Denver, Colo., Aug 23, 2008 / 09:55 am (CNA).- With the fate of the traditional family hanging in the balance, Catholic and Evangelical leaders from around the country are meeting in Denver ahead of the Democratic National Convention to show their support for marriage and the family.

The event, dubbed “Viva La Familia!” will feature Latino leaders and entertainers from Colorado, California and Arizona, and is being organized by the Alliance for Marriage Foundation (AFM).

One of the leaders who will speak at the rally, Rev. Sam Rodriguez Jr. explains that, "Marriage and family are central to Hispanic Americans." Rodriguez, one of the featured speakers, added, "It is the driving engine of our growth and success as a community."

Organizers say that they will also take the opportunity to launch a national coalition of Catholic and Evangelical Latino leaders in support of marriage and family.

According to a press release from AFM, both the Republican and Democratic Parties may be working to garner the support of Latinos, but they have done so while ignoring their strong support for marriage and the family. The non-partisan coalition will aim to make Latinos’ concerns about these two societal pillars known to politicians.

The coalition’s leaders also point out that “the population of Latinos in America ‘will triple in size’ in the next four decades, according to the Pew Research Center. This makes them a sizeable voting bloc in the coming years.

The rally in support of marriage and the family will feature speakers such as, Rev. Samuel Rodriguez, Jr., President of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference, Alejandro Bermudez, Director of the Catholic News Agency and the Catholic Information Agency ACI-Prensa, the most read Spanish language Catholic web site in the world, Rev. Eve Nunez, President of the Arizona Latino Commission, and Luis Soto, Executive Director of the Denver-based Centro San Juan Diego, which is run by the Catholic Archdiocese of Denver.

"Viva la Familia! Event, wants to remind us all that the most important social institution is the family," said Luis Soto. "The family formed when a man and woman marry for their common good and for the procreation and education of their children. It is this spirit of celebrating and growing as Hispanic families that we will gather."

Eduardo Verástegui, the star of the recently released movie “Bella” will also deliver a message on marriage and family to attendees of the event via satellite from Mexico City.

Entertainment will be provided by the renowned Mexican clown Cepillín, who was for many years a great TV star in more than 18 countries. The event will also feature the Catholic recording artist Ge'La.

The rally will take place at Ninth Street Park on the campus of the University of Colorado’s Denver location at 1:30 p.m. on Sunday.

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