Somos Un Pueblo Unido Protecting Immigrants' Rights in New Mexico

Somos Un Pueblo Unido 1205 Parkway Dr, Suite B Sante Fe, NM   87507   telephone: 505-424-7832 fax: 505-438-8518 email: somos@rt66.com

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 28, 2007

Contact: Marcela Díaz, Somos Un Pueblo Unido

Santa Fe, NM (November 28, 2007) — On Saturday, December 1, fifty people from several community-based organizations in New Mexico will travel to Des Moines, Iowa to participate in the historic Heartland Presidential Forum with major Democratic presidential hopefuls. Mayté García, a student leader from a local immigrants’ rights organization, Somos Un Pueblo Unido, has been chosen to play a more prominent role in the forum by telling a presidential candidate her personal story and asking a question about immigration reform. Candidates participating in the forum are Sen. Hillary Clinton, Sen. John Edwards, Sen. Christopher Dodd, Congressman Dennis Kucinich and Sen. Barack Obama. The entire forum, which is sponsored by the Center for Community Change (CCC) and Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement (CCI), will be televised live on C-SPAN at 12:30 PM local time (1:30 PM Central Time).

The Heartland Presidential Forum, which is expected to draw 5,000 attendees from 32 states, differs from other forums with its unique format. The focus of the event will be on immigration, health care, and low wage worker issues. Top-tier candidates will take their turn on stage and will be asked questions by people affected by the issues at stake in the election, rather than giving canned speeches. This design is meant to put power back in the hands of the people and hold candidates accountable to what the people in this country really value.

Ms. García is an accomplished student leader who immigrated to New Mexico with her family when she was six years old. As a member of Somos, she has campaigned for pro-immigrant laws at the state level and has worked to garner support for federal comprehensive immigration reform and the DREAM Act, a failed Senate proposal that would have given undocumented students a path to citizenship.

“I’m going to tell the candidates my family’s story. My family has been in the lengthy process of adjusting immigration status for over eleven years,” said Ms. García. “Many immigrants are strong leaders, positive role models, and contributors to our communities, but they are greatly limited by an outdated and broken immigration system. I’m going to ask the candidates to make a real commitment to changing our immigration laws so that hard working families like mine can integrate into society without fear and so that we are better positioned to help the country that we are now a part of reach its full potential.”

Somos Un Pueblo Unido, a statewide immigrants’ rights organization based in Santa Fe, is heading up a delegation of 35 of its members from Santa Fe, Albuquerque, Española, Farmington, and Las Cruces to take part in the forum. About half of the participants are registered voters. They will be joined by others from the New Mexico Conference of Churches, the New Mexico chapter of the National Association of Social Workers, El Centro de Igualdad y Derechos, and the Native American Health Care Coalition.

“We are very excited to be participating in this national event,” said Somos member Aimé Gonzales, a law student at the University of New Mexico who recently became a naturalized citizen. “We want the candidates and the country to know that even though many immigrants cannot vote, they have family members and loved ones who can. As voters, we take their issues into consideration, because they are our issues too.”

The forum is an important part of the Campaign for Community Values, a multi-issue and multi-year effort to challenge the divisive message of the right and to promote Community Values. The Campaign for Community Values is a collective comprised of more then 100 community-based organizations from all over the country, including Somos, seeking to have an impact on public opinion and the 2008 elections.

“Citizen or non citizen, rich or poor, we are all in this together, and we need our next president to understand that,” said participant Betty Jean Shinas, member of New Mexico’s chapter of the National Association of Social Workers and the Santa Fe Immigration Committee. “Immigration reform and health care for all families in this country should be top priorities for our elected leaders.” Visit www.iowaheartlandforum.org for more information on forum. The Heartland Presidential Forum will also be available via webcast at www.movementvisionlab.org .