Growing up in western Minnesota as a second-generation Mexican-American, Marisela Cantu saw how hard it was for new immigrants to navigate systems of power, from government to education. In her job as an assistant Dakota County attorney, Cantu strives to help other minorities gain access to the resources they need. “I saw how minorities were intimidated by the system because they didn’t feel like they had the same rights and the forum wasn’t set up to serve them,” Cantu says. For some, simply seeing a Latino attorney diminishes some of their fears.
Cantu has worked in several areas of government since she earned her degrees from the University of Minnesota, including as a law clerk for both an Anoka County judge and a federal magistrate, and for two Minnesota state senators. In her current position, Cantu enforces child support laws.
But Cantu isn’t one to slow down after work. She serves on the board of La-Mano, a Mankato-based nonprofit that provides interpreting services to Latino and African immigrants who live in the region, mentors Latino law students, and serves on the Minnesota Hispanic Bar Association board.
Cantu says she has taken the difficult experience of growing up in rural Minnesota, where fellow classmates were often disparaging to migrant families, and used it to motivate her to become a lawyer to prove them wrong. Now she is proud to serve as a role model for other Latinos in outstate Minnesota, showing them that by getting an education they can go far.
