As California celebrates Latino Heritage Month recognizing the contributions of the more than 15 million Latinos who call California home, the CHP received grant funding to promote traffic safety within Spanish-speaking communities.

The CHP’s El Protector program is the Department’s longest-standing community outreach engagement program, with a rich history of direct community involvement dating back to 1987 – see this short documentary on the history of the program. With more than a quarter of California’s Latino population speaking limited English or solely Spanish, the El Protector Program is designed to help bring traffic safety education directly to the Spanish-speaking population, reduce the number of crashes on our roads, and save lives.

This year’s El Protector – Spanish Traffic Education Program runs from October 1, 2023, through September 30, 2024.

“Our primary focus is enhancing the safety of California’s roadways,” said CHP Commissioner Sean Duryee. “Through the El Protector Program, we strengthen the CHP’s collaboration with the Spanish-speaking communities we serve. This initiative places a special emphasis on education and preserving lives through dialogue, as opposed to solely focusing on enforcement measures.”

As part of the El Protector Program, Spanish-speaking officers will share traffic safety tips during appearances on Spanish-speaking media outlets and conduct traffic safety presentations with community partners at a variety of venues statewide. These include, but are not limited to, health fairs, migrant and farmworker communities, businesses with a high number of Spanish-speaking employees, and Hispanic/Latino cultural events.

Topics of discussion include the importance of seatbelt/child safety restraints, the dangers of impaired driving and distracted driving, the primary causes of crashes, defensive driving techniques, teen/parent safe driving, driver’s license requirements, and other educational subjects.

Members of the public can request an El Protector Program traffic safety presentation by contacting the CHP’s Office of Community Outreach, Marketing, and Recruitment at (916) 843-3210.

Funding for this program was provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

The mission of the CHP is to provide the highest level of Safety, Service, and Security.