Carmen V. Cruz
Founder of Silent Procession NYC4PR
I was born in Juana Diaz, Puerto Rico and raised in the Bronx from the age of five and a half. Politics was already in my DNA because my father, Victor Cruz Cruz, was mayor of Juana Diaz, P.R. I began my political activism by joining Mayor Lindsay's campaign, that led to my involvement in the war against poverty and community activism throughout New York City. My community activism was focused on advocating and ensuring that Puerto Rican communities receive equal rights as U.S. citizens, as well as, their right to preserve its culture and heritage.
In 2017 when Hurricane Maria devoured the island of Puerto Rico and paper towels were thrown instead of words of compassion and recovery assistance, I was enraged as most were. I reached out to colleagues, organizations, friends and communities to organize a non- violent response against the blatant disrespect and unequal treatment of Puerto Rican American Citizens, resulting in the creation of the "Silent Procession nyc4pr."
Steering & Planning Committee
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Carmen Cruz
Founder
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John-Carlo Bautista
Analyst at Morgan Stanley
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Jose Betancourt
Educator – DOE Middle School
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Ismael Betancourt
Bronx Transformation Project
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Providencia Casado
Community Leader
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Maria Cruz
Exec. Dir. Arco Mgmt. Taino Towers
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Miguel David
#CancelTheDebt Co Founder Community Leader
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Elizabeth Figueroa
Dir. Community Relations
N.Y. Botanical Garden
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Howard Hershaft
Retired
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Hanna Hong
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Denys Kapush
Senior Associate Director, Digital Marketing at Columbia Business School and Founder of WinWin Strategy LLC
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Andrew LaSalle
Exec. Dir. at Equal Opportunity in Construction Initiative
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Debra Martinez
President Grand Council of Hispanic Societies
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Peggy Morales
District Leader AD 68
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Raquel Olmo
Masters Occupational Therapy
Play4Promise President
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George Siberon
Executive Director Hempstead Hispanic Civic Assoc. Inc
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Vincent Torres
Executive Director at Positive Workforce
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Eli Valentin
Lecturer & contributing columnist for Gotham Gazette
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Christian Andres Aponte
Educator, Poet, Dancer & Urban Farmer
Elu - Lecturer at Union Theological Seminary
Collaborators
Latino Commission on Aids
El Puente
100 Hispanic Men
Born Star Performing Arts Center
Hempstead Hispanic Civic Assoc., Inc.,
La Reina del Barrio, Inc.,
ASPIRA NY
El Barrio Artspace 109
Media Partners
Get Involved
There is no better time than now to join us!
We welcome all collaboration opportunities with volunteers and sponsors to help ensure that Puerto Rican communities receive equal rights as U.S. citizens, as well as their right to preserve culture and heritage.
