Gary Acosta is an entrepreneur, public policy advocate, investor, and thought leader passionate about advancing prosperity for Latinos and other underserved communities. As an industry leader, he protects and improves the business environment required to close the wealth gap, particularly via homeownership. Amongst other endeavors, he is Co-Founder & CEO of NAHREP, the country’s leading Hispanic business organization, and Co-Founder of L’ATTITUDE, the preeminent platform for Latino economic empowerment. Acosta is also a general partner of L’ATTITUDE Ventures, the nation’s largest venture capital fund exclusively focused on Latino-led start-ups. Join Gary as he dives into today’s issues through many creative formats.
I finally got to see the musical, Hamilton, when it toured through San Diego in January. I went in knowing Hamilton is not an ordinary Broadway show. With my expectations high, it still managed to be even better than I imagined. Hamilton is nothing less than a remarkable achievement of creative genius. Lin-Manuel Miranda, the youthful composer who…
A couple of years ago, I wrote a five-part blog named the “Nuevo Latinos.” The blog described a new generation of Latinos who were proud of their heritage but viewed themselves as part of the mainstream rather than some outlier faction of America. Most of these Latinos were U.S. born, but not all of them,…
I saw the movie I, Tonya last week with my wife. It seems others agree that this movie about figure skater Tonya Harding was entertaining and well done. The Harding/Kerrigan drama was reality TV before reality TV was a thing. Harding and Nancy Kerrigan were skating rivals training for the 1994 Olympics when an assailant, hired by…
Javier Palomarez, the embattled CEO of the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce announced his resignation last week. Palomarez has been the subject of an investigation regarding allegations related to finances and sexual harassment. In a statement, Palomarez claimed that he was completely vindicated of those allegations, but nonetheless felt it was time for him…
I think it is fair to say that there is a degree of confusion associated with the #metoo movement. While the egregious behavior of people like Harvey Weinstein and Kevin Spacey is clear and definitive, what is less clear is where are all of the lines are inside a society that is moving toward a…
In about 100 stump speeches, I have explained how the last housing crisis inspired me to create the Hispanic Wealth Project and the NAHREP 10. I witnessed first-hand the loss of businesses and homes from hundreds of friends and colleagues. It was a devastating time for many of us. In my speech, I discuss coming to…
A constitutional crisis occurs either when the constitution does not provide a clear answer for a specific situation, or when a government official or branch of the government willfully defies adherence to the constitution. A constitutional crisis is a big deal, and can sometimes result in impeachment, civil war or collapse of the government itself.…
Adela de la Torre, a UC Davis economist who has spent most of her career promoting better health among Latinos and social justice among students, was named as the first female and first Latina president of the California University. De la Torre earned her degrees from UC Berkeley. She believes SDSU can be among the…
Former SBA Administrator, Maria Contreras-Sweet is leading an investment group that includes billionaire, Ron Burkle that is said to be close to finalizing an acquisition of the company founded by Harvey Weinstein. Her proposal includes the establishment of a settlement fund for victims of Weinstein’s alleged sexual abuse. Contreras-Sweet says that she will establish a…
While Trump mingles in Davos, the Chinese government released a strongly worded editorial from the state’s news agency, Xinhua. The statement said the world needed to choose between “two fundamentally different outlooks” which included the Chinese President’s shared future and Mr. Trump’s America First policy. Mr. Trump’s “self-centered America First policy has led his country…
The successful series about a diverse group of teenage superheroes received the green light for a second season. While the world debates the virtues of multi-culturalism and political correctness, the groundbreaking television series quietly makes a place for itself for simply being a really good show. Allegra Acosta and her co-stars are on an upward…
Moving forward, expect a good chunk of this blog to discuss updates and perspective on the world’s largest convention celebrating America’s New Mainstream Economy. L’ATTITUDE will take place concurrent with the NAHREP National Convention in San Diego on September 8-11. The convention will feature a music festival and film showcase that bookends a groundbreaking business…
We all know that Despacito took the world by storm in 2017. The Luis Fonsi song featuring Daddy Yankee recently crossed 4 billion views on YouTube making it the most viewed music video in the history of the world. Last month, I overheard two people at the airport debating the thrust behind the song’s mega…
Time Magazine recognized the “whistleblower” women of the #metoo movement as their people of the year. As the disgusting revelations of Harvey Weinstein, Kevin Spacey, Matt Lauer and others became public, the outrage reached a level that few public crises ever have. This was a little surprising to me. The casting couch is a term…
Besides being an electrifying leader, I personally believe that if Congressman Tony Cárdenas can work his way into the democratic leadership he will work effectively with Latinos on both sides of the aisle. That would be a game changer. At the risk of sounding cynical, the facts are that republicans continue to drift sharply from…
For the first time, NAHREP will be releasing a narrative review of the new tax legislation recently signed into law. The organization characterizes the law as “disappointing” but with some definite positives for business owners and investors. The new law was passed with zero support or input from democrats. Ironically, the flawed Dodd-Frank bill was…
In these politically polarized times, electing a Democrat for statewide office in Alabama seemed impossible to say the least, but it happened last Tuesday when Democrat Doug Jones defeated Roy Moore in a special election to fill the vacancy left by Jeff Sessions in the U.S. Senate. Moore is a polarizing figure, aggressively supported by…
In October, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), the conservator for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, announced that they were going add a question about language preference to the redesigned Uniform Residential Loan Application (URLA). Beginning in July of 2019, all mortgage applications will be required to ask the applicant what is their preferred language.…
As a Christian, Christmas means something to me beyond Santa Claus and presents. It is a deeply religious occasion. I think it’s great when people say Merry Christmas to me, and I especially appreciate it when people of other faiths say it to me. It shows that they respect me enough to recognize my culture…
It’s not a partisan statement to say that the massive tax reform bill – that will soon become the law of the land – is deeply unpopular. Given that tax cuts are generally a pretty easy thing to sell, it’s quite stunning to hear that according to the most recent Quinnipiac University Poll, only 29%…
