In 1963, a group of
Mexican Americans in Washington, D.C., formed the National Organization for Mexican American Services (NOMAS). The organization existed primarily to provide technical assistance to Hispanic groups and bring them together under one umbrella. NOMAS presented a proposal to the
Ford Foundation to establish an organization that could provide technical assistance and organizational structure to the Mexican American community. The Ford Foundation hired Herman Gallegos,
Julian Samora, and
Ernesto Galarza to travel the Southwest and make a recommendation on how the Ford Foundation could help Mexican Americans. Gallegos, Samora and Galarza founded the Southwest Council of La Raza (SWCLR) in
Phoenix, Arizona, in 1968. SWCLR was given financial support from the Ford Foundation, the
National Council of Churches, and the
United Auto Workers, and the organization received
501(c)(3) status later that year. In 1973, the SWCLR became a national organization, changed its name to the National Council of La Raza, and moved its headquarters to Washington, D.C. Early disagreements among the organization's leadership caused the Ford Foundation to threaten to withhold funding, resulting in President Henry Santiestevan's resignation and the election of
Raul Yzaguirre. The Spanish word is often translated into English as race. The phrase
La Raza has a particular history in the context of political activism in which NCLR uses it. NCLR uses "La Raza" to refer to "the people" or "the Hispanic people of the New World". Beginning in about 1975, the NCLR began expanding its focus to include the issues of non-Mexican
American Latinos. This policy was made official in 1979. By 1980, the NCLR was funded almost entirely by the federal government. When the
Reagan Administration reduced available federal funding, the NCLR cut back the scale of its operations. On July 10, 2017, NCLR announced its new name, UnidosUS. == Programs ==