Office of Latino Affairs of the District of Columbia

The Office of Latino Affairs of the District of Columbia was created in 1976 as part of the Executive office of the Mayor of the District of Columbia. Its first officeholder was lawyer Walter Washington. The purpose of the OLA is to serve the Latino community in D.C. as an intermediary between governmental agencies and private sectors in order to improve quality of life for the Latino population living in D.C. Some of its duties include answering any social or economic needs with strategic alliances between public and private sectors, knowledge in governmental practices, public relationships, and civic compromise.

The OLA provides funds for community organizations, technical assistance and economic support to NGOs, and programs for improving knowledge and skills which serve Latino residents.

The OLA is an effort to invest in the more than 800,000 Latino taxpayers living in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area who live as businesspersons, owners and buyers of houses, workers, and consumers. The OLA budget for 2016 is $3.177 million. These funds are used in many ways, such as giving more than $1 million in grants every year to various causes.

There are more than 70,000 Latino residents in D.C. One of every 10 residents of Washington, D.C. is Latino (10%), but there are also thousands more that are considered white Hispanics or Latino descendants. The OLA serves every Latino resident and supports more than 50 communitarian organizations. The OLA also organizes events including job fairs, workshops, and communitarian meetings with major leaders in the D.C area. The OLA also organizes traditional festivals like the Latino Festival, also known as Fiesta D.C. The OLA also strives to provide health, education, employment, and development services.

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