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A Retrospective on the
35 Years of the Cuban
American National
Council (CNC)
Having grown up in the
Miami area Egusquiza, a
member of the council’s
corporate board of
advisors says she always
heard of the tremendous
things the council did
locally, but was even
more impressed when she
began working with the
group on a national
level more than six
years ago.
“Every partnership
formed with the council
is truly a good
partnership because the
council is dedicated and
committed to bringing
services to the
community. Even the way
they go about
accomplishing their
mission, they do so by
building bridges across
the community, from
every race and ethnic
group,” Egusquiza says.
Housing Programs
Aside from the growth of
its educational programs
and studies, during the
90s the council began to
oversee the expansion
CODEC, Inc., the
affordable housing
program started by the
council in the early
1980s.
What started out as the
idea to build affordable
units for low-income
families and seniors has
since grown into one of
the country’s largest
non-profit community
development corporations.
This idea has expanded
and become a success, so
much that Egusquiza
believes that as Ford
begins to look at ways
to develop affordable
housing programs in
Detroit, it is using CNC
as one of the main
models of what is done
right.
In two decades, CODEC
has built and managed 18
affordable housing
apartment complexes
spread throughout Miami-Dade
County, and has sold
more than 150
condominium units to
moderate-income families.
“Who would have dreamed
when we started off in
that little office that
we would be overseeing
all of these buildings,’’
Diaz says standing in a
room of the CNC lined
with framed photos of
the apartment buildings.
Other Programs
The council has also
given great insight into
the issues facing the
Cuban-American and
Latino communities
through its numerous
studies and published
reports. The council
provides programs that
reaches out individuals,
families, faith based
groups and community
organizations. Among the
many programs are the
following: Center for
Hispanic Educational
Progress (CHEP), Latina
Early Childhood Center (LEC),
Little Havana and
Hialeah Institute,
Refugee Employment &
Training Program, CODEC,
Inc., a Housing and
Economic Development
program, CreditSmart
Español Program,
Hispanic Leadership
Training Program, Latin
American Studies Program,
and the Academic
Leadership & Career
Preparation for Hispanic
American Youth Program
(ALPHA). On a different
note, ranging in issues
from the academic
challenges facing
Latinos in Florida to
voting patterns among
Latinos, the CNC has
produced more than 60
publications.
Diaz also points to one
of his favorite council
accomplishments, which
is the Latin American
Studies Program, where
every summer a group of
West Point Military
Academy cadets spend
their summer in Miami
and later other South
American countries,
learning about Latino
culture. Several
pictures in Diaz’s
office showcase the
white uniform wearing
cadets sipping cups of
cafecito from street-side
cafeterias.
“It’s a great cultural
exchange that takes
place,” Diaz says as he
looks at one of the
photos of the grinning
cadets.
Seeking to educate
Latinos on the use of
credit cards and
building credit, the
council developed the
CreditSmart Español
program where seminars
are given on how to save
for a home to budgeting
for household expenses.
“The key is to use the
tools we have to empower
our communities,’’ Diaz
says about the CNC’s
range of programs.
Washington and Abroad
Having found success in
the late 80s and 90s
with their housing and
educational programs,
the council used the
beginning of the next
decade to make a larger
name for it’s self on
the national political
arena.
In
October 2002, the
council moved ahead with
plans to create an
office in Washington
D.C. Alicia Diaz was
tapped to head up the
council’s capital
efforts.
“I’ve always said the
Cuban American National
Council is the best kept
secret,’’ says Diaz, who
now serves as a
consultant on the
council’s board of
directors, and is also a
development officer for
the Hispanic College
Fund. “They had always
done such tremendous
work, but the goal in
opening the office was
to let others realize
all the services we were
providing.”
Diaz says the group’s
visibility in the
nation’s capital was
able to secure grants
and funding from several
federal agencies in
addition to private
enterprises looking to
donate to non-profit
organizations.
“I
believe the council will
continue on it’s
trajectory as being one
of the most influential
NGOs (non-governmental
organizations) not just
in the United States,
but globally,” Diaz says.
Looking Back//Looking
Ahead
Sitting in his third
story office, Guarioné
M. Diaz, is surrounded
by constant reminders of
what the council has
accomplished and how far
it has come. The walls
brimming with Cuban art
work, painted by exile
artists in gratitude of
the council’s work, the
mosaic of framed
pictures behind his desk
with former presidents
and dignitaries, the
bronze and glass
trophies and plaques in
appreciation for nearly
three decades of service
say it all.
There are a lot of
reminders of the
progress made, but for
so long Diaz says he has
been so focused on the
plan ahead, that there’s
barely time to stop and
look back.
“It’s hard to think of
all the little things
that have been done, and
all of the
accomplishments we’ve
made, because since I
started, it’s pretty
much been about moving
ahead and thinking
what’s the next thing
big thing we can do,’’
Diaz says.
He compares the
council’s work over the
past three decades to a
tree. The 70s provided
the seed and root, the
80s provided the growth,
and the 90s and current
decade have allowed the
group to branch out and
explore different
possibilities. “There
use to be a time when
you could walk around
Miami and see signs in
front of houses and
stores that said ‘no
animals-no Cubans
allowed’. Can you
imagine that,’’ Diaz
says. “Thankfully we
have come a long way
since those days.”
As
Diaz continues his
endeavors at the helm of
the Cuban American
National Council, the
words of the Roman epic
poet, Virgil, “They can
because they think they
can,” will remain his
inspirational words. “It
reminds me how important
it is to aim at high
goals in life,” he says. |
