Yvette Modestin El Encuentro "Voices of Afro Latinas"  Yvette Modestin is a native of the Republic of Panama.  She is the founder and director of El Encuentro "Voices of Afro Latinos" in Boston, which emerged as a response to the silence surrounding the rich and complex existence of the Afro-Latino/a identity in the Americas.  Yvette has presented both nationally and internationally.  She is the former program director of LEA-Latinas En Accion at HOPE  (Hispanic Office of Planning and Evaluation).  Formerly, she was the director of emergency services at Casa Myrna Vazquez.  Yvette is a member of Incite Boston/Women of Color Against Violence, a movement to end violence against women of color and our communities thru direct action, community organizing, and critical dialogue.  She is also a member of the Women of Color Coalition on Reproductive Justice.  Yvette is a member of the OSIRIS Group and sits on the Governor’s Commission on Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault, on the Immigrant and Refugee subcommittee, and on City Councilor Chuck Turner’s D7 Advisory Board. Her goal is to work towards the empowerment of communities of color--specifically, women in their journey for justice.  In addition, she wants to raise awareness of the issues of immigrants and most importantly, create a space for the recognition of the Afro-Latina experience. El Encuentro "Voices of Afro Latinas" The mission of El Encuentro is to bring together individuals from across the nation and in the community who are working and embracing their complex and mixed identity, moving toward an understanding of "power" and "empowerment" in developing collective positive movements toward resisting and changing systems, stereotypes, and limitations, and forming networks of resistance and hope.  El Encuentro addresses such issues as race and racism in the Latino community, the education of African ancestry in the Americas with a focus on Latin America, issues affecting women of African descent, and cultural and spiritual education.   Yvette Modestin   lapolitica@aol.com