Jerry Tello

Jerry Tello comes from a family of Cuahuitecan, Mexican, Texan roots and was raised in Compton and south central Los Angeles. He is an internationally recognized expert in the areas of men and boys of color, fatherhood, family strengthening, racial justice, racial healing, community peace and mobilization and culturally- based violence prevention/intervention issues.

Over the past 40 years, Tello has dedicated his efforts to “La Cultura Cura”, or efforts addressing systems and community transformational healing from the effects of racial inequity and internalized oppression. His ideology is based on a belief that individuals and community have culturally-based knowledge and wisdom that can be leveraged to prevent and heal the pain of relationship and community violence, teen pregnancy, fatherlessness and racial justice.

He has appeared in Time, Newsweek and Latina magazines, among others, and has received many major awards including President Obama’s White House Champions of Change Award, the Maria Shriver Architect of Change Award, two California Governor’s Awards, the Ambassador of Peace Award and the Presidential Crime Victim’s Service Award, presented by former President Bill Clinton and Attorney General Janet Reno.