Galfand Berger Attorney Gabriela Raful Participates in Hispanic Heritage Month

October 16, 2013 – Since 1988, from September 15 to October 15, the United States celebrates Hispanic Heritage Month. During that time, people around the United States recognize the contributions of Hispanic Americans to the United States and celebrate Hispanic culture and heritage. Galfand Berger is proud to participate in these celebrations.

In Reading, Pennsylvania, the Hispanic Community kicked off the celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month with the Berks Salsa Fest, a street fair featuring live music and great food, an evening gala, free dance workshops, and a Latino art market. More than 1,000 people gathered at the corners of 5th and Washington Streets to celebrate. Berks Salsa Fest was the first of three events where Galfand Berger was present supporting Hispanic Heritage.

In addition to Berks Salsa Fest, on September 18, Gabriela Raful, attorney at Galfand Berger, was invited as a speaker to the “Reading Latino Lecture Series” at the Abraham Lincoln Hotel. That day, the topic was “The Power of the Latino Women.” Along with elected officials, business women, and other Hispanic professionals, Gabriela discussed the need for strong role models for the Latino youth. The panelists also discussed specific issues facing the Hispanic community, such as increasingly high rates of high school drop outs.

Additionally, on October 2, 2013, Gabriela served as a panelist at the Albright College’s “Hispanic Heritage Panelist Discussion”. This time, the discussion was focused on the challenges of Hispanics in the Reading area. Gabriela highlighted statistics regarding civic engagement in Latin American countries when compared to the United States. While in most Latin American countries, Latinos are engaged in activities such as volunteerism and voting, in the United States Latinos face different barriers, such as language. All the panelists agreed that the biggest challenge facing Hispanics in the Reading area is education. Watch a report about this discussion on Albright’s Campus Radio News.

At both lectures, the panelists also highlighted the contributions of important Latinos leaders to the Berks County Area.

Gabriela is an Associate Attorney with Galfand Berger, LLP practicing in the areas of employment and labor law, Workers’ Compensation, Social Security Disability, products liability, and personal injury. As a native of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, Gabriela is fluent in Spanish. By working with the Hispanic population in their native language, our clients do not have to worry about the language and cultural barrier, and can be confident they are getting the legal service they need.  To read more about Gabby, click on her bio.