DC Courts Conclude Hispanic Heritage Month 2019 on a Festive Note

The D.C. Courts’ 2019 Hispanic Heritage Month Committee focused this year's events on the theme of “Hispanic Americans: A History of Serving Our Nation” through three main events: 1) a mixer hosted in the D.C. Court of Appeals' Historic Courthouse, where staff learned about previous Hispanic Heritage Month celebrations and built community amongst others wtih similar interests in the D.C. Courts; 2) a showing of “The Latino List: D.C. Courts’ Edition”, a project in which court staff shared their experiences as Hispanic Americans in the United States and how those experiences shape their contributions to the D.C. Courts and community; and 3) the annual presentation of the D.C. Courts’ CORO Awards to prominent individuals and organizations serving the D.C. community.

This year’s Coro Award recipients included: Jilma Lasso, recipient of the Legal Community Award, for her compassionate service to elderly Hispanics through the D.C. Superior Court Probate Fiduciary Panel;  Hermanas in the Law, recipient of the Community Agency Award, for its groundbreaking work to increase the number of “Lawtinas” in the legal field by providing aspiring Latina lawyers resources and mentorship opportunities as well as promoting the work of Latina lawyers in the field; and Edwin Sorto, recipient of the Allan Kline Special Recognition Award, for his dedication to his students at KIPP DC Quest Academy Public Charter School in Ward 8 of the District through Caribbean dance classes that bring them culture, confidence, and an outlet to be silly and just “be themselves”.   Court staff orchestrated a "Day at the Courts" for the KIPP students, so they visited a courtroom and learned about what the various roles are there (judge, juror, prosecutor, defense attorney, witness, etc) and then heard from Judge Puig-Lugo, Acting Executive Officer Cheryl Bailey, Acting Deputy Executive Officer Herb Rouson, and DC Superior Court Clerk of Court Zabrina Dempson.  The students asked very insightful questions and learned a great deal from their visit, in addition to the contribution they made by their impressive dance performance.

The D.C. Courts truly celebrated the richness of the Hispanic-American experience, culture, and built a strong sense of community through this year’s Hispanic Heritage Month events!