History
The Latino Caucus emerged in 2005 due to the interest and efforts of librarian Lizette Lopez Garcia, of the University of Puerto Rico Law Library. A member of the AALL Diversity Committee from 2003-2005, Lizette asked a simple question at their 2004 meeting–why isn’t there a Latino Caucus of AALL?
With the encouragement of the Diversity Committee, Lizette moved forward to make the caucus a reality. A general call on the law-lib discussion list was met with enthusiasm from many members of the profession. From there, Lizette led the caucus members in developing a Statement of Purpose, choosing our name, and spearheading the first meeting of the caucus.
The Inaugural Business Meeting of the Latino Caucus was held at the 98th AALL Annual Meeting and Conference in San Antonio, Texas. Lizette organized and led our first business meeting and developed our inaugural caucus brochure. The fifteen members in attendance refined the statement of purpose, helped set an agenda for the first year of the caucus, and held the first caucus elections. As a young caucus, we are proud of our accomplishments during our first year of existence and look forward to continuing the leadership tradition of our caucus founder.