In South America, peñas have a long history as community gatherings for the performance of folk music, poetry, storytelling, and social commentary. La Peņa takes its inspiration from this tradition and works to integrate the arts with the daily life of the community.
La Peña is dedicated to bringing about the promotion of artistic expression in the community. By doing so, the community at large is aware of events, projects and other community-based Latino organizations, in which they might not have been aware of. One of La Peña's main goals is to educate the people of the community and draw them into the organization.
"It's part of being members of our community and wanting to see that changes come about for our people that makes us do what we do here."
- Cynthia Pérez, founder of La Peña
