I am grateful for the opportunity to serve as the president of The Massachusetts Latino Police Officers Association, Inc. (MLPO) for a second term 2023-2025.

MLPO, was formed in 2012 as officers of Latino descent felt there was no active organization that filled a need for representation of our culture, values, and community. Today, we are the only active statewide Hispanic/Latino law enforcement organization in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The organization is comprised of a rich mix of police officers within the Commonwealth. Our membership consists of officers from state police, cities and towns, colleges and universities, sheriff’s department, and corrections. This diverse group brings a broad set of skills, experience, and perspective to our organization. This diverse membership allows us to strengthen and help our Latino/a professionals, to support one another and strive to reach professional diversity in law enforcement.

The mission of The Massachusetts Latino Police Officers Association is to create a professional association that provides support, advocacy, and individual and professional development to its members. We also aim to improve and increase diversity in law enforcement; and to bridge the
gap between the community and the police. To carry on MLPO’s mission we need your support
and involvement. Let’s highlight the diverse group we are. The broad sets of skills, experience,
and perspectives our members bring to the organization and respective agencies we serve, are
traits that attract the next generation of Latino/a officers.

In our short ten years, we have accomplished great things. Greatly, in part to our members, who serve as mentors to the younger generation wanting to become police officers. Together, I believe we can promote a stronger sense of community and a common purpose to represent our culture and values. You may ask yourself how and why should I support MLPO? As the current President of MLPO my goal is to enhance our professional network and foster relationships among the officers of Latino/Hispanic descent and the ones who support our mission across the Commonwealth. You can continue to help support the objectives and programs we have established over the years, so we can persist in diversifying police departments across The Commonwealth and be a true reflection of the constituency they serve.

Your support keeps alive programs like:

  • The creation of a scholarship that bears Officer Manny Familia name for self-sponsor academy candidates and financial support for higher education.
  • We have in the past sponsored 4 to the reserved intermittent academy
  • We sponsored 1 to full time police academy
  • We honored Officer Jose A. Maceira (Boston Police) with an honorary brick at The Puerto Rican Veterans Monument in the South End
  • Active involvement in police reform
  • Have a seat at the Body Camera Commission
  • Attend MPTC/POST commission monthly meetings
  • Community fairs/ job fairs
  • Awards ceremony
  • We are supporters of MAWLE, MASSCOP, Italian American Police Officers Association, among many other organizations across the Commonwealth.
  • As I look into the future of MLPO, I hope that I can count on you joining in our mission. I asked you to promote the organization as we continue to march forward. Progress has no borders, and we can only achieve this together.

I look forward to hearing from you personally, I want to know if I can count on you. Please email me directly at yessenia@massslatinopolice.org to find out more.

Thank You,
Yessenia Gomez, President

Massachusetts Latino Police officers Association