CHCI TO HONOR THE LEGENDARY AND GRAMMY AWARD-WINNING, LOS TIGRES DEL NORTE, AND THE AMERICAN “ACTRIVIST,” DESIGNER & PRODUCER, ROSARIO DAWSON, AT THE 47TH ANNUAL AWARDS GALA 

Washington, D.C. – September 10, 2024 – The Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute (CHCI) is proud to recognize the 2024 Medallion of Excellence Award honorees, the prolific and multiple Grammy & Latin Grammy-winning Norteño band, Los Tigres del Norte, and American actress, activist, and philanthropist Rosario Dawson.

The Medallion Award is CHCI’s highest accolade and one of the most prestigious honors in the Latino community, awarded annually to positive role models with extraordinary careers, accomplishments in their field, and notable leadership and community involvement. 

“For more than three decades, our Medallion of Excellence Award honorees have embodied Latino brilliance in myriad sectors, exhibiting the vast influence and contributions of our entrepreneurial, passionate, and driven Latino communities,” said CHCI Chair Rep. Adriano Espaillat. “This year’s honorees, Los Tigres del Norte and Rosario Dawson exemplify these values through their respective talents and commitment to not only making a difference but to ensuring a positive change. They are more than icons in media and entertainment, they are national treasures who care deeply about our Latino communities and ensuring a socially just and equitably sound future in our nation.”

“This year’s Medallion Award honorees showcase the tremendous range and breadth of Latino talent,” said Marco A. Davis, CHCI President and CEO. “Los Tigres Del Norte and Rosario Dawson are true Latino icons and we are grateful for the opportunity to acknowledge and celebrate their contributions to the Latino community.”

“Throughout all our years, we were always very proud to raise OUR voices to represent our culture and tell the collective stories of our people– which were often filled with hardships – while remaining very much in the shadows and long unrepresented within the corridors of power,” said Los Tigres Del Norte. ”Eleven years ago, we had a very special moment in Washington, as we were asked to perform at a large immigration rights rally for thousands on the mall, and were greeted by civil rights legend Representative John Lewis, and many congressional members from our community whose numbers had dramatically increased in large part due to the work of CHCI. Now, as we continue to create music that speaks to multiple generations of our community, we are beyond grateful to learn we will return to be honored by CHCI, now boasting an even more influential congressional delegation, including our first-ever Hispanic Senator from our home state of California and joining hundreds of other Latino leaders to celebrate Latino achievement.”

“The Latino community inspires me to continue advocating for justice, equality, and the empowerment of future generations and I’m deeply grateful for this incredible honor that is a testament to the strength and resilience of our community,” said Rosario Dawson.

The 2024 CHCI Medallion of Excellence in the Arts, Entertainment, Media, Music, and Sports will be awarded to Los Tigres del Norte.

Los Tigres Del Norte is a legendary Regional Mexican group formed in the small town of Rosa Morada in the Mexican state of Sinaloa. The group played at local events and parties as teenagers and eventually moved to California to create powerful songs that address themes of migration, social justice, and cultural identity, which has led to many referring to the group as “the voice of the people” and the most perceptive chroniclers of the Mexican American experience. Over the course of their decades-long career, they have sold more than 37 million albums while engaging in philanthropic efforts such as donating funds to UCLA’s Chicano Studies Center to create/preserve the FRONTERA Collection–the world’s largest collection of historical Mexican music recordings. In 2019, the band released a Netflix documentary and soundtrack album portraying the world of Latino incarceration told through the band’s songs and inmates’ stories. Los Tigres del Norte at Folsom Prisonwon a Grammy and was named one of the best Latin albums of the decade by Billboard. Over the course of five decades, the group has won seven Grammys and nine Latin Grammy awards while continuing to be at the forefront of Latin music popularity–still performing regularly throughout the US, Central and Latin America to audiences up to 100,000+ a night and continually blazing new trails for their music. 

The 2024 CHCI Medallion of Excellence in the Arts, Entertainment, Media, Music, and Sports will be awarded to Rosario Dawson.

Rosario Dawson is an award-winning actress, who has starred in a wide spectrum of premiere series, including DMZ & DOPESICK and feature films, including HAUNTED MANSION, SIN CITY, and RENT. She was last seen in the title role of AHSOKA for Disney and COMMON GROUND, a regenerative farming documentary championing our precious soil. 

Beyond her impressive career in acting, Rosario is a renowned activist who co-founded Voto Latino, a civic engagement organization focused on educating and empowering a new generation of Latinx voters, and Studio One Eighty Nine, a lifestyle artisan forward brand produced in Ghana celebrating African heritage. 

An innovative powerhouse who is dedicated to driving positive change, Rosario serves as an active board member of, The Lower Eastside Girls Club in Manhattan, CANN, The Jane Fonda Climate PAC & V Day. She is a founding advisory council member of The Smithsonian American Women’s History Museum and most recently founded The Rio Dawn Foundation to elevate the work and voices of change-makers in the United States and around the world. The Foundation raises funds and promotes trailblazers and organizations that work towards building and sustaining a healthy ecosystem that supports women and girls.

Onsite press credentials and interview requests with select honorees, musical talent, participants, and organizational leadership may be available upon request.

47th Annual CHCI Awards Gala Host Sponsor

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ABOUT CHCI

The Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute (CHCI) is the premier Hispanic nonprofit and nonpartisan 501(c)(3) organization in the country dedicated to developing the next generation of Latino leaders®. CHCI provides leadership, public service, and policy experiences to outstanding Latino/a/x students and young professionals, and convenes Members of Congress, other public officials, corporate executives, nonprofit advocates, and thought leaders to discuss issues facing the nation and the Hispanic community. Visit CHCI.org and follow us @CHCI on social media.