The Purple Line

José R. Cárdenas has spent nearly forty years at the center of Washington’s work in the Americas, at the State Department, the National Security Council, USAID, the Organization of American States, and the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. A first-generation Colombian-American, he grew up in 1960s Northern Virginia, where his father stayed after a medical residency at Georgetown and a close Cuban-American community shaped his world.

He came of age at Catholic University and Georgetown during the Reagan years, reading history as told by opposing camps, a habit that drew him to foreign affairs. His career began at the Cuban American National Foundation under Jorge Mas Canosa and led to USAID, where he served as Acting Assistant Administrator for Latin America and the Caribbean.

Today he makes the case that the hemisphere stands at a strategic moment, bound by shared values, shared history, and supply chains worth keeping close. His advice to young people is refreshingly simple: treat everyone with decency, always.

Dr. Mark Hugo Lopez is Director of Race and Ethnicity Research at the Pew Research Center, where he coordinates the National Survey of Latinos. Both sides of his family worked the fields of Mexico during the Revolution before settling in California, where his father rose from meat packer to principal and his mother from bank teller to elite cosmetic sales director.

A young Mark took notes on the evening news, a habit that sharpened his English. He chose Berkeley over Stanford and Yale, then went on to Princeton, where he nearly walked away in his first six weeks. He stayed, earned his Ph.D. in economics, and joined the University of Maryland faculty at twenty-eight.

Today he is one of the country’s most trusted voices on Latino public opinion. His newest work finds hope and doubt side by side: only one in five Latinos say they have fully achieved the American Dream, yet most say they already live better than their parents did.

Dr. Paule Valery Joseph is a tenured Senior Investigator at the National Institutes of Health, where she leads the Section of Sensory Science and Metabolism and co-directs the NIH National Smell and Taste Center. Born in Guatire, Venezuela to Haitian professionals, she came to the United States alone at sixteen, finding her footing first in Miami and later in New Jersey.

Her journey began humbly — at Hostos Community College in the Bronx, where she earned her first nursing degree — and reached all the way to a Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania, alongside a family nurse practitioner degree and an executive MBA. She speaks of adversity and opposition not as things that break us but as forces that shape us “at a cellular level,” a conviction deepened by watching her home country’s turbulence during the Chávez years from afar.

Her NIH career began, fittingly, with an internship. Today she is a leading authority on the science of smell and taste — and how these senses shape metabolism, memory, and health — a power she knows firsthand, having once teared up at the aroma of a classic Venezuelan dish far from home.

Lucinda Borque is Executive Assistant to the CEO at Reform Alliance and President of the CHLI Alumni Association (Global Leaders Class of Spring 2016). The daughter of Dominican immigrants, she grew up between Queens, New York and New Jersey and studied criminal justice at Rutgers University, later earning a Master of Professional Studies from The George Washington University. Her path into public service ran through congressional offices on both sides of the aisle and seven years at U.S. Customs and Border Protection—a full-circle arc from her family’s immigration story to service at the border. Today she brings that experience to the fight for criminal justice reform, championing opportunity, pragmatism, and diversity of thought.

Diego Area is the President and CEO of Global Americans, a nonpartisan think tank dedicated to reimagining U.S.–Latin America relations. Born and raised in Caracas, Diego came of age during the rise of the Chavez regime, becoming deeply engaged in student government at the Universidad Central de Venezuela—where his father also served on the faculty—and in the broader opposition movement, at times placing himself at personal risk in defense of democratic values.

Eventually fleeing Venezuela, Diego and his wife settled in Washington, DC, where he earned a master’s degree in political management from George Washington University. In 2021, GWU honored him with its Guardian of Democracy Award, recognizing graduates who have overcome significant obstacles to uphold democratic principles at home and abroad. He went on to spend six years at the Atlantic Council’s Adrienne Arsht Latin America Center before taking the helm at Global Americans, where he builds bridges between the private sector, governments, and the U.S. Latino community to strengthen democracy and hemispheric cooperation.

In this episode of the Purple Line Podcast, hosted by CHLI CEO Mary Ann Gomez Orta, Diego reflects on his journey from the streets of Caracas to Washington policy circles, the lessons of opposing authoritarianism firsthand, and his views on U.S.–Latin America relations, the current administration’s posture toward Venezuela, and the intertwined futures of the Venezuelan and Cuban diasporas. A passionate advocate for free expression and diversity of thought, Diego brings a compelling and deeply personal lens to some of the hemisphere’s most pressing questions.

