Latin American empanadas with an African twist

Youth economic advancement

South LA

Pilot or new project, program, or initiative (testing or implementing a new idea)

College is unattainable for some people. The idea of taking out a large loan is daunting. Family responsibilities make getting a full time job after high school the main priority. And some people just don't want to get the formalized education.

This is where my street cart franchise comes into to help young people who want a guided entrepreneurial journey.
Presently I am the owner of a cold street cart that will soon serve fresh spring rolls. As I developed my street cart knowledge, I saw there was a great opportunity to elevate the street cart game as they do in NYC with the hot nuts street cart franchise.

I believe I can do the same with hit empanadas in LA county by working with young people, 18-25 who are high school graduates or GED holders. After a year apprenticeship, the young person would be able to be part of the Hola Hola Primos empanadas street cart franchise. With a franchise, there guidelines and assistance to help a young business person while providing some freedom.

Employment continues to be the biggest concern of Angelenos. We see this with the rise of homelessness, the lines at County offices, lots of huge gig economy . street. A way to combat this major problem is focusing on a specific employment areas and providing a path to have workers succeed there while doing social good in communities that need culture diversity acceptance, healthier food, and employment opportunities
Hola Hola Primos has two economic components. First it seeks to employee youth by providing them a clear entrepreneurial program. There needs to be more alternatives to college. Many people want to work and experience life outside of the classroom, but they need practical and economical wise jobs. Entrepreneurship could be that option for many. City of LA and LA County offer many free programs to help people start businesses, but what is mixing is true hands on experience with close guidance. This Apprenticeship takes a page from history and allows for learning through doing.
Second the education component of the apprenticeship will make these young people more employable, even if they choose not to stay street vendors. They will be exposed to critical thinking about life. Critical thinking helps in achieving success.

On a personal note, this is important to me as I often feel tension between Latinos and Blacks in South LA. I believe this is because of lack of education and understanding that there are people of the African Diaspora in Latin America. The city of Los Angeles was founded by Spanish speakers and some where Black/of the African Diaspora.
We need more highlighting of how are similar and get back to celebrating our city's diversity.
One way of doing that is through education and jobs that uplift the community. LA has a lot of problems, but racial/ethnicity intolerance shouldn't be one of them.