| The Hot Latino 25 (Under 25) |
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Written by Antonio Cerna
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 There’s a new wave of Latino talent in America today. From athletes, to actors, to activists these 25 young Latinos are poised to be come America’s future Hispanic Leaders. [Pictured Al Horford, Alexa Vega, Arlenis Sosa, and Mark Sanchez.  25. Algenis Perez SotoActor (in "Sugar") Age: 25 Dominican American Soto’s life took a surprising turn when luck knocked on his door. One day he was working as a front-desk clerk in a San Pedro, Domincan Republic hotel. The next day he was the lead actor in the film, "Sugar," a movie about an impoverished youth who strives to become a professional baseball player. Though, Soto had once nurtured dreams of breaking into American baseball, little could he have imagined that he’d play out his dream on the wide screen in his first acting role ever.  24. Tania UnzuetaProducer/Activist Age: 25 Mexican Tania Unzueta is a producer at 90.5 FM WRTE Radio Arte, a bilingual community radio station in Chicago. She also teaches and mentors youth producers. Somehow, Unzueta finds time to volunteer-host a weekly Spanish-language radio show on immigration, "Sin Papeles." Unzueta has been at Radio Arte since she was 17-year old student. During her time there, she was also the Managing Producer for "Homofrecuencia," a radio show that continues to be the only Spanish-language broadcast for LGBTQ people. But that’s not all. Tania is also involved in several social justice groups, particularly focusing on issues of immigration and LGBTQ rights. She was one of the main organizers of the 2006, 2007, and 2008 Immigrants Rights Marches in Chicago. Currently, she is dedicating more time to her work with the Chicago Dyke March Collaborative (CDMC), an organization seeking to create solidarity and visibility of/with LGBTQ low-income and of-color communities.  23. America FerreraActor/Emmy Winner Age: 25 Honduran American On being a real Latina woman with curves: "I think Hispanic women are beautiful with their curves…[Not getting a role is] still better than physically harming yourself and becoming unhealthy just to star in a movie. To me, the tragedy about this whole image-obsessed society is that young girls get so caught up in just achieving that they forget to realize that they have so much more to offer the world."  22. Mary E. GonzalezStudent Leader, Kappa Delta Chi Sorority Age: 24 Mary E. Gonzalez is dedicated to promoting social change. As an undergrad she re-established the LULAC student chapter at the University of Texas at Austin. Then Gonzalez went on to become Co-Director of Operations for the Latino Leadership Council, which oversees 34 Latina/o organizations on campus, and was a key organizer for the Annual National Latina/o Leadership Summit. Early in her career, she worked for Texas State Representatives Paul Moreno and Richard Raymond. She also served as Assistant Director in the Office of Research and Demonstration at the National Hispanic Institute. Most recently Mary worked as Program Coordinator in the Multicultural Information Center at The University of Texas at Austin. Even at her young age, Mary serves as the Assistant Dean for Student Multicultural Affairs at Southwestern University in Texas.  21. Shawn EstradaOlympian, Boxer Age: 24 Mexican American Raised in East L.A., Estrada is the son of a former Mexican national team boxer and the youngest of 16 siblings. He credits the sport of boxing as the force that kept him out of gangs growing up. According to “The Ring,” Estrada is currently training with Joe Goossen, one of the best in the business, in California and is gearing up for another fight later this year.  20. Steven GarzaStudent Leader, Phi Iota Alpha Fraternity Age: 23 Spanish Mexican American Steven Garza isn't your average fraternity guy. As a member of Phi Iota Alpha at the University of Texas at San Antonio, he works with various organizations including American Red Cross Campus Club, the Hispanic Student Association, Multicultural Greek Council and is actively involved with university committees, including the University Diversity Month Planning Committee. He has also committed to taking a lead role in assembling and student-chairing the Latino Heritage Month Planning Committee. With so much on his plate, he still makes time to help his fraternity expand to other universities.  