OLA of Eastern Long Island Wants to Put More East End Voices at the Table

The nonprofit is launching a bilingual civic engagement initiative to help residents across the East End’s five towns better understand local government and connect with the institutions and officials shaping their daily lives.

Navigating local government on the East End can feel like walking through a labyrinth. There are town boards, village councils, school boards and county government, not to mention state and federal officials. Each of these bodies has its own set of meetings, responsibilities and decision-making processes, all of which can have direct and immediate impacts on the lives of the people living there.

OLA of Eastern Long Island is starting a new project to make this system easier to understand and to get involved in. This initiative, run by the nonprofit organization and remaining nonpartisan, is designed to help Latino adults, young people and other residents who have historically been underrepresented across the East End’s five towns connect with the government bodies that influence their daily lives.

“This initiative has been growing as an idea within OLA for the last 10 years,” Minerva Perez, executive director of OLA, told Spark Hamptons.

Latino, Shinnecock, African American and younger candidates are absent from the majority of our elected positions. The answer to growing a vibrant, civically engaged community is actually wanting to bring in new voices.”

The program will offer civic education in both English and Spanish and will create opportunities for residents to interact directly with local officials.

Understanding How Local Government Works

Perez says the project is based on a simple idea: People need to understand how their government functions before they can effectively participate in it.

Marili Yanes is leading this effort, having recently joined OLA as the project director of civic engagement. Yanes grew up on the East End, and her own experiences have shaped how she views the importance of civic participation. She mentioned that growing up on the East End, she understood the power of community. Through this initiative, she hopes to help expand the influence of an informed community.

The initiative will work in several ways. OLA plans to create easy-to-understand materials in English and Spanish that explain the roles and duties of local town, village, school and county governments. They will also conduct focus groups, surveys and one-on-one outreach in communities across the East End to identify the issues that concern residents the most. The organization also intends to host workshops on civic matters, provide opportunities for voter registration, facilitate conversations with candidates and organize community debates.

Beyond the Ballot Box

There’s also a component focused on leadership. OLA aims to identify and support adults and young people who are interested in becoming more involved in public life, whether by seeking elected office, serving on advisory boards or engaging in civic advocacy. The initiative broadens the definition of civic participation, going beyond just voting. Simply understanding who serves on a school board, knowing what a town board actually has control over, attending a village meeting or even just knowing which government body is responsible for a specific issue can be considered a form of engagement.

Fred Thiele, a member of the OLA board, described the challenge using an old political saying: “If you are not at the table, you’re probably on the menu.” Thiele explained that the initiative aims to provide community members with the necessary information and tools to participate, while also helping elected officials gain a better understanding of the communities they serve.

A Two-Way Conversation

This two-way communication is a key part of the project’s design. OLA isn’t just encouraging residents to get more involved in government; it’s also encouraging local institutions to become more accessible to residents. The organization is asking community members, nonprofits, small-business owners, school leaders and local government officials to collaborate on civic education workshops and community focus groups. OLA is also requesting that organizations and individuals share its bilingual resources and encourage young people and adults to attend upcoming civic engagement training sessions.

This initiative comes at a time when the East End is increasingly characterized not only by its traditional summer visitors but also by the year-round communities that keep its schools, businesses, farms, restaurants and institutions functioning.

Making Voices Heard

OLA, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, has long focused on creating what it describes as a more equitable East End for Latino immigrants. Its work has included advocacy on government and school policies, family support, leadership workshops, and programs designed to build connections between different parts of the East End community through arts and culture. Now, it’s adding another aspect to its work: helping people understand how to make their voices heard within the institutions that surround them.

The objective is straightforward: Know who your representatives are, understand what they do, know where decisions are made and show up when it’s important. And, perhaps most importantly, ensure that everyone has a place at the table.

“Civic engagement is a form of belonging,” Perez told Spark Hamptons. “We all belong. Civic engagement is hope in action.”

Learn more about OLA by visiting www.olaofeasternlongisland.org.