WHEREAS, The American Association of Retired Persons (AARP), along with the Spanish-language network Telemundo, has chosen to honor individuals in cities including Chicago, Atlanta, and Philadelphia who represent an ethic of caring and service to the elderly as Leaders of Hope or Líderes de Esperanza; and
WHEREAS, Juanita Ramos was resoundingly chosen as Philadelphia's Leader of Hope following a competitive nomination process and public voting; and
WHEREAS, Juanita has worked for the advancement of the Puerto Rican and Latino community for more than thirty years, using her inimitable personality and drive as a tool to increase community involvement and political participation; and
WHEREAS, Juanita was born on January 29, 1942, in Puerto Rico's city of Humacao, and was raised and educated in its city of Juncos. She attended Tomas Hernandez Elementary and Middle School in Fulgencio Piñero, and Jose M. Gollardo High School, before moving to Chicago; and
WHEREAS, In Chicago, Juanita worked for that city's department of education for fifteen years, and was an instrumental volunteer in the mayor's summer program for youth, increasing access to employment and mentoring for teens; and
WHEREAS, Juanita moved to Philadelphia, and turned her attention to increasing voter registration and participation, to ensure that her community's vote truly counts. She has personally registered over 15,000 residents in Philadelphia and New Jersey, knocking on countless doors and engaging voters on the issues that matter to them; and
WHEREAS, She has also participated in several campaigns for candidates she felt would most help the Latino community, such as Jimmy Carter, John Kerry, and Hillary Clinton for President and, in Chicago, Richard Daley for District Attorney, Harold Washington for Mayor, and Luis Gutierrez for Alderman. She has advocated for candidates in Philadelphia such as Ed Rendell, John Street, Seth Williams, Tony Payton, Rafael Collazo, and María Quiñones Sánchez. In this work, Juanita is always motivated foremost by her personal principles and beliefs; and
WHEREAS, Juanita's work directly contributed to the historic Latino turnout that contributed to the reelection of President Barack Obama in November of 2012, with a record ten percent of all votes cast estimated to be by Latinos; and
WHEREAS, Day and night Juanita fights for those who cannot fight for themselves, helping to resolve numerous housing, employment, and neighborhood safety matters for her large network of registered voters and strongly advocating for protection and equal opportunities for seniors; and
WHEREAS, Juanita is known for her clear convictions and for always being willing to speak truth to power; and
WHEREAS, On November 15th, Juanita will be presented with the Leaders of Hope award at the No Mas Hambre forum on the problem of hunger in Philadelphia's Latino communities; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, That Council does hereby honor Juanita Ramos on the occasion of her being named one of the AARP's Leaders of Hope for her tireless work registering voters and empowering her community.
End