19. Diana LopezOlympian, Taekwondo Gold Medalist Age: 23 Nicaraguan American American-born Lopez is an Olympic Taekwondo competitor. She represented the USA at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and is the younger sister of Olympians Steven and Mark López. She has admitted, "I enjoy being the center of attention and providing a little comic relief for the team, usually at my expense. I have an innate ability to provide a 3rd-grade joke at a whim."  18. Stephanie Lopez CoxOlympian, US Soccer Age: 23 Mexican German Stephanie Lopez Cox learned at a young age that some kids had less luck than others when it came to having a caring home. In fact Lopez Cox, who helped her parents welcome over 100 foster into the family’s home, credits her unique upbringing as excellent training for her soccer career. “It instilled in me the principles of teamwork, patience, understanding, and to value everyone’s individual contribution as part of achieving a common goal,” she said in a past interview. “No one person is more important than the other.” Today, Lopez Cox is married to former Portland baseball player Brian Cox, her college sweetheart. "You really have to excel in all areas of you life,” she has said. “It starts in school and goes over into sports. It's really a whole package." At 23, Stephanie Lopez Cox is a role model for people of all ages. 17. Al Horford (pictured) Athlete, NBA Atlanta Hawks Age: 23 Dominican American Alfred Joel Horford Reynoso is the Dominican basketball player for the NBA's Altlanta Hawks with a heart of gold. "As my legacy, I just want to be someone that opens up opportunities for talented guys that are in Dominican [Republic] but who don't get the chance to come here and develop their game,” he has said. “Before me there's been a lot of great players who are Dominican that I feel have paved the way for me."  16. Amy RodriguezOlympian, US Soccer Age: 22 Nicknamed "A-Rod", Amy, is an American soccer player and member of the United States Women's National Soccer team. "I never would have imagined that I'd be here today, wearing this uniform, being the number one draft pick with the WPS singing with Puma,” she has said. “All these great things are happening to me. I feel very lucky."  15. JD OrdoñezReality TV Star ("Real World Brooklyn") Age: 22 Cuban / Puerto Rican "I always wanted the family I never had," Ordoñez said in an interview. "I remember watching "Real World San Francisco" with Pedro Zamora. He was a pivotal part of why I wanted to do this experience. His life and mine have many parallels. We’re both young gay men of color, we’re both from Miami and of Cuban descent, and we’re both HIV activists. His story was a little bit different than mine, since he was positive and I’m negative, but what happened to him can happen to me and can happen to anyone, and I really expressed that throughout this season." 14. Mark Sanchez (pictured) Athlete, NY Jets Starter Age: 22 Mexican American Sanchez, one of a select few Latinos who play in the NFL, prides himself on his heritage. But during his USC days, fans got carried away in heritage fever. When they began waving Mexican flags and wearing "Viva Sanchez" t-shirts, the fan reaction became a point of contention for the athlete. "Some people wanted me to be the Latino quarterback. Some people wanted me to be the USC quarterback who happens to be Latino,” Sanchez has said. “[I decided to] just be me and do my best with everything and not try to be something I'm not." 13. Alexa Vega (pictured) Actor/Singer Age: 21 Colombian American Although Vega made her first movie appearance in "Little Giants," as Priscilla O'Shea, she’s known worldwide for playing Carmen Cortez in the "Spy Kids" trilogy. In 2007, the actress, singer and pianist starred in Broadway's "Hairspray," and is now working on her music career. Her single, "Lost In Your Own Life," was released this year.  12. Sessilee LopezModel Age: 20 Dominican, Portuguese American Sessilee Lopez is one of the top international fashion models working today. From the haute couture runways in Paris, to billboards for GAP, to the catwalks of the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show, Lopez's career is smokin’ hot. We like Lopez’s frankness when it comes to disclosing some of her profession’s lack of cultural diversity: "Fashion is very black and white. It doesn't pay attention to heritage much,” Lopez has said. “They don't see me as a Dominican girl. They just see the color of my skin. It can be hard, because it's your heritage and you want to be appreciated for it, but it's just modeling, so I don't let it get to me."  11. Tristan WildsActor ("90210") Age: 20 African American, Dominican and Irish Tristan started acting at the age of seven. His first professional role was in the 2005 "Miracle's Boys" on The N. Yet, at his young age, he's already worked with Broadway and television veterans, such as Phylicia Rashad. He currently plays the role of Dixon Wilson on the CW Network's "Beverly Hills, 90210" spinoff.  