1. Antonio Villaraigosa: he is a former mayor of Los Angeles. He was the first Latino mayor in Los Angeles in more than 130 years, and his election marked a new era, not only for the latinos but also to other minorities that had been forgotten by the public office. He wanted to construct alliances across the racial lines and a new form of politics.
2. Sylvia Mendez: she was born in 1936 and grew up during segregation in schools. After she tried to enroll in a white school and she was denied, her parents sued the California public school system. Sylvia would eventually bcome the first Hispanic to attend a Whites Only school and gave visibility to the Hispanics against segregation in schools.
3. Dolores Huerta: she is the co-founder of the United Farm Workers Union and a famous labor activist in American history. She organized negotiations with business to provide fair treatment for their workers, and has kept fighting to improve the conditions of migrant farm workers.
4. Juan Felipe Herrera: he was the first chicano to be named poet laureate, one of the greatest honors in literature. He grew up in a family of poor migrant workers, who travelled to California looking for work and liven in tents. These experiences marked his personality and his career. He eventually received a scholarship to UCLA and earned a master's degree from Standord.
5. Carlos Santana: as a musician, he pioneered a sound that mixed rock & roll with afro-cuban and latin music, giving visibility to hispanic and latin sounds in mainstream music. He is considered one of the greatest guitar players alive and has won 10 Grammy, acomplishing a remarkable career.
