The Latinx community is filled with trailblazers paving a new path for this generation on what it means to live in nuestra Latinidad. From Eva Longoria to Diane Guerrero to Dascha Polanco , members of the Latinx everywhere are taking a stand for what they believe in and standing strong for what they deserve. Another name to add to that long list of trailblazers? Georgette Gómez, the congressional hopeful running to represent San Diego’s 53rd Congressional District. If elected, Georgette will become the first queer Latina in US congressional history.
Georgette, a Latina of Mexican descent born and raised in San Diego’s Barrio Logan, is running on a platform that focuses on environmental reform. In an interview with HipLatina, she shared, “I grew up in an older Mexican community, Barrio logan, very close to Downtown. But Barrio Logan and Downtown are two different worlds — [Barrio Logan] has industries that are quite polluting and unsafe inside of my community. And we don’t have real infrastructure and real resources in order to get what we need to have a good quality of life.”
Georgette, who has a degree in Environmental and Natural Resource Geography, wants to do all she can to help her local community, but also knows that she may come up against some limitations. “I know that there are limitations to what I can do at the local level. I always found myself making reference to a lot of the issues that are not just local, [but] that are impacting people that lead to DC,” began the congressional hopeful.”
She continued, “So as I was getting ready to launch my reelection for council, I was doing it in the promise that I was eventually going to go there to DC to really expand the issues that I want to influence.”
Not only is Georgette looking to make her local community a safer place to live in, but she is also looking to help usher in a governmental body that is more representative of what the US looks like today. “I think it’s time to start electing people that are reflective of the majority,” began the San Diego City Council President.
She further explained, “So we have an opportunity to make history and not only with somebody that touches on all these different identities but actually touches issues… I’m a walking product of a lot of the issues that a lot of our society members are facing. I’m going to bring my full self to DC to push on these issues.”