us," he noted.
Herrera sees big reasons why the Hispanic market is such a sought-after group. "Many of us had parents who worked multiple jobs just to feed and clothe us," he said. "If your ad gets them to go outside their usual circle of stores, gets them to spend their hard-earned money, then you've done a great job. Because they understand the value of the product."
The campaign also resonates deeply for Herrera. He reflected on his own family's immigration experience and the strength of the Hispanic community. "I think about my parents a lot, and the sacrifices they made to make it here," he explained. "I think about our resilience and everything they had to resist and the perseverance to meet their goals. And that resilience carries on to other groups as well."
For Herrera, the campaign is a way for CCO to honor the struggles and accomplishments Hispanics have faced and continue to go through. Yes, individual experiences may be a little different, "but we acknowledge you, and we see you," he said.
Though there are many iconic Hispanics featured in this year's campaign, Herrera said there's another trailblazer who he hopes to highlight in the future the Queen of Salsa herself, the late, great Celia Cruz. "I hope I get the chance to do this again next year, because I really want to do her justice. I think there's been a void in music since [her passing], and I would love to continue to keep her in people's minds.">