Maria Luisa Boyce serves as Vice President of Global Public Affairs for UPS, where she advances logistics, trade compliance, customs policy, and government affairs across Latin America. Born in Bogotá, Colombia, she grew up across five different Latin American countries—Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Ecuador, and Honduras—where her parents still reside. She later lived for 14 years in Phoenix, Arizona, before making Washington, DC her home.

A graduate of Universidad Externado de Colombia, where she studied finance and international relations, Maria began her career in banking before spending a decade leading the Border Trade Alliance, a not-for-profit representing over a million constituents along the U.S.-Mexico and U.S.-Canada borders. She then transitioned into government service at U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), serving as Senior Advisor to the Commissioner and Small Business Ombudsman as a political appointee. After more than seven years at CBP, she joined UPS, where her deep expertise at the intersection of the private and public sectors now informs her work on trade facilitation, compliance, and international programs.

Maria currently serves as Treasurer on the CHLI Board and is a strong advocate for mentorship, bipartisanship, and leading with professional skills and expertise rather than personal labels. She is also actively involved in supporting programs like the Women Exporter Program, helping women entrepreneurs gain access to international trade opportunities.

In this encore episode of The Purple Line, Keith Hernandez sits down with CHLI Board Member John Hoel. He shares his journey of success that started with an internship. He also shares his points of view on diversity of thought, public and private sector work, and advice for people interested in a career in Washington, D.C.

John Hoel is Director, Federal Government Affairs for Altria Client Services. John has served on the Board of Directors of the Congressional Hispanic Leadership Institute since 2008.

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About The Purple Line:

The Purple Line is a community podcast, bringing in-depth conversations with diverse leaders in the public and private sectors. Tune in for conversations and roundtables with national and international influencers.

Whether you are a student looking to gather advice or an established professional tuning in for valuable resources, our dynamic programming provides tips and insights for people of all ages and backgrounds. The Purple Line is produced by The Congressional Hispanic Leadership Institute (CHLI).

Paola Arellano serves as Executive Business and Operational Manager at Rivet Industries, a technology and equipment company focused on protecting frontline workers and military personnel. She also serves as Vice President of Communications for the CHLI Alumni Association (CAA).

Originally from El Paso, Texas, Paola was raised in a border community, living in Ciudad Juárez, Mexico, and crossing daily into the United States for elementary school while her mother taught in El Paso. Experiencing both Mexican and U.S. systems firsthand sparked her early interest in public service and government.

Paola earned her bachelor’s degree in political science, with a minor in communication studies, from St. Mary’s University. In 2022, she participated in CHLI’s Global Leaders Program, where she interned in the congressional office of former Representative Jenniffer González-Colón (now Governor of Puerto Rico) and in The Home Depot’s Washington Government Affairs Office. Prior to completing the program, she secured a full-time staff position in the office of Representative David Valadao (CA-21).

The Purple Line Podcast features a conversation with Omar Franco, Partner and Chair of the Government Law & Lobbying Practice at Becker.

Hosted by CHLI CEO, Mary Ann Gomez Orta, this episode explores Omar's Cuban-American heritage, growing up in Miami amid the socialist diaspora, and the formative lessons from his immigrant parents that shaped his views on the U.S., socialism, and public service. Omar recalls his years at Miami’s prestigious Christopher Columbus High School—including its unique culture and South Florida "cred".

Omar reflects on his successful and unconventional career, the pivotal influence of his long-standing relationship with Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart. Finally, Omar reveals his pivotal role in establishing CHLI, with Rep. Diaz-Balart, and CHLI’s mission to foster bipartisan Hispanic engagement and diverse thought in public discourse.

The CHLI Purple Line Podcast spotlights Patrick Herrera in an inspiring episode recorded in January 2026. Patrick, a proud third-generation Texan from Lubbock and Texas Tech graduate, serves as Senior Legislative Assistant for member of Congress and is President and Co-founder of the GOP Latino Staff Association.

Patrick shares his path to Washington, DC, including his internship with Rep. Judge Carter, and details his current legislative portfolio. Patrick discusses the inspiration behind his family’s multi-generational commitment to service, the founding and future plans of the GOP Latino Staff Association, and his experiences leading a nonprofit as a young professional.

The conversation also celebrates his 2025 achievements—earning a master’s in economics from Purdue University while working full-time and getting engaged—before exploring how networking, faith, and family have fueled his career and can guide the next generation of leaders in the nation’s capital.