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LULAC Sponsors Mariachi Corazon de San Antonio and Feria de Salud in San Antonio, Texas

Third in Series of Latinos Living Healthy Festivals Focused on Mitigating Health Disparities in the Latino Community

Contact: Paloma Zuleta
PZuleta@LULAC.org

San Antonio, Texas – Today, LULAC and the Main Plaza Conservancy presented the Mariachi Corazon de San Antonio and Feria de Salud free to the public. In support of its health education initiative, Latinos Living Healthy with the support of Walmart, the health festival gathered over 3,000 people from across San Antonio for a variety of health screenings, fun physical activity, access to nutritious and affordable foods and entertainment by Trio Ellas and Mariachi Sol de México de José Hernández.

Area schools performed throughout the day, followed by the evening mariachi competition between San Antonio area schools in which bands competed for a prize of $1,500. Brackenridge High School won the prize as well as the designation of Best High School Level Mariachi in the San Antonio Area.

“Latinos in Texas have the highest uninsured numbers, which when combined with a 36 percent obesity rate can mean a public health crisis that jeopardizes the future of the state, considering Latinos make up 38 percent of the Texas population,” said LULAC National President Margaret Moran. “It’s not only important that LULAC focuses on how to improve health care access to the uninsured but also inform how education and programs can mitigate health disparities in the Latino community.”

This free festival is part of LULAC’s Latinos Living Healthy Initiative which spearheads efforts to address rising health care costs, the obesity epidemic, and chronic diseases amongst vulnerable populations. Through this initiative, LULAC has been able to ensure that children and adults of all ethnicities, socioeconomic backgrounds and geographic locations have access to nutritional information, healthy and affordable foods, and safe spaces to engage in physical activities.

According to the Texas Medical Association, Texas has the highest rate of uninsured people, currently with 6.3 million Texas residents not having health care coverage. Specifically, 37 percent of Texas Hispanics are uninsured. Within the United States, Latinos have the highest uninsured rates of any racial or ethnic group. Hispanic health is often shaped by factors such as language/cultural barriers, lack of access to preventive care, and the lack of health insurance.

The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) is the nation’s largest and oldest civil rights volunteer-based organization that empowers Hispanic Americans and builds strong Latino communities. Headquartered in Washington, DC, with 900 councils around the United States and Puerto Rico, LULAC’s programs, services and advocacy address the most important issues for Latinos, meeting critical needs of today and the future. For more information, visit www.LULAC.org.