Inspiring Conversations with Mi Centro La Lgbt Center of Mi Centro

Today we’d like to introduce you to Mi Centro La Lgbt Center

Hi Mi Centro, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
Mi Centro – Opened in 2015, Boyle Heights was a joint effort between the Los Angeles LGBT Center and Latino Equality Alliance. Its mission is to reach and empower underserved Latine/ LGBTQIA+ populations with a variety of resources centered around their health, legal needs, mental health, and other social services. Mi Centro, a true community center, has evolved, considerable, over almost 10 years now. Its foundations have come through collaborations with community and other local organizations that align with our vision and values. In the last few years, the Los Angeles LGBT Center leadership has focused a great deal of energy and resources to elevate the services and community that we serve at Mi Centro. Our Center leaders have paid close attention to the rich community of LGBTQIA+ Latine folks that reside in Boyle Heights and surrounding Southeast LA communities. In 2022, a program manager, Caín Andrade (he/him), was assigned to help develop and elevate services at Mi Centro. Not much longer after that, Norma Sánchez (they/them), joined the team to become program coordinator for our services. Caín and Norma lifelong members of this community, have set out to nurture relationships with community members, establish trust and continue to intentionally take community feedback as the driving force behind the programming and services that now exist at Mi Centro. As we approach 10 years of service to the community in 2025, The Los Angeles LGBT Community and Latino Equality Alliance have succeeded in establishing a safe haven for our Latine/LGBTQIA+ communities.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Communities are in constant flux. Such has been the road that Mi Centro has taken to reach 2024 with a robust collection of services that we offer to our communities in need. Our team at Mi Centro were fully aware of the need that exists in our communities and the hard work and patience that it would take to accelerate the development our our community center. The challenges and delays are more often that not external, the push back that LGBTQIA+ communities have historically faced. The policies and administrations that seek to diminish and limit our work is what our Los Angeles LGBT Center leaders focus on and fight for so that our Mi Centro team can build trust in our communities, do the outreach, create a Community Advisory Board that informs our programming, and collaborate with other LGBTQIA+ agencies and allies. We are well aware what is working against us in this country but in the communities we serve we only see opportunity and possibilities.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
Mi Centro’s mission is to reach and empower underserved Latine/ LGBTQIA+ populations around their health, mental health, legal matters, and other social services in their own neighborhood. Mi Centro is a community center within City Labs in Boyle Heights, a locally owned, purpose-driven collaborative space for innovators, entrepreneurs, and creatives. Partnerships with the Latino Equality Alliance, Self-Help Graphics & Art, PFLAG, and other organizations are at the core of Mi Centro operating as a community space. These partners and collaborators elevate the services and programming to ensure there is community engagement and positive relationship building. Latino Equality Alliance promotes LGBTQIA+ advocacy with a focus on family acceptance and equity. Much of its work centers on LGBTQ+ young people in Boyle Heights with whom they address issues of bullying, homophobia, xenophobia, family separation, violence against youth, homelessness, and sexual health. Among Mi Centro services are a farmer’s market (“Mi Mercadito”) that supplements local communities with fresh produce, legal resources, basic medical screenings, and a clothing closet. In addition to general services and connection to legal and mental health needs, Mi Centro brings you culturally sensitive and relevant events that celebrate the intersectionality of Latine culture.

In terms of your work and the industry, what are some of the changes you are expecting to see over the next five to ten years?
Expanding the reach and scope of our current services is always on our mind. Our communities need this space. We are proud to be part of the Los Angeles LGBT Center team who’s leadership is one of the leaders of this industry. Championing these social services and compassion for our communities is everyone’s job at The Center and we’d like to see more funding and support from our national leaders. We want to see that visible and outspoken commitment from all our leaders. This way our job here, locally, will be more fruitful and get folks out of survival mode into thriving, healthy Latine communities.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://lalgbtcenter.org/about/locations/mi-centro/
• Instagram: @micentro2