The invisible-ink problem
Every grantmaker loves the word “diversity.” It’s in the guidelines, webinars, conference keynotes, and annual reports. But ask yourself: when they say “diversity,” do they actually mean your Hispanic community or are you just supposed to assume you’re included?
Too often, Hispanic communities are treated like the invisible ink of DEI: technically there, but only if you squint and already know what you’re looking for.
The gap between rhetoric and resources
Nationally, Latinos are around one-fifth of the U.S. population and growing. Yet Latino-serving nonprofits receive a tiny fraction—less than 1%—of overall foundation funding, and Latinos remain barely visible in foundation leadership and program staff. That means the people writing the checks and setting the priorities can talk about “equity” all day while being structurally disconnected from the communities they claim to serve.
The root problem is vague language. Funders talk about “diverse communities,” “communities of color,” “BIPOC,” “marginalized groups,” and “underserved populations.” All are technically true for Hispanic communities, but none require funders to say “Latino” or “Hispanic” even once. You can design an entire grant portfolio around “diversity” and never have a specific, resourced strategy for Latino families, workers, or neighborhoods.
When something is not named, it is not measured. When it is not measured, it is not funded.
Demand specificity from funders
First, stop playing along with the vagueness. When you read guidelines full of generic DEI language, ask: “Where are Latinos in this picture?” If the answer is not obvious, that is already data. You may be looking at an opportunity that uses your community as a brochure photo while directing real money somewhere else.
Second, get comfortable asking direct questions. On an information call or in an email, try:
“Your guidelines talk about ‘diverse communities.’ Our service area is majority Latino. Do you track Latino-specific impact or have any goals related to Latino populations?”
You’re not being difficult; you’re giving them a chance to move from fog to focus. If they cannot or will not answer, you have learned what you need to know.
Make your community unignorable
Third, make your community unignorable in your own materials. Name who you serve precisely and consistently: “Puerto Rican families in X towns/cities/counties/states,” “Mexican and Central American workers in Y region,” or “Spanish-dominant seniors in Z housing complexes.” Pair that with local demographics and outcomes. Do not just say “we serve diverse communities.” That is their language. Say, “We serve Latinos, and here’s what’s happening in our backyard.”
Fourth, tie your work directly to the funder’s stated priorities, but keep your community at the center. If they care about education, show Latino graduation and dropout data. If they care about health, show Latino health disparities in your region. Diversity should not be a side dish; it should be the way they achieve the outcomes they claim to want.
Diversity precision is power
Remember this: if a DEI strategy never says “Latino” out loud, it is not inclusion; it is illusion. Your job is not to beg to be included in someone else’s vague category. Your job is to force clarity and make your community so visible, specific, and essential to real impact that funders cannot hide behind generalities anymore.
That is not being pushy. That is being precise. And precision is where power starts.