Title: Actress Stresses Latino Vote Importance

– Actress Rosario Dawson talked to Georgetown students Sept. 21 about her organization Voto Latino, which aims to register young Latino-Americans to vote.

Dawson, who co-founded the organization in 2004 with actor Wilmer Valderrama, says the movement is key because the number of voting-eligible Latino-Americans in the United States is growing and their voices need to be heard.

“That’s why we started Voto Latino because it’s not just a Latin issue, it’s an American issue,” she said during the student-run Georgetown University Lecture Fund sponsored event. “And if we care about the direction of this country we have to reach out to that demographic as strongly and clearly as possible.”

The Cuban American Students Association, the Latin American Students Association, the Center for Social Justice and the Center for Latin American Studies co-sponsored the lecture.

The actress, who starred in such movies as Sin City and Rent, also talked about her life growing up in New York, San Francisco and Texas, her work as an actress and a political activist.

She encouraged students to explore the challenging and diverse landscape of Washington, D.C., and to stand up as leaders for those whose voices are not fully represented.

“There’s an amazing opportunity for people who are visionaries like yourselves, people who believe in themselves, work hard, research, push themselves,” she said. “… That is who you are, period. You are leaders, you are important, you are highly necessary.”