Viri Hernandez, Executive Director

I came to the US at the age of one, lived undocumented for 23 years, in fear. The passage of anti-immigrant law SB1070 was a cruel reminder of the reality that my brown, mixed status family was not welcomed. Since then, I’ve organized to provide scholarships, to stop deportations, to elect people into office, to hold those electeds accountable, to pass progressive policy, and to harness our community power. In all the work, I’ve learned a few things; we, people directly impacted by injustice, are inherently the most powerful and capable people to re-imagine a new day;  nothing is possible without a team that is connected in struggle and love; to transform systems, we must also transform as individuals, organizations and in community; our fights might surge out of fear and survival but must be sustained by a vision. As a migrant, young, mujer, I fight to not only survive but for our ability to be free. Today, I have the honor to serve at CNL, where we are led by our experience, knowledge and values to create transformative change towards a day when we are all free.

The Phoenix I dream of sees, respects and invests in our community. It is full of laughter, murals, paleteros, eloteros and children playing. It is love in action.

Viri Hernandez, Executive Director

I came to the US at the age of one, lived undocumented for 23 years, in fear. The passage of anti-immigrant law SB1070 was a cruel reminder of the reality that my brown, mixed status family was not welcomed. Since then, I’ve organized to provide scholarships, to stop deportations, to elect people into office, to hold those elected accountable, to pass progressive policy, and to harness our community power. In all the work, I’ve learned a few things; we, people directly impacted by injustice, are inherently the most powerful and capable people to re-imagine a new day;  nothing is possible without a team that is connected in struggle and love; to transform systems, we must also transform as individuals, organizations and in community; our fights might surge out of fear and survival but must be sustained by a vision. As a migrant, young, mujer, I fight to not only survive but for our ability to be free. Today, I have the honor to serve at CNL, where we are led by our experience, knowledge and values to create transformative change towards a day when we are all free.

The Phoenix I dream of sees, respects and invests in our community. It is full of laughter, murals, paleteros, eloteros and children playing. It is love in action.