Embracing Latinidad, Erasing Labels: How the P&G Alumni Network Is Driving Change with C-Suite Conviction

The Spanish and Portuguese changed the landscape and forever erased the trajectory of a rich preColombian civilization with millions from the Native American population suffering and dying from conflict enslavement and Western diseases Much of the indigenous musical language and other cultural traditions in the Caribbean and on the mainland were lost after the Europeans arrivedFast forward six hundred years and we are still grappling with the painful aftermath of this tragic history that touches the lives of so many Latinx people in the USDuring National Hispanic Heritage Month last fall the PampampG Alumni Network a 45000strong global community of former PampampG employees gathered together to participate in the Latinx in America Presente y SinPena virtual event It showcased leading changemakers artists and corporate leaders committed to removing labels and celebrating the momentum of the Latinidad experienceThe event was conceived and launched by Gina Lam founder andamp160strategist of GinaDreamsInColor a former New Yorker and PampampG luxury marketing executiveamp160who has curated artistic beauty residences with fashion housesamp160like Gucci Dolce ampamp Gabbana Hugo Boss and Burberryamp160at global venues in Cartagena Buenos Aires Lima Bariloche Samp227o Paulo and Miami Lam who is of ChineseColombian heritage brought her sharp eye for artistic expression and social impact to the Latinx in America event along with the support of alumni chapters across North America Latin America Asia and EuropeLam opened the evening with a heartfelt and passionate call to action in many ways reminiscent of John Leguizamo39s personal oneman play depicting the influence of Latin America and the Caribbean on the formation of the United States and its subsequent centuries of history She highlighted the Latinx population at 60 million and growing representing nearly 20 of the US population and a whopping 2 trillion in economic power by 2023 Lam asserted quotOur cultural economicamp160and political impact wasamp160undeniable in 2020 amp8230 and in the 2020 electionquot Lam assertedUnfortunately the potential of Latinx influence is severely impeded by the harsh realities of economic inequality and racial discrimination as reflected by the disproportionate impact of COVID on the community with Latinx patients dying three times more often than other groups Alsoamp160one in four essential workers including medical assistants childcare workers and telecommunication installers are more likely to be Latinx and on the frontlines of this pandemicIn addition to the unfolding COVID tragedy the Latinx community is also suffering financially with a 20 unemployment rate higher than any other racial or ethnic group and up to a 25 chance of a Latinxowned business permanently closing its doorsThis harsh reality impacts lives and for keynote speakeramp160Marc Pritchard chief brand officer of PampampG this providedamp160a powerful impetus to take action as he explainedamp160quotequality and inclusion is one of PampampG39s Citizenship priorities amp8230 we are focused on achieving an equal world that embraces individuality and the unique contributions of all peoplequot Pritchard emphasized that multicultural competency and focus on diverse needs of audiences is not a superficial slogan at PampampG He saidamp160it is quotbuilt in not bolted on to how we operatequotPritchard emphasizedamp160that the company is committed quotto be the best company for Latinx employees and we want to provide the best brands for Latinx consumersquotamp160with 17 out of its top 22 brands holding a No 1amp160or No 2 share position with this growing customer segment He also shared the accelerator impact of equality that stems from quotequal representation in the US which leads to greater creativity and innovation builds access to opportunity and leads to equity in income and wealth creation that leads to purchasing power which leads to market growth which is important to PampampG39s strategyquotPampampG is targeting to have 18 of its employees come from a Latinx background and he admits there is still a long way to goThese statistics are personal for Pritchard His father was Mexican adopted by a man named Pritchard benefiting Marc with a white identity that created opportunities not impacted by the stain of discriminationHis father was an activist among migrant Mexican farm workers in Colorado Thisamp160had a profound influence on the young Pritchard as he saw firsthand how migrant farmer workers were treated Pritchard recalled being told early in his career to not spend too much time in the sun for fear of getting a quotdark tanquotamp160and as a result ofamp160these insidious remarks quotI suppressed my Mexican heritage for fear of being labeled because I had heard these denigrating terms used many times in my lifequot he saidThese personal experiences helped shape his commitment to equality and today he is one of the biggest crusaders for change in our industry with initiatives like the ANA39s AIMM39s SeeAll Alliance for Inclusive ampamp Multicultural Marketing and measurements like GEM Gender Equality Measure and CIIM Cultural Insights Impact MeasurePritchard also serves as the chairman of the ANA and its Growth Council and he has led conversations with other leading CMOsamp160to create a Growth Agenda that would quothelp brands step up both as a force for good and a force for growthquot Pritchard is an exemplary choice to lead these initiatives at the ANA asamp160PampampG has seen sales grow in each of its business units while at the same time the company has taken action on racial injustice through The Talk The Look The Choice and other grassroot campaignsAdvertising is a powerful communication medium and impacts perceptions of how people see each other and see themselves Studies show that an accurate portrayal leads up to a 10 increase in trust ratings and 25 increase in purchase intent This is profoundly meaningful quotAs one of the world39s largest advertisers we strive to accurately portray all people across gender race ethnicity sexual orientation and gender identity ability religion and age and that includes Latinx peoplequot Pritchard emphcizedAfter Pritchard39s