Transforming Culture Into Power—Backed by Real Economic Strength

J&W Political Editor’s Note

J & Washington is pleased to introduce Crystal Negron, a rising voice in Central Florida politics and a passionate advocate for Hispanic community empowerment. As someone who understands both the challenges and opportunities facing our region’s fastest-growing demographic, Crystal brings a unique perspective to the intersection of economic development and civic engagement.

In Part One of a compelling three part series, Crystal makes a powerful case that goes beyond traditional political rhetoric. She argues that Central Florida’s Hispanic community has already proven its economic might—contributing over $16 billion locally and supporting more than 20,000 businesses—but now must translate that financial strength into political influence. Her message is clear: economic power without civic engagement is incomplete power.

What makes Crystal’s analysis particularly relevant is her recognition that this isn’t about partisan politics, but about ensuring that a community contributing $90 billion statewide has a voice proportional to its economic impact. She’s calling for a transformation from cultural pride to civic action, from business success to policy influence. – David Washington

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Part I: Transforming Culture Into Power—Backed by Real Economic Strength

By Crystal Negron

The Hispanic community built this region with blood, sweat, and tears. From food trucks to family-run shops, cleaning services to construction crews, Central Florida’s Hispanic community has poured everything into starting businesses and creating opportunity—not just for themselves, but for their children, their neighborhoods, and the economy of this state.

They did it while navigating language barriers, working double shifts, and learning the system as they went. They did it while being overlooked for loans, pushed to the margins, and still showing up every morning with grit in their eyes and pride in their hearts. That’s what being the backbone really means.

And the numbers prove it—because numbers don’t lie. Central Florida is home to more than 20,000 Hispanic-owned businesses. Across the state, that number rises to over 600,000. Together, they contribute more than $90 billion to Florida’s economy each year. Right here in our region, Hispanic consumer spending accounts for over $16 billion—and it’s projected to surpass $25 billion in the near future. These aren’t just statistics. They are the lived experiences of families pouring everything they have into survival and success, often without recognition, often without a voice in the rooms where decisions are made.

Hispanics are not just business owners. They are builders. Providers. Innovators. And it’s time the community recognizes that with those impressive numbers must come equally impressive civic presence.

The Hispanic community must show up—not just when politicians come to shake hands during election season, but at town halls, on school board ballots, and even on the steps of the Capitol in Tallahassee. They must remind elected officials that they are not a community of convenience; they are a community of consistency.

Because Hispanics are people who love this country. People who love their families. And they are tired of being unseen, or only acknowledged when it benefits someone else’s agenda.

Every tamalada event at Plaza del Sol, every Latino-owned store in Kissimmee, every employee at a Hispanic-owned construction firm—they all represent tax dollars, jobs, and community investment. But unless the community translates that into collective civic voice—through voter registration, ballot participation, community forums, and policy monitoring—they risk being valued in prosperity but absent in power.

Here’s how to transform culture and commerce into influence.

The Hispanic community must advocate for civic forums tied to business events—so whenever policy is championed in Tallahassee, it’s followed by an engagement session at Lake Eola or a local chamber luncheon. They should use economic data in every conversation: over $90 billion in Hispanic-driven spending, over 20,000 businesses locally. That matters to city planning, infrastructure, public schools, and transit investment.

The community needs to build ongoing education among entrepreneurs—offering sessions on how to track, advocate, and vote on policies that affect small business, staffing, and expansion. And they must empower families and youth with the tools to understand how their contributions and taxes support parks, police, public schools, and transportation—so that civic action becomes personal, not abstract.

This isn’t about partisan divides. It’s about aligning Hispanic values—family, opportunity, stability—with consistent civic engagement. The backbone of the community deserves policymaking that recognizes their economic contributions—and responds with partnership.

Central Florida, if the Hispanic community believes in being more than festive displays, then they must insist on being included in decisions. Their backbone isn’t just in their culture—it’s in their businesses, taxes, jobs, and day-to-day presence. And that backbone should carry power, respect, and representation.

Let’s turn cultural pride into civic pride. Let’s turn Hispanic businesses into beacons of change. Let’s make sure that the numbers—the six hundred thousand businesses, the ninety billion dollars, the twenty thousand local firms—don’t just tell a story… they set the standard.

Because culture with commerce is impressive—but culture with power is unstoppable.

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Crystal Negron’s article is the kind of thoughtful, data-driven advocacy that The Orlando Voice exists to amplify—voices that understand that real change happens when communities move from the margins to the center of political discourse.

This article first appeared in The Orlando Voice Politics, July 22, 2025