She’s used to belting out her hits, but now Gloria Estefan is using her voice in a different way on Capitol Hill, urging lawmakers to support legislation focused on homelessness and funding for women’s and family shelters.
“I would say to the lawmakers, please, this is a no-brainer,” Estefan said at a news conference Thursday at Florida House in Washington, just steps from the Capitol.
The “Conga” and “Rhythm is Gonna Get You” singer, a spokeswoman for the National Women’s Shelter Network (NWSN), is pushing Congress to pass the Women’s and Family Protection Act, which would boost funding for women’s and family shelters and homelessness support services. More than 1 million women and 2.5 million children experience homelessness each year, according to the NWSN.
Despite a full plate before Congress and plenty of pressing issues, Estefan said she’s hopeful that shining the spotlight on homelessness will help get the legislation passed.
“The attention is what it takes,” Estefan, 67, said.
“Absolutely, there’s so much need and so many things that need to be handled. But I think that this is one of those issues that I would find hard-pressed for anybody to find a reason not to support,” the Grammy Award winner said.
“The way that we get a better America, a better United States, is to take care of all these children that have so much potential, and their mothers that care for them. And to be there on the front lines — as we need to be for people in need, marginalized, probably at the most dark moment of their lives — when they have nothing, and they need to reach out for help. I think that that’s just a very easy thing for anyone to get behind, and I pray that they listen,” Estefan said.
While Estefan typically shies away from political talk — her husband, producer Emilio Estefan, said last year that the couple doesn’t “do politics” and works with both Republicans and Democrats — in 2015 she was one of several artists who recorded a song, “We’re All Mexican,” to support the Hispanic community amid a surge in anti-Latino rhetoric.
Asked her thoughts on the current political climate — since taking office President Trump has released a flood of immigration actions — Estefan, who was born in Cuba and emigrated to the U.S. as a toddler, said, “It’s tough, and always the last people in are the ones that get blamed for everything.”
“It’s happened throughout my entire life. I’ve lived more than six decades — so this is not a new issue. It’s an issue that has always happened, and usually behind political campaigns,” Estefan said.
“The fear really moves people,” the performer continued, calling immigrants “the backbone of this country.”
“We’re all a tapestry of cultures from everywhere, and unless you’re Native American and were here before, you’re from somewhere else — whether it’s one generation back, this generation, five or 10 generations back,” she said.
“We are a country that is built by immigrants from all over the world and it makes us stronger. It’s a beautiful thing to share all these cultures, and I’m just hoping that we can all raise our voices in support and pray that [we] keep moving forward in a positive direction. That’s all we can do as human beings.”
While Estefan is pressing lawmakers to take a serious look at the homelessness issue, she did have time to address a lighter question from ITK: Who does the best conga in Congress?
“The Cubans better have it, because if they don’t, I don’t know who would. But who knows,” she replied with a grin.
But the entertainer, who’s been dubbed the “Queen of Latin Pop,” indicated that conga-ing members of Congress might not need a lesson from her on how to move their hips.
“It’s very simple. Three steps to the right, three steps to the left. That’s all you have to do.”