keynote address the event focused on portraying the textured mosaic of the Latinx experience with some leading voices in the community reflecting on their life journey living across cultures moderated by Sandra Ruiz from microaggressions to labels from quotwhiteningquot names to cultural suppression and from pride in heritage to heartfelt microaffirmationsWe heard poignant remarks from Diana Briceamp241o CEO of No BS Skincare who reminded us that quotLatinos can be essential workers nannies and CEOsquot Lauren Henderson PanamanianAmerican Latin Jazz musical artist emphasized how she is constantly being judged by her appearance explaining that quotdiscovering my Latinidad centered around colorism Never being considered Black enough amp8230 people question if I can sing Black enough amp8230 never feeling Latinx enough to fit into the community por que hablas espaamp241olquot These prejudiced attitudes are what drives almost 76 of Latinx people to hide their true identities and pretend to be someone else Beatriz Castillo marketing director at Shell asserted that these microaggressions need to be transformed to microaffirmationsquotLatinx means to have a telenovela name and to carry our history in our names with pridequot she declaredWe also watched Urbano Latino recording artist JPatron chase his young immigrant aspiration of the American dream across the Coachella Valley while Insight Strategist Estrella HoLooney shared research that most Latinx immigrants feel that they continually straddle amp8220one foot in LA and one foot in the USamp8221 Finally Argentinian American Javier Carusotti reminded us to quell the divisiveness within the community that not surprisingly emerges among 25 countries of originThe 2020 Presidential race unveiled one of the biggest misconceptions that was voiced more loudly over the election season the erroneous view that the Latinx group represents one homogeneous community As Chuck Rocha Founder ampamp Presidential Campaign Strategist from Solidarity Strategies explained amp8220much like the rest of the US it varies by gender by age and from state to state as well as where each group has ancestral roots or migrated from and why A single message does not necessarily work for the collective wholeamp8221 Rocha continues to emphasize quotone campaign after another gets this part wrong they donamp8217t talk to our community early enough often enough and with cultural competencyamp8221 This learning can be applied across any campaign trying to reach and engage Latinx hearts and minds in advertising in politics in the workplace at the grocery aisle and in popular cultureThe rich tapestry of this event centered around the vibrant diversity that is intrinsic to the Latinx community across race culture and origin stories with onethird of the community identifying as bicultural including AsianLatinx and onefourth identifying as AfroLatinxAs we think about the PampampG Alumni Network mission this special event and the lively quotafterpartyquot reflected how the alumni community is creating impact using the power of engagement enrichment and philanthropy for social impact and racial equity The ongoing tireless work of the PampampG Alumni Foundation reflects this commitment and has provided grants of 13M to empower marginalized communities and provide access to economic opportunitiesIn the words of our illustrious event creator and leader Gina Lam who shared this important message before the final curtain call quotStep up and step in amp8230 to vote amp8230 to hire and to wire to create and to spend with the community to be informed and influential in meeting the moment amp8230 where we all go from surviving to belonging to thriving amp8230 where a foreign accent is a sign of braveryquotAnd above all she implored us toamp160quotGo forward and be presente y sinpenaquotThis event was made possible by generous support from SYNFINY and AARP The event was led by the South Florida alumni chapter and copromoted with the Southern California Baltimore Boston NYC Chicagoamp160and Dallas Fort Worth chaptersMissed it Watch the eventVisit the PampampG Alumni Network to raise your voice and join our missionLatinx in America Presente y sinpenaGina Lamamp160 Creator and Host GinaDreamsInColorSandra Ruizamp160 Panel Moderator Sandra Ruiz ConsultingEstrella HoLooneyamp160 Chat Leader andamp160Panelist RadiusIllumination ResearchLatinx in Americaamp160amp8211 PampampG Alumni Showcase with Marcamp160Pritchardamp160amp8211 PampampG Chief Brand OfficerFeatured Latinx PampampG AlumniDiana Bricenoamp160Venezuelan American Millennial amp8211 CEO No BS SkincareJavier Carusottiamp160Argentinian American Millennial amp8211 Sales andamp160Marketing Luxury Portfolio Manager COTY IncBeatriz Castilloamp160Colombian Millennial amp8211 Marketing Director ShellEstrella HoLooneyamp160Panamanian Chinese American GenXer amp8211 Sr Director andamp160Insights Strategist radiusillumination ResearchGina Lamamp160Colombian Chinese American GenXer amp8211 Cultural Entrepreneur andamp160Luxury Strategist GinaDreamsInColorSandra Ruizamp160Colombian Puerto Rican American GenXer amp8211 Executive Coach for the Global Professional Sandra Ruiz ConsultingLatinx Guest Speakers andamp160PerformersLauren Hendersonamp160Panamanian American Millennial amp8211 Musical Guest Latin Jazz Recording Artist andamp160SingerSongwriterJ Patronamp160Colombian American Millennial amp8211 Musical Guest Latino Urbano Recording Artist SXSW AlumniChuck Rochaamp160Mexican American GenXer amp8211 Political Consultant Preeminent Latinx voter expert andamp160presidential campaign strategist Solidarity StrategiesEleazar Contrerasamp160Mexican American Gen Z Spokesperson PampampG Alumni FoundationSocial HandlesProcterGamblePGAlumsPGalumscomPGproudhispanicstarANAAIMMAfroLatinxLatasianLatinxInAmericaLatinxsinpenaClick the social buttons to share this story with colleagues and friendsThe opinions expressed here are the author39s views and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNetamp160

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Embracing Latinidad, Erasing Labels: How the P&G Alumni Network Is Driving Change with C-Suite Conviction

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Raquelle Zuzarte

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