Building on Latino/a Support with LULAC
By Christopher Edwards on 07/21/2010 @ 07:00 AM
The featured speakers at the Immigration Session at the 2010 Creating Change Conference were (left to right): Thomas Saenz, MALDEF; Julie Kruse, Immigration Equality Action Fund; Ben de Guzman, NQAPIA; John Traviño, LULAC 4871 Member, and Jesse Garcia, President LULAC 4871.
Copyright © LULAC News
The Spring issue of LULAC News, the quarterly magazine of the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), includes an article in support for comprehensive immigration reform among the LGBT community. LULAC -- for those unfamiliar -- is the largest Latino membership organization in the U.S.
The piece in LULAC News highlights the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force's Creating Change conference in Dallas where Thomas Saenz of the Mexican American Legal Defense Fund (MALDEF) was the keynote speaker. Saenz urged the progressive LGBT community in support of comprehensive immigration reform, the DREAM Act and the Uniting American Families Act (UAFA).
Saenz's keynote was complemented the following day by an immigration workshop that Immigration Equality co-led with LULAC Council 4871 - the Dallas Rainbow Coalition and the National Asian Pacific Islander Alliance (NQAPIA). The workshop built on the LGBT community's strength in grassroots lobbying of elected officials. In LULAC News, Jesse Garcia president of LULAC 4871 and our co-presenter commented, "The underlying message was that immigration is not a just a Hispanic issue. Immigrants come in different colors and different orientations from all over the world. Immigration is an issue in every community."
Our work with LULAC has continued since February's Creating Change; last week our policy counsel Connie Utada presented at LULAC's national conference in Albuquerque where — the only specifically LGBT and allied council within the LULAC network — won Council of the Year!
Through the work of Jesse Garcia and LULAC 4871, we are proud to have LULAC's endorsement of the UAFA and LGBT-inclusive immigration reform. They are a key part of our growing list of endorsements from Latino/a, Asian, religious, business, and civic groups -- including Hispanic Federation, MALDEF, Labor Council of Latin American Advancement, National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health and UNID@S . If your organization would like to endorse UAFA and LGBT-inclusive immigration reform, please contact us to find out how.
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