2025 UnidosUS Capital Awards Recognizes Hispanic Trailblazers, Delivering Message to Protect, Defend and Advance Latino Empowerment

on

Awardees included U.S. Representatives Veronica Escobar (D-TX), María Elvira Salazar (R-FL) and the National Skills Coalition.  Honorable DC Mayor Muriel Bowser and U.S. Rep. Adriano Espaillat (D-NY) delivered remarks. 

WASHINGTON, DC — UnidosUS, the nation’s largest Latino civil rights and advocacy organization, hosted its prestigious annual Capital Awards ceremony last night. At a critical time for the U.S. Hispanic community, UnidosUS sought to elevate and honor bipartisan leaders and organizations who have championed policies and causes that protect, defend and advance the progress and achievements of the Latino community. This year’s ceremony recognized U.S. Representatives Veronica Escobar (D-TX) and María Elvira Salazar (R-FL), for their efforts to promote the Dignity Act, a bipartisan approach to immigration reform, as well as the National Skills Coalition.

The awards ceremony highlighted and celebrated the work of two congresswomen, who represent both sides of the aisle but came together to champion the Latino community. UnidosUS President and CEO Janet Murguía stressed the need for our country to work together: “We need to be able to tolerate different points of view. We need to be able to coexist and to find common ground.” She noted that Representatives Escobar and Salazar have proven “that if we embrace discourse, if we embrace negotiation and are willing to listen to one another, we can find that common ground and move our country forward. For our vision of America and this great experiment called democracy to survive and thrive — it needs our active participation.” 

Regarding the Trump administration’s actions on immigration, Murguía asserted that “We can agree that we should strengthen our borders, overhaul our immigration laws and deport those who are a threat to our public safety and national security.” However, she noted that not everyone who is undocumented should be subject to the same fate, as “too many have lived here for too long and contributed too much for such drastic measures. Deporting them would break families apart, imperil children, devastate communities and jeopardize our nation’s economy.” She concluded that “It’s time for our fellow Americans to recognize what our community has known all along: Latinos are vital to America and to its future.” 

This year’s Public Service Award was presented to the National Skills Coalition (NSC). For over two decades of impactful advocacy, NSC has demonstrated an unwavering commitment to expanding economic mobility and shaping a more equitable workforce. Its achievements, from modernizing higher education policies to advocating for inclusive sector-based training programs, have created life-changing opportunities for communities of color, including Latinos, across the nation. 

The evening award ceremony was hosted by Erika Gonzalez, reporter at NBC4 Washington. Bishop Evelio Menjivar-Ayala, auxiliary bishop for the Archdiocese of Washington in the District of Columbia, provided the Invocation. Keynote addresses were given by the Honorable Mayor of Washington, DC, Muriel Bowser and Rep. Adriano Espaillat (D-NY), president of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC).  

Rep. Espaillat stated, “I am proud to say that the CHC stands as the strongest fighter in government for all Latinos — from border districts in California, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas, to the Pacific Northwest, to my home state of New York. As the CHC, we are committed to lowering costs for families, creating jobs, protecting our communities and defending our values.” 

Full remarks from featured and guest speakers will be available here. 

The Capital Awards gala took place during the 2025 UnidosUS Changemakers Summit, a three-day gathering of UnidosUS’s advocates from across the country. During the Summit, UnidosUS presented its policy agenda for the 119th Congress, outlining the most pressing issues facing the Latino community and the key policy solutions needed to fuel economic opportunity for working-class families and Americans struggling to make ends meet. The Summit also featured remarks from Dr. Ray Serrano, LULAC Director of Research & Policy; Mario Beovides, NALEO Educational Fund Director of Policy & Legal Affairs; and Jessica Orozco Guttlein, Hispanic Federation’s Senior Vice President for Policy & Communications. 

Wells Fargo and GEICO served as presenting sponsors of the 2025 UnidosUS Capital Awards. The Coca-Cola Company served as the presenting sponsor of the 2025 UnidosUS Changemakers Summit.