10. Jessica MartinezLULAC National Youth President Age: 19 Mexican American She has been the National Youth President of the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) for three years. Once she realized that anyone can truly make a difference, no matter what age, she never stopped lending a helping hand. Throughout the years she worked hard in her studies, community and soon became a young leader not only in her state, but throughout the nation. She plans to attend Law School and aspires to become NM Attorney General and U.S. Senator. 9. Arlenis Sosa (pictured) Model Age: 19 Dominican The 19-year-old Dominican-born beauty is a fast-rising star. In March 2008, she walked into the offices of Marilyn Model Management and was signed to a modeling contract on the spot. Two months later she was featured in "Vogue," and then in "Vogue Italia." Six months later she opened and closed Oscar de la Renta’s Spring 2009 show in New York City. She's currently one of the many faces of GAP and Uniqlo. Arlenis’s impressive rise leads us to believe that many great things lie ahead for her.  8. Javier MolinaAthlete, Olympic Boxer Age: 19 Mexican American Light welterweight Javier Molina hails from Commerce, California. He lost his Olympic medal to Boris Georgiev in Beijing, but we're watching for a Molina come-back. The 141-lbs National Champion is now in college, but judging from the fact that both his father and brother enjoyed successful amateur boxing careers, we think Molina still has boxing in his blood.  7. David ArchuletaSinger Age: 18 Honduran, Spanish American American Idol runner-up, and the son of Honduran parents, Archuleta's new self-titled record debuted at #2 on the Billboard 100. Archuleta recently took home 3 Teen Choice awards for Breakout Artist, Love Song, and Music Tour (along with Demi Lovato)—not bad for the guy who came in second to that other David.  6. Arny ZabarainStudent Leader Age: 18 A recent high school grad, this brave 18-year-old is a GLSEN national student leader who lobbied on Capitol Hill with GLSEN in March in support of the Safe Schools Improvement Act in March. He was one of the student hosts of the Respect Awards – New York this year in New York. He’s also served as a GLSEN spokesperson on various media.  5. Selena GomezActor/Singer/Mogul Age: 17 Mexican, Italian American This Texas native is not only the star of her own show with several movies in the works, she's also set up her own production company, and released a musical record, "Kiss & Tell," in 2009. TV, film, and music -- it's no wonder UNICEF appointed her as the organization’s youngest ambassador.  4. Nik CastilloStudent Leader Age: 17 Nik is a high school, transman, San Bernardino, CA, is a GLSEN Ambassador and in his third year as a member of one of GLSEN’s national student leadership teams. He’s worked as an advocate for LGBT rights in California for years and is a member of CA-based GSA Network’s board of directors. He appeared on "El Show de Cristina" earlier this year to talk about his experiences with bullying and harassment.  3. Allison IrahetaSinger ("American Idol") Age: 17 Salvadoran American The young "American Idol" hopeful got her start on a Telemundo show called "Quinceañera," but never got the record deal she was promised. Now, with her new exposure, and incredible singing chops, Iraheta may finally break out into a solo career.  2. Victoria JusticeActor Age: 16 Puerto Rican, Irish Justice's first major acting role was as Lola Martinez on Nickelodeon's "Zoey 101." Since then she's appeared on shows like "The Suite Life of Zack & Cody" and the WB's hits such as "Gilmore Girls" and "Everwood." A 2009 report on Variety indicated Justice had signed a talent deal with Nickelodeon, and that the network was developing a new sitcom, "Victorious," starring the actress. The new series, which is set in a "Fame"-esque performing arts high school premieres in early 2010.  1. Lourdes LeonSocialite Age: 13 Cuban, Italian American The youngest person on this list, Lourdes aka "Lola" is the daughter of pop legend Madonna and personal trainer-cum-actor Carlos Leon. Given her pedigree, some would argue that she's genetically predisposed to greatness in some capacity. But it's obvious to most that she's a natural trendsetter, and a fashion inspiration to her mom. Many of Lourdes' looks have made copycats of teens and fashionistas alike. Recently, Lourdes debuted her dance skill for mom's latest single "Celebration." |
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