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At Esperanza United, we know no single organization or person is going to end gender-based violence alone – it will take communities, working together. That’s why Latina leadership and community-based solutions are two of our organizational values.
To advance this strengths-based approach, Esperanza United President and CEO Vivian Huelgo, J.D. is interviewing leaders across the fields of gender-based violence prevention and Latin@ empowerment and beyond. Read on to learn leadership lessons, celebrate the people doing the work, and share in our gratitude for our vibrant community.
In this edition, commemorating the end of Domestic Violence Awareness Month 2025, Vivian speaks with Sandra Henriquez, CEO of VALOR, a California-based, national organization and California’s sexual assault coalition committed to advancing equity and ending sexual violence. Pues, vamos:
Vivian Huelgo: Hello Sandra, thanks for sharing your wisdom with me today. As you may know, one of our organizational values at Esperanza United is Latina leadership. What does Latina leadership mean to you?
Sandra Henriquez: Latina leadership means honoring the strength and resilience of Latina survivors, leaders, advocates, and others in our community who have worked hard and have left their unique imprint, thus shaping our movement. It means stepping into spaces where too often our voices have been ignored or excluded and claiming our right to be in and contribute to this space. It means normalizing my way, our way of being and facilitating recognition, honor and respect for what we bring! Ultimately, to me, it means disrupting institutions and systems that weren’t built for us and building new ones grounded in equity and justice.
Vivian Huelgo: Disruption is so important and I am glad that you are doing that work. Tell me – who inspired your leadership journey and how did they shape you?
Sandra Henriquez: There are numerous women who have inspired my leadership journey. My parents who came to this country alone, without extended family, bringing their three small children in order to give us a better life. My older sister, who helped me learn to fight in a country that didn’t embrace us, our culture, and our people. My dear friend and colleague, Alva Morena, who helped me find my way in our movement and encouraged me to keep my love for our community at the forefront.
I also want to recognize an Indigenous Bolivian woman, a coal miner’s wife, Domitilla de Chungara. She authored the book Let Me Speak, and I read it in college. She inspired me and served as an example that everyday people can change the world. Domitila and four other women led a hunger strike for the rights of miners and their families and against the repression of the Bolivian government. Each day, more Bolivians joined the strike and within 23 days, the government conceded to their demands which led to Bolivia’s return to democracy. While her leadership role may not be well-known, she has always been one of my heroes and role models. She helped to instill in me my pride and knowledge that we, as Latina women, are powerful!
Vivian Huelgo: Those are such great examples. How do you pay it forward, mentoring or supporting the next generation of Latina leaders?
Sandra Henriquez: I begin by seeing people. I see their wounds, their history, their passion, their strength and their potential. I see beyond resumes and academia, I see them for who they are and desire to be. I do what I can to help them see and embrace who they are and who they can be, their talents, gifts, and what they have to contribute to other Latinas. I support them but also push them. I do what I can to help place them in leadership roles where they can help identify and build up other Latina leaders. I try to instill the need to embody a sense of fearlessness, fighting even when we are afraid or even when it seems impossible, because we have a responsibility to our community and to those who aren’t able to fight for themselves at the moment.
Vivian Huelgo: One of our organizational values is living free from violence, what does a violence-free future look like to you?
Sandra Henriquez: A violence-free future looks like a world in which every person is valued and respected – where we are not othering any community. I believe a violence-free future consists of each person having food and housing security, freedom to move freely without concern of being targeted because of gender, race or ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity, or immigration status. This is where everyone is thriving. It’s a world that is rooted in equity and justice, and it means dismantling the root causes that allow violence to subsist in our communities.
Vivian Huelgo: Gratitude is so important: Tell me about something you are grateful for?
Sandra Henriquez: I am grateful to God for loving and seeing me, for strengthening me and allowing me to survive and thrive through every challenge I’ve faced in my life. I am grateful that the many painful and challenging moments have given me the resilience and courage to be where I am in life. I am grateful that I have the commitment, passion, and reach to impact and touch the lives of survivors, immigrants, family, friends, and communities.
More about Sandra Henriquez, MBA
Sandra Henriquez (she/her/ella) has dedicated her career to preventing sexual and domestic violence. Her passion is advocating for survivors, with a special affinity for Latin@ communities. In 2010, she began serving as the Chief Executive Officer of VALOR . During her tenure, Sandra has helped transform the organization’s culture and strategies by centering the experiences of those who are most marginalized, amplifying their voices, and focusing on creating systemic change. Under her leadership, VALOR partners with systems on behalf of incarcerated survivors, immigrants and undocumented survivors, farmworkers, and janitorial workers in communities throughout California and the nation. Sandra is also a founding member of RALIANCE with the goal of increasing sexual assault prevention in corporations.