Dusti Garrison Gurule, Grower of Latina Power

Dusti Garrison Gurule says the essence of her work is to increase the participation of Latinas in the American democracy and to raise their political power beyond the polling booth.

As the director of the Denver-based Latina Initiative, her efforts are paying off. The group has become involved in immigration issues and has so far helped more than 1,000 people gain citizenship by offering classes. And in 2008, it helped nearly double the voting turnout among Latinas in Colorado, from 8 percent to 15 percent of all voters in the state.

"It is important to have an informed participation throughout the year, not only during the three months prior to the elections," Gurule says.

The Latina Initiative formed in 2002 and is now becoming a model for other national Latina groups, particularly for its voter education programs.

Gurule understands the value of that type of nurturing after her own childhood growing up in the Chicano community of Colorado. She was part of a large family deeply involved in the Crusade for Justice, a civil rights organization that focused on self-determination and nationalism.

"My childhood planted the seeds for my future engagement," she says.

Gurule is steering the Latina Initiative toward getting more involved in research and "to be proactive instead of only reactive." That includes getting the Latino community involved in all the policy issues that affect them. During the election the Latina Initiative became an active opponent of Colorado's defeated Amendment 46, a voter initiative that sought to roll back affirmative action protections for members of minority groups.

"Latina Initiative wants to be the beginning and the end [of civic involvement] for our community, and, in the long run, to be able to answer every need and connect every member of the Latina community," Gurule says.

--Iulia Anghelescu