“Truly Unique”—Such Are the Members of the Mexican-American Community

She has taken the best from both Mexican and American cultures and strives to set an example for other Latina women

Ellsie Lucero vestido verde — Daughter and granddaughter of Mexicans from Durango, born in Nevada, Ellsie Lucero is a distinguished Mexican-American attorney. Credit: Alejandra Icela Martínez

Not only is she an attorney, but she is also one of the few Latina lawyers who handles commercial litigation and water law. Currently, Ellsie Lucero serves as the President of the Latino Bar Association in Nevada.

Her success story in the United States would be impossible to understand without knowing the story of her parents and her grandfather—a story of sacrifice that has motivated her to give her best.

“My family is from Durango, Mexico,” she explains. Her grandfather emigrated to the United States in the 1960s when the Bracero Program was enacted—during World War II—to allow Mexicans to work in the country in response to a labor shortage at that time, she recounts.

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Her father, also from Durango, emigrated to Chicago in the 1980s; her mother was born in Los Angeles, and they both moved to Las Vegas after getting married, where Ellsie was born.

“Now I am a lawyer, and that would not have been possible without him (her grandfather), without his sacrifice and my father’s sacrifice in migrating to the United States at a young age, not knowing anyone, not speaking the language… now his children have the opportunity to go to college, to be professionals, to work in good jobs and make a change in the community.”

“Seeing the change his sacrifice has achieved, I am sure he feels very proud to have done that for his family,” she emphasizes.

That sacrifice makes her feel proud but also carries a sense of responsibility to do her best. This is the common thread she finds in other members of the Mexican-American community.

“Here in Las Vegas, there are many Mexicans like me whose grandparents and parents immigrated to the United States and are now doing great things—they’re professionals, they’re business owners, very successful. I believe this is thanks to the drive their parents, grandparents, and all those who sacrificed for the future of their families have given them.”

These characteristics, this duality of cultures that comes from being born in the United States to Mexican parents and growing up immersed in both cultures, make Mexican-Americans very special.

“We are truly unique. We feel very Mexican, but we also embrace American culture, and it’s a beautiful experience to have both cultures.”—Ellsie Lucero

Latino Bar Association of Nevada

With around 100 members statewide, the Latino Bar Association of Nevada, founded in 1995, is an organization with the mission of promoting and supporting the interests of Latino lawyers and the broader Latino community. As Ellsie put it in an interview with El Heraldo USA and El Heraldo Television, “It definitely helps to have a lawyer who understands you—not just linguistically but also culturally and because they share the same background.”

The association also assists those interested in joining the legal profession.

“We’re like a family,” she explains, “and we hold events throughout the year to raise funds for scholarships that help aspiring lawyers take the Law School Admission Test (LSAT) and achieve good results.”

“It’s very expensive—around $2,000 for the course, the application, and everything you need to cover.”

Helping and setting an example is part of this attorney’s work.

“When you see a Latino, you feel inspired, you think ‘Wow! They did it, and I can do it too.’ There aren’t many Latinos doing commercial litigation and water law, and I hope to do that for another Latina, for her to look at me and say, ‘I can do that too.’”

And, as Ellsie says: “Sí se puede”—Yes, it can be done.